The Worcester spy. [volume] (Worcester, Mass.) 1898-1904, 1899-06-04
DR.. Henry Van Dykes
New Gospel
Reviewed.
REV. SPENSER B.MEESER'S VIEWS
What He Thinks Of the
Work and the
II Author.


Since his acceptance of a chair of lit
erature at Princeton college, every
writing of DR.. Henry Van Dyke ha.
gained a new interest. Those who
have read his THE Poetry of Tenny.
son" feel no surprise that he has turned
with some. eagerness to the ministry
Of literature. His intense poetic tenn.
permanent is well shown in Little
Rivers as well as in his many contrib
tiens to the magazines. He has beer
an active writer as well as preacher
and is deeply impressed with the value
Of current popular literature as g
means of teaching the highest ethica
principles. Readers of 1.-The Gospel fol
an Age of Doubt" will recall his FIRE.
quent quotations from this field anG
his explanation of the use of this meth.
cd of enforcing truth.
Every one who felt the enthusiasm OF
the message to those who doubt, will
welcome the companion volume
of the title heading this
article. It will be remembered
that the chapters of 1.-THE Gospel
For an Age of Doubt" were prepared for
the" yale Lectures on Preaching" 1895.
The tremendous vigor and clear tone
or staIWart faith which characterized
the lectures made the book an exceed
ingly popular one.
The lectures were avowedly prepared
on account of the doubter' but the au-
thor felt that the message was an in
complete one; and, in the preface to
the sixth edition, promised a companion
volume. 1.-THE Gospel for World of
Sin"
This volume has nows appeared from
the press of the Macmillan company
uniform in size, style and binding, with
the last edition of 1.-THE Gospel For an
Age of Doubt
The more serious criticism of the first
book, and that to which DR. Van Dyke
appears TO have been most sensitive,
was that he had neglected to give
adequate consideration to the atone
ment While he Justly refutes this
criticism, it has impressed him enough
to call for the preparation of the lat
ter book.
According to the authors preface,
however, the book is not meant to be
a theory of the atonement, but on the
contrary is ito teach that there is no
theory broad or deep enough to en-
brace OF explain the fact"
The various theories of the atone
ment are but segments of a circle of
which Christ is the centre. 1.-The false
theories are those which claim to be
final and exclusive" The fact surpas-
ses all explanatioW, as life is more
than biology.
bNewath dill d? nCaeafr hrdlauana
This second book is the more signifi-
cant and more relevant to the real prob
lens of life, for while not all doubt
arises in an imperfect moral life, new
ertheless, unconsciously, the spiritual
vision is clouded by sin. Doubts come
and doubts go; but sin goes on forever,
Many have doubts, many have faith;
but all men sin. Some need a gospel
for their doubt but the universal need
is a gospel for those who SIM
Every dissolution of doubt brings the
soul face to face with God. Two things
Immediately appear - sin, dissonance,
moral rupture. The contrast reveals
the picture blurred, the light put out,
the beautiful made ugly, the soul hurt.
No philosophy or science has dissipated
sin. The personal guilt of the soul is
the ugly fact which first confronts ev-
cry one whose faith has found God.
After the fact of sin, the need of a
gospel Of salvation is apparent. Some
influence to turn men from sin, some
truth to assure them of forgiveness,
and some power to build them up in
character, are all needed. Sin is a fact,
not a theory. 1t arises from within the
soul not from without; disease of the
soul, not simply a social disorder. Man
knows this. He is ashamed of it, He
feels the guilt of it. He struggles
against it. He despises himself for it.
Emerson, as DR., Van Dyke quotes him,
says: Mature is harmonious, joyful,
unconscious of the strife between the
real and. the ideal"
But man crouches and bushes,
.t--..- Absconds and conceals;
He creepeth and peepeth,
He falters and steals;
Infirm melancholy
Jealous glancing around,
An oaf, an accomplice
s"- He.poisons the ground.
Sin is more real, more obstinate and
more vicious than doubt Doubt is a
mist in the eyes of the traveller; sin is
a gulf between him and peace, separ-
ating, him from God, The worst, the
most :unpropitious and perilous fact in
the world-of conscience is the no sense
of sin.
The good news for a world Of sin
is the forgiveness of sin and the sal
walton Of the soul through Jesus
Christ. God has done in Jesus all that
Is needed4to save man and reunite him
To his Maker. This gospel centres in
Christ! Even the Bible without Christ,
Contains no hope of salvations Inc
Ofd Testament without him is an I'M
broken shadow hiding the face of God.
-eeived without Christ; but Jesus as an
example of noble manhood or teacher
Of moral truth or a worker Of social
reform. is not all of the Christ. He is
there the redeemer, a savior from SIN.
~ Strike out the cross, its meaning and
effect: this means the New Testament
without Christ. As such the book cam
not help us. It is ian intolerable Ight
of purity which we can never attain
and which leaves us hopeless. The ser
mon of the mount contains the most
thorough diagnosis of sin that has ever
been made" In sight of such an iueaI
the heart is appalled,. TO take ChrIs'
out Of the Bible is to make it crushing
disheartening, terrifying-the sauues'
book that ever was written.
A final definition. of atonement is not
possible. The attempt to define has done
violence. to the whole truth. Inc ATONE
nent springs from love; 1t seeks te
break an arrangement and unite Ile I
with God in His life. 1t involves sulLer
ing. It means so much that no one luSd
OF. word can contain it all. 1t affects th'
life of man. 1t does not cause Coo q
love+i it comes from the love OF Co.. Du
it removes a real obstacle between COO
and man. an obstacle never 10 p'
thought of as an unwllllngness' Vi
Gods part, to pardon ana res III -, Nv
guilty. Sin. a mystery, transcends Fed
son downward: the atonement trans
cends reason upward. The son OF Goo
came into the world to redeem IT, no
from without. but from Within' n
could not be punished for the SIN OF th'
world. but he did suffer and die for th'
guilty. He came to reform, to renlahe
from within, the heart OF man anew
Such is Dr. Van Dykes messase. !.