The daily morning journal and courier., 1894-11-13
sEcrUnr nr rnKsIpExr PATTON.
Large Audience Listens to His Argument
 for superpatusal Christianity.

Large Audience Listens to His Argument
 for supernstaral Christianity.
 Rev. President Patton of Princeton college delivered a lecture in the Dwight Hall course before large audience in Dwight hall last evening. He spoke an hour and q quarter and was listened to with the closest attention by all pres sent In his lecture he said:
 'The ethical side of Christianity Is founded on its association with the life hereafter, something for which We are to live. The tendency at the present time to emphasize the social side of Christianity is 6 sign of the times. and as such it is worth watching. It should not be permitted in any degree. however, to distract from the spiritual part. All other questions are minor ones when compared with the one Fundamental question of whether there is superna- tural Christianity and inspiration of truth, or not. Not that other questions are unimportant. for believe any ques- ton Is important if you put yourself In the right attitude towards 1t. But if Christianity Is any ything 1t is supernatu- raL It Is that or nothing. Now We are here in peril or not in peril. If we are not in peril then there is no use think ing about religion at all. But if we arc in peril then there is either cure or not cure. If there Is no cure then we are in the blackness of despair, and that Is an attitude that men have never taken. Is 1t not with reason that we be- lieve that we are In peril and that this Christianity Is the remedy? And then another important question arises. Does the gospel have any dogmatic content :? Is there not certain concensus of opinion on the doctrine involved in this question which represents the opinion of the Christian world? Is 1t not true that the hope of a happy and glorious immortality is due to a certain great transaction-to af act which we call the incarnation or the atonement? Did not Christ come into the world In a supernatural manner, and thus make salvation possible? By the side of this are not all other questions childish? |? The acceptation of the obligatory dog matic content of the gospel is ordinarily the condition of salvation. And the re- sponsibility Is put on all Christian men of telling to other men the truths con- tained In the gospel. You cannot be a consistent thinker one moment after you get to Christ, except you be sys- tematic theologist.
 God has come down here and given us piece of information about Him self, and how we are to get back to Him. We believe that the information given in the Bible Is true and that 1t was put there authoritatively. The plea for the Bible may be said to have two generic grounds. CD Phenomena of the ScrIp- lures. @ Facts of experience. These two lines of argument are not antagonistic. There are some people who say you must not form "a rational system of Christianity becatHsef you detract from the spiritual part. They say that al you need is the illumination of the spirit But what need is there of the illumina- tion if there is nothing to see? These two lines of argument are also mutually dependent on each other. It is a great comfort to feel that the Bible, which at- tests the sacrifice sof Christ attests also the witness of thei Spirit"