The Wheeling daily intelligencer. [volume] (Wheeling, W. Va.) 1865-1903, 1873-12-31
A REMARKABLE EVENT.
Lecture by q Layman In Westminster
Abbey.

/
Yesterday was the day appointed b!
the Archbishops for "intercessIous 10
missions" and there were services ii
most Of tho churches and chspGls con-
nected with the Established Church
Dean Stanley siguAlized the occasion by
inviting DR.. Max Muller 10 deliver a lee
ture in the evening in Westminster Alb
hey; and this produced great sensation
In the ecclesiastical world. II had, o.
course, been announced beforehand thai
the lecture would be delivered, but 1t wa
expected that some means might, per-
haps, be found oil persuading the Dear
not to violate customary uSages. neet
hardly say that the clergy Of the Church
OF England claim 10 themselves the ex
elusive right Of lifting up their voices Ii
church. A bill has repeatedly been
brought forward in the House OF Com
mons to authorize laymen or Clergymer
of other denominations 10 deliver lectures
or addresses in the churches ot the ES
tablIshment, but It has always been
rejected. 1t Is stated, apparently
on authority, that as regards the Abbey
there Is, at least, one precedent for per
mIttiug a layman to read a lecture on a
religious subject from the lectern
In the nave. Ii appears that Mr. Gilbert
Scott (now Sir Gilbert), the eminent &C.
cIesiastical architect, once gave an arcp.
illogical lecture in the Abbey. Moreover
care was taken, so we are told-to give
Dr.. Max MulleTs address a character
distinct from that Of the cathedral ser.
vices" The choir did not attend the
Dean and others Of the cathedral clergy
who were present wore only their college
gowns and hoods, and not their eccles.
iastical vestments, so that the assembly
had TIE char acter Of public meet
ing rather than q congregation. Bishop
Heber hymn, From Greenland's Icy
Mountains" was sung before and the One
Hundreth Psalm after the lecture, and
the Dean wound up the proceedings by a
blessing. Notwithstanding these precau.
tions-and Il Is understood that the Dean
and Chapter took the opinion Of counsel
on the subject--it is pretty certain that
this innovation will produce a lerment in
the Church. Dean Stanley has long
been regarded as q kind OF 6ete
n0ire by the orthodox clergy. He Is
broad church In the broadcst imaginable
sense, and Is accused OF thinking one re-
ligion as good as another, and better too.
Ills conduct certainly supplies q certain
kind Of justification for the suspicion that
he looks upon religion generally as an
open question, on which every side should
have fair hearing in the hope that poss-
IDLY some day all sects may be reconciled
on some very broad and comprehensive
platform. Dean Stanley has taken con-
spicuOuS part In culuvatiug an alliance
between the Greek and the English
Church, and it Is for this reason that he
has been chosen to Otticiate at ST. Peters
burg at the marriage Of the Duke ol Edin.
burg and the daughter of the Gar. He
went TO the Congress Of Old Catholics TO
offer them the hand Of friendship; he
breaches in Scotch Presbyterian Churches
and insists that they too arc Of the broth.
erhood; and he ia also accused ot Co
uuetting with UnitariRns and Nati-
onalists. Not long since he admitted
a Unitarian clergyman TO the Lords Sup
per in the Abbey, and Of course there was
great outcry aboutit. Putting all these
things together, you can understand the
sort Of alarm with which all his proceed
Ings are regarded and the fears which
have now been excited that the introduce
ton Of DR.. Max Muller into the Abbey is
only the thin end Of the wedge, and that
we may soon expect TO sec there MIR.
Voysey, or even Mr.. Bradlaugh himself.
II is moi very long, moreover, since, by the
Deans permission Bsch's Passion "'was
performed in the same building by secu.
lar orchestra and chorus, as Il In an ordi.
nary concert hall. DR.. Max Muller him.
sell, although perhaps orthodox enough
on the main points, Is chiefly known as q
scientific mythologist, and has rather a
startling way Of classifying Christ
iRnity as only one Of series OF re-
ligions which have taken hold Of
the world. This wps ono Of the principal
points OF last nights lecture. There were
only eight great historical religions, he
said: three Semitic-the Jewish, the
Christian, and the Mohammedan; three
Arian-the BrahmAn, the Buddhist, and
the Parsee; together with two Chinese
the systems Of Conlucius and Lao-Tse.
None Of these religions were ineligible
unless they were studied together, and the
result OF that study would be a science OF
religion. Into this wide field, however,
the Doctor (perhsps from prudential rea-
sons) refrained from entering. He con-
fined himself to some remarks on the dif.
ferent religions in their missionary aspects.
judaism, Brahminism, and Zorossterism
we're opposed 10 all missionary enterprise;
Buddhism, Mohammedanism, and Chris
tianity were missionary religions from the
beginning, and would cease to exist unless
they continued so. There were at pres
ent only some 100000 Parsees; the Jews
were thirty times as many, but were not
increasing; Brahminism was proIesSed by
110OO0,000 Of souls, but was practically
dead, because II could not stand the light
Of day. The decisive battle would lie he.
tween Buddhism, Mohammedanism, and
Christianity. There were twice as many
Christians as Mohammedans, but Bnddh.
ism still occupied the first place In the re-
lIgious census Of mankind. The lecturer
said that Christianity had done a great
deal In purifying and otherwise modify
ing the other two great religions, although
perhaps not exactly in the way the mis-
sionarics liked.
Advice TO Those Who Think Of Going