The record-union., 1896-03-21
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.

f.
Whatever the reason, careful OBJ
servers seem to be of one. mind that in
our commercial life the standard of in
tegrity is not as high as it was five years
ago" says the Congregationalist' of
Boston. These same men tell US that
the standard is steadily becoming lower.
What shall be done TO prevent its de-
cline? What can we do to call attention
to the fact, to emphasize more earnestly
than ever the principles which underlie
the righteousness of God as it is re-
vealed in the New Testament, and to
make it clear that even for this world
this righteousness is better than any
pecuniary success without it? May we
not encourage our younger business
men to seek for subjects connected with
our public life, perhaps with the govern
ment Of our cities, which will require
them to take sides and discuss them
from Christian point of view, and thus
again, as in past eras when great moral
topics have occupied public attention,
develop conscience and create in the
community in which they reside stand
ards Of thought and conduct which will
be satisfied with nothing less than the
standards of the gospels, and which viii
visit on those who violate them, what
ever be their excuse, the condemnation
they merit %
THE Presbyterian is alarmed. It
believes there is a decay in belief in the
power Of prayer. Unless we are greatly
deceived it says, there is a marked de-
cay OF belief in the power of prayer as a
reality, in prayer as a power which pre-
walls with God, which achieves results
which would not otherwise be obtained
Our contemporary is certainly right, .
observes the Christian Register"
Unit) of Boston, sin its diagnosis.
There is decline in that form of
prayer which consisted in getting to-
gether as many petitions as possible
and Offering them to the throne of grace
in the hope of influencing and changing
the will of God. It's conception of the
nature of God was derived from the ma
ture of earthly kings, and the steps nee
essary to influence them. 1t represents
God as unwilling to grant a request un-
til he has received certain number of
influential petitions, and, if the petit
tions directly oppose each other, as pay
ing some regard to the number of votes
or to the relative fervency of the petit
TONERS. This view of prayer is GER
tainly passing away And the 'Presby-
terian' ought to be glad of it, for it is
higher and more spiritual view of wor-
ship which is taking its place. The
function of prayer is seen to be not to
change the nature of God, but to change
the nature of men, not to influence his
attitude toward US, but our attitude
toward Him. Prayer takes less the
form of petition, but. more the form of
meditation, aspiration. gratitude and
communion. Prayer is less formal and
verbal, but not the less real That
prayer which exhales in gratitude and
trust and aspiration does not change
the viii of God, but it does change the
viii of man, and helps to adjust it to the
will of God. When this is effected,
prayer is answered"
"some rather severe things have
lately been said," says the ''Watchman'
(Bapt) of Boston, by a leading college
President as to the scholarship of min
listers of the gospel in the United States.
Ministers of course, do not know all
that it would be well for them to know,
but that is equally true of men in every
other profession. Recent statistics,
however, which have appeared In these
columns. show that the gospel minis
try. if graduation at reputable colleges
is d test, is still entitled to rank pre-
eminently as the learned profession. 1t
is hardly possible to go into any settled
community without finding that its
clergymen are superior to its lawyers,
physicians or journalists in breadth of
Information. in intellectual discipline
parts of our country the ministers, as
a rule, are, by all odds, the best educat-
ed persons in the community. We must
not forget that college Presidents and
Professors usually attach a somewhat
exaggerated Importance to what they
term scholarship College Professors
are usually scholars but are not COM
monty interesting or inspiring preach
ers Dry as a Professor has become a