The Universalist. [volume] (Chicago [Ill.]) 1884-1897, 1895-09-21
WAS JESUS A UNIvERSALIsT9
BY REV. JACOB sTRAuB, D. D.

BY REV. JACOB STRAUB, D. d.
The To-Day for August contains
an article by Rev. Howard McQueary
in review of Rev. Mr.. Savage, who. it
seems, wrote book in which he COM
mitted himself in the following words:
II know of no way of reading the
Gospels by which to escape the con-
viction that Jesus taught the doctrine
of eternal punishment. 1t does not
seem consistent with the tenderness
and perfect love of the Father (Which
Jesus taught); but there the words
stand: the sin against the Holy
Ghost" etc. .,etc., the same list usual
ly cited by our old school brethren.
Now the Rev. Howard McQueary,
counting himself Universalist, pro-
ceeds to point out to his brother
Savage how Jesus can be shown as a
Uniyersalist. The pleasant things
Jesus is reported in the Gospels to
have said and done are correctly re-
ported and authentic; while what are
severe and committing God of sever
ity are not his. They are the works
of ''his Jewish disciple reporter" who
accepted the popular Jewish ideas
on the subject" "His ideas of the
future life have been colored by the
prejudices and preconceptions of his
Jewish biographers." He knows of
good reasons for believing "that
Jesus never uttered the words attrib-
uted to him" in Matt. XIV. 81 46.
There is more convenient way of
disposing of the word eternal" in
that passage. And 'we need not,
with the old Universalists, stickle
over the Greek word translated eter-
nal there found" Jesus did not use
it at all. The prejudiced Apostle,
committing his Master to his own
theory of eternal punishment, report
ed Jesus as using the language, when
he was entirely innocent of having
done SO. "This whole passage mus
be set aside as later addition to
Jesus real teaching"
The passages which speak of the
fire that shall never be quenched
Mark xix. $3.50, might be cited as
proof that Jesus taught the annihila-
tion of the wicked rather than their
endless punishment, he suggests.
But, applying his rule for distinguish
ing the sayings of Jesus from tn ose
of his reporters, Mr.. McQueary does
not mean to commit Jesus to annihil-
alton; only the apostle Mark, who
might not have subscribed to Mat
thew's endless punishment doctrine,
and prefering to be known as an an
nihilationist, desired to have his Mas
ter understood as agreeing with him!
After submitting several texts in
evidence of Jesus Universalism, he
drops word of caution: "Unlike Mo-
hammed and other inferior teachers,
Jesus exercised remarkable reserve
on this subject, and we are not justi-
fed in dogmatising on the question
as to his views" In the course of
his criticism he refers to Jesus as the
great religious genius-"the greatest
religious genius Of history"-not the
bearer of an especial message from
God to man-and, different from
Mohammed, lodged the issue of Uni
versalism, and left himself substan-
TALLY uncommitted in regard to the
foremost problem in the world, next
to the problem of God. And this in
face of the fact that he came to bring
life and Immortality to light. and in
the most direct terms detailed to the
Sadducees that the dead were raised,
that they could die no more, and were
equal to the angels, and were the
children of God, being raised. Ac-
cording to Mr.. McQueary, Universal
ism may not be affirmed of Jesus.
From some sayings reported of him
it might be inferred, but on this vital