The Owosso times. (Owosso, Mich.) 1897-1926, 1898-02-25

and Wesley and Bushnell. trying their
best to keep the old forms and expand
them.
The real kernel of Christianity is that
the personal influence of the one God.
the Father, was shown men in Jesus
Christ and now as a Holy Spirit Is
working in all men everywhere to re-
deem them. This influence of God Is
not repugnant to reason. The opera
tions of reason are part Of faith, not
opposed 10 faith. The old distinction
between 1.-The kingdom of grace and
"the kingdom of nature" the one being
under wholly different laws from the
other the former being artificially con-
structed by Deity as a mysterious and
utterly unreasonable scheme, Is to give
way. Professor Drummond's Natural
example Of how a devout, liberal and
scholarly man can do much to reform
old theologic forms from within those
forms themselves. The revelation Of
God must be reasonable, fitting the in
stincts of natural religion, supplement-
ing by its full light that Eight which
the world" And it is reasonable. A
very remarkable book THE Continuity
of Christian Thought" shows the reader
how all the harsh and repugnant, the
mechanical and absurd Appearances to
theology were not at all in the early
Christianity of the days of the Greek
theologans, but were grated upon our
religion by Augustine and his success
sors during the dark ages of scholastic
cism In our day we are simply shak-
ing off the incubus of Latin thought
and getting back to the simplicity of
Christ and the earlier fathers of the
church.
Christianity now is apparently torn
and divided in it's theology simply be-
cause we are living in an age Of liberty.
But in all this diversity and conflict
we are vastly nearer the truth than in
the days of apparent uniformity. For
our religion is peculiarly adapted to
grow in an atmosphere of freest dis
cussion and untrammelled doubt and
unhindered opposition. 1t dwindles
and pines under the shadow of any
sort of authority or human protection.
The widest variety of opinion Is nee
essary to that unity of the spirit which
is the bond of perfectness." For all
warning opinions must prove their
truth by each striving to help men most,
by eXcelling in benevolence and good
will and all the tender humanities
Christ gave as the test of real truth.
find more of the spirit of Jesus among
men now than in any era In history.
Men may hiss the church, and it hurts
me, but what Of it, if they reverence
still the Christ, and scorn the church
only because 1t Is like Him? More and
more all men are turning to the Mas
ter for the solution of the problems of
life and death. Sociology and politics
and every reform are quoting Him
more and more, each party shaming
the other because it fails to measure
up to His ideals. We cannot guage the
influence of Jesus by the membership
Of the church. Here a little and there
a little, in public opinion, in the trend
of reforms, in the undertone of litera-
ture, in the quietly accepted rules of
social life, 1 find more of our Master.
The sun of righteousness is rising upon
all civilization and the radiation and
refraction of His light is filling all
mankind by His beams that have fallen
in full acceptance into the hearts of
few.
Gods in His heaven;
Ais right with the world!"
There is not the wide gap between
the church and the world there was in
apostolic days. The church is not as
pure now as then; this is often charged;
but we are apt to forget that while
the church as such may not be so near
His ideal the outlying world is much
nearer. No man of good judgment
can deny that with all it's evil the pres
ent age is much nearer the ideas of
Jesus than the age of Augustus. There
fore facing Him, let the church say:
"He must increase, but 1 must de-
crease" 1t may be that the church is
to be cast aside for It's refusal to go on
according to Gods plan; we cannot
tell. Or it may rather be, and this is
our prayer and hope, that it will rise
renewed, grasping the full meaning Of
it's opportunity, and in the century to
come still make good it's claim to be the
body of Christ. At the close of that
century may the sun. as he runs his
rim of light around a Weakening earth
upon the Lords day. touch the harp of
praise, in all temples, and the air be
filled With the TIE Deum Of the one uni
versal church of God, sung by hui
mainly that has sunk its quarrels in
common sense, by all nations and the
islands of the sea, by "all men every
where, lifting up holy hands, without
wrath or doubting:"
Holy! holy! holy!
Lord God of Sabbath!
Heaven and earth are full of Thy
glory!