, 1886-05-30

trollable. to regulate the laws OF hospitality
by the laws OF IA ~sanitive policy would be
considered wild everywhere else except in
theology. 1t would be fanaticism every
where else. And yet to a very large ex-
tent, hitherto, scholastic theology, dog
matte theo,ogy, has had for its
temper Ii .-"Welcome, on condition that
you como to me.r Always that there is no
revision made for going to them; no inter
change. no principle of intercommunica-
ton, either you ARE right or you are wrong
there is no middle ground" II there Il,
there are 10, 900 miles of middle ground. Men
are sometimes right and sometimes wrong.
Right sometimes fundamentally, sometime.
only specifically. There is every form and
infection OF variation. But the es
sential spirit Of orthodox scholastic
theology. me laval theology. real ole
Calvinistic theology, there isn't much OF
1t nowadays. but 1t Is in the book; it Is there.
and the spirit has been that OF separation,
making the delineations, the lines of belief,
and therefore of difference, making them So
sharp ani so clear that it tends to set one over
against the other; and then comes that long
and most melancholy history OF the quarrel.
OF the churches, the history of the cruelty OF
organized reli zion. Not OF religion but oil
organic d religion; institutions of religion.
The blood that has dripped not only from
the martyrs, but the blood that has dripped
from the hands of priests, has beer
enough TO more than measure the drops
that ave flowed down In the river
Of the water of life. And men with their
conscicnces set to the edge OF cruelty ha We
slaughtered, have tormented, have burned
each other. Those days have gone by, but
now men set their fellow mon apart no longer
by fines and Imprisonment and physical tor.
ture. but by reprobation; by a scowling
public sentiment; by making their life
uncomfortable TO them and those around
about them; so that there is a moral intoler-
ance that II almost as hard to be borne as
the physical an national Intolerance of the
days that are gone by. Not only
tha.; 1t has dispossessed tho worlds
mind, almost, of the lordship of dis
pos ton, as distinguished from Intellectual
conviction. 1t has sought to convert feeling
into ideas, to change life into philosophy and
organize it into machinery. And so it has
come to pass that a man may be gentls
and meek and benevolent, and walk
before God softly, and lie full OF
all humanity and sympathy for his
fellow men, but because he is not orthodox
he is rather, on the whole. pointed out to
children as a man to be avoided To be sure
he has Christian virtues. all the worse, be
cause that will make the poison of unortho-
doxy that fe carries with him all the more
dangerous. He may love God, he may love his
fellow men; he may have fulfilled the whole
declaration. which is that love is the fulfill
ing of the law, and men, whose hearts are a.
empty as a toper's cup is Of wine, will dis
own him, and disbar him, and pour con-
tempt on him, because he does moi
understand that which nobody ever
1fl tpInuatani nor ayar will What
are ca led the sub tantial and hig her doc
trinc.." the fundamental doctrines. Ii
this is not sat III usurping and taking poses
sion of the iem Die of God 1 know not what
is; whore all the fruit for which Gods spirit
Is poured out on the earth Is set Mt naught.
and men worship the tools and the imp'e-
ments by which husbandry is carried on; an
empty granary, but oh, splendid plowsl
beautiful harrowsl An empty fruit cellar,
but then. the oataloguei We have got
this nobl st names that are sold all
over the world. Not an apple to
your lips, but any amount of descrip-
ton of apples. Not a flavor, but a
herbarium where ten years old flowers are
imbedded like mummies. 1t IA taking the
reality of n Christian life and refusing it be-
cause men do not agree with the standards
with regard to the philosophy of religion.
Now | say more, that the spirit of de
nominations, following the spirit of scholastic
theology, has all the marks of non-Christian
ity in this: Christ went to men, and the ten
dency of Christs life was TO draw men to
Him and to each other. 1t was to draw
men within the scope and reach of His hand.
1t was the touch Of sympat nv and love and
of su cor that characterized His ministry.
Any tn 'ology, or any administration OF
church policy that separates denominations;
that drives them apart, is anti-Christian
The tendency of the gospel should be to
break down ths middle walls OF partition; and
IL men are erroneous here or there, the way
Is not to bonbard them; it is to love them.
If you are on "A better foundation than they
are, show it by better fruits than they 10.
Now, | do not doubt that there is a great
deal of difference between Catholics and
Protestan.s, but l ho'd that the most
Thoroughbred Catholic, that is gentle and
loving and winning, IA more orthodox than
the most astute and absolutely correct
Protestant that is selfish and proud and
ugly. Ugline s in the external armor
OF the gospel does not represent
Oh ist, and can never represent him. All
the tendencies, therefore, that ara to bring
denominations together are Christian ten
denotes, and all the endeavors to build your
CItttiN u khfi anu ~ ilhkt your SeDiTulI On
shari err. AMI to pat in new chevaux
de frise or any other separating ele-
ment, NIL these are anti Carl tian.
When men tn 'refore say we are in danger
of son imeata ity and they talk about gener-
osity being substituted for sound wisdom
and sound teaching. my reply is that the
soundest wisdom in this world is to love one
another; and that there is nothing in the
whole realm OF orthodoxy nor OF orthodox
theology, that can by any combination be a
substitute for thu one single element, love
one another.
Then there is another thing that | must not
forbear 10 add, hat is of n more confined
nature. We are largely stirre up 10 works
OF mercy and charities, this congregation
and all the churches in this city. The
general spirit OF religion in this
city and The adjoining city is that
of charitableness 1t takes two forms,
or should. FIRST, organic, and second. per
sonal. Organic charity is meant to do that
which cannot be done personally. For when
you shall have given to each man and each
household just as many cases as they
can personally attend to, there VIII lie a
large surplus vet outside OF them that vii
nave nobody 10 befriend them, and there
fore It is perfectly proper that there should
be organized charities and societies, and they
should undertake to do what the individuals
are not able to do for the multitude.
But when you once have cone this Noes
sary work, you are in danger OF saying:
well. now | rave got a machine. let 1t
grind out charity" 1t will do a good deal,
lut no organized charity can ever touch tn G
heart Whoever gives through the hands OF
an organized charity does well, but If you
say: 81 havs done my charity now;
| have put it in the hands OF the
machine, and it will come out some
where" you nave lone ILL.,
Brethren, do not forget the sacred touch.
He took him by the hand. He lodi him out
from the crowd h administered the
remedy ly Tie hand, while He held him with