Pittsburg dispatch. [volume] (Pittsburg [Pa.]) 1880-1923, 1892-03-31
CHURCH DISCIPLINE.

DIR. Hodges Makes This the Subject OF His
Third Lecture-He Shows tho Episcopal
Church Is Not Out of Harmony with Re-
publican Government
Rev. DR.. Hodges delivered the third Of his
course on the Episcopal Church at ST. An
drew's last evening His subject was 1.-THE
Discipline of the Church" " Mr.. Hodges said:
Ipropose to speak first of the arrange
ment of the ecclesiastical government OF
the Episcopal Church, as to which 1t is often
wrongly said the Episcopal Church is out of
harmony with the spirit Of a republican
| country; second, of the attitude OF the Epfs-
| copal Church toward the ministers and
| mem bers of other Christian communions, as
to which it is said the Church is unfratern-
ally exclusive; third, of the relation OF the
Christian to the world as it is taught in the
Episcopal Church, as to which it is said the
Church is given over to world1ness.
The constitution of the Church IN this
country was arranged by the men who
framed the Constitution OF the Uufted
States. Two-thirds of the men who framed
that instrument were members of the Epis-
copal Church. The parishes correspond to
the boroughs, the dioceses to the State, and
the whole Church to the central govern
seac the In the
the temporal affairs and call the rector. who
has care of the spiritual. The parishes elect
their representatives to the diocesan conyen-
the General Convention, which, subject to
the constitution, may legislate for the whole
church. Its House of Bishops corresponds
to the Senate; its House Of clerical and lay
deputies to the House of Representatives
The church shows equally with the state IN
the spirit of Free popular, independents. and
representative government. In one respect
the church is further away from all appear
ance of monarchy than the State is, for We
have no chief executive.
The attitude of the Episcopal Church
toward the ministers of other Christian
communions is simply that no one who has
not had Episcopal ordination can be min
lister OF the Episcopal Church. The differ
ence between the ministers of that church
and others is that, while the authority of
the former has come in unbroken continuity
from the time of Christ, that of the others
has not.
As to the members of other communions,
none are to be admitted to the communion
until they have been confirmed, has refer
ence to children who are baptized. AS In
fants they are members OF the church, but
are not entitled to its full privileges until at
years of discretion they receive the rite Of
confirmation. There Is no doctrine of close
communion. The invitation in the COM
munion service ought to make that plain
enough.
The relation between tho Christian and
the world: The Episcopal Church has never
laid down any rule as to the indulgence Of
any particular form of amusement. One OF
Christ's reasons for not giving rules like the
scriDes, but setting great principles in the
place of them, was that He wished His dis
ciples to do, SO far as possible, all their own
thinking. So the Church sets before its
ness, and leaves to the Individual to detere
mine wherein that consists. Worldlfness Is
the spirit of forgetfulness of Jesus Christ.
Nobody who remembers Him, loves Him and
follows Him can, even in the midst OF wealth,
of success, of pleasure or OF society, fall into
the pit OF that temptation.