Martinsburg independent. [volume] (Martinsburg, W. Va.) 1875-1900, 1889-11-09

arrangement, viz that the Episco-
pal Church has lowered her standard
of church life to let in unreproUed
the dancer excessive over indul-
gence ] take it), the theatre-goer,
the protane, the habitual drunkard
and then holds itself up as the stan
dard of society. / know your cor
respondent would not Intentionally
place himself within the range of the
petition of the Litany "That it may
please thee to forgive our enemies,
prosecutors and slanderers, and TO
turn their hearts,
In the communion, members are
to examine themselves, to be in charl-
ty one with another, offenders are to
be admonished, and as last resort,
to be expelled. Canon IL regulates
the conduct of the laity. Were God
to deal with any after their desert,
and summarially eject them, what
then? Our Lord was called the
friend of publicans and sinners, a
mine bibber, gluttonous man. Per-
sons making the charges must seek
in vain for the church where the
tares and wheat grow not together
until the harvest. "Uniso will seek
in vain among official utterances
the epithet "SecT' as term Of re
proach, applied to those seeking to
worship God according to the die
tates of their own consciences. The
overtures offered in the spirit, in &C
cordance with our Lords prayer for
oneness among separated brethren
forbid it,
Through Scotland, then England,
comes the American Episcopal
Church. In Magma charta, that great
Constitutional document of English
liberty, we read: "That the English
church shall be free to enjoy her
whole liberties inviolate." The legal
title "Church Of England" was used
by Pope Gregory, A. d. 597 (Bede's
Ecc'l Hist, Cap 26). The term Head
of the Church, was given to Henry
VIII, by Warham, Archbishop OF
Canterbury, and rejected under
Queen Elizabeth. The late Arch
bishop Bayley, of Baltimore, informs
us in lecture that "Henry, though
not a man to be canonized, never
fully deserted the faith, he received
the sacraments and made arrange
ments for the saying of Masses
History attests that he believed him.
self to be a Catholic to the last.
Masses for the repose of his soul was
solemnly chanted in the French
churches by express command OF
King Frances /. So closed the life
of the reputed founder of branch
of the church of the creed antedat.
ing him by some fourteen centuries,
to go back no further.
The vestment question and other
adjuncts are inherent in church usa-
ges from time immemorial. The uni
versal creed of christendom is the
test OF membership at their con-
firmation. Apostolic succession is
simply the claim to be the le-
gltimate successors of those an
Gent bishops ordained by the
Apostles and those Immediately sue
ceeding them. This is the substance
in a nut shell. 1t unchurches those
without about as much as any two
divergent bodies Numerically OPP
posed in church usages does so and
no further. Liberal minds are large
ly considering this question from
without in kindly spirit. The fact
is written all over the pages of eccle-
siastical church history and if eff
forts to down the communion advo-
eating this doctrine should prove a
failure it is not the fault of your
friend and well wisher.
VERITAs VINCIT.