The daily morning journal and courier., 1902-02-10
RET. DR. SMITHS SERMON.
Able Discourse Delivered i'm Center
 Church Yesterday.


 Church Yesterday.
 Rev Dr. Snlyth preached an interest ing and very instructive sermon yes- terday morning and his subject was "A United Church Against All the Modern Philistines," His text was taken from Isaiah i. 13. IA
 'The envy also of Ephriam shall de- part, and they that vex Judah shall be cut off: Ephriam shall not envy Judah, and Judah shall not vex Ephriam. And they shall fly down upon the shoulder of the Philistines," He spoke in part as follows:
 I propose to speak from this Scripture concerning united Protestant church. and its discontinue of all the modern i Philistines. The text is local and Ju- daic, but it brings out principle which is of modern and general application. l The Phiistines found their opportunity to march in between Judah and Eph- riam; they f1ourished on account of the division of their foes. But there was no real geographical frontier between Ju- dah and Ephriam; the boundary line be- tween them was political shifting, arti- ficial The Philistines took advantage of their unnecessary divisions to make successful raids. So the divisions of the churches offer its opportunity to modern Philistinism.
 It is encouraging that the, agitation for church unity is in our time perpet- ually breaking out afresh and from op- posite quarters. One of the latest evil dences of it is presented by recent ser mons preached by Canon Benslow in Westminster Abbey, and at Cambridge; the substance of which has been pub lished in the Contemporary Review He pleads strongly for the recognition by the Church of England of the nom Episcopal churches, for the abandon ment of the idea of the divine right of any particular form of the church, and for the consequent termination of what he calls "the humiliating position of iso- ation of the Church of England
 As the church becomes more united, it can better fulfill the prophecy of fly ing upon the shoulder of the modern Philistines. In order that we may rec ornize Philistinism in it's many modern forms, we should distinguish first in what it does not necessarily consist It is not merely lack of education Mat thew Arnold used the word to signify lack of true culture; but the Philistines were not entirely untaught; they had perhaps a better industrial education than the Hebrews. Goliath indeed was a great overgrown man of stupidity to allow himself to be hit by a stone from boys sling, but his armor was as sillfully wrought as any in the ancient word Nor did Philistinism consist | merely in the lack of some religion The | Philistines had a religion; they had l their own priests and diviners, as men who give up faith now usually take up 1 some superstition, or invent religion | of their own. No people goes long with | out some kind of a religion Neither | did Philistinism consist necessarily in | commercialism. That may be one of | the conditions in which it may develop, | but the commercialism of people need 1 not render it Philistine
 Philistinism of old consisted in the | utter lack of the prophetic spirit It | was lowness Of moral and spiritual | aims; it was life without any uplifting | ideals. The Hebrews had the spirit of | Pl O'ilVNS' tie HlllsAIleS Hdu lo true prophets. Judah looked up to the ' heights whence came it's strength; 1 Philistia dwelt upon the plain. Both peoples came from elsewhere to possess the land; at times one seemed to pre- vail, then the other was victorious. But in the end the people with the prophetic ideals succeeded, the people who did not looh above their harvest-fields perish aC. The modern traveller rides quickly