The Portland daily press., 1897-05-22
HIGHER CRITICISM.
DIR. DIerrilrs Reply to DR.. Blanchard,s
Letter
christian Mi1ror.)


The editor of the Mirror took occasion
two weeks ago to characterize course
of sermons being delivered in Portland
upon the Higher Criticism. These SER
mons were being reported week by week
in the Portland PRESS, and presumably
at the hand of the author, who, we are
informed, reports his own sermons, there
by securing accuracy.
10 our characterization Of these dis
courses their author takes exception in
an open letter to the PRESS, and re-
quests us to define what we meant by
certain terms which we employed. We
declared THAT men who know what high
er criticism is cannot fail of resenting
such a travesty upon religious science" as
were the sermons in question. We need
10 make but one brief quotation from
the published report of these sermons to
make plain our meaning and substantiate
the statement that these sermons are
travesty upon the science of higher criti-
clsm. The author says, as a result of the
higher criticism, 1.-THE whole system of
the atonement is overthrown.'' A man
who knows what higher criticism is
would regard the term tttravesty" an ex
ceedlng mild one to employ in character
lzlng such an utterance as this. We're
man to advertise a lecture on the physi-
cal geography of the United States and
bring to the front in his lecture the di-
vine right of the Southern Confederacy
to secede, he would be guilty of insulting
an audience who had come to hear geog-
n n0 xrrN1- of
heresy of statecraft A clergyman who
claims intellectual standing should be
| careful in public utterances not to claim
for higher criticism results that far as
are outside of its province as secession is
outside OF botany or geology.
The author of these discourses requests
US to define our meaning when we de-
clare ''that those who have not had the
time OF opportunity to master the subject
are encountering at his hands peril y
One peril, and a minor one, will be
enough as a sample. The author of these
dlscourses advances as facts mere guesses,
or, at their best, mere theories. His
hearers, should they accept the views he
advances and be called upon in the near
future to abandon them, cannot fail Of
running a risk always encountered by
those who are forced, time after time, to
yield positions which they have been led
to believe are impregnable. A man who
has reached the years of the author of
these discourses ought to have learned
that dogmatism founded on the theories
of the latest science, whether in the realm
of the physical or religious world, is AFRO
CANT and to those who are thereby led to
accept improved and, from the nature of
the case improbable theories as facts,
perilous in the direction of mental and
religious integrity.
Another term we employed, is found in
the statement, ''bald rationalism which
| for years their author has promulgated. :"
The term of years we had in mind is sew
en- or eight; the basis of our augment the
frequent and periodic publication of dis
courses delivered in Congress Square
church. The term rationalism as defined
by Worcester signifies 'sthe adoption of
reason as a sole and sufficient guide, ex-
elusive of tradition and revelation - We
certainly are not able to understand the
kings English if this definition does not
perfectly describe the position occupied
by the preacher in question; while as to
the adjective bald it may be said that
it was used to designate the fact that
within our acquaintance few preachers
have gone to the extreme in railroads.&c.
utterance to which the pastor of Congress
Square church has gone.
In connection with the reqest for an
explanation of the terms we used, there
is found in the open letter kind of
fatherly eXhortation in these words, 1.-THE
time has fully come, my brother, for
frank, full, manly statements concerning
the Bible.'' We're we of the Methodist
denomination, we would say to this ex
hortation, "Amen and amen!' We want
as, well as the author of the sermons we
have criticized, to be ''up to date" but
we trust that, in our desire to be in evil
dence at certain instant, the sequel
may not show that there has been an I'M
timely birth.
There follows the statements, quota
tions, and this exhortation of the letter
an attempt at an euolgy of the Bible.
The reports of this series of sermons con-
tain the same. 70 our way of thinking,
this eulogy has about as much value as
would be lavish compliments upon the
erect form, the soldierly bearing and
stentorian voice of a friend who, in the
same breath, was denied the possession of
high mental or moral qualifications Any
terms of praise of Gods Word, while the
Saviour, of whom it is full, is declared to
be the natural son of Joseph and Mary,
and the account of his miraculous resur-
rection from the dead unworthy of ere
dence. mean naught to one who has the
abiding conviction that Jesus is divine
and the Word of God transcends mere
unaided human reason.