The Worcester spy. [volume] (Worcester, Mass.) 1898-1904, 1899-02-12
THE ENGLISH CHURCH.

The Boston Herald gays. edltorially:
"One would have TO go back quite
number of years in the history of Eng
land to come to time when religious
feelings were SO keenly excited as they
are at the present time on the question
of what constitutes Professionalism.
Those representing the high church
wing of the established Church of Eng
land have been gradually adopting
practices which, if not explicitly con-
demned by the canons of the church,
have in the past been frowned upon
as savorfng altogether TOO strongly of
Roman Catholic methods.
The use of incense, the elevation of
the host and auricular confession are
among the more prominent of these.
The policy of the establishment for a
number of years past has been to ex-
ercise wide measure of liberation, in
the belief that it is WELL as national
church, to have within its fold almost
all Of those who could fairly describe
themselves as Christians. 1t is probab-
ly this liberation, exercised in behalf
OF broad churchmen as well as high
churchmen, which has given to the
English Church the STRONG hold it has
had upon the affections of the people,
as affording a basis of belief to which
all could subscribe. If insensibly the
high churchmen have pressed toward
Rome, so that in some of their churches
there has been nothing in the practices
to distinguish them from a Roman
Catholic church, 1t is probable that
some broad churchmen have, conscious
ly or unconsciously, gene far beyond
the border line of Unstarianism, and,
indeed, have become quite as radical in
their views as any Of those who would
be classed as free religious thinkers.
But now, among a certain class, and,
curiously enough, in great many in
stances class which is not in the es-
tahlished church-that is, the Noncon-
formists-a demand has sprung up that
the historical, traditional boundary
lines of the church should be asserted,
and that the bishops should punish
those who have gone beyond these lin
lts. 1t is said that quite section Of the
church is drifting toward papacy, and
TINS because of the unwise liberation of
the shepherds of the flock-the bishops
whose bounden duty it is to see that
the church laws of the land are main
tanned. The leader in this movement is
Sir William Vernon Hareourt, the late
mead of the liberal party, who, in spite
OF ms years, has carried on the cam
p8lSH Win VSOr ana Intensity which
many a much younger man might enyy.-
lie has received a large support from
So called evangelist churchmen, and. as
we nave just said, has also obtained as
slstance from a considerable number of
eminent Nonconformlsts
The probable reason for the associa-
tlon OF these last named In the work of
purglng the established Church of Eng
land of alleged abuses is the belief that.
II a schism of any kind can be estab-
hshed, it can hardly fail to lead to the
overthrow of the entire established
church system. Whether this would be
or would not be salutary change Is
something upon which opinions NAV
wisely differ. English political. social
and, to some extent, industrial life has
grown up around the national church
and to destroy it-that is to place Il
on the same footing as other religions
denominations not fail to seri-
ously change the entire complexion Of
English existence. There might he
gains resulting thereforn; there would
certainly be losses, and whether one
would oyerbalance the other. or in
which way the balance would be struck
IS something which no one can GER
tainly foresee."