The weekly democratic statesman. [volume] (Austin, Tex.) 1871-1883, 1877-07-19
NO. Al
Wore sunday Reading.

Christians" when he represented, in
his peculiar and swect-tempered way,
that DR.. Chaplin ''either could not or
would not quote the Bible correctly
and had quoted falsely; and that 1.-THE
greater part of the CHRISTIAN world are
lneNcusably ignorant, or wicked and
perverse beyond measure because they
refuse to obey the light" if DR.. Chap
lin stated the truth. DIR. Chaplin had
said that Paul compared bapsism TO a
burial, in Col. H., IL. where he used
the words, "buried with him Christ
! in baptism"
"unconvinCed" very smiably. ss he
thinks, pronounced this false quota
uon, just for the purpose, as ne row
shows us, of Influencing the "Simple.
hearted and unsu pec,ing;" though he
iS compelled to admit, in his last, tina,
1.-THE very words quoted are used" in
the chapter and verse cited by DR..
Chaplin, Col. ii, 10.
What do his ''simple-hearted" wards
think of their self-constituted religious
mentor, when they see his admission
that he ''duly considered this Scrip
ture" and knew "thc very words quoted
were used" therein, before he startled
them with that cry of false quotations
ID which he seems Ia consider sp stun.
ming reply to all reference tn au,hori
ties. Is he not too wise to suppose (aftcr
his admission of q correct quotation,
where he 81 positively charged a falls,
one) that this StereoIypcl cxpedlen,
to keep the people from Ica ling to find
the truth, will avail2 lie could hardly
hope so much were he man of ever o
mooth speech aud the most exemplary
man in the world. Nor ought he to
have calculated that those, lnqmring
to know what is the act of baptism
would be satisfied or diverted from
this issue by his ingenious and trans
parent coIcern for DR.. Chaplin's con
stancy about btptismal regulation. IL,
ought to have known that, though
dogmatical assertions and ones posi-
| tlon sometimes awe the ''slmple heart
ell" inquirer into sileuce, these do Aui
| usually convince even them an
| 10th to believe there are many in this
community so "simple- hearted and uL-
suspecung" as to follow him, in dc
clining to search for the truth and OK
anime the authorities cited on this in
teresting subject.
His denial that baptism is rite oI
ceremony of the Methodist Church, in
| order to evoid the force of the twenty
second article of Methodist religion,
which assumes authority for the church
to change rites and ceremonies" will
hardly increase confidence in him; foI
it Is startling enough to arouse suspi-
| cion with even the ''simple- hearted
and unsuspecting." He makes baptism
4 sacrament but not a rite. Webster,
however, in defining the word ''ritc, :"
quotes from DR.. Hammond that ''Thc
sacrament Is holy rite" Worcester
it fines bIptism to be "a Christian rite
sacrament" A century and half
ago Bishop Sharp, of the same church
of which Wesley himself lived and
/ died member, said "Baptism, which
IS acknowledged by all to be the rite
initiating us into Christianity. is III
Scripture declared to bc the rite where
by We are entered and admitted into
he church." (Sharp /, ser. 5, as
quoted by Richardson in defining the
word "rite.'O But the acknowledge
ment. of baptism as q rite, in all the
| churches, is too universal for the denial
Of it to be &c. accepted from "Unconyin--
uususpecting." Ifear even that class of
people will hardly respect his cautions
after this sample of his candor. The
history of the phraseology used in that
twenty-second article of Methodist Re,
lision, aud of its direct lineage, traces
| it too Enthusiastically back to John Cal
WINS express views about baptism.
quoted in my last (Cal. Com. on Acts
viii, SO, and Cal. Inst. vol. iv., chap.
10, see. 10, for any one to doubt
that the principal reference in that arti.
Gle is to the rite of baptism. Indeed,
how can it be doubted, when, as Prof
Stuart informs us, ''tbe fist liturgy Ioi
the Church of England in 1911, enjoini
'trine immersion in case the child
is not sickly" Stuart on Bap., 153),
and it is observed that, in the subse
queLt recitals,- this rite was in fac
changed by allowing pouring as wei
IS dipping, and afterwards, as in tho
present Methodist ritual, by even Civ
inga "preference" to pouring or spr.nk
ling over immersion. | set out at frs
to show that those who practice sprink
ling fer baptism, contrary to the nc
kuowlcdged ancient practice OF tho
church, hold that though the ancion
baptism was immersion, the churcl
had the right to change it, and die
change it, and, therefore, they ough
not to be asperscd, in the language o
Unconvinccd," as ''incxcusably igno
rant or wicked and perverse beyor'
measure" This is an unpalatable trut
o Unconvinced. But as dpy0po
to my proposition, let me close b,
quoting from Bishop Bossuet, the dis
tlnguished Catholic, to whom ] re
ferred in my last, and from Prof. Stu
art, Of the Presbyterian Church, AM
others. Said Bossu t: "lt (the com
munion in one kind was much in tn
same case as was baptism by Immer
sion, which is as clearly established i
Scripture as the communion in twt
kinds could be, and which had never
theless been changed to pouring wit
as much ease and as little contradic
ton as the commun on in one kind ha
been established; so that there was tn
same season for retaining the one a
the other. It is fact invariably ad
mitted by the Reform, although certai
individuals are at present disposed
, cavil about it, that baptism was inst
tuted by entirely immersing the body
that Jesus Christ SO received il, an
caused it to be SO administered by hi
apostles; that the Scripture knows n
, other baptism; that antiquity so III
derstood and prscticed IL; that th
eiy word carries with it the idet
and that to baptize 10 to immerse. Tb
E fact, / say, is unanimously confessed b
! ell the theolol ms of the Re'o.m, b
the Reformers themselves and by III
very persons who best knew the Gree
lounge and the ancient customs {
both Jews and Christians, by Luther
e by Melancthon, by Calvin, by Cssau
!. bon, by Grotius, by all the others, an
very recently by Jurien; the fondest {
contradiction of all the ministers.
- ('tBossuct Variations du Protcstar
: tisme," vol. 3. p. 400 Prof. Stua
says: Sin the wo-k of John Floyer Q
cold bathing, page 80, it is mentione
: that the English Church practised in
mersion down 20 the beginning Of u
seventeenth century, when elaa9e I
: the method Of sprinkling gradual
}. ,ok place. As confirmation Of thu
h i. may he mentioned that the in
Liturgy, In 1547. epjoins time IN
mersi0n, in case the child II NJ
; sickly. Augusti, ut sup, p. 229.
: CStuart on Bsp., Nashville ed, D. 153
n In Bliss letters, page 81, Grotius, wi