St. Paul daily globe. [volume] (Saint Paul, Minn.) 1884-1896, 1892-01-04
NOT STRICTLY ORTHODOX.
But Rev. William Wilkinson
Spoke Plain Truths on Religious
Thinking.

But Rev. William Wilkinson
Spoke Plain Truths on Religious
Thinking.
Last night the rector of st. Andrews
church spoke some very plain and hon.
est words on the relationship men now
sustain to the church. He took for text
Isaiah xxi, II, ''If ye will inquire, in
quire ye.' He said:
For good or for i'll, this is an age of
active religious thought; also Of thought
which is not religious. The church can
not stop. If it try, men from exercising
the mental powers God has wisely given
them upon the most important of all
subjects which can by any possibility
concern them. This is not an age in
which any class, caste or creed can say
to men: We know all there is to be
known; we have sounded the depths of
experience in the past; we have reached
the top of knowledge in the pres
ent, and the future has nothing
to teach Us. Men who will
be saved, must accept what we teach.
II they do not, they will be lost That
spll t has been rampant in the past. 1t
often appears now in places, and in
ways we do not look for, in all its old
meanness, to thu deteStatiOn Of men who
as men in the investigation of events
which have become historical. and of
creeds which claim authority ought to
do. 1t is hot the truth which is in danger
OF damage from this free spirit. True
views OF history, of philosophy, of doc
trine and of precept will not suffer:
they have everything to gain in con-
ttlct they ought to welcome with glad
acclaim. 1t is because of the skeletons
in theological, philosophical and historic
houses that the Odium is cast upon
the words and deeds of men
who do not see without ewes.
l know, every well informed man
knoWS-and no honest man desires to
gainsay the truth-that much has been
SAID, much has been done, in the name
of religion, the remembrance of which
ought to make churchmen of every name
blush for very shame. No one partv.no
one branch of the church.is clear in this
matter. The Roman Catholic made 1t
hard for those who die not accept his
creed. The cnurchman in England did
his best to make it hard for non-con-
formiSts. and was successful in his de-
sign. The man who left his home and
came to the new world to seek and find
liberty did love it so well he desired to
have 1t all himself, so hanged those who
could not think as he thought, The
world has never had any chapters of
conduct so bad as those of perse-
cution for conscience's sake, not because
earnestness for the spread of truth de-
manded persecution. On the contrary.
they are sad, because they record events
winch are IN absolute violation of the
deepest principle of alt true religion,
love to God, love to man. Fear of full.
candid, honest inquiry is not evidence
of faith in the doctrines held; but of
fear. in some cases, of conviction that
they will not be found grounded in
truth, and SO must be rejected. 1t is
more than Strange-it would be incred-
lble If we did hot know the fact-tilat
many men would rather hold an error
than have its fallacy shown in the light
of day
The church has taught much. or
allowed much in her name to be taught
which is degrading. and out of which
the world has grown. The sixth day. as
we measure day, theory of the creation
of the world; the view Of God
which degrades Him into a large
man, with pride, passion, revenge; the
view of hell, which made it out to be
| material fire; the doctrine OF a personal
devil. who was almost, if not quite, as
powerful for evil as God is for good:
the damnation of infants and all the
IilO way III WHICH Tie Q6eQS OF
men have been justified, when they out
ragged every true, cultured, moral idea.
often, when. if they were done TODAY.
| the man who did them would be sent to
the other side of death from the branch
| OF the nearest tree: the ignorance. the
lnsolence and the self-assurance of men
who have said We hold the TRUTH has
truly been more than enough to forever
condemn TO oblivion any system not
divine.
what shall we say to these things?
Shall we say we will throw the whole
plan of salvation away? Shall we saw
the Bible is delusion? Shall we say
let us stifie questions and punish here
ties from what we hold to be the true
faith? Not at all. Let US rather plant
our feet firmly and squarely upon what
we understand to be the faith. Let us
investigate it; claim for it Just what 1t
claims for itself, no less, no more. So
shall we be able to give a just reason
to every man who asks. So will the
faith stand to Us not alone for bonds.
!t VIII represent beauty. 1t will not be
to US an iron mask or strait Jacket.
Ii Will be an ever-growing, widening.
deepening reality. All its blessings
Will be filled with clearest light. In
this aspect it will have power such as
lthas never yet manifested in the world.
Tor Whatever may be said about mere
detail, the facts stand impregnable.
One OF the most accute thinkers
| in public life in recent