The Universalist. [volume] (Chicago [Ill.]) 1884-1897, 1888-04-07
REV. F. M. BRISTOL's SERMON.

0Ao MOeuOulSt OHurCu, udQ come out
''fat-footed'' in repudiating the doctrine
of eternal punishment. We intimated
doubt on the subject, and were not
inclined to put credence in the report.
1t seems from the sermon preached
by the gentleman on the Sunday
night following the Minister'S Meeting
at which he made his remarks, that he
is not to be ranked as among those who
have outgrown the old belief. His re-
marks at the Ministers Meeting were
directed toward the Calvinistic dogmas,
and his words were misunderstood as
applying to the doctrine of eternal pun
ishment as now generally entertained
in the Evangelical denominations. Mr..
Bristol is quite vehement in his opposi-
tion to Calvinism, and is explicit in his
denunciation of the doctrine of election
and reprobation as taught by the early
Calvinism. He remarks: "The church
has outgrown, If 1t has ever entertained i,
the horrible and degrading doctrine
that God has created certain beings for
the express purpose of damning them
for his own ediication, or for the pur-
pose of enhancing his own glory in the
eyes of certain other beings called the
elect" The Chicago reporters, with
that fine indifference to exactness which
is characteristic of their theological
work, represented this statement and
others Of similar import, as repudia-
ton of the doctrine of eternal punish
ment.
Mr.. Bristol, as Methodist, is assured
ly threshing old straw in his denuncia-
ton of Calvinism. That work has been
well done in the past, and from the
time of George Whitfield and the
Calvinistic controversy in England,
Methodists have borne ample testimony
against the enormities of John Calvin's
belief. Nothing that Mr.. Bristol has
said is anything in advance of what
John and Charles Wesley and their fol-
lowers bore testimony to in the early
days of the Methodist movement.
1t also occurs to us that Mr.. Bristol is
making Calvinism altogether too prom
inent for its real position before the
public of the nineteenth century. 1t
is very true that in its old forms Cal
vinism is now a dead belief in this
country. The doctrine of election and
Reproduction is now rarely preached, and
Mr.. Bristol might as properly indite
Methodist orations against the doctrine
of infant damnation as against either
Of these dead and gone faiths.
Mr.. Bristol says that he owes it to
truth and the Calvinistic branch of the
church to say that he "never heard a
preacher or layman teach the uncon-
ditional damnatiOn of men, nor the
horrible doctrine that infants be sent to
hell for moral condition for which
they are not responsible" and he adds:
81 am sure that Drs. Little, Goodwin,
Barrows, Mcpherson, Lorimer and
Lawrence never taught such heartless
doctrine as the infidels or the so-called
liberals accuse the Calvinists of
teaching"
But does Mr.. Bristol wish to be I'M
derstood as casting doubt on the fact
that such doctrines were ever preached
by Calvinistic divines in this country?
1.-The church has outgrown, If it ever
entertained" etc. The "if" here is
amusing, and fine specimen of extra
charitable judgment in matters of his
tory. Mr.. Bristol is young man, and
it is possible that he may never have
heard these doctrines preached. He
will not, however, have to turn over
many pages in the history of the Evan
gelical church in this country before
discovering the evidence that such
beliefs as those which he now stigma
tises, were very clearly and distinctly
preached in the past. 1t is possible
that the gentlemen named-all Chicago
pastors not amenable to the charge
of preaching these doctrines but it
is also true that the Presbyterian,
Baptist and Congregational ministers
of half century ago treated their con-
gregations to strong doses of original
Calvinism. The fact that these gentle
men have very largely outgrown the
teachings of their creeds is only evil
denee that the world moves, and that
the trend of thought is making directly
against the beliefs formerly enter tanned
and preached with horrible JUNCTION in
the pulpits of the land.
Turning from Calvinism, Mr.. Bristol
next enters into glowing defense of
Methodism and presents its position On
the question of eternal punishment as
rational, merciful, just, scriptural
and in perfect harmony with the nature
of things" He draws largely on ad-
jectives for describing the Methodist
faith-and we may add on his magma
tion also in equal measure-but the