Orange County observer. [volume] (Hillsborough, N.C.) 1880-1918, 1904-03-17
IS NOT DIFFICULT.
OUR REGULAR SUNDAY SERMON.

WIN NLVULAA SUlVUAI SEkMUN. |
1t Is Easier to Believe In God Than
1t Is to Believe In Men-A Strong
Discourse.
BROOKLYN, N. Y.-"Christians outside
the Church" was the subject of the SER
mon Sunday morning by the Rev. Robert
Mac Donald, pastor Of the. Washington Ave
nue. Baptist Church. 1t was the first of
series OF five sermons. The text was from
John X: Is: "Other sheep I have which
are not of this fold'' Mr.. Macdonald
said:
So important and many sided subject
one view point. Numberiess are the ques-
t1ons to be considered. Numberless the
opinions favorable and unfavorable, true
and false, to be confirmed in these SER
mons or repudiated Numberless the peo-
pie interested in so practical and personal
a question, some of whom love the church
better than life; others of whom hate the
churcn more than any other institution
IN existence; some who trace their loftiest
aspirations, their deepest motives, their
hottest desires back to her as fond moth
er who lives to nourish her children with
her own rich life; others who have never
received the least benefit therefrom, of
which they are conscious and boldly
sert that little benefit to humanity ever
emerged from her portals. Some go so far
as to make the church synonymous with
Christ's kingdom, and maintain that to
be a member OF the one is to be member
of the other, and consequently yield to her
fanatical reverence. Others swing clear
to the other extreme and consider the
church nothing better than the product
of jealous rivalry for pre-eminence over
other institutions of earth, else the ex-
preston in wood and stone Of overwrought
sensbilities. Therefore, the monument of
most irrational superstition. While an
innumerable many identify themselves
with the church because they believe it to
be a benefcent institution ordained of
morally and spiritually impoverished, and
through which the spirit is working for
the redemption of humanity, in which di-
vine strength can be had for the ills of
life.
I desire that our starting point in these
discussions should be in favor of religious
toleration. As love is the centre of the
Christian SYSTEM so must it be the motive
| in every church claiming to be Christian
chruch. AS Christ our Master was toler-
| ant Of and charitable toward those who
were not numbered among the twelve
| disciples and forty apostles, so must we
\ as His followers be tolerant in thought.
| word. act, to those not of our number, and
| outside our communion. There is greater
vious period of the worlds history The
church of to-day is more advanced than
| the church of yesterday. Its intelligence
is greater; its light clearer; its affinity
with the Holy Spirit more personal; its
hold upon the cross of Christ, that power
| Of redemptive love, sacrificing itself even
unto death, stronger. The church of the
I 10th fn ho an6 oh
| upon us if it is not, more spiritual than
| the church of the thirteenth century. or
| even than the church Of the nineteenth
! century.
But not only in view of our superior
| spiritual enlightenment, also III view OF
our peculiarly complex state of living
should we be tolerant. It is the age OF
differentiation and OF classification. Every
| significant fact OF life has been forced to
submit to. division and subdivision to al,
amazing extent. Look, for instance: at
education. Trace it through the modern
| university curriculum. Contrast it with
the most comprehensive collegiate institu
ton Of century ago. You are over
whelmed with the multitudinous depart
ments, and subdepartments and branches
of instruction, and professional chairs. Al
these necessary, YOU say, to educate the
youth. To adequately impart knowledge
to meet the ever increasing intellectual de
mands Yes. The renaissance that callee
Europe from it's dark ages Of intellectual
slumber has not vet spent it's force. Meas
ure the term medicine, or surgery with TIT
imposing stature of the general practl
toner of twenty years ago. The stature
is no longer imposing. The specialist o
single bodily function is more imposin!
now. And for the human body the worl
of the one has been divided into the skill
of the hundreds and each unit in the vas
aggregate is more authoritative than th
one. The term philosophy. no longer rec
and intellectual Each division has bee,
differentiated, and each differentiation sug
gests to the mind content and comprehen
siveness, richer and more compact thar
the original classification from which i
sprang. Metaphysics, theism,- idealisn,
empricism, economics, sociology, .psycho]
ogy, biology, and many, more are the :, term ;,
now familiar to our thought. And hoy
vast the field Of consciousness covered b,
any one of these significant terms. Eco
nomics a very modern term for lnstanc
postulates for us; the land question: TIL
tenement house problems the theory Q
wealth, industrial organization, all socla
istic and communistic relation.
The same in Jurisprudence, In commerc
and trade, in everything of worth. Th
difference between the big department
store and the little trader illustrates tn
idea. Yet how surprised we are that W
should have wandered relgiously ia
afeld from the primitive apostolic church
with our highly differentiated 0credal an
ritual expressions, our numerous ecclesias
tical orders, our multiplicity of organ
zation. Bless you, it. only shows We al
. alive and growing and anxious to app,
the gospel Of Jesus to all sorts and cond
tions of men The worldly minded ciail
that denominationalism is distracting an
sigh for a Christian unity that will swa
low mp all religious divisions. But, beliey
me, denominationalism makes more ft
, the glory of Christianity than for il
shame. The only shame about it all
that denominationalislm at times nurture
| spirit of Phariseeism that sees no Go
in any other division of the Christian TO,
than it's own. 1t has been only a fe
years since the medical students of Ha
ward fellowshipped the aspirant fol. vete
mary honors. The term horse doctor
| was the term of salutation. The veteril
ary student, as the student of dentistr
| was occupied with such inferior subje
matter. Yes, but necessary subject ma
ter. So of the Anglican churches and Il
! | non-conformists Of England. The one
poor stuff to the other, tolerated only
the point of taxation to support the
| eohoolc Similar intolerance uaS felt +