Telegram-herald. ([Grand Rapids, Mich.) 18??-1892, 1891-10-12
SIANDFASI fORLIBERIY
The Basis Of Upitv Church and
the Reason Why.
REV. NILAIUPPER'S SUNDAY SERMON
-fhoa Must Believe" Mast Bs Threwn
Aside ssd II Ds believe" Proclaimed
lnstesd-UDstsrtsn Church frtset-
pies Graphically Described.

Galstions 5-i. Stand fast in the lib
erty wherewith Christ hath made us
free. and be not entangled again with
yoke OF bondage.
Ephesans Ala and Is. That We
hsnceforth be no more children, tossed
to and fro with every wind OF doctrine
bat speaking the truth in love may
grow up into hm in all things. which
is the head--even Chr.st.
Last Sunday evening members Of the
congregation met 10 act upon report
of the committee on the permanent or
ganization of our church. The result
OF their action. except as it relates to
the business details of the constitution,
you will find In the cards that have
been distributed this morning. The
thing of chief Importance in the organ
ization of the new church is its basis OF
fellowship, and it is this that Is en-
bodied in the bond of union that you
see before You. Let us read II together.
Earnestly desiring to develop IN
ourselves, and IN the world, honest
reverent thought, faithfulness to our
highest conception of right living, love
to men and the spirit of service, We
unite as members of Unity church.
hoping thereby to help one another in
all good things. and to advance the
cause of pure religion in the commu-
nifty, baslng our union upon this ex-
pressed moral and religious purpose,
and emphasizing the religion of char
acter and daily life above all creedal
confessions"
What the Pond OF Union il.
This bond of union includes what is
requisite for being a member in full
standing of Unity Church. Perhaps to
you it may not seem specially different
from many others. Perhaps you do
not realize that it is especially signifi-
cant, and yet to me it seems that it is a
thing of great historical importance;
that it is possible for a churcn to be Or
ganized in which such bond of union
will be unanimously agreed upon. To-
day want TO talk over with you some
of the principles which are involved in
this basis that we may, as congrega-
ton and as church, fully appreciate
what We stand for and why.
said that 1t seemed to me of his
toric interest. Let us glance little
over the history of church organiza-
tions in order to see what the church
conditions of membership of the past.
in order to better appreciate the new
principles that now guide us. In the
time of the earlier religions prior to
Christianity. including the Hebrew,
there was no sharp line drawn between
members and non members OF what
stood for their churches. Religion was
very largely matter of ritual and.
when the ritual is emphasized, the
creed is taken for granted rather than
put to the front. Christian religion
seems to have started without much
| emphasis either upon ritual or creeds,
Jesus seems to have ignored all but the
life. but Paul soon gave great deal of
emphasis to the theory of religion, al
though he was constantly urging per-
| feet tolerance and freedom of opinion
| also. As the church grew and spread.
| however, the doctrine became a matter
| of great importance and the councils
of the church spent much time in for
mulating creeds and frowning down
heresies. | do not know, however.
| that the treeds in the Roman Catholic
church we've ever seriously made test
except for the clergy. For laymen,
the ohservances of the rites and cere-
monies were the chief things. Later in
the Catholic church, with the clergy
and all. the great stress was upon the
obedience to the forms and penances.
The reformation was q protest against
the moral laxity of the church funda
mentally. but it soon came TO be a
question of logic and of theory, j. G.
morals-creed. Luther was, believe
really spurred on by his feeling tina!
the church was not properly develop.
| ing the spiritual and moral life of the
people. but. instead of seeing IL so, he
| thought that the failure lay in the
| worng theology of the church. He
built up new theology around the the.
ory of Justification by Faith" And
he felt that in that theory lay the only
| salvation, and yet what we notice az we
look hack upon his experiences was that
he felt that the individual soul must be
brought into direct and independent
contact with God. And history sees in
the movement which Luther headed
not new creed alone, hut A great on.
ward sweep Of the principle of indIvid-
| did not tnow that il was his stalwari
insisterce on the right to be guided by
| his own conscience that was the impor-
tant feature of his work. To him,
everything depended on a theory, and
that theory must I've crys,allized into a
solidly organized church. SO The CON
fession of Augsburg had to be formed,
and all the affairs of the universe sys.
tematized in that creed. And the new
Lutheran church started off with its
members as tightly harDcssed az they
had ever been in the old church. In
deed. now that they were free from an
| Infallible church with it's prIestiv oh
servances. they seemed TO think that il
was more important than ever TO elsbo
rate their creed. Something must give
| them strength and organic unity, and
| they thought they found that "sone
thing in unity of belief upon ahstrust
! theological problems. What was the
| RESULT Naturally. ali those who
| had really caught the spirit oi
| individualism in religion tina, Luther
| him self stood for. were not content
with a creed lsborsted by him. The
| disciples of bis spirit often could not b.
| the disciples OF his creed and 80 theJ
| either had to tie themselves down 90 A
system they did not approve or els.
| split Of into another church organ
zation. They IN turn ssv no way 81
uniting people for religion eYcep
around . common relief and so, soor
as they made thinking disciples, tbey
were very AFT TO fnd them seceders
and thus, within the century after thl
n formation. irumeratae snal