New-York tribune., 1879-12-22
THE NEED OF A STRONG FAITH.
The Rec Thomas Mcleod. at the Ciaon Areaue church.
Br0okipn (C0ngregI0aaO.

THE NEED OF STRONG FAITH.
The Rer 7hoaas D. Mcleod at the Clinton Areaue church.
Brooklyn (C0ngregItOaaD
The first sermon by the new pastor, the
Rev Thomas b. Mcleod who succeeds the late ReT. DIR.
Burlington IN the Clinton Avenue Congregational
Church. at Clinton and Lafayette-aves Brooklyn. was
preached yesterday morning. large congregation
filled. all the pews in the church. Mr.. Me
Lcod who comes from the pastOrae OF the Re
formed Church at Hudson N " is thirty years OF
He received his theological training at Princeton ana
preached for eight In personal appearance
be is tall and slender His face is strong and impress
sive one lie has broad forehead. His abundant hair
and side.whiskcrs are dark brown in color. He spoke
Yesterday without notes. and seemed much at home in
the pulpit His strong yet well-moduated voice could
be distinctly heard by all in the church save at the be
ginning Of a few sentcnc He enforced his words with
auy gestures. AS the committee OF the church on The
selection of pastor determined TO have candidate
Ire sent in the pulpit very of those who heard the
new pastor yesterday had ever listened TO him before.
Mr. Mcleod took his text from the First Epstle 10 the
Corinthians xvi. IS: "Stand fast in the faith" He
spoke substantially as follows:
To Judge from what we read In the daily papers and
the monthly magazines conclude that orthodoxy
or steaGastness OF faith becoming unpopular Ortho
doxy phrase of hard sound In the oars o, modern
culture It ia sneered into disrepute by who
profess 10 be friends 10 the od-fashionei faith Of
our fathers They say orthodox man ia
good enough sort or man, Wcll-lntcntiOneu anu
harmless; but his orthodoxy Is narrow, blgoted
and dogmatic The tendency OF much OF the education
OF the present generation teach that TO rank
orthodoxy among milde of the pact, hndrance
10 all fresh and free thought and research that Is TO
our advantage lay 1t the shelf with other relics Of
antiquity, where IL may some day show how we have
grown up and of the crudes of the past The III
scriptlon on the banner OF this class is Down with
crceds and cateohsms of with these ccremonts Of the
past and let us out into light, life and liberty"
We are obliged TO enter protest against all this
We may have respect for what is old and past
than We ought TO have. One hour In our crowded
thoroughfares OF business is worth more than hun
dred days In the catacombs. would rather OF
the colossal achievements of modern genius than TO
visit Pyramids the sight OF which Is deemed Deces
sary 10 10 cultured genius But this recent reaction
against the domination OF creeds does not spring from
dsrespect what is old Many old things are regarded
by all as the best. Men OF knowledge arc not likely
TO nut away prestige precedent unless they fool
ish hurtful.
cannot analyze add them. that they dsbelicved
II law OF mental makeup that we caunot repu-
diate but are Obliged believe not merely pTagmatic
things those which can know by the senses but also
many things which we cannot see Every artsl artisan
sincerity OF tho works OF his predecessors ThcF stability
Is the foundation or all natural law All life rests on
Perhaps il s TO doctrine that these broad, liberal but
fbat Is held up aud taught We have the doctrines OF
eravaiion OF chemical affinity, of the conservation OF
dcs "a Fncd All the laws OF Pnyscs are doctrines
Every scientific formula is doctrine.
and leave doctrines alone" How can We preach the
Gospel without doctrine Suppose We preach that man
il made TO gorify God Or as some OF you are taught
Gods m is Senv 70 gS sop fooIea ow tns or . AT
God in His mildness is boundto gather them all into
Heaven nj last that sin exists call 1t Limitation OF
being nesaOn n % OF ST & IN Gr % %at yoa a WIN IN a
III preaching any OF them am 1 not preaching q doc
ges that show inability to do right, and bind them
all into sheaf and label 1t Total Depiavity." find
us de"tn S Is Vle"ss s as ndc"on Of a the e1a,. roT
sI%"'' and label II The Atonemeni." We care not
for the form but the fact have right to name for
H. but we must designation for the truth or doe
slippery, negative form Of belief on day rapid
chage say must not be TOO positive or TOO well
Yesterday are rs wen settled the Coperncan law
we not be too about our old fashioned doc
trines OF the which have lived through
ages. They say that this temple, the world, was
made without an archaec tnat no mo-, ,,n1is artst
OF ours minds with their almost Infinite capacity,
love and hate are merely an evovement from a swirl
of atoms development IRON brainess mindless, soul
implicfy believe the Bioe. whose every Iagc attcsts
It's divine origin Christ who II not the blacklist Inn
potor of any age il the Goldman, aud IN that faith
which makes happy homes anu the dealh-bed the ri-
umph of the Christian.
cvnirs Az reInaIns "A firm as the everlasting hills Yet
some Christians ike certain politicians they SIT
the fence ready to get down on either side az
inoments notice discovery OF an old fossil shell
seems 10 knock their bosuu system OF theology into
pieces There certain reasons why cultured Inind
should deepr00ted CONVICTIONS Ihe inind is 80
constituted that It must have certiude " lie who
dhcth IL damned" The MUD ablos doubt as Nature
docs a yacugu. The doubtcr is adr1ft upon
shoreless sea, and | hear the echo OF his wall
Of despair from OF the darkness OF his isolation II
you rest you must lei yonr anchor drop IN Inc sea
OF truth Never more timely 10 stand fast IN the
faith than row. The Church Is not IN so much danger
from bold Atheism from the insidousness
OF able Tneism We're some one 10 tell You tnat
Lard Ross's telescope developed by natural Law
from a ruds eyeeass. you would laugh a. hn.
MT some one from foreign land tells you
That out on the pralrcs there existed
aye-tocd aumaI. tho Eobippus, and from that
fne horse is developed, ana you say. II wish had
never heard Huxley for he will destroy my beautiful
syste,p" We must whereof We affirm, and attacks
Only by standing fast concluded the preacher shall
we reader our proper service In Christs King.
dom Faith is tbe mightiest OF forces. Wbat
was tho secret Of the power OF Paul. OF
IMther of Whitfield, even OF your own Moody,
VINO never even leaned up against tho corner