New-York tribune. [volume] (New York [N.Y.]) 1866-1924, 1893-05-01
SERMONS WORTH KEEPING.
XIV.
DR.. PARKHURST AND PRESBYTERIAN ISM
FOUR PROTESTS FROM THE MADISON SQUARE
CHURCH TO THE GENERAL ASSEMBLY

! FOUR PROTESTS FROM THE MADISON SQUARE
CHURCH TO THE GENERAL ASSEMBLY.
DR.. {. H. Parkhurst. Of the Madison square Pros
| byterian Church preached sermon yesterday morn
Ing which had TO DO with he coming G,nrrLI Assembly
mat meets In Washington ih, month Protests we:c pr
scented against the acion OF the last two Assemblies IN
'hr report Of the Briggs IN" sermon wis plc,
for Christian unity among Presb' icrln brethren THIS
was the text: Neither pray | for these alone. but
| for them also which shall believe on Me through
their word that they all may ne one as Thou Father
ar In Ne. and in Thee: that they a!sD may be one
| In Us; that the world may believe that Thou hast
sent Me-" Dohn Xvii, 20 2l.) In the sermon Dr.
| IarkhurSt said
The long reach OF Lords petition here tho deep
and tender spirit by which animated taken in con
ncction with the troubled temper OF the tines through
which our Presbyterian Communion i al present. passing
and the possb; crisis which that Communion /, rapidly
approaching, makes the task which have undertaken
hi, morning to be Of exceeding difficulty and deIcacy
and enter upon 1t together In safcr or wiser
than by supplcatng the author Of this prayer. th"
the same sincere eaincstness and ecntcnc-s OF nina hat
| wrought In Him may also thoughts anu W
crancc, that the appalling significance OF present events
chasten our spirits cleansing them from every faint
bitterness and that wisdom that Is wiser than our
make competent know the Lords Will. and
o mingled frankncs, gcntlcnc>s speak it,
you In thorougheo.ng honesty that In all
that follows am motycd by schsmatic spirit by no
petty affiliations. by narrowing binding adherence
to any school OF but | do want to see the
time when the kingdom Of tails world shall become
the gdom II our Lord and His Christ and know that
present postponng the coming Of that day
that the engrosmcnt of thought and interest
in Communion I, putting out Of condition to do
the works and achieve the to which the Church
il ordained and for which the Holy spirit given
equipment and endowment Let say also that in the
lourfod protest which have to oicr SPEAKING. not
50 much 10 this particular church square /
speaking in It's behalf. speaking in the line Of the
IL
by which 1t has always been animated, and speaking, II
| may dare Say In behalf Of whose voices are
now silent. but whose lives have been bound up with
oden the history OF Madison square Church
eloquent words and eloquent pclS )nav have
part Of the Of the Presbyterian Church. and
dciermlnarvc element in its progress. and whose i'm
pcfia spirits alway~ motive toward all that was
Grand and wealthy in thought sterling and tender
pcrirnce.
SHAKING CONFIDENCE IL THE BIBLE.
Speaking then In tins cprccnativc capacity. protest
against the Presbyterian a.,
In it's last two ,.cncaI Assemblies ground that
tendency T., shake the worlds confidence In the Bib.
considered q volume Of divine revelation. 1 Will 20
further than to say that the impression left on the
mind VI wicked world that there things
pertaining to the divncnc,s OF the Bible tina. the majority
the Presbyterian Church do Investigated too
-crutin,ney. and that u wants Of IT, scholars.
whatever he their religious character and Christian eN
pcrcne. In processes Of Investigation unless
they give bonds at the outset that their conclusions
again that 10 claim that there l. any most
,erar,s member Of the Presbyterian Church whose views
quite fairly stated by the expression Just used what
| say f. that impression that l. left upon
minds outside Of the Presbyterian Church and
especially upon minds that outside OF all Church.
Tho look Is that there i something In the Bbcs claim
being divine that has got to BE- handled with certain
amount o: glnrcrncss and Investigated under that
the Church feel such overwhelming aud
mastering the validity u those claims not
suffer degree Of anxiety when they are looked Into By
whose only loyatics t. ''od and truth As the
world look, at H. the General Assembly has practically
laid embargo upon absolute independence Of Christian
thought and there i magnificent thing that
the next Assembly sud do than make IL clear TO the
world that II ha, laid no such embargo The merest
suspicion that being put forward any claim In
h. half Of the Bible shrnks from the scyer'st tests
that un. scholarship anywhere can subject 1t
TO- Ia just done toward closing the bible TO the
acceptance a generation In which II Is 30 well known
that even In matters Of flith ana OF religion
final appeal has u be made N the reason
DIvERTING THE ATTENTION OF THE CHURCH.
We protest in the second place. against the present
attitude Of the Tcsbyte-nn Church voiced IN tS last
two General Assembled the ground that il diVcrtine
the OF the Church and that IL Is divTtng the
attention Of world from those matters which Christ |
and His apostles agreed ia considering the salient points
Of the Christian scheme. For two years the idea Of
Christianity. which the world has been gaining from
General Assembly is no, the idea when IN" word "oua
cain from the Bible. General Assembly may have
rel r,
represented GOSPEL Of Lord and Saviour Jesus
Christ IL would be absolutely impossible for a man
who stranger to the GOSPEL 70 at In the couhcs
~ General Assembly with the Nupposon on his part
tina. that assembly true embodiment OF the CHRIST
,p. Chris, idea, and then bring away from that
conversation conception OF Christ %iity THAT ""Hi d"
ANYTHING than the crudt carcaure OF the original
II there ar, matters to attended arrange to attend
n Them II there hcrrtics be tried arrange TO
try them. That ia not what am protesting against
am protesting against great body OF Christians com
Ing together Christians ostonsibly In the interests Oil
the Gospel Of Jesus Christ and for It, mrtheran'c
standing consciously in the eye Of the worii ana yet
falling push LUMINOSITY. cmphatcay and tumphanty
to the front. ransccndcnt fact Of Got who 50
loved the world lie His only bcgo'n Son that
vho,ocvcr bccycth on Him should not perish but have
everlasting life.
The powcr Of Christianity IL that fact and II General
Assembly, the whole great Presbyterian Church conc"n
trated cannot In IT. vast annual sessions put the stamp
OF that living and fact upon the Intelligence The
conscience and OF the country, II j. dreadful
nifty that we have have General Assembly ms
/, not spoken In anger. but In grief
God sant that at the coming convention ct Washington
~ souc ference of Providence by wondrou'
ou,urnr Of the Holy spirit the hearts of the Commits
son.r, may hc and Influenced with that truth OF
Christ and Him ctucncd which set on hre the I'M
soul q Saint Paul. aud that Just NJ tht great
focus OF public Interest where the National heart
t,,ohs the moving spirits Of that assembly. or at
least the grat moving Divine Spirit "ppreriaii>o
Of superb Opportunity. may save inc Assem-
bly, from the oolishness and the sin co"mt"d io TWO
wear. as Glowing into the corner OF It's counsS that
truth OF which Christianity Is transcrncrnty IN" "\-
poncnt and personal Christ, who l. Himself the whole
Of Christianity and may, Just at our Government centre
operation influence. and impulses that shall not only
reach the quckenng Of the Prcsbitein Chnrch, hut
10 the qulckcning OF all churches and still more to
National attention and % the prickinc Of the National
science the publication Of the National blood.
so making che occasion which. far from being
dishonor 70 the communion love. shall dignity that
communion Christ glorious, advertise the Cross ana
help tO the Nation.
fIRSr PURE AND THEN PEACEABLE THE RULE.
hut In the third place. not only do protest AGAINST the
present attitude Of the Presbyterian Church. voiced in
last General Assemblies the ground that IL