Pittsburg dispatch. [volume] (Pittsburg [Pa.]) 1880-1923, 1892-04-07
CHURCH AND SOCIETY.

cred last evening, the subject being The
Sacraments of the Church." Among Other
things Mr.. Hodges said: "The word regenera
tion comes into the baptismal office out of the
third chapter of the Gospel of st. John, ano
out of tho epistle which st. Paul wrote te
Titus. Except man be born again of water
and of the Spirit, he cannot enter into the
kingdom OF Cod when the kindness Of
God our Savior, and His love to
ward man appeared not by works
done in righteousness, which we die
| did ourselves, but according to His mercy
He saved us through the washing of regen'
eration and renewing of the Holy Ghost.
| These passages may or may not have d1
| rect bearing upon the Sacrament OF Bap-
tism. 1t is sufficient for our present pur.
| pose that they have always been recognized
as singularly applicable to this sacrament,
| and that they have given to the church this
significant word, in which the benefits OF
| baptism appear to be summed up and in
cluded Baptism is always baptism, whether
it be administered to child or an adult, and
the blessing of baptism is indicated by the
| Episcopal Church in the word regeneration.
When we come, however, to inquire exactly
| what regeneration means, the church re-
| turns no answer. 1t is evident, from its use
| In Holy Scripture, that it was never in
| tended to be the basis of doctrinal defini-
| tion. The word belongs not to the domain
of mathematics. of logic, of scientific the
| ology, but rather to tho world of poetry, of
| illustration of the Imagination.
Tho Mistake OF N:codemus.
"We ought to know better than to make
the mistake OF Nicodemus and try to read it
literally. In baptism we are born again.
That is not statement in physiology. The
| higher we get in the scale of truth, tho more
we become aware of the inadequateness of
literal description. 1t is possible in mathe-
matics and in physical science to formulate
| description. which shall include all the
facts, and leave nothing out, so that
and no other statement differing
from this can possibly be true at all.
But try this method with one of Beethoven's
symphonies. 1t is plain at once that here
A thousand things may be said about
the beautiful music; thousand at
delight that it gives u.s. and yet there is
room for moro. After all is said, the half
has not been told. Nobody can formulate
any adequate description of such piece of
music.
"We are conscious of the same fncompe-
tence OF language in regard to all the higher
truths. No great picture nor statue, nor
no supreme Joy nor sorrow can be stated in
any. number of formal Sentences. Love
eludes description. Patriotism knows no
rules. These high things are to be thought
about endlessly, with boundless variety in
our thinking, with no limit to the possibility
of new discovery. Nobody has ever said,
nor will ever say, all that can be said about
them. Somehow, we are slow to see that the
great truths OF religion are as incapable OF
adequate definition as those other great
truths. We are all the time max
religious truth is truth of a
low order, that it belongs with physics and
arithmetic, that the creeds and the sacra-
ments are like sticks and stones or like the
statements of the multiplication table;
whereas, reli gious truth is of the very high
est order and belongs with music and
poetry and art and patriotism and honor
and love, absolutely out of the reach of any
accurate description.
vexed Questions Not Yet Settled.
''The 5000 theologians of the middle
ages were quito sure that the Inqufsition
was in possession of the whole mind of God
They were as certain of their definitions in
theology as they were of their definitions in
science. After all their instructive blum
ders we are still In search of adequate theo-
logical definition.
''The Episcopal Church has avoided this
old error by the use of the word regenera-
tion.' For here is wide word, taken
out of the language of poetry and
faea0ie The word appcatI0ns
nobody's thinking. 1t attempts no theoiog-
ical definition. 1t sets forth no sacramental
doctrins; ossiI M,,. 10 be baptized is to be born
open for devout inspiration, for the medita-
tion of the Christian.
81 have already pointed out in this course
of lectures that the Episcopal Church has
no authoritative doctrine of the Trinity, of
the incarnation or of the atonement. These
great truths this church does not attempt
to shut up within the limits of even the
wisest human speech. Neither has the
Church any authoritative doctrine of the
sacrament of baptism. Baptism is regener-
alton, the Church says, and the word opens
the door wide for everybody's perfectly un-
restricted study
"This series OF lectures has quite failed of
its purpose ifit has not shown that the Epis-
copal Church is built like the pattern which
st. John saw in the Revelation, four square,
facing the four corners of the earth, and
with their doors on every side, and these
door than wall. To keep the Church from
narrowness, from pettness, from lapsing
into sectarianism: to preserve its catholicity,
its recognition of the difference between
the essential and the non-essential, its
touch with all the varying needs of human
nature its spiritual sanctity, its religious
hospitality, this is what we must do if we
would have the Church OF the English speak
ing people of the past to be the Church OF
the English speaking people of the future"
THE Needlework Guild took possession
of the lecture room of the Third Presbyte-
rian Church yesterday afternoon. This is
an organization that has been in existence
in Pittsburg Just two months, although it
has existed in England since 1885, Its pur-
pose is to furnish clothing to the poor of all
religious denominations and to those who
Go not attend any church. 1t is therefore
strictly unsectarian, its only doctrine being
charity. Men and boys may be members of
tho guild as well as women. Those that
cannot use the needle and thimble can buy
things at stores and send them in. The
guild gives away mems clothing as well rs
that of women and children. The lecture
room yesterday was literally packed with
clothing OF all kinds. There were hundreds
OF ladies busy opening and making up bum
dies. Packages of clothing were sent to the
as we'll as bed clothing, towels and house
linen in general. Bundles were sent as fol-
lows: Tannehill Street Orphanage, German
orphaH Asyum EPscopa
Aged Colored People, Temporary Home for |
Destitute Women, Bethesda Home, Hebrew
Orphan Asylum, Founding Hospital
(Rosalie), Homeopathic Hospital, West Penn |
southside Hospital, Society for the |
OF the Poor and Children's |
Hospital. The ladies of the Guild worked |
harmony. They felt encouraged by seeing |
that their efforts were appreciated and that |
the citizens of Pittsburg were disposed to |
help. Mrs. w. A. Heron is the President; |
Mrs. W. "A. Reed Vice President; Mrs. S. s. |
Treasurer; Miss Mary Elizabeth |
Dawson, Secretary.
LAST evening the Eighth Street Temple |
was filled with friends of Miss Birdie Wer- |
theimer and Mr.. Abraham L. Rauh, who |
were Joined in marriage by DR.. L. Mayer |
The event has been looked forward to with |
interest for some time, the |
couple being prominent in Hebrew social |
roll fod