The Jersey City news. (Jersey City [N.J.]) 1889-1906, 1890-08-04
FROM J0RDANS STREAM.
A Notable Baptism BY the Rev. Dr..
DR.. George The Rite Discussed.

The services at the Linden Avenue M.
E. Church yesterday morning consisted
of the administration of baptism and the
Lord's Supper, besides a brief sermon by
the pastor, the Rev. DR.. W. p George.
The water which was used in the cere-
mony Of baptism was from the river Jor-
dan in which Christ was baptized. Mr..
Louis Klopsch, publisher Of the Christian
Herald, New York, furnished a two
quart cask of the water from the hall
lowed stream. 1t was boiled in Judea
and hermetically sealed and recently
brought to this country by Mr. Klopsch
on his return from tour of the Holy
Land. The water Is slightly dark in
color.
DIR. George blessed the water after
pouring some of it into the silver baptis-
NAL fount He then baptized according
Van Buskirk, of Brooklyn, N. r., and
Richard John Christopher, of Allendale,
N. j. The ceremony consisted of the pa
rents kneeling at the altar with their
children while DIR. George read the re-
quirements of the church in regard to
baptism. sprinkled the children with
water on their heads and offered prayer
dedicating them to God. The ceremony
was a very beautiful one, and after it Dr.
George preached an interesting and elo-
quent sermon.
Among the things said by DR.. George,
after reading as his text the sixth chap
ter of Hebrews
"The greatest sin in the universe is
apostacy. 1t is the sin by which angels
fell from their exalted places in Heaven
1t Is the sin unto death. The unpardon-
able sin. In palace at Venice in one of
the magnificent halls there hang III a row
the portraits in oil Of the Doges of Venice.
D,,4 fe ~ tafrt
The Doge Marino Galiero, whom it repre-
sents, proved traitor to his country, and
today his name is unhonored and his por-
trait huge blot. So in the Christian por-
trait gallery each one of us must have
either portrait beautified by good works
or marred by SIM. Its q solemn thought
that there is no standing still in the
Christian life; we are either progressing
or aimlessly drifting.
s'The Apostle exhorts us to leave first
principles and go on to perfection. A lad
is not expected to linger over the first
four rules of arithmetic all his school
life but to advance into higher mathe-
matics. Christians should not continu-
ously linger inger over the fundamentals
of their faith but advance in the knowl-
edge of their Divine Master. Christianity
is growth as well as a condition.
Have reasons for the faith that is in
you. A large amount of time has been
WASlou ny Iu0 III buG n,
not as to the ceremony of baptism, but
the form of baptism. There has been a
great deal of discussion whether a few
drops of water should De used or the be
lever should be plunged in river. The
result of the long discussion over the sub
iect is that the vast majority believe in
baptism of children by sprinkiing. The
Roman Catholic church, the Greek
church, the Anglican church, the Pres
byterian church, the Congregational
church, the Lutheran church and the
Methodist church all believe in this form
of baptism for children, while the Bap-
tist church, the Campbellite church and
the Mormon church believe in INNER
sion. Good and. holy men of high sche-
lastic requirements have accepted i'm
mersion.
"The majority is not always right. In
eighteen hundred years we have settled
something. Men have debated fercely
on different doctines. Men war on
creeds. A creed is crysUallization of
truth. But you say the churches differ
on doctrines. Nearly all the churches
believe in the apostles and the atonement
and the divinity of Christ lean wander
in the fields to view the landscape. lean
cross the stile that may slake my thirst
at the old moss covered well in some
shady nook. can saunter in the wood
land glade and gather the wild hearts
ease that peeps from among the tangled
fern, but after my roaming go back to
the good old path whore the pilgrfm' g
tracks are visible and follow the s'shin-
ing light that leadeth unto the perfect