Burlington weekly free press. [volume] (Burlington, Vt.) 1866-1928, 1902-05-29
THE PRESBYTERIAN CREED
Changes Made by the General Assem- bly,
The Revised Confession of Faith.

The Revised Confession of Faith.
CF'rom the New York Post)
the "Brief Statement of the Reformed
fhlth' which was adopted by the Cen
eral Assembly, was said by the commit
ice which drafted it not to be intended as
| substitute for or an alternative of our
Icontossion of faith" Yet there can he no
doubt that the new creed, as accepted.
VIII supplant the old. 1t will do so i'm
mediately in the popular conception: it
VIII do so gradually in the practice Of
the churches, and it will do so ultimately
In Presbyterian law There is no reason
TOR decisions on this subject. The true
ISSUE before the Assembly was the SUBJ
sutution of new confession of faith for
the Westminster
The first thing to be said about the all
tentative creed is that it exhibits a new
KIND of Calvintsm. 1t may bc called u
polite CalNinism, For tho rough-spoken
style Of John Knox, it substitutes cOnsid-
crate language which would suggest to
| Coz. Newcome his one classical quotation
ahout the notifying Of manners. B,st to
leNhimt tho difference between the diction
ot the divlncs who feared not the fact of
man, and that Of their more polished sue
cessofs' we print in parallel columns some
OF their utterances on the same themes:
tFroin tho Wesmin O'rom the Revised
ster Confcssion) Creedl
There is no other "The Lord Jesua
head OF the church Christ is the only
nut the Lord Jesus head OF the church.
/ turlSt Nor can the and the claim of any
Pope Of Rome in man to be the vicar
any sense DC head of Christ and the
thereof; but is that head of the church,
anti-christ, h n I is uuscriptural with
man of sin, and son out warrant in fact.
OF p"rdition. that cN- and is a usnrpation
alteth himself in tn diehonoring to tina
church x al II ; Lord Jesus Christ"
| Christ and all that OF FL ,ction.-Ws
is called God believe that God
by the decree OF from the beginning,
God, for the mani in His own good
festation Of $ pleasure gave to
glory, some men and His Son a people. an
| angels are prodcs inrumerahle multi
| unated unto eyer tn e. chosen in
lasting life. and 9th Christ unto holiness.
ers fOreordained to service and saliva
everlasting death. ton, We believe that
These angels and all who come to
men. thvs predes- years of discretion
! unated and foreor- can rec i've this sal
dained are particu- walton only through
iarlH and unchhng,- faith and repent-
ably designed -ance."
The rest Of mankind 1--WE Geieve that
God was pleased God requires Of el-
to pass by, ANA 20 cry man to do just
orda!n them to dis IT, to love mercy,
| honor ana wrath" and to walk humblv
Nv otks done by with his God; and
unr"g"nordte mon. that only through
although for the this harmony with
matter Of them they the will Of God shal
may be things be fulfilled hat
which God COM brotherhood of man
landS, and of go wherein the king
use both to them dom Of God Is 10 b,
selves and others, made manifest"
yet arN sin
ful and ca n no
please God or make
= man meet to re-
celve grace from
Cod"
Whatever the theological Implications OF
tho contrast, the gain in politeness Is
cl' ar The granite is covered with flow
ers.
y theological symbol like that now pro-
posed must be studied in its bearing upon
the questions which have been agitating
the Presbyterian Church, and leading to
heiesy trials and Withdrawals from it's
ministry They are two. One Of them ia
the doctrine of Inspiration involving the
whole new province of Biblical criticism.
land the other is the doctrine OF eternal
punishment. Now on neither of these does
the new creed give a certain sound. Its
phrases seem purpoSoy vague They ars
well fttcd to include opposites, and to
make a basis for a comprehensive broad
IChurch. The assertion about the Bible is
that it is the faithful record of Gods graz
IciouS reVelatiOns,' and tine only infaliole
rule of faith and life" Prof. Briggs would
have asserted to that heartily. SO would
every higher critic in existence. In the
article on eschatology there is a similar
IVagueneSs. At the last Judgment, SAYS
the new creed. the wicked shall receive
the eternal award Of their sins" That
leaves open all the old bubbles about
Iaionios. Any one v no believes in the an
'nihilation of the wicked could subscribe
TO it. 50 could restorationst. One has
IonlY to compare it With the explicit state
ment of the Westminster: The wicked
shall he cast into eternal t-rmeuis,
land be punished with everlasting de~uu
ton from the presence OF the Lord We
lcannot greatly blame pOlcmic PreSby t.r-
ian doctors of divinity, of the older school
ii in the Assembly they denounce It's
creed as SO much Calvin and water vel
fitt-d to give TO the Presbyterian Church
the theologiCal attrAcuVencss which King
lake said that the Anglican Church had
for him-namely, that of being the most
harmless SONG
We would not. however, have it sup
posed that We consider the adoption # Il q
now creed nc a mistake 1t ought 20 te
hailed enth siastically by Presbyteriaus t
seems TO US. For one thing, II comes some
where near representing what the ma jOrjty
of them actually believe. This the Vest
Minister Cont, ssion no longer does. Only
two DAYS ago an outSpokou laYman "N-
pressed nefore the Assembly his happiness
al the prospect Of having a creed that he
lcould both understand and accept, To the
presbyterian Church as a whole, the West
minister has ceased to be a living creed
1t is not preached by the majority OF the
clergy; its more grisly parts are shuddcr-
ed at by the vast body of the laity-if. in
deed, the Presbyterian laity can be said
to bo aware Of their existence. II mas be-
come a creed not to b. chumpioned but to
be- explained away. Now explanation of a
creed, as Leslie stephen has told us, is
common way of making it die That pro-
cess has so long gone on with the historic
creed of the Presbyterian Church that.
even in the judgment of its own members.
It now wakes old as doth a garment To
lay it reVcrently aside, and to substitute
for it in the working faith and life of the
church a statement of Christian doctrine
corresponding to actual beliefs, and fire d
from the old Nightmares was in fact seen
to be the wise step to take.
WEDDING SUPERSTlTIONS