The Universalist. [volume] (Chicago [Ill.]) 1884-1897, 1896-12-19

neglect of doctrinal instruction. The
old doctrines have been discounted
and the new doctrines are I'M
known, and so there is an era of
no doctrines. The second is the
notion that religion is to be pro-
NOTED by emotional appeals and
questionable sensational methods.
Hence a generation has grown up
who know next to nothing about the
fundamental principles of our relig-
ion. They call God Gather" it may
be, but they do not know what it
means. They speak of duty, but to
them religious duty is like the church
today, immensely busy and fussy
about nothing. And as to destiny
they are all at sea. Nothing, there
fore, do all these people need more
than thorough instruction in the
first principles of the Gospel of Christ.
They need above all things else a
campaign of religious education.
But if the world at large needs
this, our church also needs it. Our
people have been struck more or less
by the clad" of the hour. They
have imagined that the way to make
Universalism popular is to ignore our
doctrines, or that we can capture the
multitude and greatly enlarge our
kingdom by some kind of sensa-
tional campaign. Hence we are in
danger of getting, if we do not al
ready have, generation who know
not the foundations of the faith. Our
great need, therefore, is campaign
of education. We need a thorough
study of the positive principles of
our faith. The negative may be
passed over with word, but the posi-
tive need thorough study and care
full teaching. If pulpit and pew
would unite for, say year, in an
earnest, patient, careful, thoughtful
and prayerful study of the doctrines
of our faith, of Christianity as inter
preted by Universal SIN, we should
have such revival in our church as
we have not seen lately. Create a
profound interest in our doctrines and
you will create profound interest
in the church that stands for those
doctrines. Enlighten the mind with
our thought and you will fire the
heart with zeal for the propagation
of that thought. Convince men of
the truth of our faith and they will
sacrifice to extend that faith. Jesus
made no mistake when he insisted
upon faith. Men will not give and
labor for what they do not half be-
lieve. Enlighten, strengthen and
vivify the faith of our church and
you will increase it's zeal and fill its
treasury. We shall support missions
in proportion as we believe that ours
is the truth of God and needed for
the worlds salvation.
Besides, we need to understand
that there is no way Of extending our
faith and charging our church ex-
cept through this process of educa-
ton. To make Universalists we must
educate men in Universalism. You
cannot cousin" or coax or "shout"
them into our kingdom. There are
churches that can be enlarged by
sensational methods, but not the Uni
versalist Church. That can be done
only by educating men in the faith.
If they are brought in by any other
method, they are very likely to do US
more harm than good. If they are
not rooted and grounded in the faith
they will be anything but pillars in
the church. We plead, therefore, for
campaign of education. Let us lay
aside the 'higher criticism" and all
other criticism, and preach and teach
and study Universalism until the
thought reddens our intellectual
blood and fires our spiritual emo
tions, moves our wills and converts
our pockets. sc.