New-York tribune., 1891-05-25
FHE BIBLE AND THE CREEDS.
nR. NEWTON AND DIR. BRIGGS DEFENDED.
uur REV. DIR. pARKHURsr DECLARES HIMSELF
EspHAuoALLY FOR LIBERTY OF

49,. ,r,ch faowed with breathess interest the power
All s.,oop delivered by the Rev. DR.. c. II. PariShurst.
HIS subject the present disQuet in the Presby-
,s.n cfurch and he preached from the text: Prove
ali things, hold nst tia' WHICH Is gooo. ISL ihess'
v:cI. He said as follows:
In accordance with the announcement made a weeh
asa. / have undertaken this morning to touch some
sns suggested by the present condition Of dlsquiet
N the Presbyt Church; it might better be said
the present condition o. dsquiet in the Church al large
far there subssts among the churches that degree OF
nnity and mutual membership that whatever dOctrina
disturbance makes Itself felt in communion is GER
tain or later 10 repeat itself in every sister com
munion. Or II can be stated more accurately still
by saying that this mental and doctrnal uneasness is
not matter Of denomination; II Is kind OF tempest
that the whole atmosphere is charged withal, and
therefore sweeps across the entire landscape Of the
thinking world as storm rolls across continent,
unchecked by the barriers of mountain and river by
which the continent may be intersected, unhlndered
by the walls fences and hedge-rows by winch all lts
wide area may be cheokered into sections. farms and
garden plots. 1t is in the air not in the denomlna-
Let it be said at this point that have purpose
Of deseendins into the small details OF the matter IN
the time nor the place The best way OF getting ready
TO handle questions that in dispute Is to revive
consciousness of the ndsputble grounds upon
which alone the settlement OF d<sputed questions can
securely rest and permanently ABIDE =,
IL ought TO be promised. as propee approach
to what before that the discussion Of this morn
10 how things are going to come out Ihe are gog 10
come ont right. The Lord only knows when but tney
president OF seminary in letter written me Just
before he left town for the summer on ihnrsday st
God reignss There vast quantities Of nerve and
staying power in that. As the Prophet Isaiah SAID;
Tumuluousness and perturbation are atheism along s
neither edge. That through which we are passing Is
the evolution of divine truth storms in the theologi
cal world much part Of the theological world
as tampess, billiards and caaeysms are an essential
element IN the history and growth Of the natural
world. This is nve world and i is growing world
and whether growth be the growth OF roots among me
rocks or gr9Th Of az S%Sng f tine IN be e am II Of
r.Ilu ffutf Is
something grows something has got 10 give way Inc
there were no unquiet there would be s greater need
OF being prayerfu for then II would loQA as In0ukk ~
spring; as though God were tired or the Holy spirit
So much then to Indicate the tone in which as
Christians thoughts ought TO sing themselves out'
Che Lord reigneth-
GIVING CREDIT TO OPPONENTS.
And then, too, we have got not only to trust the
Lord but what good deal harder, we have got to
love our enemies. These people that are antsgo-
MIXING us and that we are antagonzng IN these earnest
and almost bitter days not wicked people they
ara not dishonest people, nor tricky, nor ugly many
OF them. The present question is not one OF integrity
are more constitutional and temperslaente than any
thing else. When was boy ! remember h. 1nce
New school and Old school. The answer given me
was that would better wait TIL grew up, ana ,neL,
lessons that can be learned only by personal expert
ment. Mutual suspicion of the integrity Of one an
obstacles in the way OF reciprocal Understanding ana
psccation. They are likely to think that W we mare are
revision and we are likely TO reciprooate and thlnk
that they only halfway Christian because they
grace 10 be able to imagine that a man can think
differently from what we do and sun be quite hohes'
An Illustration Of that is afforded by the case OF
family, l DO not remember where irom out % down
IN the businesses OF yvania, or out III the wldS
of the West probably a home mission family that
the ladies OF our church have very munhcegty helped
Family. an hncompromising anti-reEisionist, wrote
back gratefully and gracionsly acknowledging whagg
heard of our church being stanch representative OF
revision and he said the clothes we sent him came
feel differently toward revision since got that box
Why the dear saint, he didn't suppose that evslonlsts
MSetSsr 1iS people vent Clothed or naked that Is
all around 1t only last year In SaIaoga tina. tias
when ons of the General Assembly representatives, es
from thus city took the platform one OF the ladies rom
the West heard to say 70 her companion t%a. Tn
believe in changing the Confession OF Faith "oh'
somebody put him outl' - ,,-..r "a
the SCRIPTURES we need TO believe in each other.
PAU SAYS, and Paul knows. that the very best thing
quantities Of that or else before the next three wears
are by the Presbyterian Church VIII 9e Dd yr1oe x E
1t is going be exceedingly necessary for rs 10 hp
very close TO Christ and the blessed spirit Oh ue
'A AZ the same time while we believe that God
reigns and while We are going 10 90 oar nCs1 70
NAV not IKE them, but We are going 10 do our best
TO love them-I say that at the same time tnere arr
certain positions that have some Of US taken that
we are going stand by and affirm so long as there IS
breath in our body 70 affirm them WIN II We csS S9 and If II
we cannot Will do 1t inside Of some other church
the Presbyterian Ch1rch, not by excelsior, but by
comprehension. The true strength OF a church, Ike
The true strength of nation, lies not In the monoony
OF its elements but in their organized 65erogeneity
Rome strong because Of the diversity OF the
tribal ingredients that went to compose It, England
owes ber irresistibleness in part TO the diversified
threads Of population that are woven into the net OF
her national unity. We are expecting the same Ulng
from our own American people when once the assim
iatg process has blended the diverse constituencies
thaS are gathered into midst into one solid and
c0mpact whole: or to transfer the principle from
political TO ecclesiastical ground, the strength Of the
original apostolic twelve was due 10 dlnereuTes a
well as resembances. There no theological
scales and no temperamental yardstick by which the
Twelve could have been tried In way 10 make thei
show the same figure The ApOstleship was large and
broad enough to take in easily eleven men whose only
belief ip His SON besides. Judas Iscarot and Judas,
even never ceased to apostle by any ones act
save his own act.
NO SHOW WITH PRINCETON.
Princeton SAYS that Is careless. illadvised way OF
Ioing these things. If the Apostlesp had not started
before Princeton did there would be no show for the
Apostleship too heterogeneous; no one system that
they would all have been willing to pledge themselves
to: Peter and John never would have agreed on any
theological platform that had than two planks
in IT. and when Paul came in everything would have
gone 10 pieces The spirit Of, such An Institution as
that have Just mentioned is to make theologians Just
q machine makes shoe pegs Just as baker makes
craekers-the same quantity of dough In the cracker
before il Is put into the Oven and the same stamp put
on the cracker after ii is pulled out OF the oven
Il attempts TO secure church unity exactly as the
Catholic Ihurch has always tried TO secure churcn
unity by cutting of the legs Of those that did not
walk in step, and By the abscisson Of the heads OF
those that did not think In step; which Is the mOnot
osy of sahara desert not the unity of a living
organism.
And IL passing strange, IL is one OF the riddles OF
history the comfort the Church has always taken IN
casting it members out Of the synagogue. Even in
the Old Mosaic days TO be prophet TO see and think
where others he'd Rot and thought before augured
for the seer an ignomniOus death. And then even In
ChFsts own day the Disciples began 10 rebuke those
who believed in Christ, and who did Christs works.
but who declined 10 train in their particular company
iAnd that has been the history OF the Church. Inc
quickest way 10 fire church enthusiasm Is not 20 show
10 poor sinner for IL 20 convert, but poor hereuc
for IL 10 sniff after and run down. =,
/ am NOT speabtng of any century. but of oil
the centuries OF the history OF the Church. We raise
vast OF convert a man and get him mo