The Indianapolis journal., 1903-01-12


Worth M. Tippy.
Yesterday morning at Broadway Meth
odist Church Rev Worth Nj Tippy spoke
on ''The Worth of Creed" The sermon
was given in connection with the use of
the Apostles Greed in the order Of worship
at the morning service. Mr.. Tippy said:
"The religions of paganism were cere-
monials rather than systems OF truth. Inc
worshper was expected to take the pre-
Scribed part In the rite, ana beyond inns
he might have his own opinions. Inc
in no sense theology. that is. rational
Interpretation OF their religious customs
AS Professor Denny has said: 'Pagan re-
ii an historical basis. In both respects it is
distinguished from the religion OF reveal
tion.' which has both an historical OASIS
and a definite body of truth
"A creed, therefore, is a formal EXPIRES
sion of religious beliefs. One might dls-
tingutsh between those authorized state
ments of belief on the part of great
churches. or of the personal creed that one
believes in ones own soul The latter Is
not properly creed, and yet in deeper
sense IL is.
There are those who think that a mans
beliefs do not amount to much after all
That Il is what a man does not what ne
believes that is important That might be
what a man really believes is exceedingly
important Right action grows out OF
strong convictions and a man who Is de-
void of them is not ethically worth very
much anywhere. If man is pure in his
life it is because he believes in the clean
Eeart. Ii he stands for justice in public
and private II is because his soul has
passion for justice. II he practices the
Golden Rule, nonresistance, the love
OF enemies, 1t is because of strong convic-
| tions.
are the product of religious epochs. They
| are sometimes the elimination OF centuries
| OF religious life. and again. as the Augs-
burg Confession Of a mighty reform move
| ment. When a great church stands up and
| says L believe! the world may well enough
listen. We should deplore the cynical
| treatment that creeds SO often receive In
| these modern days. What men deeply be-
| lieve, or have believed, should be sacred
| to us. We may not agree wiki them but
We should respect them. true historical
imagination, touched by the sympathy of
| universal brotherhood, entering vividly into
| the life of past generations, will make IL
impossible 10 handle these great confes-
| sions of faith with any other spirit than
that of Intelligent respect.
las the expression of the faith of an
| epoch, or as the historical deposit of the
| interest. 1t becomes dangerous only when
| 1t teaches error, or when it is forced upon
| the enlarged understanding of after gen.
| erations. 1t then becomes an instrument of
confusion and tyranny.
"A definite, clearly defined creed ought
| not to be made either condition of saliva
| tlOn or OF renglOuS Fellowship. III SnOuiu
| rather be confession of faith and stand
ard of teaching. Every church has such a
| confession, written OF unwritten. The con-
victions of the great body of the church
| and the vitality of it's religious life VIII
maintain its standards SO far as they are
in harmony with the truth of the Scrip
lures. People will very seldom desire to
| unite with a church without fundamental
| belief in its teachings and spirit
| THE situation in the Methodist Church Is
| peculiar. 1t has its twenty-five Articles of
pnlfe .1xrfI
| by Mr.. Wesley from the thirty-nine articles
| of the Church of England. They are made
conditions of membership in the church
| and are also standard of teaching. In
| spite of this fact there is a singular free
| dom of belief i'm the Methodist Church.
This arises from the fact that there is no
| official standard of Interpretation of the
| Articles of Religion. We are not expected
| to interpret them as they were understood
| by the men who framed them hundreds of
| years ago. The fifth article provides that
| The Holy Scriptures contain all things
| necessary to salvation; SO that whatsoever
| is not read therein, nor may be proved
thereby, is not to be required of any man.
that it should be believed as an article of
| faith, or be thought requisite necessary
| to salvation This throws the interpreta-
ton back to the Scriptures 1t is Magma
| Charta of intellectual liberty to the Meth
| Odist Church.
"If a member were brought to trial for
heresy in the Methodist Church he would
| be convicted only by the majority opinion
of the ecclesiastical court of his religious
peers as to the meaning of the articles.
Meanwhile. until such court acts, he Is
not intellectually bound to any official in
depreciation. He might feel moral obli-
cation, if he were teacher, to what he
conceives to be the prevailing sentiment OF
the church. AS a matter of fact, there Is
great variety of thought both among clergy
and laity in the Methodist Church in mat
ters of doctrine in the formal sense, but re-
markabe unity of conviction in the his
toric spiritual teachings that have made
the church what it is. There is agreement
for example, as to the life and facts of con-
| version and holiness, or the life of the
| spirit, but disagreement often as to then
doctrine.
'The Apostles Creed is the most vener.
able creed of Christendom. AS DR.. Schof
said SO admirably 1T has the fragrance oi
antiquity, and the inestimable worth OF
universal assent 1t is a bond of unior
| between all ages and sections of Christen
DOM 1t is the product of no council OF
the church so far as we know. 1t was no
given forth by the apostles. 1t was 6
Il is not SO mncR doetrinai as saaiy statemen
of the central facts of the Christian re
ligion, most of them historical. AS sucf
it involves no intellectual difficulty to mos
Christian people. The phrase the resur
rection of the body may be interpreted
literally. or one may hold to Pauls concep
Of. of spiritual body; & as he gives it in tn
that in such difficult parts of the Apostles
Greed there is liberty.
ION the whole. therefore. IL is admirabl,
fitted as the confession of faith of a con
| gregation in its morning and evening wor
ship 1t has the added interest of possibl,
fifteen hundreds years of usage. 1t is
therefore, very impressive when the congre
cation repeats its ringing words; Il be
lieve in God the Father Almighty. make
of heaven and earth; and in Jesus Chris
His only Son our Lord; who was conceve'
by the Holy Ghost, born of the Virgil
Mary; suffered under Pontius PLATE; wa
crucified, dead and buried: the third da,
He rose from the dead: He ascended int
a N
God the Father Almighty; from thence III
shall come to judge the quick and tn
dead. / believe in the Holy Ghost; Il
, the holy catholic church. the communio
of saints: the forgiveness of sins; the resur
rection of the body; and the life everlasting
Amen
AT HALL-PLACE CHURCH.