The Universalist. [volume] (Chicago [Ill.]) 1884-1897, 1896-09-05

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abundantly bear out the contrary
opinion. The ''fixity doctrine" of the
eternal damnation beyond the grave
is still darling doctrine of ortho-
doxy and is defended very strenuously
In many quarters as necessity of
the theological situation Mr.. Joseph
Cooks doctrine, for example, elabor-
ated over and over again, of the "fnal
permanence of evil character" is suf
ficiently fixed" for all orthodox pur-
poses, and is an instance of the tenac-
ity with which the old ideas are held
even in this age, which shows progre s
in many directions.
Still, it must be conceded that
great progress has been made in elimi-
mating the old belief of eternal
"fixity" in the state after death of
those who pass out of this life unrec-
ciled to God. While there are
multitudes who are committed to
the old doctrine and who maintain
that death ends up all opportunity
for the sinner, there are other multi
tudes. nominally adhering to the old
faith, who entertain the hope that
extends beyond the grave.
The consensus of opinion, were it
possible to reach it, would doubtless
embrace the majority Of devout and
believing Christians as sharing in the
hope that death is indeed "no barrier
to progress and that the endlessness
of doom and it's irreversibility after
death is not the teaching of the Chris
tian religion.
The writer above quoted ascribes
the change which has come over the
public mind in this direction to "the
predominance of the doctrine of de-
velopment." We take it that this
signifies the evolutionary philosophy.
1t occurs to us that our contemporary
might with little labor find more
immediate and consistent reason for
the change than the one specified
The old doctrine of fixity" as he
terms it, was never true and always
false, having no foundation in sound
theology or the teaching of sacred
Scripture. 1t has been discredited
and repudiated by the common con-
sent of common-sense Christians as
forming no part of the original mes
age of the Gospel. 1t has been Wig
orously opposed in the church from
the time of Origen, and all through
the ages the protest has been carried
on, faithful believers in the divine
love and mercy recognizing in it the
foe of God and the church. Two
centuries before the dominance of the
evolutionary idea the Episcopal
Church of England bore splendid
testimony against the "fixity" of hell
torrents.
Bishop Moorhouse says: "There is
not single word on the subject of
endless torments in all the Thirty
nine Articles; and Article xiii, which
forbade Universalism, was struck out
in 1862. This Article xiii. was with
drawn because the church, knowing
that men like Origen, Clement of AL
exandria, and Gregory of Nyssa,
were Universalists, who refused to
dogmatize on such questions. The
church, therefore, is not indebted to
the dominance of any form of philos-
ophy, evolutionary or otherwise, for
the practical RELOCATION of the "doc
trine of fixity" to the limbo of out
grown beliefs. To assign to the doc
trine of development the credit of this
marvellous change of the centuries is
to unduly dignity it and tender a
splendid credit which does not be-
long to it. The old conception of hell
as fixed condition after death has
no part or lot with the Gospel of Je
sus Christ, and its overthrow and
final elimination from Christian the
ology will not be the result of any
system of philosophy, but will follow
as consequence from the promise
made of old by the Master when
he said every plant which my
Heavenly Father hath not planted
shall be rooted up"