The Emporia news. [volume] (Emporia, Kan.) 1859-1881, 1870-07-22
THE RELIGION OF CHARLES DICKENS.

In all the multitudinous illusions to
the death of Charles Dickens, We recall
only one, from any quarter, that has
struck us as truly Peck sniffian and that
is the inquiry, "Was he Christian ?"
And who started it? AS the story
goes, it was first raised at a prayer
meeting in Plymouth church. Perhaps
it was. AS that meeting is conspicu-
ously known to be free to all question
ers, it is not surprising that either this
or any other question should there be
propounded. Indeed, there will prob
ably be some pious fools to raise the
same question over the minister himself,
when Mr.. Beecher dies.
The inquiry appeared to us, as it ap-
peared to ten thousand other persons, to
be the offspring of a self-complacent re-
ligious bigotry which wants to test ev-
cry mans conduct of life, quality of
character, and hope of Immortality by
its own self-prescribed and al!-sufficient
infallibility.
What did these questioners mean by
asking, "Was Charles Dickens a Chris
tian?" Did they refer to the manner of
his life, or only to the orthodoxy of his
creed? They meant substantially this
''What were his religious views? Of
what church was he a member? Which
of the various theologies did he rely on
as the basis of his souls salvation?
What was his notion of the Trinity?
Did he accept or reject the doctrine of
the Atonement? This is what the
questioners meant by their question.
Now we protest against the too prev
alent and altogether sanctimOnious GUS
tom of approaching dead mans bier
and, before he is buried, holding over
him coroner's inquest of doctrinal
theology, with view to settle, by an
examination of his supposed intellect
ual beliefs, the solemn proposition
whether his soul has probably gone to
Heaven or hell. To all such morbid
anatomy of spiritual dissection, comes
the rebuke of the Apostle who said,
"Who art thou that judgest another?
To his own Master he standeth or fall
eth"
Let it not be supposed that we regard
with lightness the question whether any
man lives q Christian life, or dies
Christian death. The most momentous
duty devolving upon every human
being who comes into the world,
and who knows he must go out of it, is
the development of a Christian charac-
ter-a thing which he equally needs for
both worlds. But what we insist upon
is that his character, not being built up
on creed, is not to be tested by creed.
An orthodox creed does not make a
Christian character, nor does the abb
sence of such creed imply the absence
of such character. The attempt to
determine at a mans death whether or
not he lived Christian life, by making
an inquiry into his formulas of church
belief, is wholly at variance with the
teachings of that Gospel which declares,
''By their fruits shall We know them"
Judging with this judgment, who
among the literary men of the present
generation has done more good to the
world than the kind, generous, and low
ing soul of whom the Plymouth pray
er-meeting raised its mawkish question
Having for many years enjoyed the
ministry both of Charles Dickens and
of Henry Ward Beecher, we give it as
our opinion that the preaching of the
one has always been as Christian as that
of the other. Furthermore, from what
we know of the personal characters OF
these great and good men, we believe
that the title of Christian belongs equal
ly to both as much as singly to either
Nevertheless, in giving this opinion, we
ought to add that, painfully consciou:
of possessing too small a share of the
Il Christian religion in our own heart, we
dare not undertake to measure the
amount of it possessed by other and
better men.-N. Y. Independent.