Clearfield Republican. [volume] (Clearfield, Pa.) 1851-1937, 1875-09-15
AN OLD CONTROVERSY RE
VIVED.

q between representatives of sever,
branches of the Eastern Church, th
q Old Catholics, and the Episcopa
4 Churches of England and the Unite
4 States, will, 1t is thought, have som
!. infuencein promoting intercommunlo
!. or reunion between these bodies. Sucl
/. a result, however, would be at varianc
q with historical precedents, and mus
I not be too confidently anticipated
/ Ever since the establishment Of tn
/ Christian religion the great mass Of it
, followers while agreeing on the cardi
, nal principles of the faith, have quar-
, relied and split into chrches and sect
/ on what, when closely analyzcd, mus
/ often appear trivial questions; anc
there seems little probability that thi,
T propensity will cease in our time.
The Ariun, tho Ncstorian, and vtlvI
heresies began in the early ages of the
Church in the twelfth century the
Eastern and Western churches parted
company from the former were sub.
sequently detached the Armenian and
other Oriental branches, and from the
latter the followers of Luther, Calvin,
Zuinglius, and other Protestant reform
ers, who in turn were soon divided into
innumerable opposing sects. In our
own day again we see the Old Cath
olics renouncing Papal authority, and
Latinized Poles returning to the Or
thodox Greek Church oftheirancestors
The Anglican church is rent with agi
tation on such points as the cut Of an
ecclesiastical vestment or the position
of clergyman in the performance Of
divine service, and dimiLutive schism
has already occurred in the Protestant
Episcopal Church of this country. As
long as human thought is free, differ
ences of opinion on religion MS well as
on social or political questions are sure
to rise, and the philanthropist who
seeks TO introduce a universal creed
will only be beguiled by delusion.
The main object of the conference at
Bonn seems TO have been to reconcile
the doctrinal differences between East
ern and Latin or Western Christians.
\
This is subject that has been attacked
WIN more or less OF argumentative
skill and theological learning at various
times within the last thousand years,
and always with very unsatisfactory
results. The Eastern Church originally
separated from that of the West on
the ground that the latter had inter
polated into the Nicene Greed, which,
ever since the Council of Nic@a, in the
fourth century, had been the confession
oil iaith OF the universal church, the
words Fa,oque, implying that the Holy
uhost proceeds not from the Father
alone, but from the Father and the
son. Inc Interpolation, known as the
Double Procession, originated in the
spanish church, nom the logical de-
veiopment oil the Athanaslan doctrine
against the Aran vlslgoths, and was
gradually adopted in all branches OF
tne western Church, notwithstanding
the irregularity OF the method OF its
ln,roducton was acknowledged zach
ol ,ne TWO statements u has been OBJ !
nresses n trutb Which ,ho otbanr o,or
looks or omits ), and Il i roasnnahIo 80
sunnose that eornos, r,on "nn;a',n y, y,
exnrcss in nnomb;anons ,nl,ra ~
dogmas Of the Cby;s,;an SI"se Sa;,I sh
have been able ~ sa,;sf,, ,La sornTia.
of Orientols and Lat;ns Tba,, odrId
nndoub,sdly hora smnaooaad 'V ~.
object bad no, ,;nsrrr,o,n,ob,a ~ oha,.,I ~ w.,
intervencd
The 6rst aud ros, ;rnor,.,, oe
these ia tbe fact ,ba, tha H;,;oaaa @ ,,.oa %
NOT tho trne cause Of d;ssonsion ~s T ha
tween the churches of ,ho Eas, ond
tho West II wos at hoe, narSans
the pretext for ouorrel Rdth
churches had in roo,;tv baan ,r,,.1.,;na
for sunremacv for con,nr;os sS tsesarSS
tbev saparo,oj A. ,La Eaa,o - IL
pirc wanted in ;mnortanco ond no,rnr
before The adyanca Of ,he MnslaupS psmt 49,
A sia Minor and c,oeoo ,ha Was,anr a
rbnrcb oa;ned IL oJhnno,,a wy " ''.oa a.h
,trengtb The pas,orn Thnroh 49,
sI,aa;sI al asa,;a ""9
IS befitted ;ts er;en,al or;'r;n' ~
Western vigorous nrosolr,;z;sna anJ 10y ,
,o,rand;. o, mso'ors' T Prcsely .lA'ng, ana
he latter,s Claim 10 sunromaor ondon :
'ho oan,n. ~ vI ..;',n,, ~ s.l,iun'cy' anu on
,hont ,ba & E,,;ea,,. ",s't a, ''neaas n', u'spu.c
a;nos wy ,,o;n,a ",yf"i J". anu oer'a,l 9'ncr
ations With ber That sonora,;on v haa ,
,eror ~ sinoo Mo Ier naa ,a;a Ina. SEPARATION mas
h;r,a0n,h s. oo,, D.un 'eooivl'eu, .l IN inc
lyons an ,vu.u,y, ',a,,n.n.s, a. 'no eouhcil ol
~ do G - ~ HAL ",e'ssssu, ,ho s;ss a'.en,p. was
he churnhos w [ '"S Noar,,. u,nI,.,ceS . pc.wcci
a,or - mhon r. p, pen',y .w1 centuries
@ I"coa "n aiu,os, W. nyhan.'ne 'i, EMPIRE, re
ton,inonIo wos - ,o,,a,in S .aP.a' my tS s,,,