The people's journal. (Pickens, S.C.) 1891-1903, 1900-06-28
SMITH & BRISTOW.
GREENVIELE, s G

ncy Ol HE. Those Oiu-timc thCOiOp ians
were desperately in earnest ON uOctrin
al matters, for they were in Il mighty
controversy with mighty foe and no
man had right to believe as he pleas.
ed and be at peace. Even Calvin had
Servctus arrested and burned as /.
hereto because he denied the trinity
OF the God head. Scrvetus was a Uni
tartan in.faith and good man in all
the relations Of life. Sometimes | fear
we have too much complcxity OF doe
trinc. | mean some Df the preachers
and thcolOgians OF the schools. The
people are all: right anal give them
selves very little concern about doc
trlnc. They want preachers to preach
about life nnd duty, how to live and
how TO die. IT, is not dc c!rine that
takes converted people into this church
or That church. II is association
rrrdlicction-our fathers were there or
our mothers or our special friends, and
we "orshlppcd there or attended Sun
day school when children and We feel
more at home there. The peculiar
doctrines OF this church or that church
are not considered. Not one member
In ten can tell the difference between
Cal vanisn and Arminianism, and |
'uOuDC whether dozen confessions Of
faith can'bo found among the members
OF any Presbyterian church in the
State.
What the humble Christians OF any
Protestant church want il Il simple
Christian faith.untanglGd with abstrusc
doctrines and long words Of learned
length and laundering sound. They
put our Heavenly Father away on al
most ont OF reach, though ST. Paul de.
claros that he is very near to every
,IC N 4.
come home to me whenever near a
preacher indulging in doctrines con
corning election, prcdcstinntion and
ire" agency and shouting away over
tho heads OF tho people.
a parish priest OF AuSicritv
Climbed up y hi"h churc! Stccrl"
To he nearer cod, and from there hand
Ills word unto Ills people.
When the sun was high,
When The sun was low,
lie sat unlccding sihlunary Things,
And with HE Lord WAS ever plcadin".
Now and then when he heard the crcak
or the weather \:luc n lLrnin!,
lie closed his eyes and said II know
From God | now am lcarnin"."
Ills pi"uS thoughts be daily wrote,
Thinking that they came from heaven
lie dropped them down ON las people I
heads
Twice every day in seven.
I'm his old age God called and said
Come down and die"
And he cried from "'il The sIrcplc,
Where art Ihou Iurd '
And the Lord rcpbcd:
Down here among; My people,
That is beautiful hymn that Mrs
Adams wrote" Nearer My COD to
Thee, and it would Erirvr me To have
IL left out OF the new hymn book. She
WAS very DiOuS and gifted woman
though she WAS Unitarian. Com
plaint has been made that the hymn
ignores the trinity, but it WAS founded
on the story OF fJacobs dream and there
is no trinity in that. Let it stay there.
DR.. How, Mrs. prcntiss and Mr.. Charles
ltDbcrtsOn have three others close Dy
on the same subject that have the
same meter and enough OF trinity tC
satisfy anybody. Many OF the most
bcautifhf hymhs in our collection were
written by non 'rOtestants and non
professors. Some OF them arc by Ro-
man Catholic priests and some by T0m
Moore, who was said to be tho most H.
centOus poet In all England and did
not belong to the church. lie wrote s
volume OF hymns and among them il
N(oiHC ~ i'iSCoIlSolbIC w lU "Dult
rule that out?
These reflections on old Father Jacob
and his ladder provoke me TO say that
it must have taken II doctrine OF clcc.
ton and some amazing grace To have
kept him in the favor Of God, for he
WAS selfish man and kept an eye out
for his personal gain. He began by de-
frauding his brother out OF his birth
| right, and later on trickcd his father
in-law ont OF his cattle, and after h,
| awakcd from that dream at Bethel he
tried to make 81 bargain with the Lore
and said a.: of GOl win be with IN,
| ana give me bread TO eat and rnimcn
TO put ons and | come to my father
mouse In peace, then shall the Lord h,
my God.' a lmost any sinner would dc
that now and even some church mnm
ncrs VIII vow to give hundred dollar
10 the church II they make a thousun,
on certain spccuIation.
BILL ARP.