Nashville union and American. [volume] (Nashville, Tenn.) 1868-1875, 1874-05-20
CHE DESCENDED INTO HE'LL,
Rev. Mr.. Bradley on the Proposition
to Alter the EpiscOpalian Greed.
A Pulpit Blast Against the Reform
Movement. tstt

Movement. tt
Inyiew of the discussion had on the 18th
inst. by the members of the Council of the
Reformed Episcopal Church, in session in
New Y ork, upon the proposition to strike
out of their Creed the words, ale descended
into heli,1 DIR. Bradley, Rector of the
Church of the Advent, rightly judged that
a sermon on that subject would be inter-
esting, and his evening discourse last Sab
bath was based upon the words, ale de-
scended into hell.''
The following is a synopsis Of the dis
course:
ssFinally, brethren, pray for us, that the
word of the Lord may have free course and
be glorifed, even as it is with you."-2
TheSs. iii. /.
The holy Apostle cannot conclude his
letter of greeting and instruction to the
Church at ThesSalonica without asking the
prayers of the faithful brethren for himself
and his colaborers, that "the word of the
Lord may have free course and be glori-
fed" 1t is evident that they who are most
fearful of themselves and their own judg-
ment, and who rely most strongly upon
Gods guidance in matters whereof
he has spoken in his Holy Word, are far
safer guides than they who rashly set
aside the teachings of that Word as they
are given in the Holy Scriptures, and have
come down 10 us in the established creeds
and symbols and traditions of the Church.
The whole scope of St. Paul's teaching in
culcates charity and peace, yet does not
permit nor countenance anything looking
to a compromise of apostolic traditions in
favor Of any brothers private Judgment.
Even brethren, forgetting apostolic ordi-
nances, were to be admOnished and sus-
pended from the fellowship of the faithful,
that they might all, with one accord, strive
together for the faith of the gospel.
The Protestant Episcopal Church. has al
ways endeavored to guard faithfully ''the
truth as it is in Jesus" and to stand up
| manfully for ''the faith once delivered unto
the saints" She sets up no Opinions" of
her own in these things and never did set
up any. What God has plainly said, she
simply preserves and repeats. She does
as God has commanded, speaking through
the prophet jeremiah, and she calls TO all
| TO whom her voice may come: ''Stand ye
in the ways, and see, and ask for the old
| paths, where is the good way, and walk
therein. and We shall find rest for your souls"
She knows that rest is not to be found
in ceaseleSs change. She knows that she
has no light to make any change in what
God has declared and what the chosen wit
nesses of Christ have taught. What she
has received she will sacredly guard
against corrupting additions upon the one
side and as Sacredly from all attempts al
theft, abduction, or spoliation upon the
other.
There are thieves about. Some of them
are men who swore sclemnly two or three
times, before God and man that they would
minister the doctrine and sacraments, as
the Church has received the same, accord
ing to the commandments of Gcd,o and
now they do their best to undermine the
doctrine aud to belittle the sacraments.
There is not statement made in the
twelve brief articles of the Apostles Greed
that is not wholly scriptural. Any denial
of what the creed declares is, so far, denial
of Gods Holy Word-nOt because the
Church made the Creed; she did not make,
she received it-but because it is the "WOrd
Of the Lord" 1t is just that Sword of the
Lord" which St. Paul wanted the brethren
to pray God he might always defend andUp-
hold, that il should shave free course and
be glorifed." Free course" does not mean
suppression, stopping its utterance by the
lips of wOrshipers. 1t means prominence,
enunciatIon, countenance.
An ''apoState bishop" of this Church and
about a half dozen preSbyters who have
gone out from us, in their first Annual
Council, by vote Of four to one have
dropped from the Creed the words, ale
descended INTO hell" This Church of ours
simply states this fact of the descent as one
of the facts of the Sayiour's wOndrous life
on earth and under the earth, even in hell,
and above the earth, even in heaven
where he now sits enthrOned. If
Bishop Cummins and his follow
ers cannot say it, they cannot follow King
David nor St. Peter, each Of whom said:
My flesh shall rest in hope, for thou wilt
not leave nv soul in hell, neither wilt thou
suffer thine Holy One to see corruption"
The word SHE'LL as we use it in the
Creed. may not be generally understood.
Popularity, hell is the abode of the devil
and the damned. In Scripture, as in the
Creed, the word is not always necessarily in
this sense. Such a hell there is and
ever will be. But there are two distinct
words in the original language of
the Bible, which mean two dis
tinct places, or conditions Of exist
ence. both of which are represented in an
English version under the name she'll"
The Greek word ''hades' occurs eleven
times in the New Testament, and is gene
orally translated SHE'LL" yet shades" is
never used to denote the place of final tor
ment, the region of the damned; but sig
nifies the "place of departed spirits
whether good or bad-the place Of their
keeping till the day of judgment, when
they shall be reunited to their bodies, amp
90 each TO his appointed destiny. The
other word, sGehenna," signifies the place
of torment, the eternal abode Of the dam
ned. When the Bible was translated un-
der King James, andwhen the PraYer-bOOk
was compiled, the English word, SHELL"
had a more extensive meaning than now.
Even Webster gives three distinct mean
ings belonging to it.
The meaning of the Church is, that on
the death Of the Lord, his human soul
went to s1he place of departed spirits" 1t
was necessary that his death should be at
tended with all the circumstances which
mark the death of man. Christ was human
in body and soul assYell as divine. The
body of man at death sinks to the grave
and the soul goes to ''Hades." So the body
of Christ was laid in the tomb, and his
soul (if David and Peter are authority
went to the repository Of human disem-
bodied spirits, and this is what the Bible
means, and what the Creed means in say
ing of our Lord, ''He descended Tito hell"