New-York tribune. [volume] (New York [N.Y.]) 1866-1924, 1896-06-15
RELIGION AND IDEALS.
THE REV MR. CHADWICK SAYS THAT SOCIAL
CHARACTERISTICS ARE REFLECTED
N RELIEF

n BELIEF
The Rev. John W. Chadwick of the Second Uns'
tartan Church. preached his last sermon yesterday
morning before leaving for his summer vacation
which he will spend at Hilltop" his country
home in Chesterfield Mass. Yesterday also marked
the completion Of his thrty-second year as pastor
OF this church
The subject yesterday morning was IAN Ideai
Religion" He said in part Perhaps better
formula Of my subject would have been religion
OF ideals, for what have in mind is not to indi-
cate the body and form OF what conceive to DO
an ideal religion but show To what a great
exten. the various religions )f the world depend
for their significance upon ideal elements unaer-
standing then, that by an ideal religion we mean
a religion Of ideals are confronted by the ques-
ton is not every religion such religion! i's
ideals may be called by the name OF this, tnat or
the other Deity but they any less ideal on that
ACCOUNT Are we 70 suppose at any point IN the
development of religious thought and feeling an
exact correspondence between the finite concep-
tions Of Deity and the supreme reality! III ho''
then all the conceptions have been ideal H. on the
other hand. at some particular point there mas
been an exact correspondence between the concep-
ton and the reality then every other point the
conception has been more or Tess ideal. FOR ex-
ample the God-ideal Of the Jewish religion varied
through infinite degrees from the time OF Moses 70
the time Of Christ. Renan did not exagsera .s
the prophets took Him in hand and made decent
God OF Him He capable OF almost any mean
ness treachery preyarication. Nnai an I'm,
meas bic distance between this conception ana
that OF the greatest prophets. and again between
the prophetic conception and the reality OF tho
man Jesls Now It IS evident that unless God was
changing all the way from Moses TO Jesus, whetner
we suppose the conception Of Jesus 70 nave oeeh
provisional or na the conceptions Of the centuries
before His day must have been idealstic; e. they
could have had no exact correspondence with tho
actual character OF the Deity. What cal deal
istic conceptions the apologize scholars OF tram
st.onal theology call provisional revelations ms
means that men being unable 10 appropriate inc
highest form 0. truth. God put them on WIN
lower or the lowest forms OF truth Ihey asHeo
Him for bread He gave them stone
THE conceptions of Deity. no matter II they are
shadows to which external substance corrc-
spords are still moral ideals worthy or LOFTY ad-
ua!raton In the 10 which We nave SO rar
confined Ourselves. Christianity AFFORDS an Illus
tration equally apt VITA that OF Judaism OF the
ideal character Of religious conceptions THESE mayo
varied Tn. early Jehovah vas Mooch. with tho
family traits OF Jealousy. cruelty. reyengefunesa
4 thing cannot be black and white az the same
time God cannot be merc'ful and mercless no
cannot be the monster OF Edwards and calvin ana
still be a loving Father. so IL follows that theso
conceptions .dealistc. 49,. .,
.arSe religions OF different peoples reflect their
racial characteristics the stages OF their culture
What men really think and feel concerning COD
is determined more by their associates ana en-
vironmcnts than by theoogians or any system OK
theology