The New York herald. [volume] (New York [N.Y.]) 1840-1920, 1869-10-18
CHURCH OF THE DIVINE PATERNITY.

Sermon by Rev. DIR. Chaplin.
The genial sunshine and clear bracing atmosphere
Of yesterday drew q large and highly fashionable
congregation to the morning services at the Church
OF the Divine Paternity. The Rev. DR.. Chaplin took
for the text OF his discourse the fourth and nth
verses Of the NTH chapter Of the rst EpAte OF John,
which contain the following Words
Andthis the victory that overcometh the world, even
our faith who - ne hst tie world but he that
The preacher said that the passage he had just
read contained two prominent words, the meaning
OF which 1t would be well to consider. These
words were the world and faith. What, then was
meant by the worldf He hardly need tell them that
this world had various meanings. Sonnet lines the
meaning applied to the earth; again, to society or
collective body OF humanity; and still again. 1t was
the expression OF certain spirit or principle. We
could clearly discriminate between the world OF
nature, which GOD pronounced to be composed OF
world. We could clearly distinguish between that
aspect OF things ana that material world which over
snadowed faith or absorbed the desires Of men. We
could perceive the difference between the world
which God gave His Son to death for and those con-
ditions OF humanity which were the offspring OF
thing an the world did not fall within the
scope Of our meaning when we spoke Of the
be well TO observe that in the primitive
age OF the Gospel the world had become identified
' couS we Of Sa a1d ns
In that age than now. Christianity had then but
Just newly come into the world, and 1t was for that
world Jesus Christ was cruclled. 1t was against
that world the apostles had to contend. 1t over
that world that Christianity won It's early victory.
1t was at the hands OF that world that the martyrs
came to their deaths by violence and scOurging and
names. And what made these men more than con-
querOrsr Why, the simple conviction that Jesus
Christ was the son Of GOD. Let him. however, saw
that the course OF historical research did not alter
the substance OF affairs. One man might think the
world was changed from what IL was hen; and yet
the same elements existed. There were obstacles
In the material world; there were conditions
OF society; there were elements and policies OF
upon to contend. This, them led him to consider
the term faith That question was as patent now
1t was eighteen hundred years ago. What were we
to understand BY this term faithS The faith OF
intellectual assent-it was not mere opinion. No.
The moral action Of the will was q stronger element
than the judicial exercise OF the understanding. In
Its highest meaning tatn was trust. Therefore. 1t
was not mere intellectual term, but term that
any child understood Certainly faith grew clearer
to intellectual light; but, after all, its highest
characteristic was trust 1t was hardly neces-
sary to say that faith In this sense was the
basis Of all great achievements. Did any man
ever do any great thing unless he had real
faith to back hmf No. He SAID without faith moth
ing could be done IN this world. man was dead
by the worst OF deaths who was not animated and
inspired by faith. Tne world was not 10 be arrested
In It's affairs or in its grand march OF Christianity
who really supposed that all which we called free
thought ana free speech was simply an emanatlon
from the evil 0ne and we are now preparing stop
1t by the enactment Of dogma by the calling OF
ecclesiastical council just as II that would stop this
mighty force that came sweeping down along the
track Of ages. In conclusion he said in its antago-
nism, in its evil courses, the world was overcome
by faith.