The Houston daily post. [volume] (Houston, Tex.) 1886-1903, 1898-12-18
Tue Old And The new.
sRemeve Not the Ancient landmarks
which Our Fathers Have Set"
i SERMON BY REV. WIN. HAYNE lEAyEll
delivered nj she First Presbyterian
church Last snndny-Thc As.em-
bly's PASTORAL Letter.
..rb, Ola weys.a 4 sermon preached

g. e
in the First Presbyterian church, Houston,
Texas, at Ii a. m. December Ii, 1898, by
,lae pastor. REV. Wllliam Hayne Leayell.
D. D., and published at the request the
elders Of the church:
Proverbs. xii: rs: Remove not che an
cient landmark. which thy fauners have
set.
You need no; to have me tell you that
am not ,oouad by customs merely becau.s
S4ey are old. ] have. indeed. a great rev.
erence for The past because Oh the past the
present Is buiN. 1ut believe / dm quite
c-apIoie OF refusing TO bind myself to toe
Ca Ways mercy because uney are Odd,
however mucn | may hold tlem in revcr-
elee lcr their usefulness N .he tornier
Iiys. 1t aces happen at times that tailss
serve one day ana generaion well wlich
axe neither suited 10 nor DdeQu4te for the
service Of later day aad generation. In
steid OF being held on TO oIn1ly taey
saouid be rsvereutly laid ASIDE and aew
COURSES adopted suited 10 the demands OF
the ne@ times. Much harm has come
iioIn stubborn adherence 10 thingss.hich
the world and the church aave both out
grown. Many an unnecessarily sacrifice
has been made Ia defense Of positions from
which everything OF vllue had been some
time removed.
! believe in progress and in the spirit OF
The age; believe many OF the new ways
are better thal the old; believe that We
should adjust our me Jhods to the denands
of the present, and believe We should sur
render Whatever customs and forms OF the
past, however hallowed by tradition and
however universal in their old d.pli1 atica,
which have been outgrown and which ara
not adequate TO the plo9er demands OF the
present The old should give place to the
new wherever the new is better than he
old. with thankralness TO The old Cor lead
ing US IN 20 the better way OF The new
For this reason | think you should give
the more earnest heed 20 my words whel
! iii warning voice ag13. 1st making me
of the surrendeTs OF the old We are max
ing which are yet better. inme asu ably
better, than the new We are adopting. II
cried out against the new ways merely
because they are new. and chung to the old
Ways merely because they are old. you
might easily and perhaps justly Discount
my warnings. But YOU who sit regularly
under my ministry know that Suca is no
my way; you know rAut while | reverence
the past have live and active sympathy
with the present | believe you think M
too honest to be Justly chargeahle with
crying wolf when there is NJ wolf simply
for the sake of muking your bood Jingle
and your hair 10 stand on end, and | b.
lieye you th.ak ME intelligent enough 20
know Wolf when see one.
Beloved. in the good providence OF God,
! am placed as a watchmaa on these walls,
charged with the duty OF waraing you OF
the approach of he enemy before he sur
rounds the citadel Of your safety, ana !
would be recreant TO my trust ANA traitor
to you If did not lift a warning voice in
the midst OF This generation.
The landmarks set by the fathers 10 de-
scribe the boundaries of estates were some
times atealthily removed by wicked persons
for the purpose OF encroaching upon the
lands of their neighbors And where there
was no way to determine the boundaries
but these landmarks, the stealthy and un-
lawful removal of them was for no other
than a wicked and selfish purpose-to en-
large the selfish interests OF one man ar
the expense of his neighhor. The prac-
tice was ueckoned a very henous crime in
the early times and curse was denounced
upon those who did 1t. 1t was accounted
an eNecrable thing among the heathens,
who had deity they called Jupiter Ter
minalis who was appointed over bounds
and landmarks: so Numa Pompilms APP
pointed stones to be set as bounds 10 every
ones lands. and dedicated them TO Jupiter
Terminals and ordere1 that those that re-
moved them should be stain as sacrilegious
persons and they and their oxen devoted
10 destruction.
Ii is no far cry to read herein reference
to long standing custCSas and doctrines and
practices settled by the Spirit OF God. by
the church, and by the fathers. Wherever
tina wisest way of man has not outgrown
the old landmarks. wherever mans higher
course has been steered by the old princi-
pies which are yet capable of steering him,
this prohibition against removing them
either by stealth or price must be regalh-
ed as binding stili--as prohibited alike by
religion and common sense.
Some OF the old practices aud customs
and forms are vet better than anything II
Is proposed to put in their place, and they
should be reyerently kept and perslstenuy
used. -
Ii was In relation TO these things In the
midst OF The rs,ssent circumstances the
general assembly of the church felt 1t wist
to address TO all cur ministers and congre-
cations pastoral letter. The action ant
the letter I am, in common with all TN
pastors In our beloved church. required u
present to the congregations 10 which w
seyernliy minister
THE ASsEAIBDY'S PASTORAL LETTER
To the Ministers and CONGREGATIONS OF the
Presbyterian Church in the Unitet
States
Dear Brethren The last generals as
errbly adopted the following preamble an;
resolutions;
Whereas error. IN many subtle forms
exists around US. and MAY invade tn
church to the injury OF her doctrine, polity
spirituality and morality. and
Whereas. the general assembly 10 =
recommend measures for the promotion o
charity. truth and holiness throughclt al
Tho churches under dts care: therefore n'
u
Resolved, /. That committee is he,a
By appolntsid to address pastoral letter 4
our ministers and people, affectionatell
warning them against all errors and nr2
ing 1hem to steadfastpess In The faith onc'
de1ivered to the saints.
80. That this committee shall consist d
DR.. G. b. StriGkler fchairman). DR.. Is
~. Palmer and DR.. j. b. Stratton.
-. That all the papers OF cur chu:ct
are hereby requested 10 publish said ls.,el
and all our pastors are requested To read 4
- their congregations as soon as psactic'
( dble after its publication. And wlhcr
ctnrches are vacant. the elders are re-
uaytrted 20 mead II TO them
In the discharge OF the duty thus i'm
nd the COMMITTEES respectfully subI1i'
~ fol1,wing letter. at the same tlne GA
preus great rexret that circumstances bc
yunh 3heir control hal preventet It's ear
ner p1oparation and publication;
d II u 3 fact calling for sincere thanks.
6vtng to the great head Of the church
fhak. Willis religious error, IN many plausi-
ho and dapgerous FORMS pervades our