The Universalist. [volume] (Chicago [Ill.]) 1884-1897, 1888-08-18

WHO would dare to lift his voice in
prayer to God if he believed that any
asking Of his could change the thought
or will. OF God toward him. We dare to
pray only because we know that nothing
can change Gods purpose. Prayer is an
act of obedience 20 q rule which God has
made, its rewards are such as belong to
all other acts Of that nature. There is a
perfectly natural law of action and re-
action, of asking and receiving.
ONE OF our exchanges, we think the
Journal and Messenger, Baptist, says in
resent editorial, sour Universalist
friends have been for some time past, con-
graduating themselves that the old doc
trines of sin and everlasting punishment
from the presence of the Lord and from
the glory Of his power are not preached
as positively they once were. But writer
in the Gospel Banner has been looking
over the Sabbath-school lesson for May
6, and finds that all the papers he exam
ined took the ground that the word ever
lasting suggests both the duration and
the severity of the punishment; that the
blessedness of the righteous and the doom
of the wicked will be alike eternal"
-DoEs this Baptist editor believe that
Everlasting" as used in the Bible means
endless? Would he be willing to rest
his hopes OF immortal blessedness upon
the adjectives Everlasting" or "eternal"
il there were no other proofs Of it than
the Hebrew use Of these words supply?
Does the editor believe, Furthermore, that
the old doctrine of " everlasting punish
ment," admitting that everlasting means
endless, does he believe it is preached as
positively and generally as it once was?
II it is not, and it certainly is not, then
why? Simply because the idea of punish
ment for which the Universalist church
stands, is gaining upon popular favor"
"We agree with this writer in the Ban
ner," says this editor, that there is good
deal for Universalists to do yet" But it
must be confessed that we have done a
splendid work SO far.
War the Journal and Messenger
calls the good old doctrines OF the word
of God" are not suffering at the hands
of Universalists, but are being preached
with power unto salvation from unbelief,
from error, and from the bondage of the
fear of death. AS to what constitutes
"the good old doctrines" there may be
a difference of opinion. II this editor
claims anything on that score, for the
horrible doctrine of endless misery, he
has strange meaning to the word "good."
The doctrine was go simply horrible as to
take away from the soul of man all dispo-
sition to try to escape it. The doctrine
OF the vioarious atonement was devised
for the purpose OF relieving the soul from
the terrible incubus of fear, and to induce
men even to attempt their own salvation.
After telling men that endless punish
ment was the irreversible doom of the
sinner, the devise of laying the sin of
upon the sinless Christ was necessary to
save men from sinking into despair, with
out hope, or scarcely desire to put away
sin. The vicarious atonement is not a
doctrine, but devise.
'-THE feeling against the third party
leaders often INDUCED in some quart ers
is that they are political amateurs, and
that they teach Sunday school politics"
The National Baptist remarks upon this