The Stark County Democrat. [volume] (Canton, Ohio) 1833-1912, 1893-03-23
Authority IN THE CHURCH.

love our fellow men, let us show 1t. Let
us speak. Let us act.
AUTHORITY IN THE CHURCH.
So is the kingdom Of God as II a man should
cast seed upon tho carth.-Alark iv, 20.
Say what you will Of the intellectual
tendencies Of the age in which we live
its chief characteristic within this center
Of intellectual activity is the exploration
Of the mystery of true religion. This IS
true whether you go into the domain
Of philosophy or pure metaphysics, or
whether you enter the domain Of history
or fiction. What is true religion? What
is true Christianity? The deathknell o.
bigotry is in that inquiry, Irejotce in
that.
1t means that this spirit Of restless dis
content with anything save the real
knowledge of the real Christ and real
God must destroy bigotry not only with
in the church, but outside it, and in
every realm Of thought bring the world
back to the truth, the whole truth and
the truth for its own sake. And that
means the deathknell to your liberal
bigot. OF all the bigots who have had
no excuse for their existence, the most
impudent and insClent are the liberal
bigots of the order Of Yoltaire and the
men who have followed in his footsteps.
The bigot within the so called liberal field
must keep silence, save 50 far as he finds
the truth, as the bigot in the ecclesias-
teal field.
CHRISTIANITY DEFINED.
The movement now on foot within the
Presbyterian church to effect comprO-
mise in this battle between the cham
pions Of form and progress may not re-
ceiye q warm response, but the very
fact Of this battle and its fgrceness is an
indication that the beginning Of the end
is now upon us-tho beginning Of the
end OF an ecclesiastical Ibwer that has
| asserted itself within the domain Of Prot
| estantism, brought over bodily from his
| toric ROmanism, that the world is out
growing. and which is doomed as the
| ceremonies Of a past are doomed before
the Gearchlight Of the truth Of this age.
In the midst of tnis spirit Of inquiry
and investigation and progress there is
| a ghost from mat past which rises be-
|
us if thee is 10 church authority, no
central Organization from which there
shall Esue an authoritative creed? If
youI critics shall undo for US the sup
| pG1ed infallibility Of the Old Testament
and of certain historic creeds, where
will men 90 for authoritative knowledge?
Where can we find anything that will
be real, that we can depend upon? Shall
we look to the Catholic church in its con-
tinuity of offices, back through the diff
ferent ecclesiastics who have ruled, or
shall we search in the church of Eng
land and find there something that is
stable on which we can stand, or follow
in the theology of Paul, or prefer the
theology of Peter? Shall we take the
Synoptic gospels or take the gospel Of
John? How can the world know any
thing authoritatively if you open those
| foodgates and do not establish anything
affirmativelyT"
There is but one place to go, and that
is to Jesus Christ. Christianity is Christ,
Christ is Christianity, and the Christian
ity that cannot be squared with his per-
sonality is spurious. In scores of places
in Christ's recorded words we have his
statement of this essential principle Of
Christianity, and Jesus says in SO many
words that
Christianity is a life. All claim, there
fore, Of authority or historic continuity
of authority must be based only upon the
possession Of that lie,
81 am come" says Christ, "that they
may have life, and have it abundantly.
! am the vine, and ye arc the branches.
The kingdom of God is az a seed" That
is to say, all authority and all postulate
Of authority that may be drawn from a
supposed historic continuity have a real
basis only as they are founded in a life,
only as they are vital. Church authority
is real, ecclesiastical authority is real,
only as they are part Of this vital deyel-
opment. "It is as a seed cast on the
earth. am the life. He that hath the
Son hath life. ! am the vine, and ye are
the branches, and out OF me you'can do
nothing" That is 10 say:
A COSCEPTION or THEOLOGY.
First-Christianity cannot consist and
never did consist in the correct cOncep-
ton Of any theology. Why? Theology
is a science, Christianity is a religion
and science is one thing and religion,
another. The two things are 10 more
connected than simple mechanical con-
triyance is connected with the seed
which, in the warm earth of spring,
s1nds mp It's blossoms and its fruit. On
the one hand, you have theory and incl
lect; on the other hand, you have heart
and practice. Theology belongs TO the
question Of intellect and point Of view
4 see theOlogically not so much what il
before my eyes as what is in my mind
A good woman was crossing the oceaI
with her husband. He Looked out anG