The Portland daily press., 1892-12-26
THE NEW ORTHODOXY.
Rev. DIR. Merrill breaches the Fourth of
His Series of Sermons.

At the Second Parish church yester
day Rev. DR.. James G. Merrill preached
be ore a large audience the fourth and
last of his series of sermons on The New
Orthodoxy. In bringing to close the
series of sermons upon the New Ortho-
doxy, said the preacher, attempt to
present the revealed truth in the terms
of the latest science and philosophy,
knowing that in its long voyage through
the centuries many barnacles cling to
Christian faith, which being removed,
the truth with all the appliances afforded
by modern thought can make most rapid
progress.
dislike exceedingly the word ortho
dox as implying that all truth is with
the orthodox alone almost as much as
the use of the word liberal seeming to
imply that all others are illiberla, and yet
names must be given to things, and
names that can be understood, especially
when we talk about things that differ;
and there is a very great difference be-
tween genuine Orthodoxy and genuine
Unitarianism, the two types of thinking
involved in the question before us. rs
the New Orthodoxy Unitarian?'
On certain day in the history of the
world there was crucified between two
thieves being concerning whom opin-
ions greatly differ. Some. although de-
claring him the most wonderfully en-
dowed and the most perfect being
who ever walked the earth, say that
he was the son of village carpenter and
Mary his wife.
Others accept the statement of the
text, and can only express their faith by
saying He was Goldman. Others, who
cannot accept either of these views, hold
the theory that Jesus was man in con-
junction with intelligence angelic or
otherwise, but of far higher order than
man.
But although | have mentioned three
theories there are in reality only two.
At the very root of our religion comes
the question, Is He God or is be not?
To this plain answer must be given, for
between God and not God the distinc-
ton cannot be bridged.
This is the radical difference out of
which grow the two systems of belief
the Trinitarian and the Unitarian, in
volving logically views of sin, of saliva
tion, of human nature and the inspira-
ton of the Bible, for thus do the cardinal
truths of our religion stand in a circuit
that must be entire, and as twelve inches
gone in the thousands of miles of the
Atlantic cable make it valueless, so do
we need to guard each portion OF divine
truth.
One of the truths involved is that
which we celebrate today, the Incarna-
tion, truth involving also the Trinity,
as it is termed.
And here the New Orthodoxy is ex-
ceeding clear and pronounced in it's ut
terances. Not that it accepts the old
creeds, as they stand. many of which
written in time of controversy have the
ex operations incident to the heat occa-
stoned by debate, but none the less de-
cided and clear because it holds that in
addition to the impregnable arguments
derived from the Bible the truth is sus-
tanned by modern science and philoso-
ply.
More and more can it be said that the
greatest thinkers declare that the only
philosophical conception of God is tri-
| une God.
| New orthodoxy has for one of its
characteristics preference for Greek
| conceptions of truth rather than Roman,
The Greek mind has never been sur
passed in the depth Of it's philosophic in
| sight, and more than 1000 years ago
Plato realized that is was impossible to
| think of God as a mere unit, declaring
that an absolute unit is unthinkable.
Another popularity of the Greek theo-
| logical thought was that which was
| thought out in the first of this series of
| sermons the immanence of God, who has
| been SO long regarded as merely tram
scendant, and it is when we hold fast to
this truth that the doctrine of a Personal
| immanent God makes trinitarianism
necessary. Here also an absolute per-
sonal unit is unthinkable, and it is
| equally unthinkable that there is more
than one Cod
Modern science with it's doctrine of
universal law, growing more and more
secure in its position as it's discussions
| bring all nature into view and holding to
''the All Father" is saved from panthe-
| ism and deism and held to the truth of
God, whom we can love, adore and serve,
| whose advent to earth in human form
| Christendon celebrates today by putting
forth as it's creed the majestic but simple
words of the beloved disciple who said,
In the beginning was the Word. He was
with God. He was God. He became
flesh and dwelt with us.
| Iho new OrCnOdoXy Is tnen more Jr1nl-
| tartan than the old rather than less and
differs from it more in the way of put
| ting the truth than in the truth which it
holds. It's differences are three. First
the new orthodoxy does not insist upon
the use of creed words not found in the
Scriptures. 1t recognizes the fact that
the words trinity and incarnation,
owing to theological controversies that
they have passed through may signify to
some minds something other than the
truths of revelation which they have
been employed to express, may include
to their thinking mathematical absur-
dity or the acceptance of an antiquated
philosophy. New orthodoxy regards
these words as labels; so long as they
stand for the truth so long will tn y be
used, when they misrepresent the truth
| they will be laid aside.
| Second, the new orthodoxy maintains
and strongly emphasizes truth, held in
times past by those who were considered
heterodox and because SO held was ig-
nored or opposed by the champions Of
orthodoxy. Hence modern evangelical
theology emphasizes the humanity of
Christ-a unique humanity, universal
that is standing for all men receiving al
SO the divine fullness, standing for God