Pittsburg dispatch. [volume] (Pittsburg [Pa.]) 1880-1923, 1891-06-07

the great mass of the writers and thinkers
4 IN tne church with which he stands con
1eeted, he goes on to declare that moses
9id not write the Pentateuch or Job; Ezra
ola not write the Chronicles, Ezra or Meme
miah; Jeremiah did not write the Kings OF
lamentations; David did not write the
Psalter, but only few of the Psalms; Solo
mon did not write the Song of Songs, OF
Ecclesiastes, and only portion OF the
proverbs; Isaiah did not write half OF the
Dook that bears his name" Then, In lace
81 the i; fact that he had just ayowed his be-
nef In the infallibility of the Scriptures,
ne proceeds to arraign his brethren in gen.
eral for setting up a barrier to keep men
away, In the dogma Of the inerrency OF
scripture" Says he: $50 far as I can see,
there are errors in the Scriptures that no
one has been able to explain away" state
ment which hardly corresponds with the
solemn oath which he had just taken, nor
with his answers subsequently made to the
directors of the seminary. =.
AS to .Predictive Prophecy" he boldly
asserts MANY of these predictions nave
peen reversed by history" and that tine
great body of the Messiariic prediction has
not only never been fulfilled, but cannot
now be fulfilled, for the reason that its own
time has passed forever"
<AuttSOn1Ze0 Cnufcn StanuafuSs
And SO 1 might go on quoting from this
address in proof Of the fact that however
much he might protest his loyalty to the
standards Of belief of his church, his po-
sltlon was undoubtedly that of open antag-
on1sm to the very doctrines to which he had
professed adherence.
Those who harshly reflect upon the Gem
eral Assembly for refusing to confirm the
appointment of this man, and charge that
body with prosecuting him for his liberal
sentiments, are very wide of the mark In
their misstatements. DR.. Briggs is to-day
minister in full standing in the Presby-
terian Church, whose functions have not
been impaired in the slightest by this action
of the Assembly. In the exercise of its
authority it has simply declined to confirm
his appointment to the Chair of Biblical
Theology in Union Seminary, as they had
an undoubted right to do BY the compact
existing between them, on the grounds Of
his confusing and ambiguous and contra
dictory statements, which prove him unfit
in the estimation of the Assembly to occupy
such responsible position, in which he
would be expected to maintain the integ-
rity of the Scriptures and, in addition, that
the Confession of Faith should be sincerely
received and taught by him ''as containing
the system Of doctrine taught in the Holy
Scriptures"
Two Horns Of the Dilemma.
If DR.. Briggs sincerely believes in the
doctrines set forth in great prominence in
his famous inaugural address he oughtneyer
to have backed water, as he seems to have
done in his subsequent utterances; or if, as
his friends insist, he did not mean to
arraign the teachings of his church, nor to
assert anything derogatory to the integrity
of the standards, then his position is very
far from satisfactory to such as sympathize
with his criticisms on dogmas which de-
served to be exploded long time ago;
while such as cling to these time-honored
beliefs are not prepared to hand over to one
whose position is so equivocal the prepara-
tion of those who. are to carry forward the
of this important wing of the One
great army Of the living God.
In the midst Of peace and the greatest de-
gree of prosperity DR.. Briggs raised this
issue and forced its decision upon the high
est court of Cthe hurch, and now that 1t has
been boldly met and efectually settled, no
Intelligent lover of the cause in which this
church is engaged has the slightest fears
that her onward progress will be impeded
In the least, and let it not be forgotten that
The friends of revision have yet In Israel
of champions who have not, nor
ire they in danger, of bowing the knee to
Raal ssz4-.~ s--.s,.-s.-. E-aRs DoNEHooA.