The Scranton tribune. [volume] (Scranton, Pa.) 1891-1910, 1900-07-24

auIectNe OF SUBSTANTIVE, never means endless"
-Farrar
The expression "eis ton aiona'' literally
means "nto the age" II Peter, ii.l7, in the
Revised Version, has no "forcyer, there being
in the Greek not even els ton aiona."
Rev Mr.. Benninger should be careful how
he quotes. In English We use the expires.
sions forever" ETC., very loosely refer
readers TO Jonah, ii:6 "The earth with her
bars was about me forever" Here forever
was three days
Rev Mr.. Bcnningcr says; as IL fair 10 in.
terprct this word aionios' only as eternity Of
heaven when it means eternity Of hell as well"9
No, sir; it would not be fair. There is not
eternity OF either.
Heaven and earth shall pass away, but my
words shall not pass way."-Matt, Xxiv:35.
I'VE look for new heavens and a new earth.
wherein dweleth Righteousness" I'll Peter,
iil3
And death and hell were cast into the lake
OF fire. This Is the second death. Rev, xx:14
Rev Mr.. Benningcr has said that I charged
the Methodist church with inconsistency, and
says that it seems very strange that there
are so many inconsistent people and that il
was left for Mr. Donlcy to discover that fact
The Methodist church has over forty thousand
clcrgymcn," etc. Inc number Of clcrgymen in
his denomination docs not make their posi-.
tion clear from the charge OF inconsistency.
The position Of the Methodist church is ncon.
sistcnt for these reasons:
They teach that life ends probation; that
all who are not converted believers at death
are damned to eternal punishment" vet they
teach that infants dying oeforc they come to
the age Of understanding are saved, as are
also the heather who have not heard Christ"
II only believers" or the Converted" are
saved and death ends probation, then infants
and the heather must be damned according to
Methodist teaching; or IL they are saved they
are saved without believing, which is claimed
impossible Or If they are given a chance to
believe after death, then death does not end
probation. So the great doctrine, peculiar TO
the Armenian Niethodst, etc.) churches is
clearly inconsistent To he honest, | did not
discover this fallacy, though | may have the
honor Of revealing il to Mr. Bcnningcr. BE.
sides the above, the Methodist church breaches
to use Rev. Mr.. Bcnningcr's own woris-that
"He Christ declares Himself that He came
TO seek and save from that hell lie so FIRE.
qucntly described" | must ask the Rev Mr.
Benninger to produce the passages Of Scripture
TO bear out his statement | never read in
the New Testament anything like the above
though I have heard just such expressions
before | read that Christ "Camc to seek and
save which was lost."-Luke Yix:10.
Notc-Thc lost are to be saved.
Matt, i:2l: Thou shalt call His name
Jesus for He shall save His people for their
sins" Not from hell
The whole trend Of the New Testament is
that Christ is to save his people, the
world" "the lost" from sin.
The ''pan Of salvation" according to Meth
odist teaching is that Christ atoned for the
sins Of everyone and all that is necessary for
one to do is "only believe" that Christ ''borc
His sins on the cross and ''paid the debt for
him"
So they hope to escape the Just punishment
for their sins by this kind of faith? Well, some
people will not only be mistaken in this lite
but in the next also, il the Bible is true
Christ's own instruction for inheriting eter.
nal life on two occasions was keep the COM
mandments. ."-Luke, x:25, xxv:2s; Matt, xix17
Rev. Mr.. Bcnnngcr says "the doctrine Of final
restoration cannot he found in Scripture and
the whole tenor Of such doctrine is inconsist-
cnt with the descriptions Of future punish
ment."
shall produce few passages to show the
error the reverend gentleman is laboring under
Matt, will: "Elias truly shall first come
and restore all things"
Acts, iii:2l: "Whom the heavens must re.
cciye until the times of restitution of all
Phil. iii2l: cable to subdue all things unto
Himself"
Tim, list: Good our Saviour, who will
have all men to be saved, for there is one God"
Col. i:192O: at hath pleased the Father
by Him to reconcile all things to himself"
John, xii17: 81 came not to Judge the
world, hut to save the world"
Tim. xi:4: "Who wleth all men to be
saved and come to the knowledge of the truth"
There are hundreds of other passages that
with equal clearness teach the final restoration
of all souls to God.
Rev. Mr.. Benningcr intmatcs that the Uni.
vcrsalists do not believe in the Bible. | quote
in answer to this from the Statement of the
Belief Of Universalists":
I've believe that the Holy Scriptures Of the
Old and New TcStaments contain revelation
from God to man. Not every word in the
Bible is Gods message The Apostle Paul cx-
pressly dscriminatcs between some things
which he teaches and enjoins by direction of
the Holy Spirit, and some which he puts forth
as personal advice q Cor, vito; and in much
that is historical or biographical, rs also in
much relating to the material universe. where
things spoken Of as they seem and not with
scientific accuracy it is evident that the writer's
were uninspired. But where special illumination
is claimed and deep things of God which man
could not search out are made known, there
the Scriptures contain revelation from God.
"As have before said the Unversalsts
believe in punishment for sin in the present life
and in the future, Shining is violation Of
law, either physical or spiritual, and this vio
ltaion carries Its own punishment with il.
We recognize that God is the author Of law
as well as being. lie has given man rea-
son and understanding and has taught him
through the Holy prophets, through Christ,
and the divnely illuminated souls of men. that
going contrary to physical or spiritual laws
will result in loss and punishment either to
the physical body or to the soul.
"That God is the ruler Of the physical and
spiritual world we believe and that the laws
that he has enacted for our physical and spirit
ual well being will hold throughout all eter
nifty whether in this terrestrial world or in the
world Of spirits II souls are rebcllious they
must, whilc they remain so be under bondage
Of tba oil 10 1o,r ct I'll,
many die in a rcbelious disposition, we con-
ceivc; therefore, there will be punishment in
the future life. until such a time as the inhu
cncc Of God and His Christ shall bring the reb
cllous into harmony with the divine law.
''Strict adherence to divine moral and spir
itua law in this life will develop in us char.
aCtcr that will TT MS for higher things in the
next world That we have not attained to the
highest that God has purposed for us we be-
lieve I personally think that man Is being
created into Gods image and likeness. That
the process begins acre and by slow develop.
mont we become more like Him. But here
in this life 1T doth not yet appear what we
shall be, but we know when He shall appear
we shall be like Him, for we shall see Him as
lie is"
The Rev. Mr. Bcnninger has said that Uni.
versalists will have to thank the "torments
and flames" for their salvation II the rever-
end gentleman will read from the reported SER
mon of mine, he will see that Univcrsalists by
no means believe in "fames and torments," and
that we do not dogmatize at all upon the
kind Of punishment that souls will receive in
the next world /, myself believe that whatever
reributive punishment violated law carries
with IL in this life, the same kind ot punish
ment for the same kind Of violation will be re.
ceiyed in the next world, until we come into
the measure OF the fulness Of a stature in
Christ.
have already taken up too much space
with rcfutations to allow Of constructive