The record-union., 1893-04-01
In RELIGIONS REALM.
Expressions From the Various Re-
ligiOus Newspapers
The Religions Thought of the Day as
Expressed in the sectarian Press
Some Matters of Interest to Both
Ministers and Laymen.

I'VE are not particularly concerned" )"
Gays the Lining Church (P. E. of Chicago,
Ito advocate one point or another, but
we are concerned in rebuking this sense
less clamor about Romanism and ritual
ism. Some one has said: Must we all
20 barefoot because Roman Catholics
wear shoesY We could not be Christians
IN any sense if we were to reject all the
truth that they told: we could not wor-
snip at all if we were to discard all the
forms that they use. The sufficient an
swer to the accusation that 'ritualism' is
Romanizing the church in England or
America is that the Anglican Communion
throughout the world is making splendid
progress. The Italian mission in Eng
land, so far as we have seen statistics, is
not more than holding its own. 1t is also
trne that defectious to Rome, in England
ana America, are not exclusively from
the so-called 'ritualisls.' Peryerts are to
lie counted from all denominations,
though there is not now, never has been,
and never Will be anything like move
menp Of PrOteStanis toward the Roman
Church. The idea seems to be rooted in
the Protestant press and among Protest
ant readers that true religion consists in
Church believes and does. Human ma
ture always extends TO extremes; the
protesting of the Reformation, which at
1irst was simply a remonstrance against
an edlct of the state, came to mean repu-
citation OF all forms OF worship and of
most of the doctrines of the Roman
Church. The fact is, however, that many
o. those usages and doctrines are the COM
mon heritage of Chrstendom, and Rome
has no more right to claim them as dis
uucuvely her own than she has to monop-
ollze the title Catholic
The strength of the Tridentine Creed, :"
says the New York EU0ngetiSt (Pres.),
'lay in the fact that, as Professor Fisher
says, ii presented a standard of truth in
4 condensed form and with direct refer
ence TO the antagOnlStlc doctrines of the
time The peculiarity of the Westmin-
ster Confession to-day lies in the TACT that
II lacks the very qualities which made
the Iridentine Greed strong in its day.
II does not present truth in condensed
FORM nor with direct reference to the
antagonistic doctrines of the time And
il this second respect it fails in an i'm
pOrtant point. For creed, as Henry Is.
Smith tells US, is designed to express
Scriptural truth in relation to the errors,
wants and questions OF the tines Neith-
er the Tridentine nor the Westminster
Confession fultills this test to-day. And
though the believers in the one creed
may be contented with it, the believers
in the others are not satisfied with a state
ment of truth made with reference to the
errors, wants and questions of the sew
enteenth century In this fact lies the
strength of the argument for revision.
Times have changed, and we have
changed with them. Questions which
filled the horizon in 1916 are no longer in
sight. New questions, utterly unknown
IN those days, have risen before us. The
DAY of Christian missions, OF Sunday
schools, had not daWned when the West
minister divines met. A large part of
our ordinary church work is eXtra-con-
tessional The best part of our lie and
work is recognized in the creed which is
still supposed to be the doctrinal basis of
our church. One of two things should
certainly be done, the preaching, meth
DDS of work and OF activity of our
churches should be made to conform to
the Confession, or the Confession itself
should be altered to suit the changed con-
dition OF affairs"
1--WE hope" SAYS the New York Tllde-
pendent, There will be no attempt at pro-
scribing those Presbyterian ministers and
elders who have thought it their privi-
lege and duty to sign the peace and
work. circular deprecating further agita-
lion of the matters involved in the Briggs
case. Some one writes to the PreSbyte-
q'tdR Bonner raising the question whether
any of the signers of that document, if
sent to the Assembly, should, under the
circumstances, be allowed TO sit in the
trial of the case. To this the Ba7lne, re-
spends by saying that there is every
prospect that significant majority of
those signers Win learn in due time that
their Presbyteries will dispense with
their services in the next Assembly, ,
We do not believe that this is either fair
or wise position to take. 1t certainly
ought 10 be no serious offense for a Pres
byterian minister to indicate wish tha
any particular controversy should cease.
1t may be that the great majority of min
listers and elders do not agree with them.
but that certainly is no reason for pro-
scribing them. The Presbyterian Church
ought TO be wide enough both for those
who believe in the further prosecution
of the Briggs case, and for those who
want To see 1t stopped with the verdict of
acquittaI rendered by his Presbytery.
We have not a word of approval or ex-
cuse, as our readers well know, for the
rash utterances of Professor Briggs. We