The Providence news. (Providence [R.I.]) 1891-1906, 1903-12-08

! ism IN only another expression for our
seinshness ard atheism. our material
ism IL only another expression for our
! inhumsnity'.. 1t Is the expression OF our
! life that sacrifices grace for gold. that
crucihes Friendship on cross OF silver,
/ and that barters love AZ the altar for
| bank account.
There two evils arc all the stronger
because they join forces and work to-
gethcr and no conception Of the church
today Is true and worth the attention
/ OF thinking men that does not include
| in il the means by which the Christian
ideal can tight and 0sht successively
these mailed enemies. Nor Is any in
depreciation of the Christian IDEAL sde-
quate that is not broad enough and deep
enough 10 meet the evils We have men
toned
TWO POLES OF THOUGHT.
We hsye said thai the church first and
foremost must present 20 humanity an
\ ideal OF life. We have said that that
IDEAL II IL is 10 be Christian must be tho
! highest conception we have OF life, the
I life OF Jesus Christ But the teaching
OF Jesus revolved around two poles OF
thought On the one hand the indvid-
usl and on the other hand society His
teaching IN relation 10 the individual can
no more be separated from his teaching
! I'm relation 20 society than can the in
! dividusl man be conceived. OF as sepa-
rs ted from that society OF which he by
nature and training Is 8 part. IL his ideal
for the individual was, "be we therefore
perfect even az God IL perfect. his ideal
for society" was expressed in the term
THE kingdom OF God The church has
it's message TO the Individual but the
church also has it's message 10 society.
What do we mean by the kingdom OF
God. N you were 10 ask a student of
social conditions today the remedy for
our social evils. he would probably reply
that The hope lay In the direction Of the
organic nature OF society as remedy for
our individuslism. This is the answer
OF one Of our wisest writer's upon social
problems.
II the kingdom OF God means any
thing II means something for men here
and now. II IL in TO have any value for
this age that value will be expressed i'm
MS power 10 meet present evils. What
eiseNcsn the Kingdom OF God mean other
than that which the sociologist says.
growing organization Of society on the
basis Of the spiritual nature OF man.
" the Kingdom ~ God In the ideal OF
the Christian church for society there
has never been time in the history Of
humanity when that Ideal needed to
he so clearly taught and so con-
stsntiy practical want TO point
our 10 you that Just here lies
the duty OF the Christian church today
church must present and the evils II must
combat. How shall II do this double
work" The answer 10 this will be the con-
ception OF what the church ought TO be.
Ideals are realized only in one way.
They are realized through individuals by
long training and srduous effort Every
reform. said Emerson. In first OF all an
idea IN some one mans mind. This In the
truth contained I'm the manifold doctrines
OF the personality OF Jesus and In the
doctrine OF apostolic succession. The idea
must become personalized and nust be
transmitted through individuals II IT IL TO
become effective
II the first duty OF the church is 10
present an ideal. the hrst thing that the
church ought TO be is a school.
A NEW CONCEPTION
This is a conception OF the church that
is In large sense new On the basis OF
the old theology IL was an inpossibili,y.
On the basis OF the new theology II is a
necessity. Bushnell was the first of our
New England theologians 10 lay hold up-
or this conception with clesrness and Wig
or. We have come 70 accept tacitIy,
though We are afraid TO say so openly
the Unitarian position, namely that saliva
tion is character. character is a growth
and growth necessitntes training. one OF
the most striking illustrations in connec-
tion WITH this change is 20 be found in the
life work OF Dwight l.. Moody. There is
a true sense in which Mr. Moody outlved
his usefulness. Tt was evident both to
himself and 10 the church that his meth
ods were no longer succeeding 1t was be
leved by many of the wisest clerRymen
that his revival services were beginning TO
do more harm than good. We have al
: ways confused two things in our thought
OF salvation. the beginning and the end.
II man lives I'm sin. IL he is even to be-
! come righteous there must come a time
! when he must face about. lie must
: make start toward better things. But
! 10 start toward something better and 10
keep going until you reach II are not the
same. No man is perfect.
, The difference between men is largely
one OF degree. Salvation is a process. II is
, the growth and development OF charac-
ter and IL IL the function OF the church 20
, educate men along these lines. There If
Just ore thing better than conversion and
! that ia 10 not need IT, ~here is one thing
better than facing about toward right
, eousness and turning your back upon sin.
II is TO start with your face toward
rishteousness and keep goins
THE SABBATH SCHOOL.
This is the truth recognized by NAT
phase Of the church work known as the
: sabbaih school. IL anywhere a revolution
is needed u IL here. The Saba IN school
! not only needs new methods and better
, equipped teachers. IL needs a new vision.
I The one ideal that most people have OF
] the Sabbath school is that IL is a place 90
teach the Bible. This Is good as far az IL
goes but II doesn't go far enough. The
: object OF the Sabbath school in the last
analysis ia no more TO teach the Bible
! than the object of the college is 20 teach
, Latin and Greek The object OF both In
= stifutiorr is 20 develop manhood. Th~
4 Bible IL used as the great text
Z book on character but the time will come
4 when not oniy will the Bible he taught
: but other literature a. well The idea
{ OF manhood. presented 70 The scholar
r will not only include those Of Jewish his.
: tory but of all history. Just vhy ths
. character Of. David should be insisted
I upon as Ftudy, while the character ol
T William OF Orange and Gladstone should
] be neglected Is not easy 70 explain.
= The teaching function of the church
. Is not 10 be limited. however. 70 the Sab
bath school. The church az q whole ls Z,
= | be q school. The pulpit instead OF beIrc