New-York tribune. [volume] (New York [N.Y.]) 1866-1924, 1891-09-13
THECHURCH ANDTHE WORLD
THEIR RELATIONS DISCUSSED BY THE REV.
HOWARD MACQUEARY.

| II must not be supposed that this book derive 10
rv importance from the fact that IL was "r.'eI "
.ho author OF The Evolution OF Man ana Cnrisu"N''
tboprh undoubtedly that circumstance Will sVo
-, toc.,tous interest In the eyes Of many peopie'
| o.rodox ChurchInen who have been led TO loon vi
M Macoueary as the very incarnation OF Aisc wv
,-sne heresy and schism may turn 10 ms io'osv Nv
terance to find a confirmation of that fact' mnno
liberals Of all shades of belief ana unoehei VIII po
| renared 20 hail 1t as another blow at the tnrauo'
:. tho oreeds IL is perhaps the best possible cohi-
nIiment that could be paid to Mr. MacVueary " pay
hat his book will dlsappoint both these classes o.
ad.rc Fnr IL indicates that, instead OF WORKING III
come routipe groove, he is doing his own thinRihs'
| and stands ready to proclaim his own cohciuSion''
| even thouch they may dSappOint many people,
a. ,.s title indicates the book consists Of series
| &C articles on the questions of the day which Were
| originally delivered lectures and sermons 1"ot
an. fresh. clear and forcble, and while they MAKE
| M pretence to originality, 1t Is EVIDENT tnS' 'e
| author is something more than an echo. lie iias ,'
simulated and made his what he has reaa ON u.
questions he discusses; and the result IS Series u
noners that cannot fail to prove helpful and smuaI
ing TO all thinking people, even though they may u
| agree with him on mdny points There are ihs'"i00
here and there Of overstatement as when Tic ieAei
10 Congress as composed largely OF boooiers' an" "
casionay there is an absence Of perspective IN inc
discussion of certain phases OF thought bu' 49,
these are serious bemishes, they are far outweseo
| nv many exceuencies that give to the BOOK us
| ,nct vaue As a popular compendium Of WHAT moueru
| progressive thinkers have to say on the eueSU'i
that most nearly concern the Church and the oU'.o
The following passage from the preface VIII give
very good idea Of the spirit that animates te |hro
There two radically dlherent ldeis ~ sIdered
ana sort he Of areescape an institution established for
the purpose Of saving men ron uso'e sort Of re
prison. The clergyman St ~ i 10 hold up before
sinners pictures Of hell to scare them mo and
dnty He must scourge them into the sttnsh' az" IN
| Wit
other words. the Church ana t tfrre World not
posed ri, to .. deal sat H %h primarily Tns with with this Religion
is separated at least dlstn ishea IpT man veTy
% SmG mSS and yet 20 to he'll on the other hand
many think that Jesus came to save IS peOdpS Syed
snv and from the consequences of such deprayy hee
and hereafter 70 convert earth into RaISPTl nIns have
snmsSnp to do with the moral aspect Of every question:
POLITICAL social or scientific that the best way 70 PIE
h S Te sVi hold that religion morality are twin
sisters The who breaches orthodox tnsores v o
SS S ASR the great moral truths q he Recalogs
and the sermon on the Mount Will ma mmsen a. o To
| Iord have We not prophesied in Thy name; and IN
! Thy name done many wonderful tmngsT buO iio VIII
| answer, AZ never knew you.'
This is we'll put though not novel. But the charge
against orthodox preaching Is too indiscrminate'
Doubtless 1t is the tendency Of those who dwell 100
exclusively in the domain OF theology TO aceentuae
doctrines at the expense Of conduct But practically
that tendency does not nave pay III S'NJ Va
evangelical Christians that we know OF. II they
emphasize doctrines it Is because they believe those
| doctrlnes will affect conduct And even the drtest
theological discourse preached Is sure 10 have some
application in 1t to the lives of men. We DO not deny
that an undue and harmful emphasis has been placed
on speculative domas, and that such dogmas nave
frequently been exalted TO place of Importance they
do not deserve but do say that In the most arid
ages of doctrnal theology Christians have been better
than their creeds and have perforce been compelled
10 think OF the life that Is well as the life that
| is to come.
But Mr. MacQueary does not Intentionally do an In
Justice to the Church. In wellconsdered article on
Labor and Capital he makes this discriminating orlt-
cism Of the clergy:
CT have received no special favor from my clerical
brethren that should defend them but do believe
that most Of them Kindly disposed to the working
! men, and would fan render them a good service Inc
reason why OF them do not do this found not In
their depravity of heart but in their false education
There is not Us there should be- chair in social
science in every one Of theological seminaries, to
teach candidates for the ministry how TO apply Chris
tan principles to the solution Of the complicated In
| dustrial problems. Their minds are crammed full
Of Latin, Greek and Hebrew; they are Taught how 10
prove that miracles happened nineteen centuries ago
or rather they are taught to attempt 90 prove this.
but the teaching for the most part failure. They
are taught Church history in order to show that their
Church is the Church-the only Church. They are in
short taught sectaran Undergraduates Of inspiration
theories Of the Godhead, theories Of the Atonement
theories Of future retributOn, theories this and
theories on that subject. But they are not taught
the grand truths contained In the sermon the Mount
mean they are not Taught to npply these great
principles in detail to particular cases Of political
corruption and social oppression, regardless OF whom
they offend. Workingmen, therefore. must not make
unreasonable demands of the clergy Let them remem-
| Der that they are mere human beings; let them
ipnu Of irOnu
roundings the Of heredity and early education
Above all LET them remember that some indeed many,
| cergymen already aroused and are doing what
they can and their example and influence will tel In
due time What the wordngmen should do IS not 10
stand aoof from the clergy and tho Church. for they
certainly can never win their help by such means nor
should they denounce them either in bunch or ind-
vidualy but they should get possession Of the clergy
| and the Church. We want worklngmen's Church. If
not worAlnmen's political party and the working
men can give us this They put their men into
tho ministry and build them churches and tell them
to preach not theology but the 'oogy of Jesus Christ
tho gospel of good deedsand then they should 60 TO
hear that gospel"
In the main all Of this is true but here also there Is
| failure TO mako nice Determinations. The trouble
with modern preaching is not that ii substitutes dog
mas for the Gospel Of Christ but that IL puts an undue
emphasis on merely human and accidental elements in
the Gospel There IS lack Of perspective and blur
ring Of the spiritual vision in the presentation of
Christian truth that makes Il weak and trivial
nor would the religious problem be solved by making
tho Church over into workingmen's Church, as Mr..
MacQueary suggests. Why wOrEingmens Church any
more than merchants Church, a lawyers or doc
tors Church Besides, the wOrklrgmen the per
sons best qualified to reorganizo such an institution
as the Christian Churchl Would Mr.. MacQueary be
willing TO intrus this task TO convention Of mechan
les and laborers, however intelligent moral they
might be- Nay, more, would the worhingmen them
selves be willing to undertake the jobl We think not.
The greater their Intelligence, the conscious they
would DO Of their limitations and the less ready they
would be to make the Church narrow class organiza-
ton OF course the author did not intend TO advocate
such course, but his language 10 indicate that
lie did. He undoubtedly meant than 90 say
that the Church does not live up to It's principles OF
universal brotherhood, statement with which most
| Intelligent Christians will heartily agree.
| Il a from nm he peces Nv M