New-York tribune. [volume] (New York [N.Y.]) 1866-1924, 1897-12-13
4 REPLY TO Or. SAVAGE.
DIR. REMENsNYDER SAYS HE IS AssAIL-
ING THE BIBLE.
cREEDs HE DECLARES. ARE THE DEFENCEs OF
THE SCRIPTURES AND ARE TIE LODGE
MENT OF THE VICTORIES OF


MENT OF THE VICTORIES OF
CHRISTIANITY.
The Rev Dr. j. b. Remensnyder at ST. Jamess
Lutheran Church, Seventy-third-st and Madison
ave. last evening preached on ''Creeds Defences
OF the Bible and Christianity" His sermon was IN
reply TO that Of the Rev. DR.. NJ J. Savage on sun
day last. He said In part:
II would be a cardinal mistake for the Church 10
ignore the power of the secular press In our DAY
happily often also for evil is impossible TO deny.
And as our Christian hearers read these Journals ~
IL necessary for 10 take notice OF the truths OF
errors which they may be spreading. Hence; our
late Lutheran Conference IN Brooklyn warned our ar
give undue prominence to reports OF heresies dan,
Esrcus notions and attacks upon o syahgeh N1
leading secular Journals quite Ignoring the any, rge
reports of Bitter attack upon the Christian creeds
The three singled out were those called ecnmen IN,
Christian churches, Greek, Roman and Protestant.
that is the Apostles. Ncene and Athanasian or
these confessions it was said that they were
statements about God were horrible" and mucn
II this city was appealed to in these words: "oh let
US purge these statements of far-outgrown crudi-
As these cree,is have come down TO us venerable
and precious with the most haliowed associations
of Christians of all countries and as they are useu
in hottest offices Of worship. seems TO me that
such outbursts Of mpiety against them should no,
sT S mel 6d Ta naed coEans any
things that nobody believes and that IT only dates
all from the Apostles. and that therefore IT IS ao-
surd to attribute 1t to them. This assertion as 10
date appears true in form. but IL is raise III Iac as
the speaker could not but know.
THE FATHERS AND THE APOSTLES CREED
Both the Christian Fathers Ireneus and Tertul-
Ham who lived In the second century A. d., give
us in their works the leading clauses OF this creed
as used by the Church In that early time ana de-
clared 1t the traditional faith received from
the Apostles. And Jerome, who lived In the fourth
century a. D. tells that It was dictated by the
Apostles and calls 1t the Apostles Creed TO
charge that the hundreds OF millions Of Christians
who every Sunday rise in their sanctuaries and
with faces upturned toward God, soemnly Offering
their faith in the articles OF this creed 40 not
believe what they airm Is TO Charss upon IA ne a
gross Islander az human lips could utter ,.o,
It was evolved out OF conflicting and anti-religious
conditions" we answer that It arose from
Christianity. since the arch hereto had challenged
the true divinity OF Christ To save the Churcn
Nice in 325 A. D.. and from this august council:
guided by the spirit OF God. issued that grand
The original intention and first use Of a creed was
confession of faith and confession p christ chris,
are useful as defences OF Christianity Jesus Christ
admonishes His followers that in all times there
year the livery OF Christianity for the sake Of be.
traying IT, ministers who use the cover OF their
Scriptures they have sworn to defend.
Creeds resist the assault of cunning sceptciSm
Bible. the Church and Ne Christian system,
Again. creeds are the lodgment OF the victories OF
Christianity. They enShrine truths whlcn were
once holly contested. but whose authority Is now
forever settled further use , IS as visible sign or
divisions. creeds point Us TO our underlying unit
For eXamp Protestant in Cath 1I! S0HntE by
can join in the confession OF the Apostles Creed.
In View OF these facts. why do We have these
fVer-r breaks
creeds and their confessions? The answer Is made
that they have become antquated. that they are
obstacles in the way OF freedom, dead weights to
the wheels o, progress Il II not strange then tna
these creeds and in which they go up like null
tItudinous voice In every house OF PRAYER every
those refusing to confess them are the habita;
tons OF syery and gross are mnsa
THE UNITARIAN CHURCH.
What IL the advance made by the Unitarian
Church which Is the especially liberal and progress
sive church? Though established in America for
nearly two centuries. the whole denomination num-
bers but one hundred churches and seventy thou
sand members. while the creed-holding churches
number two hundred thousand churches and have
,wentv-slx million members In 1896 the Unitarians
made the utterly trivial gain OF forty churches and
one thousand i've hundred members. while the or,
thodox churches gained four THOUSAND churches
and eight hundred thousand members. ,..
Tho real motive OF these attacks upon our holy
d 5 s 6af$d Of hot B HS The
cnrtiy stores what the Bible teaches II proclaims.
illustrates and defends the Bible therefore IL must
be- stricken down order 10 assault the SCRIPTURES
Hence in the attack last Sunday these words occur
Where do they get the authority FOR these oii
we ind I'm the Bible? The Bible upholds polygamy
slavery. cruelty OF almost every klnd. You mig
prove immortality Of almost any kihd iroh' 'he
Bible" a., ,, .o,.,,ar,
Herein lies the true animus Of the creed revliets
When they have weakened the veneration ior the
ecumenicai creeds and broken down all the historic
defences OF the Church. then God have mere Oh
Christianity itself This hostility 70 me =,
then is only pretext for assaultnS christianity !.
is not the creed that i hated o9t mos si ~
supnrnatIlral features OF religion FOR Whlch the
creed stands II Is back 10 CHRIST that Ihese
assailants would lead us, but back 10 paea'''"i'