The Scranton tribune. [volume] (Scranton, Pa.) 1891-1910, 1900-02-05

all its branches numbers 4,5OC,O00 mem-
bers In the United States alone.
The Kings Daughters, the Brother
hood of st. Andrew, the Luther
League. the Epworth League. and the
Young Peoples Christian union are
among those affiliated institutions of
the churches.
But Of these agencies for the spread
of church Influences the Sunday school
has been rcckoned as first. 1t began
TO grow about 1926. and its success has
caused 1t to be classed as "the fore
runner of the church and one of the
distinctive characteristics of American
Christianity" The International sun
day School union IL one of the great
religious institutions cf the century,
ard at its seventh convention in st
Louis In 1883 its secretary reported a
total of 22i,56o .Suday schools in the
world. with an attendance Of 22,5cs. .66i
teachers and pupils.
REVISION OF TESTAMENTS.
or the work of the churches no one
thing of the century has had more
vital bearing upon Christianity than
the revision of the Old and New Tes-
taments, projected by the convoca ton
"f the province of Canterbury I'm Feb
ruary. 1870. Two companies were
formed, one for the revision of the Old
Testament and the other for the revis-
ion of the New, and work was begun
in June, 1870. Soon after both houses
or the convocation in England passed
Il resolution inviting American scholars
to join I'm the work. and two companies
were formed in the United States t,
act in concert with the British COM
panies. From time to time the British
translators transmitted sections of the
first revision to America. the work of
which was considered and returned. In
like manner the second revisions of the
texts were sent over for scrutiny. Last
Of all the revised versions were SUBJ
mitted.
The whole work of the transations
| occupied about ten years and six
months. The first revision consumed
six years, the second about two and
one-half years. while the rest Of the
time was taken up i'm considerations
of the suggestions from the American
companies. The upright of the new
scriptures were pledged to the univer-
stiles of oxford and Cambridge and II
was through these schools that funds
for the work were obtained. The Eng.
lish companies numbered twenty-seven
members in the beginning. but four of
them died while the work was i'm prog
reSs.
The work Of these men was received
in various ways. Today it is doubtful
If the version of 1911 has been seriously
displaced in the Christian world The
critics of the new versions were severe
in the beginning. 1t was held to be a
dangerous thing to religion for the
masses to learn that after so many
centuries the Christian Bible could be
changed by men. Others who had
| chosen texts of beautiful cadence and
measure from the authorized version
were horror-struck at the changes
made in the revised version-changes
that lost to them all that was sacred
in the texts.
AS a work of scholars for scholars
| the revised versions have interest, but
II is significant that the International
sunday School union sticks to the text
of the authorized version i'm it's lesson
leaflets.
GROWTH OF THE CHURCHES.
Church growth in the United States
has been colossal within the last l0C
years. In all denominations there are
numbered grand total of 10000
churches. with 22,0OO.O0G communicates
and with property valued at $500, 900. .00O
These estimates show that of the total
population of the United States of all
ages, more than 81 per cent. are church
members. In the order of numerical
strength. the Roman Catholic church
comes first followed by the Methodists
Baptists, Presbyterians and Lutherans
Theological and sectarian schools have
kept full pace with the growth of the
churches, and between the Sunday
school and the sectarian school, there
is not church in the country that is
not educating it's future communicates
from the very groundwork of charac-
ter.
Measured according to it's world
work. the Christian religion has made
wondrous strides, numerically and in
| fluentially. Virtually it has wiped can
nibalism from the face of the earth
1t has made inroads into every form
of idol-worship. More than one-thirJ
of the population of the globe is num-
bered Christian. and if in nothing else
than i'm its wonderful advancement of
the condition of women, this march of
Christianity across the worlds map il
the most significant progress of the
! century. Out of it's original narrow
| ness. the church set itself the task of
propagating the principles of liberty
and as it has advanced it has assumed
wide liberties unto itself. In the new
~ b,t
Laws of Connecticut were an impos
sible clog to it's progress. AS it came
westward into the wilderness, it began
to adapt itself to circumstances. With
the growth of civilization and with the
MULTIPLICATION of its material nitric
acies it began To look with comDosure
upon a modified observance of the Sab
! bath.
GOn OF LOVE RULES.
The ineXorable God of vengeance.
With whom the reformation, sGught
! the conversion Of the world, gradually
has given place 10 the God ot love,
while the camp meeting of $500, with
its fanaticism and hysteria, has be-
come the Chautauoua assembly of a
score of states.
Standing for the reformation of sthn
world and working materially toward
that material ana spiritual end, thn
! church's reformation OF itself in the
last 100 Yeas has been AN even great
, ~ accomplishment. IL has translate
| the Bible into $50 languages. bat 1t has
| read into It's own obserrances of Il
| that God meant more than sackcloth
| and ashes for His following. 1t has
held to the conventional black of its