The record-union., 1893-01-26
In RELIGIONS REALM.
Expressions From the Various Re-
ligiOus Newspapers
The Religious Thought Of the Day as
Expressed in the Sectarian Press
Some Matters of Interest to Both
Ministers and I.aymen.

Some Matters of Interest to Both
Ministers and I4aymen.
Speaking of the Revised Prayer-Book,
the LiUing Church p. f.. of Chicago says:
''In the admirable address OF the Rev.
DR.. Dix on the General Convention, he
mentions the well-grounded fears, at the
outset of prayer-book revision, that the
result would be a deterioration in our
precious book Of devotion, through the
insertion of unsuitable material poor
| English, bad taste, or accommodations to
! the loose religious notions of this gener-
J atlon,' and finally, lest the witness to
the old faith might be enteebled.' 1t is
! during these twelve years that the great
movement for doctrinal revision has set
in among the Presbyterians; the Metho-
dists have begun TO show signs of rest
/ Iessness, and men have arisen among our
/ selves with plans for making creeds and
| articles of religion signify their favorte
notions by 'fiuxing them with new
meanings. There came a time III our own
revision when tendency revealed itself
| to shake OFT the trammels OF the under
standing with which it was entered upon,
that no change should be proposed which
| touched doctrine' Under such circum-
stances it was not surprising that much
| apprehension should be felt. To all the
rest was added what seemed the reason
| aDle fear that long uncertainty about the
| prayer-boOk would breed carelessness of
its rules and shake that loyal attachment
| to it which has hitherto been our safe
guard. But wonderful providence has
presided over us. 1t might almost be
said that every successive convention has
been more conservative than the last.'
"The issue in the case of Professor
Briggs is, on every ground a subject for
cOngratul ation," the New York CHltrch-
man tP. e. thinks. "The church cannot
be Indifferent to the action OF a religious
| body representing so much of worth and
| character as the New Y ork Presbytery;
and Christians of every name have reason
to be thankful that divines whose tradi-
tions are those OF a somewhat narrow and
uncatholic Interpretation of the nature
and conditions of a written revelation,
should have been able, consistently with
| their own standards, to find place in
their fellowship for scholar so eminent
and a seeker after truth so single and sim
cere as the defendant in this trial. 1t is
| certainly of consequence that the doc
trinal symbols of a Christian society
should be honestly dealt with by those
who are bound by them, and an era in
| which the construction OF such symbols
| is forced or perverted so as to make room
for those who are not honestly i'll har-
mOny with them is an evil era for the
fellowship or the individual concerned in
| such perversiOn. But it is no less OF con-
sequence that the Interpretation OF eccle-
| siastical symbols should recognize that
honest difference with which minds of
equal integrity and acumen employ, or
| interpret, the same language; and. most
| Of all that in all CIIph of
there should be a just allowance for that
| inevitable progress in the science of in
! terprgtation which is, or ought to be, an
invariable note of a true and fearless
criticism"
'It is impossible to admit that any
/ books of the Bible originated in fraud or
deceit" eXclaims the New York Observer
/ Pres, nor can we allow that there are
| numerous mistakes, inconsistencies and
! immoralities to be found in its pages.
| Scriptures which are replete with God
| cannot lend themselves to the support of
lies, nor can they have grown up out of
| soil OF deception and talsehood. When,
| therefore, apparent errors Of various
| kinds are brought forward and paraded
as fatal to the church's view, it is proper
/ to reply, first, that often what seem to he
errors are the result of the objector's
! ignorance, as when men insisted that the
art OF writing was not known in Moses
| time, and therefore he could not have
written the Pentateuch, whereas it is now
certain thai the art was practised long be-
| fore his day. The Jews Letters to Vol
taire' show many similar objections rest
ing on ignorance. Secondly, there was
no divine guarantee of the ability and
taitnfulness OF copylsts, and they no
| doubt often erred, but their errors are no
impeachment OF the original text
Thirdly, the progress Of knowledge may
| hp nv tn lat Sc ;,,o
plicable, as has been the case in the past,
| times without number. But it is asking
/ with naughty and scornlul air, 'Of what
use is an inerrant autograph which is
hopelessly lost, while we are confined to
the use OF confessedly imperfect copies?'
The answer is that whether it be useful or
not we are shut up to the conviction that
it did exist, for the language of Scripture
I as to inspiration requires such a convic-
tion seeing that an inspired writing can
not be errant. God never speaks lies.
But the fact that the original Scriptures
were without mixture OF error is of great
use, since our knowledge of that fact en-
ables us to say Of any clearly proved dis
crepancy that it was due not to the orig
inal author but to tranScriber, or to our
misapprehension of the meaning Nor
are we troubled by being called Biblio-
laters. If that means that we worship
book, it deserves no reply. If it means
that we regard the Bible as a divine ut
terance through human lips, we accept
the term and glory in It's application"
Regarding the suspension of Prof
Smith the Chicago interior (Pres.) says:
at is admitted on all sides that the Pro-
fessor's conduct has been honorable
that he is as guileless and sincere as he
is gentle. 1t is admitted that he alb
stained from teaching his peculiar views
. to his classes or elsewhere. When they
were brought out in discussion in the
ministers meeungst they were great sur
prise, because they were before un-
known. Then he offered to suppress the
pamphlet in which those views were
stated. He offered to resign his profess
sional chair. The mans submissiveness
and gentleness and kindness of heart
have been almost as unique as his views
1t may be further said in evidence of the
mans sincerity and loyalty-of the view
that he was not consciously attacking the
standards-that the Revision Committee
regarded the section of the confession on
the Scriptures as defective, and amended
it distinctly in order that it might pro-
hibit such views as those Of the profess
sor: and further that in the end he was
condemned fer infraction of the infer
ential, not direct, prohibition Of the Con-
tession. Now, in such case, it seems to
us that the presbytery should have stated
, the facts exactly as they found them
without fear, favor or prejudice. If they
found that he had acted an honorable
part, and thaShe consciously violated no
law, they should have said that they
acquitted him OF culpability. But, never
theless, Iinding that he was antagonizing
fundamental doctrine of inspiration,
that however innocently lie had actually
drifted out upon untenable and danger