The Marietta journal. [volume] (Marietta, Ga.) 1866-1909, 1902-09-25
4 MAANGE OF LIVE TOPICS
Penned for Journal Readers
by q Local Scribe.
CHURCH REUNION.

"A movement Is OH IOOD lOOKlDB
to the reunion of the Cumberland
Presbyterian church with the pa
rent body from which the former
separated in the early part of the
last century, because the seceders
could not endorse what they called
the unconditional predestina-
ton" doctrines of the regular
Presbyterians Since the North
eril Presbyterian church has in a
measure revised it's creed touching
this point the Cumberland branch
now declares that it is in the main
in accord with the parent body,
and that there is no longer any
reason for its separate existence.
The Cumberland body alleges
that Calvin taught and that the
regular Presbyterians believed that
God arbitrarily selected before the
foundation of the world whomso-
ever He willed to be saved and
consigned all others to an eternal
hell; that God did not with the
eye of prescience look forward to
the future life of every individual
who should enter this world, ard
reward or punish HIM according to
deeds done in the flesh, but that
III fact He saved some because He
would and damned others because
He could, leaving the individual
no choice whatever in the matter.
The writer does not know what
Calvin taught or the Presbyterians
believed upon this subject but he
is of the opinion that the over
whelmiEg majority of Presbyte-
rians of the world. Southern as
we'll as northern, do not now en-
terrain this view. 1t cannot be
denied that the scriptures clearly
teach that Gods plans are all pre-
arranged, or as st. James declared
known to God are all His works
from the beginning cf the world, +"
(Acts Is: 49, but for every pas
sage showing that souls are saved
or lost before they enter this life, d
corresponding one can be produced
which proves that the future state
of that soul is dependent upon the
individual himself, as whatsoever
will let him come and take of the
water of life freely without morey
and without price" God is both
sovereign and just. He is not
obliged to wait on man before He
can execute His DEGREES. He
uses wicked men to execute His
divine plans, but He is too Just to
send them to hell except for a
cause which they have voluntarily
and of their own free will incurred,
which the Deity knew in advance
would be the case. Therefore both
predestination and free will are
true and there are no disagree
ments of the passages of scripture
bearing upon these points.
1t is to be greatly desired that
all difficulties shall be removed
from the way of the organic union
of the regular and Cumberland
Presbyterian churches, and if the
concession of faith of the South
ern church is stumbling block
IN the path of christian fellowship
and unity it should be amended
so as to express the real views of
what the writer believes to be the
vast majority of Southern Presby.
terians. This is a practical and
utllitaIian age, radically different
from that of two or three centu-
turies ago when speculations and
useless discussions and efforts
were the order of the day. We
have inherited a great deal of the
ology from our ancestors, but we
have the honor of originating near
ly all of the great schemes for the
practical application of the gospel
principles. Much of the doctrines
contained in the standards of the
churches of today might be ex-
pugned and neither the world nor
the churches would be one whit
the looser thereby.