The morning news. [volume] (Savannah, Ga.) 1887-1900, 1900-04-23
THE PREsBYrERIAN CREED.
Ministers Who Can't Teach 1t should
Resign,

Blackshear, Ga, April 22.-Editor Morn
ing News: 1t must be great surprise TO
Presbyterians, who are in the habit Of
enjoying your editorials, which are almost
always ably and we'll placed, 10 read the
last paragraph of your editorial-"The
Creed In Danger"
IF men and women are to be put out
of the church because they refuse to sub
scribe to its creed, it is probable that
the number that will go out WILL in the
very near future, be almost as large as
the number that will go in"
l am aStonished that a writer of your
manifest ability could have written such
a thing, for there is nothing in the annals
of the Presbyterian Church that would
testify such a comment. Without wishing
| 10 be disCourteous, l would suggest that
you ought to inform yourself on the GUS
toms and usages of the Presbyterian
Church before you attempt to crltcise
them. l have had the pleasure of sitting
as a ruling elder in the Presbyterian
! Church for ten years. and have never
| heard a minister or ruling elder ask can
didates for membership whether they be-
| leved in any creed, or whether they be-
! ieved in any of the cardinal doctrines of
! the church, except the belief on the Lord
Jesus Christ and his atoning blood. That
| is the only test put upon any man, wo-
man or child, when they come into the
the fola of our church. There is no incu-
| bus of theology or demands of the creed
that calls for anything more.
But when man becomes a candidate
| for an office mot simply a member of the
church,, whether teaching elder (minister)
or ruling elder, then he must subscribe to
| the creed, as is embraced In what is called
! the Westminster Standards. The elders of
the Presbyterian Church, ministers and
ruling elders, constitute its courts and leg
islative bodies. You will readily see that
If such officers were not bound by some
! standard of belief they could teach and
preach spirituallsm, Christian Science, or
any other folly of the human Imagination.
So l am a a loss to know how DIR. Park
hurst would conduct his church without
it's system of theology.
PresbyteTians believe that the Word of
God, as is found in the scripture of the
Old and New Testament, is the only in
failabe guide of faith and practice. They
believe that scriptures are divine and
| without error. The Westminster Confess
sion of Faith is but a dictionary of truth
as found in these scriptures, and its def
nitions are sustained by texts and CON
texts, however harsh some of them may
| seem.
Did it never occur to you that these
gentlemen, who have made such a scenic
display in their exit from the Presbyterian
Church, violated the common rules of hon
! esty? They vowed when ordained minis
ters in the Presbyterian Church that they
believed in the inerrency of the Holy 81
! BILE, and that they believed the
| Confession of Faith to be
the correct Interpretation of that
| Bible They promised TO promote the uni
ty and harmony Of the church. All of
which vows they have consistently vio-
] a. 4
is it any wonder that man who so con-
| genially fills the pulpit of so unorthodox
| a preacher as Henry Ward Beecher was,
and as great a skepuc as DR.. Lyman Abb
bot Is, should withdraw from an orthodox
church?
AS far as the Presbyterian standards, as
embraced in our Confession of Faith, are
concerned theyAre in no more danger now
| than when they were formulated. They
| are a little Anticipated, but so is the Bible.
| They may be relegated to museums, but
| the Bible will go along with them.
t Is a strange thing why writer's in at
tempting TO discuss these things, igno c
the commoa principles that underle the
whole matter. The Presbyterian Church
desires to place no stumbling block in tn
way of any man accepting Christianity II
does not require him to accept its system
as an infallible system. 1t welcomes as
gladly an Armenian as Calvinist 10 its
communion. But when 1t raises man "a
the exalted position Of minister and teach
er. il requires him to teach and preach in
conformity with its standards and to be
subject to its authority. These are simple
I facts common to all organizations, relig-
Ious and civil And when an official re-
igious or civil. finds himself out of joint
/ with his government, civil or religious the
| quicker he gets out of his office the better
for himself as well as those he would
serve.
And. speaking as n Presbyterian, and ]
think the sentiment of all Presby terians
when our Confession of FaAthi meets with
the disapproval Of a minister let him quit
preaching and get out Of the church. There
/ L. plenty of room on the outside and none
liar views. Presbyterian.
crhe author of the foregoing says he IS
surnrised that we should assume that ap-
! nlicants for admission to the Presbyterian
church are REQUIRED 10 subscribe to It's
creed It may not be the practice to In
sist upon such a requirement In every To-
Icality but we venture to say that 1t Ii
In most localities The applicants are
asked If they accept the Confession OF
Faith. Applicants for membership are
supposed to have familiarized themselves
with the creed before seeking mem bership
The Inference from what Presbyterian
saws Is that only Ihose who occupy places
as teachers III liie o"ui'n az eApSSton y
he grounded in the churchs doctrines. Is
he not mistaken? Whatare the teachers
Tor II not TO teach what the church be-
lieves
Steps were taken TO put Or. Hills out
~ the Chicago Presbytery because he did
not accept the chureh's creed He re-
signed poll was made of the Presby-
terian ministers in New York a few daye
sgo on the question OF revising the Pres
byterian creed. and a majority OF them
favored revision.
We did not In our article, undertake 10
say what course the Presbyterian Church
ought 10 take respecting its creed, or eN-
press any opinion about its creed We
simply noted movement that ~ taking
place IN the church, and expressed our
opinion as 10 what IS likely 10 b. one
result Of A. We think what We raid was
Justified by developments II there are
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