Smyrna times., 1883-07-25
Mid Day Musings.
BY A CAN'T-GET-AwAY

In the learned professions the minis
ter is the only one who seems to ex-
pect to eat his cake and yet have it.
A doctor who goes outside the ethics
of his school knows he will be classed
as quack by his fellows, and will
have to abide the consequences. He
may not mind it in the least, but he
has to stand it. The lawyer who in
PRODUCES irregular practices realizes
that he does it at risk, and is likely
to come to his limits sooner or later.
Yet neither the doctor nor the lawyer
takes the vows laid upon the minister.
In almost every church, if not in every
one, the candidates for orders takes the |
vows of fealty and obedience to the |
doctrines of his denomination and to |
his superior. The parishiOner in the
pew fancies this is very simple mat
ter. There certainly cannot be any
doubt about the doctrines of any
church, and it is not easy for a theo-
logical student to escape some knOwl-
edge of them. 1t is not expected that
a Presbyterian will disapprOve of infant
baptism, nor a Baptist worship the
saints. The EpiscOpalian would as
tound his congregation if he insisted on
immersing candidates for confirmation.
The parishiOner fancies all such points
we'll defined, and when he settles him
self in his pew he expects to agree
with his own minister. He may not
be interested, nor may he care to be
stirred by him to the degree of turning
over any new leaves, but he does not
expect to shake his head in denial of
anything the clergyman says. This is
one of the privileges of the pew. In
almost every other point the pulpit has
the advantage and during service, at
least holds the pew at its mercy. But
the clergyman bound to limits often
resents them. Unlike the doctor he
does not leap over them and take the
consequences, but he insists on having
the limits themselves moved. With
one it may be singing of hymns in a
denomination committed to psalms in
another it is candles, and in Chicago
Sunday week it was a requiem mass III
an Episcopal Church, 1t is, of course,
we'll known that there are clergymen
in the Episcopal Church who seriously
consider prayer for the dead, and VIII c
find authority for it in the Bible and
among the fathers. 1t is very tende
subject, and our dead have not gon'
from us if we can follow them by oul
prayers and plead for their pardon il
the world to which they have gone
But a prayer and requiem mass are
very different. The mass means mucl
y to which the Rev. Arthur Ritchie'
church is far from agreeing and whicl
e it expressly denounces. If the mass
v a matter of conscience with Mr.. Rit
s chic, it must still seem to the parish
n toner's who left the church when it wa
announced that he could both obey tn
inner voice and live at peace. Moth
IS ing is to be more deprecated than di!
Is sension in church, and there ar
is many, many congregations where tn
e. mass is a common and beloved Sc
N vice. But Mr.. Ritchie would repl
n that he is an Episcopalian. That
III true, but it is also curious. This is a
Iy anomaly unknown to tho doctor or I'll
fe lawyer. They each sometimes dis;
at gree literally with their brethren, b.
us the university graduates never qua
er rel over high or low potencies. fl
in wants to use them he goes boldly ov
er to the homeopathists. The moment
nd difference of opinion Is vital the dOct
ce is likely to follow his affinity, but &C
tn tain ministers like Mr.. Ritchie make
Ii declaration ofindependence of that is O
or posed to canon and precedent, al
then having defined their position a
made pugnacious by any question of
la' 1t is true that man ought to have Ii
IRE erty of his opinions. The only qu,
W tion is where he shall have them, a
MS sectarian differences are so strictly
re- re- fined that it is curious how often m
iiu listers insist on amalgamating the
ou when they could have undisturbed {
Wy ioyment of their convictions by a 81
pie change OF name.-PhitG. EUeni
ZIP NeiOs.