St. Paul daily globe., 1892-02-01
A RATIONAL RELIGION.
Rev. w. S. Vail Continues His
Sermon on Leaders on
Modern Thought.
His Subject Yesterday Was
DR.. Lyman Abbott, Of the
Christian Union.
The Theological Tendencie
Of the Age Touched
Upon.
A Larger Hope and a Ra-
tional Basis for Re-
ligion.

=
the First Universalist society in the
Grand opera house. The subject OF the
discourse was "Or. Lyman Abbott. "
The reverend gentleman said: IAN in
fluence mucn stronger than one might
at first suppose IS Dr. Lyman Aooott,
successor to Henry Ward Beecher and
editor of the Christian Union. A man
may be influential who is not great; a
man may be great without being a pres
ent influence. Genius may speak before
the people are ready to listen; talent
may occupy strategic position. MIR.
Roe was man of talent without ray
of genius; put he had large public,
gained by his peculiar position. 1t took
the world 100 years TO learn the proper
place of Shakespeare.
Lyman Abbott is not religious gen.
ius like DR.. Card, of Edinburg, for eX-
ample. He holds unique position.
He also holds advanced ideas. But it is
not that his advanced ideas are so much
better than those Of other men in our
time. but the unique position that gives
his work Importance. He is connected
by experience and tradition with the
best things that C0ngrega gationalism has
done in New England; he is pastor OF
the church made famous, even in name,
by its great leader: he is editor of the
most important religious newspaper in
America; and this position, united to
advanced ideas, gives him
A Remarkable influence,
because he has no prejudice to over
come, no barriers to oppose themselves
between him and the people he would
reach.
The first thing noticeable in DR.. Alb
bolts change from the standard of older
orthodoxy was a change in his mind as
to what revelation really revealed. His
early life was part of a social and re-
ligious life that had a deep influence.
His father was remarkable man. Liv-
ing in little New England town of
rare beauty, charming and quiet withal,
bound up In the theories that were still
common as an inheritance from the
colonial times, he was blessed with a
father whose one leading characteristic
was affection, and whose way of life
was so much more generous than his
theological belief as to open the boys
mind to many questions. But the father
was connected with ali the eminent
men of the day, consequently the
boy imbibed a love for the church,
conservatism that was coupled
with radicalism. The conservatism held
him to old terms and old forms. The
radicalism led him to seek new ideas
and leaden of thought. He became the
associate Of MIR Beecher, as editor of
the Christian Union. He also became
the profound admirer of Mr.. Beecher.
This was the influence that kept
Widening the Channel
of his life. Then lie was in his capacity
of editor brought into contact with the
scientific world, and saw the methods
employed there and the ways Of men in
working out their problems. Was it not
natural that as he came into this atmoS-
phere that he should have felt the limi-
tations of his theory? Was 1t not nat
ural that he should have felt that a
fuller scope should be given TO the field
of the church? And still. withal, was
it not natural that his conservative tenn
permanent should have attached him so
strongly to the historic New England
church that in his desire to hold this
connection with it he was even inclined
to make concessions in language that
would hold him in check as a leader of
thought.
This mixture of radical thought and
conservative feeling has been at once
his strength and his weakness. 1t has
been strength, because it recommends
itself to men and women who are strug-
Cling with doubts, hopes aud fears.
They consider him careful. They con-
slider him reverent. And yet his breadth
of sympathy gives them larger feeling
of hope than they have had before. On
the other hand, it has led him to a dis
position Of compromise, disposition to
make the lines of the church broad
enough to include more liberal Seuti-
ment than it really has at the present
time. ana this holds him to terms of
expression that are often misleading.
The term savior means to DR.. Abbott a
Christ who embodied the divine life,
influencing man by enabling man to
embOdy the same life in the same way.
Salvation means to him noble, humane,
Pure Afeetionate Life.
But these terms mean quite other
things to many of his readers. That is
why Iuse theological terms as seldom
as possible; that is why L think others
should abandon their use, especially
men like DR.. Abbott. Therefore when
| | view both results of his combination
of character see in the union a po-
| sition that will reach people that dis
tinctlvely liberal preacher could never
| reach. And therefore every man who
thinks carefully through the subject
must see that this man and others in
similar positions are doing the world a
| great service. There must be an ad-
vance guard There must be the men
who are willing to take the forefront Of
a distinct battle for more light. And
such men are leaders of thought. They
| have their work. But they are not in
touch with the rank and file, and the
rank and file will usually follow the
conservative leader. The man, then,
with conservative feeling and pro-
gressive thought holds a unique and
most Influential position. And his
work is most important.
His change of belief led him to a far
more liberal and reasonable Judgment
OF the Bible and a more liberal construc-
ton of the hope for mankind. His
friends had made the Bible a book of
geographical revelation. They had
taken the book of Revelation as literal
statement of the geography of the next
world and told of a city four-squ
with streets gOld-paved, with gates of
pearl, with walls of Jasper. He saw
that this definite geography based on a.
book that nobody understands was a
mistake. He wisely concluded that it
Is not best to dogmatiZe on things that
are not known and cannot be known.
turning to nature, he found
The Bird and the Fish
tiVlng a IeW leet apart, yet each lgnor-
ant of the life of the other The worm,
the chrysalis and the butterfly were en-
tirely different, yet there must be a
thread of connection in their lives.
And following out the analogy he saw
that while we may not know what life
Will be in the next state, there are
thousands Of possibilities, wonderful no
doubt as the transformation of the
chrysalis; but as the curtain is drawn
it may be well to pause where we are
and wait for the future to reveal its
conditions. But is there any revela-
ton, then? Have we taken away a
theory that was good without replacing
it? There is a revelation of God in the
soul of man. There is the story of the
revelation of God in every national
crisis. in every individual failure, in
every sacrifice of the strong man for
truth that you find in every page of the
Bible that narrates the success and fail
ures of men. The next conclusion was