The Wheeling daily register. [volume] (Wheeling, W. Va.) 1864-1878, 1877-12-20
UNBAPTIZED CHILDREN.
Rev. mr.. MoHa,'s RespOnce TO Bishop
kain.

Editors of the Register.
Allow me through your columns TO
call the attention OF Bishop kain, to the
language of the three quotations he was
kind en ough to furnish your readers. de
will observe that neither of them makes
any reference TO infants saved or un-
saved, bsp pized or unbapLized. They re
fer simply 10 the doctrine o! original SIN
and its consequences. They may prove
that the reformed theolegis s held that
the due punishment OF original SIN Is 1T
strictness damuation in hell lie may
infer from this that infants born into the
world partake of original sin and hence
that the punishment due them is IN
str ctness the damIation OF hell. ms
would be correct inference
though rough way OF stating 1t, since
'damnation' has come to mean more
in popular usage than the simple con-
demna.ion with which it was once
synonymous. And this is still the belief
OF the Reformed and perhaps OF the
Lutheran Churches. | might also infer
that it is the belief ofthe Catholic Church,
iuasmucn ss Father Paul states that the
proposition above quoted "mlssed very
narrowly beng anathematized," by the
Council Of Trent. II in these matters u
"miss is US good AS mile" then | pre-
sumo the Council actually refused 10
condemn as heretical this proposition OF
the Lutherans Butit Blsnop kain de-
cllnes 10 accept it rs still part OF the
faith Of mis- church, i shall not insist on
it, but claim it as part OF the iaith OF
my church. The Bishop, l may remark,
might have added sentence OF the writ
ings of ,Ishn Calvin to the same effect
for | have seen it cited as proof
that Calvin taught that infants were sent
10 hell in consequence OF their partlclpn-
ton in the original sin of the race.
But is 1t not very evident that there Is
a vast difference between holding ths! IN
lants are born into the world under
sentence Of eternal death, and holding
that infants sre borLe out OF the world
into the place where that sentence is &C
tually executed2 May not one dcserGe to
20 10 he'll and yet not got This Is q
distinction that Is very clear to our
toeologians and they always observe 1T.
They believe that dying infants are
saved. but also that they need to be
saved and have something to % saved
from; that they need not only the
Holy Ghost to regenerate them but also
the atoring death.of Jesus Chris! to take
away their liability to punishment.
1 have dwelt thus particularly upon
this point because ! believe that IN the
neat OF controversy the failure to draw
this distinction gave rise TO the charge
against those who have taught that orig
iRal sin carries with 1t liability to pun
sbmear, OF holding snl teaching the act
ual Hhiciion OF that punishment upon
dead children. More thar two hundred
and ffty wears ago the Synod of bort,
representing the Reformed or Calylnlsuc
Churches OF Europe, Indignantly denied
the charge made against EN- by their
opponents that "babes were snatched
from the breasts Of their mothers and
tyrann calIy precipitsted into hell" See
I. conclusion of their articles. And
from that tlrne TO the present it has been
necessary to repeat the denial. Ihis
does not prove tnst the charge is true,
but only illustrates the sdage that lie
travels faster than the truth and the great
difficulty Of correcting mlsrepresenta-
ton.
| write this simply in the spirit OF in
vestigstion, and hope it may issue in DO
controversy. make no charge
against the Bishop and do not wish to
be regarded as finding any fault with
him Tor making use of the expression he
did: / hoped he had been insccurately re.
ported, and that he would say that he
intended only to charge tho Protestant
relormers with holding different view
OF original sin | have no desire to mis-
represent the theology OF his church, and
attribute To him the same desire regard
ing Protestant theology.
j. ID. MoFFAT.