Fergus County argus. [volume] (Lewistown, Mont.) 1886-1946, 1904-10-12
UNITARIAN
SERVICES
The Rev. e. Stanton Hodgin, Of Hell.
ena, Preached TWO Sermons in
Lewistown Sunday.
UNITY CLUB WILL BE FORMED
Preliminary steps Taken Sunday Ev
enins to Organize Club In Inter
ests Of unitarianism.

The Rev. E. Stanton Hodgin, minis
ter OF the First Unitarian church of
Helena, was in the city Sunday and
held two services in Culver's opera
house. Mr.. Hodgin is one of the best
OF the speakers who have appeared
in Lewistown and those who heard
him Sunday were much pleased with
his addresses. He spoke in the morn.
ing on the subject, The Idea Of
Cod and preached a strong, logical
sermon to a small but interest
ed congregation. In the I've
ing the subject Of the sermon vas
The Bible and the speaker brought
out many points which were entirely
new to his hearers. A brief synopsis
of the sermon follows:
THE Unitarian church is a volun-
tary organization of individuals who
gather together to seek the truth. We
profess no common belief but each In
diyidual has a belief of his own. We
never try TO substitute the belief Of
one for the belief of another. We be-
lieve that by interchange we can come
TO a higher understanding than We
car reach alone.
The Bible has passed through
many and various vicissitudes. Poo.
pie have held so many different views
in regard to it. Some people think
the Bible is entirely different from
any other literature of the world. That
IL came into being in d miraculous
way and that it holds all the wisdom
of the world. Others think it a pro-
duct of the priests, a sort of counter
felt of the priests TO exercise a hold
over the people.
Neither one of these views is held
by the great scholars of the day. The
Bible is coming to be thought of as
q natural product. We needed such
men as Payne and Ingersoll to shock
the people and bring them to The
right idea of the Bible. II is a relig-
ious product of a a C of people who
lived 1000 years ago. 1t possesses a
peculiar and wonderful insight into
the peoples of that time.
I'VE hear people say that they are
Bible Christians; that they a obtain
all their religion from the Bible and
that if all could do the same all strife
and warfare among the sects would
cease. They assume that this book
contains one complete system of re-
ligion. In fact every sect is made
up of Bible Christians in just this
way, and instead of all being alike,
the warfare between the sects has be
come more bitter. The Roman Cath
olics feel fully assured that the prim'
acy of the Pope and of his church is
established in the Bible without any
possibility of controversy. This diff
ference in beliefs is moi because of
what the people read in the Bible,
but because each belief is actually
found in It. Somewhere between Gen
esis and Revelations you can find each
one set forth.
1.-THE Bible Is not a book of religion
but the literature of religions. What
people find there Is a good index oil
their characters. We select that por.
ton which appeals to our individual
natures. II you wanted to find a book
which would correspond with it you
would have to make one The writer's
in the Bible were widely separated
from each other in time and beliefs,
We might just as well expect modern
writer's to agree as to look for agree
ment between the writers in the Bible,
Ezra and Isaiah were as far apart In
their beliefs as Cardinal Gibbons and
Edward Everett Hale.
Portions of the literature OF the
Bible are legendary and will not stand
the tests of history. They are more
valuable than history itself. for they
show what the people of that time be.
lieved. Trace all history back and
you will find il shading off into leg
end. The history in the Bible is some
times authentic and often is colored
according to the beliefs of those who
wrote it. We find poetry of various
kinds. the most conspicuous being me
Psalms. The Psalms made up the
hymn book of the Hebrew people.
Job Is as perfect a drama as Hamlet
or King Lear. 49,.
"A study of different attitudes which