The evening telegraph. [volume] (Philadelphia [Pa.]) 1864-1918, 1870-03-05
bishop Temples Recnnted Recnntntlou.

From the Hartford ChuTchnlaIl.
The evils of the present union of Church and
State in England were never so sadly apparent
as when Bishop Temple, in the Convocation of
Canterbury, stood up to defend his contribution
TO the volume of ESSAYS and Reviews" which
that same body, in 1864, condemned as ''con-
tanning teaching contrary to the doctrine
received by the United Church of England and
Ireland in common with the whole Catholic
Church of Christ"
The Archdeacon of Exeter announced in Con-
vocation that he had permission from his Dioce-
san to state that Bishop Temples essay would
not appear in any future edition of the volume
and that it would probably never be published
again. The Convocation evidently accepted
this as a recantation en- the part of Bishop
Temple of the obnoxious opinions previously
held, and a sundering of all fellowship with
the former associates in free thinking. 1t came
as healing balm to the wounded consciences
of the clergy. II fel IKE oil upon the troubled
waters of the English Church. All was peaceful
once more. Even those who had most bitterly
opposed the confirmation of the appointment of
DIR. Temple and his conservation confessed
themselves satisfied and the convocation breathed
free once more.
We cannot enter very fully into the brief Joy
which peryaded that assembly at this recanta-
tion. 1t was no doubt good thing for Bishop
Temple to do, even though 1t was done late. 1t
came not too early for the pride of o self-willed
deifer Of conscience, nor too late to spoil the
picture-so pleasant to the enemies of the
Church-of bishop holding doctrines which
his own communion had condemned. Bishop
Temple would have done something to-
wards saving both his own honor and
that of the Church. But no repent
ance or recantation, whether coming early or
late after his appointment by Mr.. Gladstone
could atone for the evil already produced by his
essay, or for the scandal brought upon Chris
tianity by the selection of its author as one of
the chief pastors of the flock of Christ. He
might withdraw that essay from circulation and
burn every copy-nay, like Cranmer, he might
have burned the hand that wrote it, but he could
not withdraw its teachings from the minds of
its readers.
But it seems that Bishop Temple was not
ready to grant the Church the favor of even a
tardy recantation. The calm produced by the
Archdeacons statement on Wednesday, was
broken on Friday by statement from the
Bishop himself. 1t came like thunderbolt into
that peaceful house, and those who had for a
few hours fancied that the storm was over saw
fresh cause for alarm. For the Bishop defantlv
stated that he held to the same opinions rs
formerly, and was ready to defend them He
should withdraw his essay from publication, if
at all, only because the volume in which il
originally appeared had done its work-and
that good work.
Bishop Temple makes much of conscience.
and takes the ground that he cannot honestly
regret having given to the world the essay in
question. But ought not conscience TO have
told him that, as long as he upholds doctrines
which his own convocation has formally con.
demned, he cannot honestly hold bishopric
The English Church has learned and cannot
soon forget one important lesson. That lesson
Is the peril of Crown appointments TO the epis
eOpate, and, consequently, of the whole connec
tion of Church and State. Men now have Uhell
eyes open, and Bishop Temple it seems, is des
Tined p0t 70 allow them to close again very soon