The Indianapolis journal. [volume] (Indianapolis [Ind.]) 1867-1904, 1903-08-31
THE PHILOSOPHY OF SIN
THE REV. JOSHUA STANSFIELD DE-
vELOPs An INTERESTING THEME.
The Old Mosaic Law, Laid Down
by the First Hygienic Expert,
Moses. Discussed.


us consciousness of sin diminishing in
our age?" was the subject of the Rev.
Joshua Stansfield's sermon yesterday morn
ing at the Meridian-street NJ. e. Church.
lit is probably safe to say that there are
few. If any, in this or other Christian con-
gregations who do not connect the great
work and mission of Jesus Christ the
worlds redeemer and savior with sin as
racial and universally personal expert
ence 1t is generally conceded that human
sin is the explanation of Christ's presence
and work in this world He came to seek
and to save that which was lost
1t will. think, be further agreed that the
Holy Scriptures, Old Testament and New.
give a large prominence to sin i'm the in
dividual and in the race both in their BIZ
ography, symbolism. rites, precepts. laws
and promises, while their most marvellous
victories and achievements are salvation
and deliverance from sin. 1t is further
ticeable that the loftiest and most ecstatc
experiences of persons who have known
but have been delivered from the power of
sin. The psalmist exclaimed Bless the
Lord. o my soul. who forgiveth all thine
iniquities and who healeth all thy dis
eases st. Paul exclaims: Thanks be to
God, who giveth US the victory through
our Lord Jesus Christ while John in the
apocalypse portrays the redeemed in glory
singing, Worthy is the Lamb. who hath
redeemed us and washed us from our sins
in His own blood. The hynology OF the
church for two thousand years has been
in the strain. while the two perma-
nent sacramerts of our Christianity, bap-
tism and the Lords supper, are Christs
a fO
sonal sin, and publication and redemption
therefrom
THE NEW THOUGHT
''Withir the past century, however, and
particularly in the past two decades, this
sense of sin which has so characterized the
church and been presumably so basal to
christian experience is said to be marked
ly declining. The innooulations of Emer-
son and some others and the advanced
utterances of the so-called new thought
people of our day, supplemented by the
statements of certain psychologists who
are earnestly seeking to emphasize some
ignored aspects of religious life; these ALL
with possibly other causes, are making for
this decreasing of the consciousness of sin
which Mr.. Gladstone. Canon Farrar, Will
liam Mckinley, in some of their latest ut
terances so much deplored and which
President Eliot and some other modern
For instance, in the Literary Digest OF
last week are told that Even in more
orthodox circles the feeling is taking root
that in the past too much emphasis has
been laid upon the consciousness of sim
There then given several excerpts from
Prof. George A. Goes recent book on The
Religion of a Mature Mind in which the
professor from our Northwestern Univer-
sity is very emphatic i'm his statements that
the church has made the conviction of sin
an altogether too basal doctrine in Chris
iQn q
of Paul until now the Christian concep-
ton of life has been dominated by the
thought of dsliverance from sin The fall
of man and his deliverance from sin have
been looked upon as the ultimate reason for
| the whole Christian scheme. The basis of
Christian experience has been found in a
previous experience of alienation and per-
| sonal religious culture has been controlled
by the all-pervading thought of sin.
"A reaction however. has set in against
| formerly prevalent views. The sense of
sin has declined. first. because it arose from
| conceptions of human depravity which no
| longer exist. Second, because it made per-
| sonal salvation the end of all religion, and.
| third, because the tendency is to emphasize
not evil but good. The Christian concep-
ton is moving towar Ii point Mt where the
| saved? but WHAT am l good for? Not
Does God pardon and accept me-? but
How can ] contribute most to the prog
! ress of the kingdom of God?'
I'm these closing sentences the profess
sor clearly confuses the fruitage of a
| Christian life with the personal experience
| of salvation, hut on this We may not now
dwell.
ERROR OR TRUTH.
"In view of all this, may we ask: Is this
the teaching of the Scriptures: and IL so, is
| 1t error or truth? /. The Scriptures seem
clearly to present sin as a racial, and per-
sonally universal fact. From the Genesis
records or to apostolic utterances this is
the case. 2. What have the worlds best
thinkers said hereon? The latter Greek
thought of evil was that it was negative
rather than a positive power; an essential
part of the world. AS Augustine later
conceived of it, God is the All Good and
Wise and evil is only the denial or negation
| of this. The more God and goodness are
| increased and held to the more evil dimln-
ishes: so that evil is perhaps more meta
| physical concept than anything else. An
| old idea this, upon which the so-called
new thought of our age is almost working
itself into ecstacies Leibnitz, however.
| goes far beyond those middie-age school
| men, and in his theodicie nationally reaches
the conclusion that Notwithstanding evil
and sin as necessity. this is the best of all
| possible worlds. He points out most clear
| ly that created beings must necessarily be
| limited in their powers and capacities. and
where limitation is there is evil in one form
| or another, and these forms of evil he dis
| tinguishes or characterizes as metaphysi-
cal. physical and ethical
| 1.-THE metaphysical evil was primary: ii
| belongs to everything less than God. The
| physical evil was due to the metaphysical
| and ethical evil was the free and voluntary
| dsobedience of a moral being.
| Evil thus being a necessity in the de-
! velopment of the highest moral life in linn
tied beings, God chose this kind of world
| for man, not because of it's evil. but, in
| spite of tt He determined to overrule it.
| and to this end he revealed Him
self and His power to and through
men; the revelation finally culmin-
| ating i'm the incarnation of Himself
| In our race and life in the person OF
Jesus. The very glory of the Scriptural
| revelation throughout is that the Infinite
| God is not afar off from man. but nigh
| so nigh, that He is with and of the race
in all it's struggle to achieve it's destined and
| potential glory. The Bible doctrine of evil
| is not that man Is lost and away from God
| by sin, merely. but rather man is lost by
| sin, but with God near him and with him
| in prevenient grace, in striving power, in
| holy influence, in constituting love.
| His light shines from above,
| His low voice speaks within;
| The patience of Immortal love
| Outweighing mortal sin
80 that Prof. Coe, the psychologist and
| all who speak of evil and sin as not fact
| of universal and NOT ia Ga