The record-union., 1891-12-26
IN RELIGIONS REALM.
Expressions from the Various
Religious Newspapers.
The Religious Thought of the Day as
Expressed in the Sectarian Press
Ministers and Laymen.

In considering the case of Father Hall
of Boston, and Of Episcopal authority and
/ responsibility, the New York CHuTchDe071
! (P. E. remarks: ''But in order to justify
the judgment there must be in the bishop
a power of control over those working
with and under him. The ordinal dis
| tlnctly recognizes this power. He IS adj
mitted to government in the Church of
I Christ The presbyters VOW that they
will obey him. This canonical obedi-
ence is none the less real because its OBJ
legation is largely a matter of conscience.
! The bishops of our church do not call to
task their presbyters for the language Of
every interview they have with news
| paper reporter, nor deprive them OF their
! cures for some mere error Of judgment.
But the force of bishops admonition,
the decision of a bishops judgment, are
distinctly binding upon the conscience OF
q preSbyter. Certainly it would be inn
moral to admit any obligation of obedi-
ence to other authority to interfere with d
bishops Judgment or admonlt1on IN
things for which the bishop is responsible.
A VOW made to the responsible head of a
! diocese, in matters pertaining 10 the per-
Torrance of clerical functions in that do
ceSe, supersedes any VOW whatever made
with regard to the same matter to any eX-
ternal, foreign, and utterly irresonsible
authority. No one outside the diocese of
in foro conscienti0 forcibly to dissolve q
ministerial tie made by authority or
sanction from the Bishop of Massachu-
sets. On such questions as these the
diocesan must be the supreme and only
authority, and all previous obligations are
annulled by the obligations assumed to-
ward him by presbyter who accepts
his commission and is economically en-
rolled among his clergy"
In speaking of the revision movement
IN the Presbyterian Church, the New
York Christian -AdUocGte (Meth.) says {:
Representing as we do denomination
which has always regarded the distinct
i've doctrines of the Westminster Confess
sion as being out OF harmony with the
the spirit of the Gospel as well as with
the teachings of Scripture, and as being
in some instances repulSive to Christian
| thought, we view this movement, begun
| in Scotland, continued in England, and
now going rapidly forward in this coun-
try, with great satisfaction. For the
most part the Presbyterian pulpit does
not preach the Gospel that the West
minister Confession presents. 1t breaches
doctrines which less than half a century
ago were regarded as heretical as pro-
claimed from the Methodist pulpits.
There has been little change of doctrine
which Methodism represents. II Metho-
dism and Presbyterianism have been
brought closer together in this respect, it
is because great changes have taken place
in the doctrinal position of the latter. The
age Of controversy between the two de-
nominations is past. There is no longer
occasion for it. When Presbyterian min
listers preach in their pulpits they do not
bring to us strange doctrine. When
Methodist ministers preach in Presby-
terrain pulpitS we do not preach to them
strange doctrines. The Westminster Con-
fession and its system Of doctrine belong
to the great past, and are not in harmony
with the thought of the present; it is,
therefore. fitting that they should be laid
away, and that a brief evangelical creed
should take their place."
''The action of the Chicago Presbytery,
one of the strongest in the denomination,
| in recommending to the General Assem-
bly, that the question of revising the
Westminster Confession be dropped, and
that simple and Scriptural declaration
of the doctrines Of the Christian faith be
prepared, indicates what will probably
result from the discussion concerning the
standards which has long been occupying
! the attention of the Presbyterian denomi-
nation,'' says the Boston Congregational
iSt. 1.-THE change Of position in the Chi
cago Presbytery was especially remark
able and surprising: After four meetings,
and after prolonged discussion on vari-
Gus changes to be recommended, the pro-
posal to overture the General Assembly
for new creed was carried by vote of
So to Is. Of the 120 presbyteries which
have taken action on the revision,
twenty-six have declared their preference
for a new creed. This shows decided
changes of opinion within year. If this
movement should finally prevail, the
Westminster Confession will be allowed
to stand as it is, showing what the
church has believed. That is its proper
place and value. 1t has become plainly
evident that the acceptance of all its
statements can no longer be made a test
of orthodoxy or of good standing in the
ministry of the Presbyterian Church"
eve hear much nowadays" says the
Chicago LjUing Church Up. E.), "of 'intol-
erance' and 'bigotry,' and it is always
assumed that Christianity and especially
Christianity as embodied in the church,
is the very seat and source of these evil
principles. So far is this the case that
Christian apologists often fall into the
same strain and seem to concede that the
doubter, the agnoStic, and the atheist are,
at any rate, liberal, fair, and impartial to
all classes and parties. Facts, however,
hardly bear out this idea. The apostate
Julian became an eager prosecutor of the
church. And his modern successors
have been quick to show the same spirit
so soon as they have had the power. So
long as Antichrist presents himself in
the garb of the honest and amiable intel
lectual doubter, SO long as his business is
to weaken little by little the bulwarks of
the faith, to disintegrate and pull down
the structure of belief, his plea is for toll
Grafton; IL is bigotry to interfere with
him. Even if the alarmed instinct of
self-preServation prompts the church to
dismiss him from any office in which he
may have intrenched himself within her
Coli oh,
as II she were violating some Of the in
alienable rights of man, and the subject
of discipline poses as the representative
of all that is liberal and human. But
with Antichrist at the head Of positive
system of his own, and in the seat OF
power, it is far different. Negation be-
comes dogmatic, and those who will not
accept the dogma, There is no God,' be-
come the subjects of a persecution which
differs nothing in spirit from that of the
old pagan times, or the chiefs of the In
QUESTION"
''The most urgent need of Roman
Catholicism in the United States is to per-
suade the people who give some thought
to public affairs that it is not of necessity
antagonistic to the principles of republi-
can government" remarks the Central
Christian Adcocdte (Meth.l of st. Louis.
1.-The task is not an easy one, for the
Papacy has been in all the past the friend
of monarchical institutions. 1t has never,
anywhere else than in this country, made
the least pretence of favoring the repub-
licanism which has as one of it's cardinal
principles the free church in the free
State. Only here have the representatives
of the Papal chair used any language that
could be tortured into an Endorsement of
free speech, free press, and freedom of
worship. The Church of Rome has al
ways claimed freedom for herself, but de-
MED it to all others. y 1t