The sun. [volume] (New York [N.Y.]) 1833-1916, 1903-03-08

Benson's face. AS We look at the upper
part, the elements OF moral grandeur be-
come visible. There we see the idealism,
the poetry. the romance. so often allied
with the better sort OF sensuo usness-
which. indeed, IL only q keen faculty q
physical perception. There we see the
look OF high purposes and noble dreams
admiration, hope and love- We detect
that undesirable reality Of spiritual devo-
ton which was. before and above all else.
the Characteristic Of the man. His blos.
raphy tells no tale of sudden conversion
from evil TO good. from darkness TO light.
but rather the gradual development OF 4
soul naturally CHRISTIAN
Our author regards the religious system
founded In the first third OF tho min. sen,h
century by Anthony Norris Groves and
John Nelson Darby. and known as that
Of the plymouth Brethren" as on the whols
the most purely spiritual which exists in
the world. No doubt II retains two sacra.
and the Bapt ism by Immsrsion of believing
adults In that respect Quakcrisn, which
rejects all outward signs, NAV claim an
even more purely spiritual character.
Against this, however. must be set the fact
that Quakers are, as rule, actively em-
faotures and money making Of various
kinds, and are also keen politicians and
energetic oitisens. All such traffickipg
with the world is abhorrent to Brethrenisrn.
The iron necessity Of living compels the
poorer brethren, indeed. TO follow trades or
hsndicrsfts, but the number OF professions
In which they may engage IL extremely
limited. A Brother" must not be q soldier
or sailor or lawyer, or Judge or Magistrate.
He viii not dt In Parliament Or take any
part in political or civil life, The Brethren
will not go TO law. however grossly they
may have been wronged; and It Is regarded
as q sign Of imperfect spirituality TO look
on q secular newspaper. In word, sepa-
ration from the world ID carried out more
consistently by the Brethren than by any
ether set OF people except monks. Our author
testifes that the Brsthren have ono supreme
merit, that OF self-denying liberality. They
give themselves poor Many deny them
selves every luxury and even what some
would call neocssaries. Thus Lord Congle-
ton would not have CARPETS on 70 his rooms
A Brother In distress has an indefeasibls
claim upon the pure Of Brother who u
better Oh. The claims OF Brethren are
regarded a. far more pressing than those
Of ones own family. II the family happens
to be outside Brethrenism.
II Is we'll known to those interested In the
plymouth Brethren that in the fifth
decade Of tbs last century the fraternity
underwent q schisfn which produced two
separate bodies. the Orthodox or + ,lusives,
and the Open Brethren. The depth Of the
division. however. has scarcelv been appre-
ciated by those who have stood aloof from
the quarrel. SOME striking facts bearing
on this point are mentioned by Mr. Russell.
Thus a man and his wife lived on a farm
in the far West Of America. hundred miles
lowed Darby, the champion Of Orthodoxy.
or Fxclusiveness: the husband denied his
authority; from that moment they would
no longer break bread together. An 'EI-
elusive declined all intercourse with his
own mother because she had broken bread
would not willingly shake hands with an
Open Brother. They regarded marriage
outside their own ranks IA biamswoFthy,
and any one who withdrew from them would
be pretty sure to lose all his friends az
fissiparous, and both the Exclusives and
the Open Brethren were gradually broken
up into subdivisions.
In the final paper here reprinted Mr.,
Russell considers the prospects, o. religion
in the twentieth century inside TIE ChoI rs
CARDS the first branch Of the inquiry he can
see no sipn that any one OF the three chief
schools Of thought which have 90 long CON
tended for mastery In the Church q Eng
laud-those Of the so-calied high Shurch;
~
OF the Broad Church-wllT bs able In the
twentieth century to achieve compete
ard absolute victory:
The assertion, indeed, IN current tnAs
the Evangelical school has utterly perisneG.
may have disappeared. but Mr.. RUSSELL
holds that it's cardinal doct rtne, the special
truth which II deemed itself divineiy COM
missioned TO proclaim. the truth, namely.
that there Is none other name unoeI
heaven given to man In whom and through
whom We may receive help and salvation.
but only tho name OF our Lord Jesus
Christ, u now the doctrine OF nearly every
pulpit In the Church Of England. Nowhere
Il II Get forth with more clearness ana en-
niais OF ritualistic churches. II. on the
other hand, We should TX our eyes ex-
clusively on the development OF the az
thetic sense, We might be disposed 10
infer that the High Church. or rituallstic
school, has conquered and taken possession
Of the Church OF England Such an sssump,,
ton would be favored by Q companion ~
the outward aspect Of things-church ar'hi'
tecturs, painting, dress, decoration. Sc
as il presents iisslf at the beginning o.
the twentieth century. with thai which
torias reign. In the spiritual realm. sis,'
there has been q corresponding develop
ment. The principls 81 sacramen'aiisin.
or symbolism. or mystcisn, or shs,eEer
we may choose TO call N-tho pfhc'Pr
which seiasd spiritual truths ana forces
under exterior forms, and recognizes "
material forms the Visible ves'ure o. me
Divinity-hss entered Into the very hesr
OF English thought and feeling, and -
nat orally lsd May Of its sciples mt
harmony with sacramento ih""lof'
While, However, the High Church r'hN"
has ,riumphed In thess direction, u lH'
hs,come NOR. modest, moIc chafnAnr
and MOE. humane. II no lpngsr 'alh' -
'uncOnyensnted mer siss, nor t'sls w
dannaiion 30 herct,cs and s-'hisrAilos
A. regards tho Broad tlam IA, az hlSiA
school II AagioS Thought, Oui sgihn-
b.liesss thal its pnoaponis ~ as'h
are by no means ~ bright .. they ",'s
seeined Forty yea-s ago tho W"s
srhooi bpasted thai u hal non Tie dal
and tl.sfs s.nr sixns "a tlss eo'ls'Ar'FH'
sky that made Tho want sstt1 tess~ 'ha'
: me h'gh pia 40 ~ the tligfrN ahn =
u ayefsltiss Nrfs 1ncspissi IN nri sh1S
I.Dld on l'ls Airslf " alone ihr h'a'
ssisn tho ,lssy -sefnsd anyihIs hn. '"'
A5Aous Wien I-aH STANDBY aird %"
alnl.b.s snd pl,us J"Ness na.t &" go ~
Tl,d, With tsAfs IA haf syss 'fg 'ls -
hfissh ysas ! have isasn a. ~ 80
every sia lay alisfaS1n 30 ~ o..
pfr.sl.st ehl have ,sssf h"-id