The record-union., 1895-12-21
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.

1.-THE question of the Bible in the
Public Schools has lately emerged
again in Chicago in a new form, says
the Living Church (P. Ed of Chicago
STRESS is laid upon the Importance of
definite moral teaching as part of a
true system of education. 1t is urged
that the Bible contains the highest
teachings of ethics and good conduct,
also that the morality taught in it is
recognized as the standard among ma
tions and societies, at least among
those which are in the stream of prog
ress. But just here comes the diff
Guilty; the Bible does not develop its
system of morals in a scientific way.
1t does not, like Spencer and the rest,
base its ethics on reason, but on au-
thority. To let this appear is to admit
the existence of divine Teacher whose
words are final; to let in a whole sys-
tenn of theology, which, in the cant of
the day, is to teach 'sectarianism. The
problem is to have the ethics of Holy
Scripture taught, its rules of practical
conduct and the like, without enjoln-
ing these things on the ground on
which they are enjoined in the sacred
volume. Morals are to be taught, but
not upon the divine basis of morals. In
order to solve this problem, therefore,
it is proposed to compile small vol
ume of Scriptural selections, which
shall be purely non-Sectarian' in its
character By non-sectarian, as ex-
planned by advocates of this scheme,
is meant the exclusion of the doctrines
of theology and all creeds, i. e., relig-
ious beliefs. We shall await with inter-
est the publication Of a book con-
structed on these lines. Such a Bible is
likely to deserve a place with Bible
for Polite Society," or the forthcoming
Woman's Bible. The difficulties in the
way of taking the morals and leaving
the theology seem so great that we may
be permitted to doubt the possibility of
effecting anything which will give sat
isfaction to anybody"
''The Protestant bodies, whether Lu-
theran, Presbyterian, gregationalist,
Baptist Methodist, or of whatever sort,
are all separated remarks the Catholic
Champion of the Guild of st. Ignatius,
because they have denied the funda-
mental ideas of the church and sacra-
ments which have come down from the
apostolic times, and will have new
system and new religion of their own.
With sorrowful disapprobation we have
seen them depart, and are obliged TO
content ourselves with trying to win
which God has given US good measure
of success. In opposition to this view
of the matter it is sometimes said that
if we had treated the Wesleyans with
more consideration they would not have
been driven away. But this is not true
The secession of the WesleyanS was
really determined upon and set in mo-
tion when John Wesley, a priest of the
church, professed to have received a
new light, repudiated his baptism, and
said he had not been a Christian above
five days. He then forSoOk the funda-
mental doctrine of grace which the
church of God had always held, and
from that time and because of that er-
ror all who continued to follow him
were doomed to schism. 1t may be that
some persons exhibited a lack of char
ity in dealing with the persons called
Methodists; but if such failure on the
part Of individuals were always to be
taken as a justification of schisms we
might well despair of unity"
8 ~AlI the fuss that the Jesuits and the
Pope, are making about the validity of
English orders is stuff and nonsense "
says the New York Churchman (P. Ed
in the light of history. If Pope Leo
XIII. is as real a Pope as Pope Julius
III was, he could, by word, or a stroke
OF his pen, make valid the orders of any
Bishop or priest VINO had Deen cOnSe-
Grated or ordained by those who in RO-
man eyes were schismatics, and in ac-
cordance with a form of ordination not
approved by the Holy See. Thousands
of the clergy who had received their or
ders either from 'schismatic' Bishops, or
in accordance WITH the ritual of Edward
Wis Prayer Book, were by Cardinal
Pole acknowledged to have valid orders,
through a Papal dispensation. When
will the Popes know their own history,
and if an obstacle TO the reunion of
Christendom is found 'regnante Vic
toria' in the non-validity of Anglican
orders, why was that non-validity de
clared to be no obstacle to full commu-
Mon with Rome regnante Maria2 ?"
Nothing has escaped the critical at
tention of this scientific spirit" OBJ
serves the New4Y ork Independent. RE
ligion, religions book, religions char
acter and religions results have all
been subjected to the severest tests. II
the religion of Christianity We're not
established upon the bedrock of fact
it could not have survived these as
saults The man-made systems are in
process of decay; but not so the relig
ion of the Lord Jesus Christ. The testi-
mony OF themost disinterested observers
is to the effect that it is a greater power
in the world than ever before. It is not