Democratic Northwest. [volume] (Napoleon, Ohio) 1869-1894, 1891-06-25
TALMAGE ON THECREEDS
HE GIVES HIS OPINION IN ANSWER
TO MANY QUESTIONS.

Satan Himself Ii the Chief InstiEator OF
the Controversy Now Raging in Many
CbErehes. and Earnest Work for Christ
Is the Remedy.
BROOKLYN, June A.-Dr. Talmage dealt
IN his sermon this morning with the very
timely tepic-the Battle Of Creeds After
% long and exhaustive a discussion In
clerical circles and in the secular press
there seemed nothing more to be said on
the subject DR.. Talmage, however, has
bis own way Of looking at all subjects, and
even people who thought they knew all
that could be said on both sides received
light from the fresh and original contribu.
ton which he made TO the controversy
His text was taken from Proverbs XVI, IL,
"He that passeth by and meddleth with
strife belonging not to him is like one that
taketh dog by the ears"
Solomon here deplores the habit of rush
ing in between contestants; OF taking part
fnthe antagonisms Of others; Of joining in
fights which they ought to shun. They do
no good to Others and get damage for them.
selves He compares it to the experiment
: of taking dog by the ears Nothing so
irritates the CANNES as to be clutched by
the lugs. Take them by the back of the
neck and lift them and it does not seem to
hurt or offend; but you take the dog by
the ear and he will take you with his teeth.
In all the history of kennels no intelligent
or spirited dog will stand that "Now,"
says SolomoR, "you go into quarrels or
controversies that are not yours and you
will get lacerated and torn and bitten.
He that passeth by and meddleth with
strife belonging not to him is like one that
taketh a dog by the ears >"
THIS is THE AGE OF CONTROVERSY.
This is q time of resounding ecclesiastic
al quarrel. Never within your memory or
mine has the air been so full of missiles.
The Presbyterian church has on hand a
controversy so great that it finds it pru
dent to postpone its settlement for at least
one more year, hoping that something will
turn up. Somebody might die or new
general assembly may have grace to han
die the exciting questions. The Episcopal
church has cast out some recalcitrants, and
its digestive organs are taxed to the ut
most in trying to assimilate others. "Shall
women preach2" "Or be sent as delegates
to conferences" are questions that have
put many of our Methodist brethren on the
anxious seat" And the waters in some
of the great baptistries are troubled wa
ters. Because of the controversies through
out Christendom the air is now like an
August afternoon about o'clock, when it
has been steaming hot all day, and clouds
are gathering, and there are lions of thun-
der with grumbling voices and flashing
eyes coming forth from their cloudy lairs,
and people are waiting for the full burst of
the tempest. am not much of weather
prophet, but the clouds look to me mostly
like wind clouds 1t may be big blow,
but hope it will soon be over In regard
to the Battle of the Creeds am every day
asked what think about it, want to
make it so plain this morning what think
that no one will ever ask again
Let those who are jurymen in the case
mean those who in the different ecclesi-
astical courts have the questions put di-
rectly before them-weigh and decide. Let
the rest of us keep out. The most dam
aging thing on earth is religious contro-
versy. No one ever comes out of it as good
man as he goes in. Some of the ministers
in all denominations who before the pres.
ent acerbity were good and kind and use
full, now seem almost swearing mad.
These brethren notice always open their
violent meetings with prayer before de-
vouring each other, thus saying grace be-
fore meat. They have moral hydropho-
bia that makes us think they have taken
dog by the ears. They never read the i'm.
predatory Psalms of David with such zest
as since the Briggs and Newton and Mac.
Queary and Bridgman and Brooks ques.
tions got into full swing. May the rams of
the sheepfold soon have their horns sawed
off Before the controversies are settled
good many ministers will, through what
they call liberalism, be landed into prac-
tical infidelity, and others through what
they call conservatism will shrink up into
bigots tight and hard as the mummies of
Egypt which got through their contro.
versies three thousand years ago,
SATAN STIRRED IT UP.
This trouble throughout Christendom
was directly inspired by Satan. He saw
that too much good was being done. Re-
cruits were being gathered by hundreds of
thousands to the Gospel standard. The
victories for God and the truth were too
near together. Too many churches were
being dedicated. Too many ministers were
being ordained. Too many philanthropies
were being fostered. Too many souls
were being saved 1t had been dull time
in the neither world, and the arrivals were
too few. So Satan one day rose upon his
UuIOn0 duu odluy AV pOWCi5 VI adEAACSS1
hearl" And all up and down the caverns
the cry was, "Hearl Hear!' Satan said
"Tbere is that American Board of Com
missioners for Foreign Missions. 1t must
either be demolished or crippled, or the
first thing you know they will have all
nations brought to God. Apellyon the
Youngerl You go up to Andover and get
the professors to discussing whether the
heather can be saved without the Gospel
Divert them from the work of missions
and get them in angry convention in a
room at Young's hotel Boston, and by the
time they adjourn the cause of foreign
missions will be gloriously and magnif-
Gently injured. Diabolus the Youngerl
You go up and get Union Theological
Seminary of New York and the general
assembly of the Presbyterian church at
Detroit at swords points and diverted from
the work Of making earnest ministers Of
religion, and turn that old Presbyterian
church, which has been keeping US out of
customers for hundreds of years, into a
splendid pandemonium on small scale.
Abaddon the Third You go up and as
sault that old Episcopal church, which has
been storming the heavens for centuries
with the sublimest prayers that were ever
uttered-church of Bishop Leighton, Bish-
pp White and Bishop McIlvaine, and get
that denomination discussing men instead
OF discussing the eternities. Abaddon the