The record-union., 1891-02-08

blast, on all the church's holy days-Fri-
days and Sundays, yes, Christmas Day
and Good Friday-and where the domi-
nant secularists are confident of dragging
the Worlds Fair into the same stampede,
while the heretical Sabbatarianism of
Puritanism hounds them on, it seems to
me the duty of all true Catholics to unite
to save Something from the wreck of holy
days, to save at least the chief part of the
Lords Day, and that honestly, on the
real grounds of its Christian sanctity and
ecclesiastical obligation, and not on some
imaginary connection with the Seventh
Day of the Jews.
Let me say in conclusion that, in my
humble opinion, the proposal of the Puri-
tanic Columbian Sunday Association to
carry on great mass meetings, on Sun
days. with addresses and chorus sing
ing etc., is only little worse than hav-
ing the Fair open! I should be sorry to
have to go to either on Sunday; but on
the whole / should prefer the fair, as
being at least honestly secular and not a
Ifebite tudib1'funa, a deplorable mockery, a
travesty of Catholic worship"
The Watchma,s (Bapt.) says: .In the
Judgment of the Archbishop of Canter-
bury on the Bishop of Lincoln's case, the
primate remarked as follows: The court
has not only felt deeply the incongruity
OF minute questionings and disputations
IN great and sacred subjects, but desires
to express its sense that time and atten-
ton are diverted thereby from the
church's real contest with evil and build-
ing up of good, both by those who give
and those who take offense unadyisedly
in such matters
"The Central Presbyterian highly APP
proves OF the sentiment on which it thus
comments: This is sound doctrine,
which, carried out practically, would heal
many OF the divisions of the Christian
church. Time and attention have been
deplorably diverted for centuries from
the great interests of our religion, by in
slStlng upon opinions and traditions con-
corning minute and uncommanded ex-
ternals that ought never to have disturbed
Its peace. Tenacity for the sign of the
cross in baptism, and the knee1ing post
ure at the communion, whence con-
science revolted and the Scriptures were
silent, caused the sad division of the
Protestants of England at the Reforma-
ton. And now, in our day, we have the
historic" instead Of the ''Scriptural'
episcopate laid down like ga law of the
Modes and Persians' as the condition of
reconciliation
''But if such matters as the sign of the
cross and kneeling at the communion are
trivial, why is tenacity for these observ-
anceS SO much worse than tenacity
against them? Or, again, if the historic
episcopate' is small matter, how does it
appear that it is more disreputable to be
tenacious Of episcopacy than to be tena-
clous in rejecting it? Or, if Christian
unity is more valuable than distinctions
OF church government, why should it be
deemed unreasonable to propose that the
greater good should be purchased by the
Slighter concession?
ION the points alluded to, we need not
say we stand, in opinion, much nearer to
our Presbyterian contemporary than to
the Archbishop of Canterbury. But we
see no reasonableness in that style of dis
cuSslon that assumes a moral fault in
those whose opinions are averse from
ours; which reprehends Episcopalians
for undue assumption or for formal
lsm,' or imputes to Presbyterians big
otry,' to Methodists 'fanaticism,' to Bap-
lists 'eXciusiveness,' and so on. Against
eplscopacy we think there are sound ar
gunents, and it seems to us much better
TO state the reasons against that system
than to reproach its adherents for the
'tenacity' with which they hold it. Be
fore blaming man for tenacity, let us be
sure we understand what it is he sticks
to and his reasons for sticking.'
EDS. RECoRD-UNIoN: 1t is with much
pleasure | read your religious column, or
selections from the religious press. In
reading them, for my life / cannot see
why the mass Of church people call them
selves Christians. They are not Chris
tians, they are moralists, and believe and
trust in the one Person, the same as
Jews, Unitarians, AdventistS, ETC.: and
the result is they are all teaching Materi-
alism. In the following, which I clip
from your excellent paper of last Sunday,
the doctrine there taught is no more
Christian doctrine than Mormonism:
The Observer (Pres.) says: "No more serious
mistake can be made by the people of God
than to suppose that their Father in heaven is
unconcerned about them, and the supply of
their daily bread. 1t requires, perhaps, a step
further in grace to accept sickness as a vista
ton of Divine Providence, and even when the
weary soul has been enabled to do this, there
is yet further degree of grace before it. That
further degree of grace is attained when the
heart accepts even illness as the calling of
God. God does not call His chosen ones to the
wilderness and to the desert places. He calls
them to pass through the waste of waters and
the fiery furnace. Wherever He calls the peo-
pie to go He will certainly be with them If
He calls man to the ministry He Will give
him portion of His blessed spirit, that spirit
of wisdom and ola sound mind which, Shall
enable the called one to preach the Gospel If
God calls a man to any business sphere He
Will give him grace to meet the peculiar temp
tations and trials of business life Ii He calls
q soul to the sick-bed, He will give the needed
grace to endure its pains and privations, We
can wish nothing better for any Christian
than that the grace be given to say, whatever
life's circumstances. Called of God"
Jews and the world before Christ, but is
not the doctrine taught by our Lord.
There is a mighty difference between the
human race before Christ and after he
preached. Before Christ the whole world
lay under the curse of Adams fall-the
atonement took it off; so that since the
atonement every child born-civiliZed or
barbarian--is born child of God, free to
serve God, through Christ, or reject him.
That is plain when our Lord orders all
children to be brought to him. If every
thing, bad or good, is accomplished by
loving Father, where is the use of kick
ing against anything, or trying to be
good, or even praying? According to the
above, nothing can change the will of
God.
Before Christ they neither knew God
nor Satan; hence the Savior said, Il came
to show you the Father and 1.-THE works
of Satan.p In his life work he was I'M
doing the works of Satan by healing the
afflicted and casting out devils. If it was
God who sent death and affiiction, would
Christ undo his Fathers work? In one
case, when charged with. violating the
Sabbath Qike the pseudo Christians of to-
day., he replied, eye hypocrites, We bring
your animals to water on the Sabbath,
but this daughter Of Israel, who has been
bowed down by Satan, you would not
have healed. Christianity is following
Christ, what he said and did, 1t is not
morality, for there are moral people
even among the Hottentots.
Christ gave simple commandment of
love to be the guide of his followers, and
ali children are born with Christ law or
love in their hearts Instead of teaching
love as a standard, they all teach the de-
funct Jewish law, which was nailed to the
cross. Love fills the whole law, because
il you love any body you can not injure
them by word or deed; and while you
had dollar you could not see them want.
A LII honor -1lAyyar and dominion IL.