Lexington weekly intelligencer. (Lexington, Mo.) 1871-1887, 1882-04-22
widespread and less influential than
i'll Great Britain century and a half

E widespread and less influential thar
t III Great Britain century and hal
t ago."
G "a similar condition Of things ex
t listed in the United States in the las
two decades of the last century. ex
tending somewhat into the presen
I century. The NEST radical and re
voting forms of intidelty prevailed
, throughout tho land. 1t especially iu
tested the colleges aud the legislativ,
bodies"
3 "Chancellor Kent [1765 1s47l said
In my younger days there were yer,
: few professional men that were no
, iniidels.' Bishop Meade of Vlrgini,
said in 1910. Il can truly say that il
every educated young man whom
met I expected to tind a sceptic, il
: not m avowed unbeliever.' Whel
DR.. Wright assumed the presidence,
Of Yale College i'll 1745 only four OF
five of the students were members ol
the church. The members of tho frs,
senior class writing to him were more
familiarlv known by the names OF
Diderot. D'Alembert, Voltaire, Rous
seau, Robespierre, Danlon, etc, which
} they had assumed, than by their owu.'
) "A-t BOwdoln college in Maine, IN the
enrly period of the presidency of Dr..
Appleton only one student was will.
ing to avow himself Christian p
'Ihere was also vast amount ot
what was called heretical sentiment
in the churches. All the orthodox
bodies were largely pervaded by the
leaven of Arian, Sociniau, restora.
ton and neutrality-suspicious. ideas ~
"Boston Cengregationalism, compris.
ing nine churches, had become sub.
stantially Unitarian. Nine towns
within ten miles of Boston had DC
Congregational church which remain.
ed true TO orthodoxy" "The most
intense opposition TO evangelical ideas
pervaded the higher social and cul-
tered classes and dominated Boston, -
1.-The bishops Of the Methodist Epis-
copal chur h, in their pastoral ad-
dress in 1916. deplored the prevalence
OF Arian and Socinian notions in
their denominations" "Duriny the
period from 1900 to 1880. there came
numerous schisms, secessions, aud
Withdrawals frem the evangelical
churches which entered into the for
nation of the Unitarian, Universslist
and other bodies, thus relieving the
evangelical churches of their hetero-
geneous elements." During the same
period the infidels in Europe renew
ed their efforts to uphold their cause %
The American Quarterly Register in
1880, stated that between 1917 and
1880. ), 1859 volumes of the works
OF Voltaire, Rousseau and other ln-
fidel writer's were circulated OH this
continent. How stands our country
to-day in regard to our schools and
pupils Our author says, with cur
rent statistics TO back the assertion :
'slt is matter of clear demonstra-
ton that the students in the COL
leges of the evangelical churches in 4S
years Q830 to 1879 increased twice
as much relatively as the population
OF the country, and also that a half
more, relatively, of the students of
these colleges are protesting Christ
ians than 40 years ngo." With re-
gard 10 onr hulpits. DR.. Pierce, editor
Of Zion's Herald, Boston, we'll says:
"ln large cities and considerable
towns there may be found over GER
tain churches of q special character
men OF strong. original characteris-
tics, OF marked popular gifts and
ceit who stndisusly shun the common
modes of expressing aud interpret
ing the doctrines of revelation and
are disposed 10 give great promi-
nence to the relative duties of life.
These men can all be readily number
Ell on the fingers of one hand. And
1t is noticeable in nearly every case,
hat when these men are called upon
ny ecclesiastical bodies or by the pub.
lie press TO define their position, they
are ready to affirm that. in their own
forms of expression, they hold all the
vital doctrines of evangelical Prot
cstantism." Il. further says. truly
but out.ide of those well-known
puipits and few periodicals, the
great body of ministers and members
III the orthodox churches are entirely
1T rcst in refereuce to their catechisms.
Our theological Summaries.
have found no difficulty in expound-
ing the Scriptures in the light of
pronounced evangelical views. In
spite of the busy activity OF the de-
structive biblical critics there never
was an hour when SO many commeu-
taries, written by accomplished He
brew and Greek scholars, were pub.
lished or SO widely distributed. The
great revlvals of religion occurring in
the centres of population more than
supply any loss that may happen from
the lapse of certain professed evan.
gellcal teachers, Or the deterioration
OF vital faith Oh the part of worldly
members Of wealthy churches"
LII confirmation of this last state
lnent OF DIR. Pierce, the reviewer
would state that positive returns re-
ceived warrant the report that in the
Methodist church III the United States
alone there have been since the 1st of
January last, not less than 100000
conversions. DIR. Dorchester says:
''ihe recent apologstical literature OF
the church is able, copious and ag-
gresslVe beyond example. There ia no
question that the most vigorous the
ologlans OF the present day are thor
oughly orthodox, in whatever couu.
try We look for examination" Your
reviewer instead of groaning III echo
OF the pessimist's outcry about de.
cay OF faith would rather adopt the
expressions Of Bishop j. f. Hunt, D.
d., as he says: 1.-The iruest activity
i'll missionary labor, in evangelical
work at home, in providing modest
places of worship for the threadbare,
despondent multitude, in humanitar.
ian openhandedness. in paternai love
In care for the scripturai knowledge
OF the young. is sure indication of
the new voyage of evangelical Chris
tianity from its old traditional moor-
ings, out upon the broad sea OF dis
c"very and possession. The great
forces OF civilization are now Christ
ian, and they are becoming more
positively so every days" or say with
Rev. Phillips Brooks, 81 believe that
religion, SD far from being on it's
irathbead, is Just ready 10 enter on
r"mpleter lite than it has ever before
had. and believe that it must come
by the results of religious Inquiry of
which SO many men are afraid"
MORALS.
The first half OF the eightce cell
tury Was the dai kest period, morally.
since the birth of English Protestant.
ism. l.ecky says: "The impuni,y
With which Outrages were committed
in the ill-iit and il!-gunrded streets of
London during the first half of the
eighteenth century can now hardly
be realized"
The bishop of Litchiicld. 1924, said:
'The Lords day ls become the devi,,.
market day. Sin in general
is grown SO hardened aud rampant AZ
that imn"ralities are defended, yea,
Justified Oh principle"
The mayor aud aldermen in l744
drew up am address to the king, in
W hlch they so il ih atn nivars contn,,.,