The daily morning journal and courier., 1895-05-16

the perpetuation of divisions as other
 than a grievous wrong to religion, he would be very likely to ask how the
 church was torn In pieces and brought
 to It's present condition. He will very | likely think some such review necessa- | ny to the endeavor to remedy the evil
 of division in the church. The church
 was substantially one for many genera tions, after it's formal establishment by
 the power of the Holy Ghost at Pente-
 cost. The great distinctive features of
 the life of the church come to us from
 that time, the Holy Scriptures, the min stry, the Lords day the sacraments
 in their places, the creeds, the begin
 nings of Christian worship and the
 Christian year. That the life of the
 church was grievously marred in one
 and another way need not here be said. The church of Christ was long one
 body, confessing one faith. The church
 of Rome was the great offender against
 church unity, by reason of her preten- tions favored by the place and tradi-
 tions of the Imperial city and many
 causes and events which shall not here
 be named. The east and the west were
 separated to the disadvantages of both.
 The English reformation, more conser- vative than the reformation on the continent, left the church of England | freed from Roman usurpation, a national
 church intact, fully organized, the old
 church of the land, the mother church
 of the English speaking people, preserv- Ing in creed and ministry and worship
 and life the ancient things of the Cath ollie church.
 In that mother church of England and in the national and colonial
 churches in communion with her, there. ought to have been room for all English
 speaking peoples. So the sober, serious, substantial, simple religion of the An
 glo-Saxon race in its old and new homes, the religion of a dominant, per haps the dominant race, had been in larger measure a power in the world.
 It was not to be. Federation had not
 been learned. There was narrowness,
 hardness, lack of patience on both
 sides Neither churchman nor Puritan can make out a very good case for his party in that evil time from which our divisions come, when England, not in deed like Spain, burning her best men and women nor like France, casting them out, still let them go, with no love for her IL is pitful that English bish- ops and ecclesiastical courts could not have been tolerant of non-conformlty and that Puritans could not have been less exasperating. It is a page out of the history of the Christianity of Eng lish-speaking people which He can read without prejudice now, but not without wishing that it had been differently written. We perceive the limitations about both churchman and Puritan, and we are glad that with all it's hard ness the history Is less cruel than that written in southern Europe.
 A message has now come from the Anglican church through her bishops upon the subject of the broken unity of the church,
 At the Lambeth conference of blsh- ops in 1888, committee was appointed to consider what steps Gf any) can be rightly taken, on behalf of the Angli- can communion, toward the reunion of the various bodies into which the Chris tianity of the English speaking races Is divided. The committee found evidence of strong concensus of authoritative opinion from various branches of the Anglican communion that the time for some action in the matter had come. The subject had been under considera- tion before, but the most important and practical step brought to their attention was that of the general convention of the Episcopal church in the United States in 1886. That American report and declaration was made the bases of deliberations and with very slight the Chicago declaration became the declaration of the Anglican bishops and so as distinct and authori- tative statement of the position of that communion on this subject as could | well be had.
 The conference approved the declara- ton submitted by the committee Gas | follows) as supplying the basis on | which an approach might be made, l under Gods blessing, toward reunion. |
 l. The Holy Scriptures of the old and | new testaments,as containing all things | salvation" and as being | the rule and ultimate standard of faith |
 II, The Apostles Creed as the Bap- | -ismal symbol; and the Nicene Creed, as the sufficient statement of the Chris tan faith.
 III. The two sacraments ordained by Christ Himself-Baptism and the Sup per of the Lord-ministered with unfail- ng use of Christs words of institution md of the clements ordained by Him.
 ". The Historic Episcopate, locally adapted in the methods of its admins ration to the varying needs of the na- ions called of God into the unity of His church.
 Doubtless the committee expressed he mind of the conference in feeling hat it was useless to consider the ques- ion of reunion with the Roman church, because any proposal for reunion would'I )e entertained by the authorities of hat church only on condition of a com ,lete submission to those claims of ab- olute authority and the acceptance of hose other errors, both in doctrine and iscipline, against which, in faithfulness Q Gods Holy Word and to the true prin-J iples of His church, the Anglican com nunion has for three centuries protest d."
 The committee said that they were of he opinion that with the chief of the , ommunions not conforming to the An 'lican church there would not only be