The Savannah morning news. (Savannah, Ga.) 1900-current, 1901-07-25
ToL STOI TELLS CREED.
nrP1y TO ORTHODOX CHURCH's
III COMMUNICATIONS DECREE.

lcr,i.tianity Has Been Pervert-
~, ecclesiastical Dogma.
49, following extracts from Count
ro1stoi's reply to the decree of
- .~,on,munication from the Greek
~ 10y church are taken from
'.s1s+fon of his reply given in the
independent .o,
seton is wrong in the following re-
soects. 1t says:
arba universally known writer
-., ro1stoi, a Russian by birth, or
,,.aa, nv baptism and training, Sc
6ncsd by pride of intellect. has inso-
LII, rebelled against God and his
,,,..ist and all his inheritance, and has
,,,, before the whole world fore
-. the orthodox Church, his moth
,,-ticb nurtured him and brought
him up.
.rba+ 7 have abjured the church
hin terms itself orthodox is quite
,r,s but this 1 did not because l re-
baIled against God, but on the con-
- because l wished to serve Him
~ =
80 abinring the church and unity
l,.i+b The people, which unity was in
~reesihlv dear to me, l devoted sew
II ,aars to the investigation of the
..9abirgs of the church, both theoretl-
al and practical, as certain indications
Id me TO doubt the righteousness OF
49,. cburch so far as theory is concern
"a road all could on the teachings
NJ the church. / studied and critical
w analvzed dogmatic theology. AS
~ rhe practical sphere, L followed 1or
aver a year all the ordinances OF the
church. observing all the fasts ana all
church services. and became con-
y,inced that the teaching of the church
t5aoretically is an insidious and inju-
lions lie, while practically it is col
lection of the grossest superstitions
and sorcery, which entirely obscure all
the teachings of Christianity.
Ceased to Observe Rites.
.True. I have abjured the church. 1
have ceased to observe it's rites. and
Give instructions in my will that my
near ones should not allow the servants
of the church to come near me when
diving, and that my corpse should be
as quickly as possible taken away
without any COMPUTATIONS and prayers
over it. Just as any Objectionable and
Unnecessary thing is taken away so as
not to be in the way of the living
Now as TO my having dedicated my
literary activity and the talents with
which | have been endowed by God to
Spreading among the people teachings
opposed to Christ and the church,
etc, and that I preach with the fer
yor of a fanatic in my writings and let
ters, which are circulated in great
NV ND NV
throughout the world, and especially
within the precincts of our dear Faith
elland, the subversion of all the dog
mas of the Orthodox church and of the
4 very essence of the Christian faith
that is not true. I have never been
CAREFUL to spread my teachings.
True, for my own need / have ex-
pressed in my writings my understand
4 ing of Christ's teaching, and 1 have
\ not concealed those writings from men
who desired to become acquainted
4 with them, but 1 never printed them
4 Of my own accord. 1 have also spoken
4 to people concerning my understanding
4 of Christ's teaching, but only when l
was asked about it. To such men 1
have spoken what I think, and have
given them my books If I had any my
\ self.
1T is also said that I disown God,
the Creator and Preserver of the
world, worshiped in the Holy Trinity,
also the Lord Jesus Christ, the God
Man, the Redeemer and Saviour of the
World, who suffered for US men and
i our salvation, who rose from the dead,
and the immaculate conception of our
Lord Christ in his humanity and the
yrginity, before and after the birth
Of Christ, of our most pure Lady
4 That | reject the inconceivable Trim
lty and the fable of the fall of the
flrst man, a fable which has no sense
IN our times, the story of a God born
OF a virgin and redeeming mankind, is
quite true. But the God-spirit, God-love
the One God, the SOURCE of everything
not only do not reject, but on the
contrary l do not acknowledge any
tnlng really existing besides God, and
l see all the meaning of life in the
fulhlment of the will of God as ex-
pressed in the teaching of Christianity.
1t Is also said of me: He does not
acknowledge the future life, with it's
rewards and punishments.' If the here
alter is to be understood in the sense
Oh the second Advent, of hell with eter-
mai torments and devils, and a para
alse with constant bliss, then it is
quite true that l do not acknowledge
such future life. But eternal life with
reward and punishment here and ev-
efyWhere, however, I do acknowledge
TO such an extent that standing as
40 at my age on the verge of the grave.
must very often make efforts not to
WISH to die in the flesh, that is, to
ne born to a new life. and I do believe
mat every good action increases the
good of my eternal life, while every
EVIL deed diminishes it.
Calls Sacraments "Magic."
IT is said that reject all the sac
Ianments. That is quite true. consider
an sacraments mean, gross magic, in
ScU,hsistent with the idea of God and
HIlstan teaching, and being in addi-
toIl an infringement of the most direct
llous of the Gospel. In the bap-
uau4 OF children I see an obvious per-
i5loA ot the meaning which baptism
mt7Hl nave had for grown-up people
VINO consciously became Christians. In
e sacrament Of marriage knowingly
performed over persons who were in
Ian relations before, as also in d.
s,oi'es and in the solemnization of mar
aases between the divorced. l see a
49, violation both of the meaning
Sa3 ' letier of the Gospel. The periodi-
- pdraoning of sins at confession is
4 lHe a pernicious trick, which only
4 ,b. ages immortality and undermines
Il a. g'f OF shining. Extreme JUNCTION
4 fr''. 'he chrism are to me injurious.
y w. TIC magic. The same applies to
an + r'ng OF Icons and relics as also
Il M. rites, prayers, combinations of
-H me Massbook is full In the