The Indianapolis journal. [volume] (Indianapolis [Ind.]) 1867-1904, 1891-05-26

Singing Criticism Of Hide-Bound Calvini
by Rev. Charles HI. Parkhurst.

Singing Criticism Of Hide-BoundC alvinists
by Rev. Charles II. Parkhurst.
NEW YORK. May 25.-Rev. Charles II.
&C the Madison square Presbyterian Church,
attacked the narrownes of the Presby-
terrain Church in general n the perse-
cutors of Professor Briggs in particular as
they never were attacked before. He like
wise paid his compliments to Princeton
College. He likened the men who are at
lacking Professor Briggs to early-day in
Quisitors who roasted heretics over slow
fires and tickled their fiesh with red-hot
pincers. His text was taken from first
Thessslonians. chapter v, verso 81: prove
ell things; hold fast that which is good"
Zone thing he said, I'VE are going to
Church, not by excision. but by compre-
henson. The true strength OF O church,
like the strength of q nation, lies not in
the monotony of its elements, but in their
organized heterogenity. The apostleship
W vas s,a asfse n msn C wboas sn "nIy n no AXE Of 70 u eai,,
was their faith in God and their loving
belief in His SON. Princeton says
that this is a careleless, ~ill-advised
way of doing these things. If the apostle
HulU udu " btdkt0 OClOIO hlu
there would have been no show for the
apostleship. Peter and John never would
have agreed on any theological platform
that had more b two pianks in it, and
when Pau came in everything would have
gone to pieces. The spirit of Princeton Is
to make theologians just as q machine
makes shoe-pegs. just as a baker makes
crackers-the same quantity OF dough In
the crackers before It Is put into the oven
and the same stamp put onto the cracker
of<ors - n DullAA nnf nf Tho nuay NJ
tempts to secure church unity exactly as
the Catholic Church has always tried to
secure church ~unity-by cutting OFT the
legs of those who have not walked in step,
that have not thought in step. This is the
monotony of the Sahara desert. not the
unity of q living organism.
The question that is on the lips Of thou
sands of young men that are on the thresh-
old of the ministry Is. can l enter the
Presbyterian ministry and still retain my
intellectual self-respecti Must l pluck out
my eyes and replace my brains with saw
dust as prerequisite to candidacy
for Presbyterian .ordersf Can l be
same time be a loyal Presbyterian IL
10 in view Of just such i~nterrogatories as
these that ! GO on to express 1t as my frank
conviction that the General Assembly
stultified itself one year ago when il bound
its revision committee to c0nfine its modi-
~fication of the Confession within Calvinistic
lines. Our objection Is to the idea of tying
q great church in q live century to q man
who had been three hundred years under
ground. Perhaps we can never improve on
the church that my heart and life are bound
mp in is anchored to q cemetery. To tie US
to the sixteenth century is an attempt to
drive the Presbyterian buggy with .
hitched horse.
1--WE believe that the Bible is inspired by
God. We do not believe that God ever told
Moses to say that Comics chew the cud, be-
cause Comics do not chew the cud. Levitt
icus xi. s., TO the contrary notwith,
Scriptures in its vltals any more
than pairing YOU nails stops your hearts
beating. The Bible is too big u thing to
hang on q coney peg. IT q man saws that
Leviticus xi. 5. Is a mistake. the thing to
do is not to prove that he is false TO the
Confession, but to produce Q cud-chewing
Coney. If Presbyt erianism cannot keep
without ignoring its Christian scholars
and vituperating its Christian experts. the
sooner it gives uD the ghost the better, for
it will economic medical expenses and
save watchers.
These latter remarks of mine are to pro-
test against the whiting ways that are
abroad. They are exciting the contemptof
persons who think, and lead them to sus-
pect that religion is one of those things
that shows best when the light is turned
down.. Some will say that my remarks OPP
crate to engender skeptlcisrn. Before God
1 deny il. 1t would take a whole mount
ain of gospel preaching to atone for the
work of the silly souls who have tried to
shut off light from the Bible. To buttress
and defend is to betray. To uncover, to
throw down the gauntlet and challenge in
vestigation Is onr best confession of faith.
May God almighty cure us of our small
ways. May God kindle light in our eyes 10
find it in this blessed volume before me
and TO publish IL with triumphant assur-
anee.p
DIR. Parkhurst goes TO Detroit to-day, as
he is one of the New York Presbytery's rep
reeentatives in tho General Assembly.
A Defense Of DIR. Briggs.