Wheeling register. [volume] (Wheeling, W. Va.) 1878-1935, 1892-01-18

T . allOh rendered TO the humanity of
Jesus Christ, the sublime doctrine OF his
alvlnity-that he is God co-eoual and CO.
eternal with the Father.
There is Catholic child who has
heard the little catechism explained To
MIN out knows and believes that Jesus.
whose sacred image is put before him
IN so many ways-aS a child in Mary's
arms or in the crib of Bethlehem; "a
the good shepherd searching for or
bringing back the strayed sheep; as the
victim hanging on the cross-is truly
the very God CT heaven and earth. In
ms own childlike language he will
formulate for you the profession of
Peter: ''He is Christ, the Son OF the
living God" He who is born of Mary
In the stable Of Bethlehem; he whose
lie and miracles are recorded in the
gospel; he who died between two male
factors on the tree of Golgotha, is the
second person of the triune God.
when the Apostles testified to the
miracles wrought by Jesus Of Nazareth
In proof Of His divinity, and especially
TO that unparalleled miracle that after
having been crucified unto death he had,
Oh his own power, risen again to life.
and then called on their Jewish breth-
rem to confess with the terrified centur-
Ion beneath the cross: Truly this man
was the Son OF God" they found it hard
to bring conviction. A crucited GOD
was indeed "a stumbling block to the
Jews, and scandal to the Gentiles."
The latter, through their proud philos-
opherS, laughed to sCOru the devout
worShippers Of the crucified Nazarene.
Scarcely had the Church won her first
most glorious triumph after a deadly
struggle
OF THREE HUNDRED YEARS,
when, from her own bosom, arose the
impiOus Arius assailing the Godhead Of
her divine founder. We all know how
long and fierce was the battle against
this implOuS heresy, and how complete
was the triumph Of the Catholic faith.
But there is no Disgusting the sad fact
that we are once more in face of a DOW
erful element, even within the ranks of
so-called Christian churches, that open
ly refuses to say of Christ with Peter
and the church of Peter, Thou art the
Christ, the Son of the living God" May
this, to Us awful, blaSphemous charge,
be brought as an indictment against
any recognized even as ministers of
Jesus Christ in our own day and in our
own country?
When our highest duty, our duty to
our God and our Redeemer, is involved,
away with all deceptive axiOms!
Though in one sense it be true: "De
nlOTtiUS nibI piSi bORllm (of the dead
say nothing but what is goods" in our
case this saying adhered to would put
Gods honor beneath his creatures rep
utation, and therefore it implies false
philosophy, a false morality. Now
ask did that so highly Landed
sO-CALLED MINISTER OF GOD,
who died in Brooklyn a few years ago,
believe in the divinity of our Lord Jesus
Christ? Surely not, when from pulpit
or platform he could impiously brand our
blessed Savior as tramp. Did Dean Stan
ley, a Salaried minister of the Anglican
Church, believe in this divinity when he
expressed the hope that tbs day was
not far distant when COnfucius, Buddha
and other pagan worthless would be as
ship Of God When such blasphemOus
'utterances from the lips of Dean Stan
ley were quoted TO a certain very re-
spectacle English gentleman visiting
our country he remarked with more
candor than logic: "Oh, Dean Stanley
is too influential man TO chide for any
Of his peculiar views or statements"
Must not the conduct and public opin-
ions of such men exert q fatal influence
on their followers?
A distinguished convert to our holy
faith told me that some years ago he met
an old SchOOlmate whom he informed OF
his conversion to the Catholic Church.
This gentleman remarked to him:
when we were at school together at
the University of Virginia 1 was, as
you may remember, a devout church
man, but for over twenty years l have
been attending Plymouth Church in
Brooklyn and now have no more faith
in the divinity Of Christ than Rev.
Henry Ward Beeecher." There is, alas!
a deep undercurrent of this inhdelity-
this want OF faith in Christ as God
pervading every class OF society, and per-
meating to a very considerable extent
the membership of Protestant church
organizations. But is not this fatal
heresy-this denial Of Christ's divinity
an almost necessary outcome OF the
principles engendered by
THE RELIGIOUS REVOLT
of the sixteenth century? Are not the
vagaries OF DR.. Lyman Abbot, Of the
congregational Church, and Of DR.,
Briggs, of the Presbyterian Church, and
OF Drs. McQUeary, Newton and Brooks,
of the Episcopal Church, the Legitimate
sequences OF the principle Of private
Judgment applied to the Interpretation
of the Holy Bible? 1t is this same
method OF reasoning which leads minis
tiers supposed to be orthodox in their
adherence 10 the heretofore recognized
standard doctrines Of their church
doctrines avowedly admitted as
the unanimous teachings Of
the Fathers, to call into question the
dogma of original sin. On what ground?
Because forsOoth modern Biblical criti-
cism has shown the first chapter Of
Genesis to be more poetical than histori-
cali But is this dogma found only in
that chapter? What stronger testimony
OF its truth do we require than David'S
inspired words, I'm sin did my mother
conceive me?" For that reason we en-
ter the world the objects, not Of Gods
nifty. but as st. Paul assures US, by
nature children of wrath" But alLthIs
is but the inevitable result OF the az
tempt to reduce to practical effect the
principle-yes, the fundamental princi-
Dle OF the Protestant reformation.
The system Of faith then adopted
suuposes the ability Of human intellect
10 weigh and decide the intrinsic credi-
biIity Of divine revelation, and OF itself
IN pronounce what is and what IS not