The record-union., 1895-12-07
In RELIGIONS REALM.
Expressions From Various Religious
Newspapers.
The Religious Thought of the Day as
Expressed in the Sectarian Press
Some Matters of Interest to Both
Ministers and Laymen.

'"The Rev. Leighton Parks, D. D.,
ventures" says the Living Church (P.
ED of Chicago, ito speak of the great
pastoral of a year ago in the following
terms: "A committee was appointed to
draft this letter. 1t was little
syndicate of Bishops putting forth their
idea of the doctrine of the church. 1t
was complete and utter failure. If 1t
had been established that that was the
teaching of this church, it would have
produced a convulsion in it, All such
attempts to belittle one of the most i'm
pcrtant and solemn documents ever ad-
dressed to churchmen in this country
by their Bishops, are reduced to utter
nullity by the fact, of which DR.. Parks
ought not to have been ignorant, that
the whole House of Bishops has now re-
iterated and reaffirmed it. 1t is too late
now to talk about this great statement
of the incarnation as the work OF d
mere committee "a little syndicate OF
Bishops and the like, and to indulge IN
such language is to throw dust IN peo-
pies eyes. Will the action of the House
of Bishops in this matter produce con-
vulSion? Certainly not. All churchmen
who have drawn their spiritual nour-
iShment from the Bible and the prayer
book know that this is the doctrine OF
the church, this and nothing else. AS TO
the faction which has for some time
past been endeavoring to substitute an
other doctrine for that which they once
believed no form of words, however
sound or strong, can probably be found
which will give them any concern.
When the cOnVulSion comes 1t VIII pc
because the outraged sense of truth and
righteousness can no longer brook the
spectacle of men under vows, ordained
to teach the doctrines of the church,
presuming to substitute something
which is not only contrary to those doc
trines, but subversive of the Christian
religion ITSELF
1--WE are not careful" says the New
York Observer (Pres.), 'to go about to
invent theological novelties, as though
the great body of evangelical believers
through the centuries had remained In
unfortunate error as to the main out
lines of doctrine, awaiting the later llIu-
limitations of teachers now sprung up;
nor do we hope for a more gracious
grace than that which breathed forth
from the soul of Him who walked the
hills of Galilee with gospel blessing IN
HIS hand New forms of statement OF
some of the details of that time-tested
truth may be offered which will event
ually commend themselves to the en-
lightened conscience and finer senslbll-
ity of Christian people but the novelty
can only be in the form and not the sub
stance. There is more to learn from the
Word itself. Men have not thought as
high and as deep as they might think
into the mysteries of divine grace and
revelation, and men have certainly not
lived and loved the ethics and moralitieS
of the Bible with a perfect life and de-
votion. Progress is called for along
Biblical lines. New applications of the
divine truth and grace to the problems
of the individual and of society may be
effected, as some Edison or Tesla makes
the already serviceable electricity to
become still move completely the serv-
ant of mankind; but as for the spiritual
forces themselves, these are as' old as
the predestinating purposings of Jeho-
vah, and if in any way new are new in
the same sense n which the earth in
springtime is abloom with the growths of
fair, fresh fruitages from the hidden
RIOTS of past implanting."
1.-THE progress of this movement which
is called the higher cTiticism-though it
involves very much more than any
literary nvestigation-ought to be
known" says the Interior (Pres.) of
Chicago. There is no use in sup
pressing the facts on the one hand,
nor of exaggerating them on the other
which end in a surprise, though imper-
ceptible to the general religious public
most of the time. For example, in Chi
cago and vicinity there are about 900
divinity students. OF these 200 are un
der conservative instruction-in McCor-
mick's Seminary. There are about 200
IN each of the other great divinity
schools, namely, the Baptist school of
the University, the Congregational and
the Methodist schools. There are about
100 in the Episcopal school. These 100
are under instruction, more or less
pronounced, in the new Biblical theo-
ries. In New York City and in New
England all the divinity schools are
under that type of instruction. We
cannot say that all the other nom
Presbyterian schools in the Northern
States are the same though we suspect
that they are. This is one of those
movements which react-necessarily
do, because they are abnormal. The
more extreme the pull, the more eX-