Nashville union and American. [volume] (Nashville, Tenn.) 1868-1875, 1871-11-05
RTTUALIssI IN THE GENERAL CON.
VENTINN

IL luc EullOIs VI Ine Union anu Americana
My last Sundays number of your paper
did not reach me, but the impression left
by rapid glance over an article in il on
the vexed subject of ritualism, is that the
article may not convey the precise state of
the case to its readers. 1t is unjust to the
ritualists themselves, and it is making
ridiculous the advocates of restrictive meas
ures against them, to suppose that the
settlement is at all against mere modes of
worship. 1t is not choral services, or boys
dressed in surplices, or lights and the cross
on the communion table, or genufectiOns
towards it, ETC., etc, that excites all this
emotion. 1t is that these things are used
in order to teach a class of doctrines
which has been commonly regarded
as peculiar to the Latin or the East
ern Churches: that a virtue or
power flows from Christ through the
Priest, by which the elements, whether bap-
tism or the Lords Supper, are essentially
changed, and become impaired to the re-
cipient of spiritual gifts, and graces, and
that his authoritative announcements are
needful conveyances to the soul of divine
pardon and strength, and that the evidence
of purgation is very wholesome one, and
that the invocation of saints is salutarv,
etc, etc. All the Ornaments which the
Ritualists use are important parts ola Ian
guage of signs and symbols by which these
doctrines are inculcated, and that in the
musical and spectacular way, which does
not aim directly at the intellect, is meant to
get the emotional nature in such condition
as will make such beliefs easy of reception.
In the debate on this subject in cOnven-
ton, Mr.. Shelley did not overstate the mat
ter when he said, ''There never was in the
history of this church, time when with an
intense gaze, a more Christian yearning of
heart, and with prOfOunder sympathy in
our trials, were the eyes of the Protestant
churches of the world directed to our &C
tion." l venture something from his
speech: eff it be that in this church of
ours this thing is done The alludes to the
alteration of the cOnsecrated bread and
winel, if it be that in imitation of the ex-
ample of the Roman priests who have sacri-
feed on the altar and have prepared the sa-
crifce for distribution as a means of saliva
ton at their priestly hands, the
holy emblems are now verify the body of the
Christian Savior before whom all shall make
lOwly obeisance,--i such thing now ex-
lists" land it is not uncommon,] sis it not to
be prohibited and repealed from the borders
of our church," "My learned clerical friend
from Wisconsin intimated that some believ-
ed in such peculiar manifestation of the
Holy Presence as to almost concentrate in
the elements the essential verify of Christ
himself, though not in substance, so that
there on the altar, there in the elements,
there in the cup is the Presence, not in the
holy temple, not in the sanctuary of God,
not amongst the people, not down here
passing from heart to heart with His vivify-
ing power and sanctifying influences, but
THERE in a peculiar, mysterious, awful
manner, in such wise that it is
needful to make your reverences bow down
in that direction; and what is it that makes
you bow down there but the elements that
have been touched by the hand of the con
secrating priest? And when these elements
are lifted up, the altar no longer has that
upon it which sanctifies the altar, but that
which does sanctify the altar is in the hands
of the priest, and when carried about obei-
sance should be made wherever the ele-
ments CO." | quote another sentence from
him: ''Oh, my friends, if you hold up such
a temptation to our people, there is that love
of the awful and mysterious pervading the
human mind, that will not only carry away
silly women captive at its will, but
those who have the tendency to excessive
credulity will be carried away, and then
with them a multitude will follow, and if
the example spreads all over our church,
we shall have the lifting up of the host, the
carrying of the elements as the very body
and blood of Christ, and the alteration of
the people, in violation Of every principle of
the law of the church."
II is hard for some to view this subject
with serious feelings, but beliefs which
seem to us absurd, are firmly held by per-
SONS whose abilities we recognize and
whose characters we respect, and any one
who reflects will see that beliefs are after
the result of ones being elevated or low
cred to a different plane of emo
ton. No one can doubt that mys-
teal claims give churches great powers over
some minds; until elections are carried by
the strong-minded, and children cease to
be influenced by their mothers, it will CONT
nue. to be a matter of universal interest that
our churches do not tend to foster belief
in the supernatural power of any corporate
class of men, or to represS freedom of
thought in their members.
RitualiSm is feared by some EpiscOpalians
because they think it aims, (nOt in the most
open mastery way,) to teach system of
doctrines which ''the 80 articles" and the
very existence of the Episcopal Church is a
protest against. We cannot have too much
of the beautiful and majestic in our wor-
ship, but we should have them to develop
and exercise beliefs and emotion which
have been justified to the reason and not to
enable beliefs to creep around our intellec-
tual faculties and get suueptitious home
in the heart. y.