The times. [volume] (Washington [D.C.]) 1897-1901, 1901-03-18
LOVE INSTEAD OF FEAR.
The Rev. Edward Everett Hale on
New Centur, Religion.

Rev DIR. Edward Everett Hale. at yes
terday mornings service preached to a
congregation which completely filled every
available space in All Souls Church, cor
ner of Fourteenth and l. Streets north
west. Ii was the day fixed for the annual
contribution to the American Unitarian
Association. the executive missionary or
der of the Unitarian Church of the United
States and Canada. DIR. Hale selected his
text from St John iv:24: God is a spirit
and they that worship him must worship
him in spirit and in truth" In the course
of his sermon the eminent and venerable
divine said:
For the liberal church of America and
to thousands Of leaders. and hundreds of
thousands OF workers in that communion
God has given the direction of the rel-
gion of America for the next century. In
a thousand revelations of himself he offers
what it is fair to call new religion of
the new century: so much wider is it's
range, so much higher its flights so much
more profound its study, above what the
torpid theologies of the Dark Ages and
the last century can pretend to The pull
pit of the medieval church is ordered to
proclaim doctrines which the preachers
do not believe.
They are to say that man is a child
of the devil when they know that he is
not, and when they do not believe there
is any devil. They are to say that
few in every hundred of men are elect
by Gods predestination; that the rest are
all damned. Tl:ey know that this is not
true. but the authority of their creed
compels them to say ii is.
ITO this rightly of creed-three cen
turtles old. four centuries old, fourteen
centuries old-are the pulpits bound. The
liberal church cannot use the machinery
W Ia tod nv la Il Il
creeds; its mission is too large: the de-
mands of it are too eXacting Happily.
however. Gods grace is abundant. The
world is Gods world. and what is T., be
established IS Gods kingdom, that his
reign may come. To do this it does re-
quire the machinery OF the past. 1t calls
for the common work of all Gods
children. How great thing II is that
we should be called the sons of God.
The declaration is that of absolute
religion, and it is the religion of the
when he chooses. The well-beloved Son
of God came and lived and died. tt.dt all
of us, as sons and daughters Of God
might enter into Gods work and go
about his business. This world is to be the
kingdom of God: God with us. not God
with me, or you. or him-God with US all
That may be its motto. To proclaim and
establish this religion is the privilege and
responsibility of the liberal church of
America.
The Unitarian Church regards man as
the child of God. This is n fact. and not
a metaphor. God IL Our Father in truth
and not as a matter OF affectionate ex-
preston. We are his children in truth
and We are all his children. From this
central truth all statements Of total de-
pravity or original sin-fall away. as wa
ter drops from hot iron We have no part
or lot with them. We take the newborn
child as the child of God. train him as the
child Of Cod. treat him as child Of God.
bid him pray TO God as child prays to
"A A a
a father. He is never 10 be afraid of God.
He is to consult God about everything,
and work with him about everything.
Man and God are together. and nobody
ana nothing are to part them Least of
all shall any form of religion put them
asunder.