Morning journal and courier., 1894-01-26
SUNDAY OBSERVANCE.

the religious Thought of New England,
where In oldsn times Sunday labor was
forbidden by law, and where those who
were not church members could have no
share In the government. To rest once
week is indeed . physiological necessity
and therefore might be called q moral
duty. But to separate Sunday alone as q
holy day and regard the other six days ss
secular brings harm to the cause of moral
i.y. OF COURSE II would have . beneficial
effect In the ssmi-civiliEsd ages of Europe
and In the time of Moses to have Sunday
and othsr festival days of saints consecra-
ted "a holy and so restrict immortality and
forbid strife. But at the present time IL
Ia generally known that no day Is unholy
and no business secular, and 30 the cars
run morning and afternoon, ss well a. pri-
vate teams and bicycles. Thus the pres
ent manner of Sunday observance 10 quite
different from that of the oldsn times.
This is one sign of the change which is
openly manifested.
HIGHER CRITICISM.
A few decades ago Americans regarded
such scientists as Spencer, Huxley, Tyn-
dali, as almost angels of the devil. But
since Spencer's visit to the States, the late
q. w. Bsecher, Lyman Abbott and others
are earnestly insisting that the law of evo-
luton is q revelation to this age. Thus
those professors who stand In the front of
progressive thought and are I'm danger of
hal hv nr,rnairo
thoughts, have commenced to apply the
scientific method to religious Investigation.
They say that the pentateuoh was not writ
ten by Moses hims elf; the book of Isaiah
was written by two different persons; Dam
| lei 10 later competition; these statements
are being more and more received. Even
an aged professor In Yale Seminary
progressive institution on q conservative
| foundstion-nou acknowledges the results
| of higher criticism in the Old Testament.
Only in the case of the four gospels, the
| center of critical discussions, he cannot
| get rid of the old views. When We ssk
| the grounds of bis reason, he says there is
less difficulty in regarding John as the au'
| thor of the fourth gospel than In ascribing
l it to any other psrson, and that 1t is ex-
| tremsly necessary to have the testimony
l of the Immediate disciples of Jesus In re-
gard to his life. In my view 1t is impos-
sibls to know who the author of Johns
goepel was, but Il In almost certain 1t was
not written by the immediate disciple of
Jesus, John, because the author clearly sp'
plies Alexsnarian philosophy to the life of
Jesus, and regards Christ as "the only be
gotten son of God." q phrase not once
found in the Old Testament, but focnd In
Plato. There 10 alec q manifest borrowing
from Philo In the logos idea And there
10 no reason why John should describe
himself as the most beloved disciple while
humbly concsaling his name.
SO long as the dogma prevails that the
four gospels give the real life Of Jesus,
and that there is no error in the whole Bi'
Bile, there will naturally be opposition tc
the results Of higher criticism. Bat this
ia limited to common believers who hold
to many errors, while in seminaries there
Ia tendency to apply sciantifc method.
of literary investigation. This tendency
IL manifest In the fact that in spite of ths
decision of the Presbyterian assembly
against Professor Briggs, the seminary
continues to employ him as before.
SIGNS OF TEE NEW CHRISTIANITY.
Thus moved by the general current O
society on the one hand and pressed b.
the progress of science on the other, tn
time has come when Christianity mus
! change its system of doctrine, and fits In
. stitutions must be reformed. Indeed, a
though Roman Catholics are fettsred b
.. their pspal infallibility, they are In te,
{ tied to the dead letter, and who worshi
An aged book. Moreover, now that d
: ! world is coming more and more under Il
power Of money, and the lower Glasses d
/ resisting tina churches, Leo xIII. has pr
g claimed the mission of the church as fc
lows:
"It Is to protect the weak and guard
70 self against sll attempts at oppressio
70 Now, after 30 many distresses, the rel
=, y of money has set In. Money La trying
: conquer the church as well ~ to cont
= the masses. Neither church NOR peoI
At should yield to II. I am with the wss
= with the humble, those without propsri
" I am with those who were loved BY Q
m Lord"
ei All, how sacred these wordsI Thou
God himself, once more becoming mi