Morning journal and courier. [volume] (New Haven [Conn.]) 1848-1894, 1892-04-12
CONGREGATIONALIsM.

Changes in tho Past Forty Years
That are Improvemehts.
Following Is an abstract of a very thought
ful and suggestive talk to his people of the
Second Congregational church, Fair Haven,
delivered recently by the pastor Of the |
church, Rev. Mr.. James.
Text For the Lord thy God hath blessed thee |
in all the works of thy hand. These forty years
the tsso Lord Thy God hath been with thee-Deu
Can you not say as truly as was said
concerning an equal period in the history
of Israel: The Lord our God has blessed
us in all the works Of our hand. These
forty years the Lord our God hath been
with uss 1t is not our purpose on the ba-
els Of this text to deliver an historical dis
course in order to show wherein the d.
vine presence has gone before you in the
pillar of cloud by day and the pillar of fire
by night. Your remembrance of the
bright days in your past life and of how
you were held true to the course outlined
for the Church of God by the vision of the
pillar of cloud which you beheld in the
heaven, and yonr remembrance of the
dark nights in which you could hardly see
the pathway over which you were walking
aud knew not when lifelong wished for day
would dawn, and of now you pressed stead
lily forward because you beheld above you
the bright pillar of fire which illumined
thd surrounding night-youx remembrance
of these experiences must convince you
beyond all question that during these
forty years the Lord thy God hath been
with thee.
We shall revert to this past only that we
| may find firm ground on which to rest
our hope for the future. TIE past con-
| tains elements of sufficient strength to
hold the work of the future. The foun-
dation that has been laid during this first
period will not give way under any struc-
! ture which you may erect upon it. Let
me ask you, then, to reaffirm your faith
in the essential principles of Congrega-
tional freedom as valuable for tbs future
as they have been for the past.
The individual church is the unit in
the ecclesiastical authority. The power to
organize and to control the church in
here's in the church itself. It does not
acknowledge any earthly source of author
| ity superior to itself to which it is sub
ject. No presbytery, no synod, no con-
ference, no association, no consolation,
no assembly, no priest, no bishop,
no pope, no ecclesiastical hierarchy, can
dictate to the local church on any point
of doctrine or of polity. "a state without
king and church without q bishop il
fundamental in the puritan thought. The
seat of authority lies in the individual
church in spiritual touch with the divine
energy that is vouchsafed to believers.
body of believers who do not constitute
church can, by mutual consent, agree upor
basis of organization and can initial,
and carry out every step by which they
as truly apostolic as any church in Chris
Il Tor TO to r,
and rules and its own confession of faith
1t can select, elect, ordain and install it
own pastor without waiting 70
permission or grace from any ecclesiastica
body or priestly functionary. 1t is tn
: | unit of authority and calls no man or bod
l of men on earth master. This simpl
principle Of the autonomy of the churc
settles many other questions. They hav
Q no place among the problems that interes
g ne. Doctrinal dictation, priestly interfe'
ence, ecclesiastical domination are ne
a open questions in Congregational circle
l. We have Congregational creed, but it
y binding on DO church except by the vol
/ of the church itself; we have represent
l. ton in CONSIDERATIONS, conferences, gener
| councils, but there is no authority thu
can call the individual church to accou1
if it refused to regard the decision of thel
representative bodies. They are volunta,
associations and their resolutions are q,
visory, not mandatory.
You will not hear as much during tt
next forty years as you have during Il
last forty years of the exclusiveness al
intolerant arrogance that have been re-
nant in certain quarters, whereby the Vt
idity Of ordination without a bishop h
been denied, and the amounting oil of t
priesthood has been the exclusive proper
of sacred order. Such spiritual conce
II has never been fondled by non EpiscoI
= bodies, and there is not much in the ecc
~ siastical life Of to-day that indicates
n position on the part Of our leaders to ma
d | any concession that will encourage SUI
le conceit. The Thought of the day is mo
ing in the direction of a universal recogl
ton of the priesthood of believers al
consequently of a more genuine sisterho
among the churches. The man who wra
himself up in his ecclesiastical gown
pharisaic sanctity and passes by on
covet the real sanctity of the humble
lever who seeks alone the touch of t
divine hand.
Hold fast then to the power of the pe
pie to consecrate the priest and not t
priest the people.
1t is also ur conviction that you "
see less attempted domination over the i
dividual church in the next forty yes
than in the past. You cannot fail
note how the republican or democra
spirit that is questioning the authority
emperor, of king, of car is being felt
. ecclesiastical circles. The people are asse
ing everywhere the right not only to gu
ton but to defy the arbitrary authority
pope, of bishop and of the DEGREES
councils. The right of private judgme
on matters of doctrine and of disciple
is being asserted with renewed tenaci
The spread of education and the joys
religious liberty are making impossil
tyrannical rule over the consciences
men. The rights of the individual m
and of the Individual church are bel
acknowledged to-day as never since ap
tolic days.
We have contributed at least somethi
to this by the rigidity with which we ha
held to the spirit of congregational fir
dom. This is no time to slacken our ho
Let me insist also that you reassert 70
confidence in the doctrinal teachin
the past forty years. We do not me
your confidence in the formal stateme
of your confession of faith as the m,
perfect and final utterance of your
ligtous life. You know that during tn,
past forty years your confession of fai
has undergone at least two revisions. 7
harder, severer, more dogmatic stateme1
on oontroverted points that marked
earlier confession; have undergone modi6'
tions because they were demanded by I
actual faith of the people. The heated
oussions that are SO well remembered
many of you who are present to-day viii
stirred our New England churches ha
a borne fruit in modified creeds in ma
70 churches and in changed conditions
membership. These notifications hs
not taken from your creed a
IS | of the essential doctrines of Chistiani
They have not removed the real distil
q tons between a spurious and a genui
faith. The changes have been effect
without producing any sudden revoluti
in your ecclesiastical life. You have be
alive to the intellectual movements of t
age, and though wisely and Christian
- conservative, you have not been nsrr'
and dogmatic. These changes have be
the fruit of evolution and not the effect
sudden revolutionary agitation. 1t
been the product of healthy conservati
linked with a prudent liberalism. Y
have not substituted new doctrines for I
old ones, but you have modified the old
accordance with the intellectual NOV
ments of the age. The doctrines of G
as creator and governor of tho worl
life; the doctrine of scripture as the r,
of faith and practice; the fact of sin a