Evening star., 1899-10-18
Plea for Cooperation of Unitarians
and Universalists.
CONFERENCE COMMITTEE APPOINTED
Proceedings of Unitarian Confer
ence at Sessions Today
THE TOPICS DISCUSSED

The sessions today Of the national con-
ference of the Unitarian and other Chris
tian churches at All Souls Church were
inaugurated with a business meeting at
0:30 o'clock. Rev. Edward Everett Hale Of
Boston called the meeting to order and
offered prayer.
The business committee reported favor
ably on resolutions Of greeting to the Uni
versalist convention at Boston. The oom-
mittee also indorsed the proposal for a
conference committee looking to closer CO.
operation of the Universalist and Unitarian
denominations. Messrs. E. E. Hale, p. s.
Peabody and s. A. Eliot were appointed as
this committee
DR.. Hale said he knew Of no sort of Diff
ference between the two denomina tions
and he enjoyed equal fellowship In both.
Rev w. c. Brown of Littleton, Mass, in
troouced a set of resolutions, which We're
referred to the business committee These
resolutions are to the effect that the ma
tionai conference would commend to the
serious consideration of its churches the
advantage of a better recognition of church
me- 10 this end 1t Is earnestly recon-
mended that each church shall give honor
anu disnlty TO Its statement Of religious
spirit and purpose; shall make its state
ment simple clear and strong, and, having
Its membership involve no test Of creed or
sacrament, shall make 1t an expression Of
Thalstian 1he ~ mp purpose and a pledge to loyalty
tne familiar form. In the love Of truth.
ana IN the spirit Of Jesus, we unite for the
worship of God and the service Of man" is
N use In more than eighty Unitarian
ths1 tiuithes' mes ana the resolutions recommend
that this, or some similar simple statement
pc adopted by each church or Incorporated
In theartcles Of organization of the So
;n G1ety w. or parish, and that all persons
to subscribe to the same and thereby be-
come members Of the church. Lastly. and
especially, 1t is recommended that the
classes IN the Sunday schools when their
to publicly join the church after soma day.
mite preparation and instruction.
The resolutions will undoubtedly be favor
aeiy acted upon during the conference.
senator George F. Hoar of Massachu-
setts. president of the conference. presided
when, at 10 o'clock, the topic "Our Means
OF aeIping to Promote the Higher Life of
Man was announced for discussion.
The First Address.
The first address Of the morning was de-
uvered by Rev. Joseph May, LID, of Phil
adelphia, who. speaking on How We
Understand and Make Use of the Bible in
Our Work" said in part:
The good the Bible has done is immeas-
urable The evil Of which 1t has been mad.
the Instrument Is scarcely more measurable
II would be difficult to estimate and picture
the mischief which bibIiolatry has worked;
the mistakes and ills and wrongs which
nave resulted from mems supposing that
they had an infaliible compendium of truth
which any potent organization in church or
state might use for its own purposes of
moral or practical coercion. To bring the
world to know the Bible as it is should be
one or the greatest services that could be
rendered TO mankind. Our first observation
Is that the Bible is not properly book, but
q literature diverse as to authorship. dates
moral quality and spiritual value The i'm
tDftanCG O prevailing
In the least release 1t from the usual canons
OF criticism, but rather makes the thorough
application of these more extgent. It is due
10 the false assumption Of their verbal in
spiTation and arbitrary authority that the
real values of the Scriptures have never
been justly known or appropriated The
work we are in position to do Is. so far as
we may, to remove these obstruc tions from
true understanding Of the Scriptures and
present them to the world in the simplicity
Of natural products Of the minds of men
working nominally under the conditions of
their times.
Value of Scripture Literature.
The general value OF the Scripture lit
erature is that it exhibits the development
of a people of whom religion was the Pc
culiar endowment and from whom we are
religiously derived. To place such a litera-
tuTe in the hands Of unfnstructed persons
to be read in detached fragments, with
only common intelligence as their guide,
and, above all, with minds perverted by
the false assumption of its peculiar and
supernatural character, is to nullify its real
values and engender innumerable absurd
ities and faisities Of thought. The Chris
tan world is beginning to recognize this
Through the gospels the thought and words
Of Jesus run as vein Of pure gold through
the dull strata OF our common thought
They lie like precious pearls, which, for the
most part, His professed followers trample
r,4, apNi t1t,.1 - 1t. 49,
the loneliness Of Jesus STILL in a world
which deifies but not obeys him!
The question of introducing the young to
knowledge of the Scriptures is very diff
cult, if only from the unfavorabieness of
usual practical conditions. Better they
should never hear them than listen to them
with the mental reservations, the practical
skepticism, which prevail in all Christian
countries"
Mr.. Mays paper was listened to atten-
lively and was received with marked ap-
probation.
Rev. Pulsford's Topic.
Rev William Hanson Pulsford of Wal
than, Mass, spoke on "Our Relation to Je-
sus," saying in part:
The first thing is, that what we stand
right up to is that for which we have often
been blamed, the vigorous critical question
What do we know of Jesus-the real factsY
Instead Of gazing at the founder of Chris
tianity through the tinted glasses of me-
dieval theology we are becoming able
through the cultivation of historic meth
DDS of study. to distinguish between the
media of our knowledge and the facts of
knowledge concerning the great and noble
life of Jesus. The critical and religious fac
ulties are distinct. The surgeon must for
get the living body he is working upon Is
that of his friend. You must oriticise In
cold blood, not in the spirit of a reyerent
disciple. This the ordinary religious per
son cannot comprehend, and therefore
breads criticism, not remembering that when
the critical process ends the reconstructtye
process begins.
THE devotee at Catholic shrine may
know more Of Jesus religtousiy than any
criticism can give. Remember that belnr
critical surgeon does not hinder one from
being large, warm-hearted, passionate
lover of man. While insisting on the need
of critical inquiry. 1t is to be held to as our
auxiliary to larger and clearer faith.
The need of the Gospel Is not merely that
of intellectual clearness, but of a hunger
for the version of a diviner human life of
One who learned obedience through His
sufferings.
One says, What Of all the other great
religious teachers7 What do you think of
Jesus? Was He q mere manr That adjec-
tive mere is a happy refuge for those who
nd N