Rutland weekly herald. [volume] (Rutland, Vt.) 1859-1877, 1873-12-11
HERUTLAND HERALD
TUESDAY, DECEMBER 0. 1878.
LET US HAVE PEACE.

..copnt of the Church of the Holy
eonnlchre, says: "All sects of Chris
,ions except Protestants) have chapels
,,nder the roof of the Holy Sepulchre,
and each must keep to itself and not
ronture upon another's ground. 1t has
hoen proven conclusiyely that they can
MT worship together around the grave
# the Saviour of the world in peace. "
We had often wondered how any people
corld have so much alteration for the
saviour of men as to make pilgrimages
~ his sepulchre, and build chapels there
for his worship, and still have so much
If native depravity in their heart as to
engage in fghtings and bloodshed under
the same roof where he lies buried but
,,e cannot question the evidence of the
reliable travellers who tell the tale. We
are in a proper frame of mind to believe
,bat human nature is weak, and that
oven the soothing influence of the
s,viours love is not at all times sufficient
IA keen down the old Adam in us, and
,ontral our innate desire to break the
head of everybody who does not inter-
nrqt his religious teachings as we have
earned to receive ours. We have case
mpoint.
few weeks ago Rev. j. G. Johnson
wrote letter in reference to the late
Evangelical Alliance, well calculated to
pour oil upon the troubled waters of
sectarian strife that had been awakened
nv some things that had there taken
Mace. Rev. Dwight Spencer replied in a
critical letter, in which he stated certain
principles of other denominations upon
one of the vexed questions under discus
sion, and prominently among them the
Methodist; Rev. H. F. Austin reioined
,othis letter in a powerful refutation of
the statements of Mr.. Spencer so far as
they applied to the Methodist church.
Rev. Edward Mills wrote a tacetious
and somewhat ironical letter upon the
.,n,royersey. DR.. w. J. Harris
preached a sermon that we reported and
Rev. Narcisse Cyr engaged in the con-
troversy. All these we published. In
addition we were deluged with letters
from clergymen from all parts of the
country, that we did not print, until
we cried out in despair to be let alone
We reasoned with authors and tried to
convince them that thy were making al
most as bad an exhibition of their faith
As their brethren who broke each Others
heads with bludgeOns around the Holy
sepulchre, and finally the controversy
got so warm and the letters so numer-
Gus that we refused peremptorily topub-
fish any more on that subject.
We hoped that we could end the con-
troversy in that way, but some have in
sisted on our opening the question, we
have either returned their communica-
tons with objections or filed them away
in the waste basket, and should continue
to do so, but one from Mr.. Spencer, who
wrote the second letter that we pub
lished. seems to demand word of eX-
planaton, and we make it as much for
our other correspondents that have con-
tnued to write, or asked us to reopen
the question, as to the writer of this one.
We do not think it profitable to continue
this discussion. 1t does not tend to unity
and promotes a great deal of bad blood
among men who ought to dwell together
in peace. The ventilation of sectarian
differences may be edifying to those
people, who delight to know that men
inside the churches will talk and act very
much like "the worlds people when
they are excited, but it rather retards
the progress of Christian influences.
This letter of Mr.. Spencer, is two col
umn article, purporting 10 show thai
Mr. Austin don't know what are the
principles and practices of his owl
church on the subject of communion
and is accompanied by a copy OF the
Methodist Discipline of 1910. 1t does
look as though this ancient dOcumen
would sustain Mr. Spencer, if it haC
been in force at any time within twenty
or thirty wears; but if Mr.. Austin don
understand his business, we are sorry
for the people who are forced to hea
him preach, and we don't desire to en-
tighten him of the contents of this OLE
Discipline for fear he would trot in on
later, repeating the whole law whereof,
we had convicted him of ignorance on
subject he ought to know all about.
Mr.. Spencer says that it is strange tina
Methodist should run on through tw
columns and half, making grave charg
es, questioning motives, and even stoop
ing to ridicule without let or hindrance
and Baptist not be allowed to ansWe
him as he deserves. If our correspondent
will look through the letters we pub
lished. he will find they are strong
Baptist in their denominational bearing
one being from a Congregationalist, on
from an Episcopalian, one from a Meth
odist, and three from Baptists, so W
do not see how we are discriminatin
against that denomination by adherin
to our resolve to close our columns t
this Improbable controversy We thin
we must leave clergymen to their thee
logical studies, without making our co
umns the text books and if MIR. Au
tin does not understand the doctrine
principles of his own church, we tru'
he will at least learn them, so far as the
accord with the Bible, and when /
finds that he cannot longer be a Meth'
dist and be Christian, he ought to a
low Christianity to prevail, and we Sc
no reason why the same rule should nj
apply to all the other denominations.
is of very little consequence whether
man is Methodist, Episcopalian, Bal
list, Congregationalist or Quaker, unle
he is also a Christian, and while M
Spencer is a better Baptist than Mr.. Au
tin, and perhaps also better Methods
- Io,,t,f tba1y will both NO r