Ottumwa weekly courier. (Ottumwa, Wapello County, Iowa) 1872-1899, 1878-01-30


the heart In deeds Of kindness to men
and . belief In hell or In some special
creed or theory Of inspiration 10 moi
essential to such . life. It IL wicked
to any longer stand up and teach that
the only way to heaven 10 by Romish
mass, or . Baptist immersion, or q
Methodist clsss-meeting, or the Pres.
byterian five points. They have oil
done good in their way. Men may
be good In all Of them, or may get to
heaven without any of them. The
love Of God 10 broader than the mar
rowness Of men, and the Holy Spirit
finds the open door Of oil willing and
waiting souls. The pure In. heart, Of
whatever name or nation, shall see
God" a5 ase5 beg'-fst
The following 10 from DR.. Thomas
sermon Of Sunday, 10th inst:
Both Unitarianism and Universal
ism In this case, and also the New
School theology, denying the impn-
tation Of Adams sin to his posterity,
were each movements from within
the church, and not attacks upon reli-
gion from without OF their deep
sincerity I think there can be no
doubt. And here again I come back
to my old ground again that I took
two weeks ago, and that seems to
have given rise to no little excite
ment, though not so intended ON my
part; I come back to this again, I
say, and affirm that it was not God,
nor religion as such, nor the bible,
nor Christianity that was doubted
,r wanted to doubt, but the excessive
and unreasonable dogmatisms Of the
Church about God, and religion, and
christianity. And I say again that
the doubts were justified-from their
standpoint were necessitated - in
their doubts. l say they were right,
and the dogmatists were wrong I
do not say that the doubters in this
case, or the liberal churches were
right In what they affirmed % . new
faith that is another question !; but
say they were right in denying the
old dogmas. And I say further, that
whilst l am neither Universalist nor
q Unitarian, believing as do In the
Divinity of Jesus Christ, and not see-
ing my way clear, either from reason
or revelation, to affirm the final SAL
vation of all souls, yet I say that, a.
betweenlU Unitarianism and Universal
ism, and old-school Calvanism, /
would 60 with either Of the former
before l would 60 with the latter.
1t remains yet to inquire what has
been the effct of the teachings Of these
liberal churches upon the doubt of
our times, not only inside of the
but the doubt on the out.
side. On the inside Of the churches
think the effect has been to help on
the spirit of catholicity, or q broader
in individual opinions,
which is 80 marked q popularity of
our times. And I think there are few
If any, thoughtful persons now who
will say that the tendency Of these
liberal churches has been to make in
fidels Of their followers. They may
strengthen them In their denial Of old
dogmas, but they leave them with .
faith that Is living to them, and active
or benefcialia its influence upon pie
ty and usefulness. These churches
have afforded q home for thousands
of the best minds and purest lives.
who could not indorse the teachings
from which they honestly dissented.
And on the outside, or public mind,
think the effect has been, by holding
mp the possibility of q broader faith
broader than the old faith-to hold
to belief In God and the
Bible who otherwise might have
drifted entirely away. And I think
the time has fully come when the or
thodox churches should hasten to rec
ognize the good and true men in the
liberal churches as fellow-workers In
the Kingdom Of God. There are
extreme men among the Liber-
ais, who have pushed clear out
into the world Of unbelief, and who
have little or nothing In common with
believers, and these would not care
to come with us. But there are 9TH
ers, such as Freeman Clark, Of Bos-
ton, DIR. Elliott, of st. Louis, and Drs.-
Ryder and Collyer, of our own city,
who In heart are with all true Chris
tian workers, and should be recogniz-
ed - such. l rejoiced in the catho-
lie spirit of the Rev. Phillips Brooks,
Of Boston, in inviting Freeman Clark
and others to communion with him
in his own church. And I was glad
that they did commune together.
speak not for Methodism, nor for any
other church in the city, but for my
self, when I say that my heart has
been panied, and sick, and sad ut the
exclusiveness of the orthodox church
es of Chicago in not recognizing the
liharal churches in Qhristian work