The Wheeling daily register. [volume] (Wheeling, W. Va.) 1864-1878, 1878-04-22


Rev. George began series OF lecturers
t uu believers last night, taking for his
subject, The Integrity OF the Sacred
Records"
The Easter decorations were very eX-
tensive and rendered the interior of the
church ore of the handsomest in the CITY.
The font WAS one mass of lovely bOquets
and pyramids OF cut flowers, interspersed
with trailing veins. Plsnts IN pots were
placed about the altar, which was trim
med similar 10 the font.
SECOND PRESBYTERIAN.
1t being communion Sunday at the
Second Presbyterian church the pastor
preached from the text, Cor. xi, 70,
"Eor as often US We eat this bread and
drink this cup ye do show the Lords
death till he come" In e1plsining the
nature Of the sacrament he said: The
first Question one would naturally ask is,
what are these elements? To this ques-
ton about 6O,OOO0C0 or 100000 Of
Protcstants reply, "They are what they
appear to be, bread and wine" whilst
270,0O0,OO0 Ct protested Christians be-
longing to the Greek and Romsn Catho-
lie churches reply, "They are not
what they appear to be, but they become
By 3 mysterious kind Of miracle the
blood Of Jesus Christ" We are
greatly in the minority in our 10
depreciation and it becomes US 100000
to give good reason for rejecting
the doctrine Of the two hundred aud sew
enty millions. This subject must be In
vestigated from the Scriptural stand.
point. If the doctrine of trsnsubstantis-
tion be Scriptural, - reject on rational
grounds would be Acknowledgements repug-
nant TO a true Protestant as TO a Catholic.
Has IT Scriptural foundation? Its be-
levers profess to found it upon Christ'S
discourse contained in John vi, and upon
the words of the institution. In John vi.
Christ uses so often such strong language
as to leave no room for doubt that eating
his flesh" and drinking his blood are
essential to salvation. Except ye eat Of
the hesh Of the Son Of Man and drink
His blood, We have no If, in you. Now,
Catholic theolOgIaas assume, in their IL
depreciation Ct this chapter; first, that the
discourse is to be understood Of the
Lords Supper, and second, that the eat
ing Of which it speaks Is oral by the
mouth and not spiritual by faith. If
these assumptions be admitted it will fol-
low-not that the wafer is changed into
the literal body cf Clrist-but onl y that
a literal eating OF His flesh and drinking
Of His blood IL essential to salvation. 1t
would also create a strong presumption in
favor Of the literal Interpretation Of the
words, This is my body" But both the
above assumptions we deny. Q) We
DENY tina: the discourse can have exclus
i've reference TO the Lords supper for
the reason tha! Christs words John 6;53)
leave no room for doubt that eating
His flesh and drinking His blood
are absolutely essential to salvation
But even the Church Of Rome denies
that participation in the Lords Supper
is essential to salvation, inssmuCh as it
teaches that spiritual life is as necessary
to an experience Of the benefits Of this
sacrament as natural life is to our being
nourlshed by food 1t follows, therefore,
that Christs words have not exclusive
reference 10 the Lords Supper. (2) We
deny. also, that the only way OF eating
Christ's body is by the mouth. In this
same discourse Christ uses the words eat
ing and drinking rs synonymous with
believing and coming ". Az. Believing
on Him secures everlasting life and eat
ing his flesh secures everlasting life. We
- not deny that we must in some true
sense eat and drink of His body and
blood, neither do we deny that participa-
ton in the sacrament is one way Of so
doing. All that we deny is that there Is
but one way, and that the elements are
Is claimed.
Christ said: This is my body" But !
this is not an assertion that the bread was
or would be changed. 1t IS inferred that
Christ would not have used this expires
sion II the change had not really taken |
taken place. But why infer tais? Not |
surely because it would make Christ
liar if We did so inser, tor t1en would we |
have to draw similar inference in every !
case where Christ has used q similar ex-
preston. as when be said, i am the |
bread, | am the door" etc.
The circumstances in which sentence |
is uttered determine how it is TO be in
terpretel. When one says to another,
when both are standing before y marble |
statue. This is the Queen Of England" |
it never occurs to us TO suppose he means
TO say the Queen has been turned into |
marble or the marble into the Queen.
Christ and His Disciples were celebrating |
the old Passover. The bread and wine |
and their manner of taking them were
all symholical. What more natural,
when he is abou. to substitute his supper
for the Passover, than for Him 10 use
svmDoIcal largusg92 And what DIsci-
ple would understand his language in
any other than a symbolic
Al sense in such circumstances
Moreover. so far rs we know. every
church iuterprets the word cup hgura-
lively TOR VIDA. it contains And yet
Christ could rs have easily changed cup
and wine with his blood as only the lat
ter. If figure be admissible in one
case, why not another
In l Cor. Al 70 we find that alter
the words OF conservation, Christ still
called the elements bread and the cup.
If they are no longer what they appear
el TO be why not Gull lhtul NL"s EbtN
were?. If the words OF Institution must
be understood literally, then these equal
" solemn words, must also be understood
literally. This leads US in contradic.
ton.
1t is also Il legitimate and not ration
alistic argument, that no Interpretation is
10 be- given to any passage OF scripture
which requires US to believe the impossi-
Die. But the doctrine of transatlantic .
ton requires us to believe that there can .
be attributes without any substance IN |
which tnsv can inhere. that there can be /.
the appearance of bread without any .
thing to appear, Nothing cannot
manifest itself.
PRESENTATION.
One of the most nicely managed sur
pise and presentation affairs, OF which |
we have beard, came to 3 successful cul-
mination on Saturday evening last. For |
several weeks, some of the friends OF .
Rev. Daniel Williams, pastor OF the /
I'HyrRh SOM N [