The record-union., 1896-08-23
IN RELIGIONS REALM.
Expressions From Various Religious
Newspapers.
The Religious Thought of the Day as
Expressed in the Sectarian
Press.


Expressed in the Sectarian
Press
1T is not in the true spirit of Ameri-
can oratory," says the New York
"Churchman" protestant EpiscopaD,
''to drag the symbols of Chrst's pas
sion and death into the merely party
utterances of a platform harangue. 1t
is in the first place irreligious, in the
second place it is bad rhetoric. In the
present Presidential struggle there has
been more of this sort of thing than has
been noticed in any previous cam
paign.' The earnestness of those who
use this cheap and diSreDutable device
for arresting attention cannot be
doubted. We do not question the ear
nestness of the man, who when he
flies into passion, rips out a string of
blasphemous interjections; but we de-
plore the decadence of American plat
form speaking which this irreverence
in sacred things too plainly indicates.
The Puritans of an earlier era often
employed the imagery of the Old Testa-
ment, sometimes of the New Testa-
ment, history while expressing their
convictions in war or forensic debate.
In no single instance that we can recall
did the soldiers and statesmen of the
past seek to give point to their lam
guage by an affront to the central doc
trine of the New Testament or TO the
person of Him who was the Founder of
Christianity. 1t remained for French
sentimental writer's to teach the read
erS of French novels how the deScrip-
tion of human passion and suffering
might be heightened, by putting it in
phrase of exaggerated rhetoric on a
level with the most sacred tragedy in
the history of the world. We protest
against this vile and disgraceful profa-
nation. 1t is offensive to all Christian
believers, it is a reproach to American
politics, and at the same time an af-
front to reasonable men as being a
style of speech bombastic, unmeaning
and blasphemous."
Unfortunately, the schools which
have the sanction of the church and are
counted as her institutions are not al
ways nurseries of the church." observes
the Living Church P. Ed of Chicago
1T is rarely that one comes up to a
high ideal of Christian training and
nurture, so that every boy is brought
under the restraining and refining in
fluence of association with devout mas
ters. When neither parents nor pupils
| care very much about religion, it is not
easy to keep the spiritual tone of a
school very high. Our schools depend
largely upon the patronage of people
who are more or less opposed to the
forms of worship and methods of teach
ing in the church, even if they are
Christians after some sort, and too
much Difference is often paid to their
caprices. We have known so-called
church schools Quilt and endowed by
gifts of churchmen) in which students
We're not required to stand or kneel in
the services because they were not ac-
customed to do so at home, and in fact
were not required to take any part in
the services except to be present In
such schools there is no catechizing, no
distinctive church teaching, for fear of
displeasing somebody"
"Of all modern questions" saws the
Christian Register unit of Boston),
none is more urgent than this How
shall truth be worked up into life?
Probably there was never before so
much truth known and admitted by
mankind as now; never such breadths
of clear light shining over all the fields
of thought and action; never so many
wise and worthy things being said on
all subjects which concern human cult
ure and welfare, or ethics and religion
But, while there is so much truth. why
is there so little goodness? Why does
not life keep step with thought? Part
ly, perhaps, because our interest in
truth is chiefly intellectual We enjoy
clear statements of doctrine and we'll
wrought theories, just as we enjoy
spectacles, dramatic presentations. or
fireworks; we forget that the light
shines to show us our way and our
work. A yet deeper mischief comes
from the illusion of our vanity, or the
curious, sef-fiattering notion that pro-
gress in mere knowingness is progress
III character or in excellence We are
victims of the proud self-love' which
admlres her own intelligence Our
schools have helped to spread this
subtle form of evil; for education has
ceen narrowly used to signify mere
brain culture
The church, which has been en-
crossed with questions of creed-revision
and theological soundness would do
well, says the New York Evangelist"
to give equally attentive consideration
TO some primary truths of Christian
ethlcs, e, g.: This world is the proper
subject of redemption: the laws and
institutions under which men live
need Christianizing as much as the men
who live under them. For this purpose
political rights and property rights are,
in moral view, the rights of trustee
ship under God. However legalized.
they have no moral basis except in the
fulfilling of the trusteeship to which
they are annexed. The prime question
in view of the worlds opportunities. is.
Whom and how many can / serve? not
Whom and how many can 1 get to serve
me? Those truths lie at the root of all
our social problems. If there are any
truths pertaining to human salvation
which need more constant circulation
now, we do not know what they are
These truths have inevitable corollaries.
of which we need say nothing now
corollaries which apply in all direc-
tions of social reform. They will sug-
gest themselves to whoever intelligently
moves on in these lines. In these lines
only can we look for that needed re-
newal of a right spirit whose instinct
may be trusted. under the tuition of ex-
perience to deal with details and emer-
gencies. Some mistakes will be made
To err is human. But a faithful ohuroh