The sun. [volume] (New York [N.Y.]) 1833-1916, 1905-05-14
DR.. CARTER MAKES AN APPEAL
WESTMINSTER CONFESSION TO
CONE UP IN GENERAL ASSEMBLY.

overture From the nassau FrespyteTg'
Before the General Assembly Of the
Presbyterian Church. which meets a.
Winona Lake, Ind, May IS, ls 10 be dis
oussed the overture made by the Presby-
terry Of Nassau for the dropping Of the
Westminster Confession OF Faith and the
substitution therefor Of the Brief State
ment OF the Reformed Faith. There pro
misses 10 be a lively discussion over the
overture between the conservatives and
the radicals, who may be known as the re-
formers.
Recently the Brief Statement Of the Re-
formed Faith was adopted by General As
sembly but not as the creed Of the church,
the old system Of the Westminster Con-
fession being still retained as the creed.
On Sept IS last the Rev. DR.. Samuel
T. Carter Of New York city, In an open
letter to the Presbytery, which attracted
wide attention, assaIled certain doctrines
received by the Church, but not generally
believed.
For the pennlng Of the letter Il was
thought that Dr. Carter might DO tried for
heresy, but after appearing before the
Presbytery Of Nassau and making an APP
statements, however time honored, he
tTtumphed In that, instead Of trying him
for heresy, the Presbytery voted 20 overture
the General Assembly to drop the West
minister Confession and substitute the Brief
Statement Of the Reformed Faith.
DR.. Carter, whose defense Of his beliefs
led 10 the overture Of the Presbytery, has
given out the following statement:
THE General Assembly Of the Presbyte-
Ran Church meets in the month Of May.
The Presbytery Of Nassau asks the General
Assembly to take the necessary steps for
dropping the Westminster Confession and
adopting the Brief Statement Of the Re-
formed Faith, a simpler creed which has
already been Endorsed by the Church.
The General Assembly can reject the petition
more OF less oourteously, But can the AS
sembly afford TO do it7 Il Is important
20 rid the Church Of a bad creed, but still
more important to dispel from the minds
Of meh the very gloomy ideas Of religion
which 60 With the old creeds, and. most Of
all, the dreadful dogma Of endless torment
which has caused such int ense suffering.
The secular press has thus far treated the
matter 80 courteously and alphabetically
that | feel 1t TO be a privilege to present
my appeal before the public through it.
The Westminster Confession presents
for the worship and allegiance Of men a
God who. according to the good pleasure OF
his will, assigned the millions Of the human
race 10 endless torment before they were
born or had done good or III. OF this num-
Der a large company died in infancy and COM
mitted no personal transgression. The
whole heather world formed another large
company by the teachings of the Confession
Homer and Virgil, Plato and Socrates, Cato
and Antoninus, Coufucius and Gautama
are at this moment roasting in the literal
flames of hell fire and shall 80 burnfor ever
and ever. Has the Presbyterian Church
the face to make this declaration to the men
Of this generation2 The Westminster Con-
fession in fact says that God is monster
modern theology says that he is not.
In this sentCn noe lies the whole gist OF the
contention Tamerlane built a pyramid
Of two thousand men Of the garrison Of
Herat, laid in brick and mort ar, and history
calls him a monster for doing it, Lord
Jeffreys presided over the Bloody Circuit
In which he condemned 700 to execution,
and he stands scorned and by himself on
the roll Of England's Chanoellors. But
Tamerlane and Jeffreys were sweet souls
compared with a God who could condemn
a whole race TO endless torment for a sin gle
sin
Readers Of Lorna Doone' will remember
now Ilo TODDeT DOOnte Ol DdkNOIIuy
looted a farmers cottage and found
little babe In its cradle. One Of them called
to his conrade to have a game with him.
He tossed the infant to the other, who caught
il upon the point Of his pike. We call these
men fiends, but they were bright angels
and serapfs compared with a God who
could send millions Of infants to eternal
torments, Every fiber OF my moral being
rises up against this God-Gishonoring the
ology; with the utmost fervor Of my soul /
reject this God Of the Confession, and as
fully as 1 reject this God so gladly do l
receive the God Of the gospel Of Jesus Christ
the Father in the great parable who runs
forth to meet his wretchei but repenting
son, falls upon his neck and kisses him.
And quite as Objectionable as the God OF
the Confession is the man Of the Confession,
utterly indisposed, disabled and made
! turn from this man to the everyday man
who has wrought the great wonders OF an
tiuuity, and to-day has built the great ocean
steamers the Brooklyn Bridge and the sub
ways, who brings home his hard earned
wages and laws them in his wife's lap for
home and children, who goes down into the
little boat in the hell Of waters TO save the
n el in the other shin who few weeks ago
in New York cried There's a woman there
and fought his way against kind preventing
hands went into the burning house and
never came out. / take this common man
70 my heart-Jesus did-and / say he Is a
child Of God rising out Of ignorance and
sorrow into the full Sonship and everlasting
life. / would take my place with this man
rather than with the theologians who from
their easy chairs pronounce him 'indisposed
and made opposite to all good and incl ined
20 all evil
Now why should there be any zeal for
this Confession with its God and man-this
that so many re iect with such abhorrence-
why should Il be 40 cherished and main
tanned? As Elijah said 70 Israel II the
Lord b, God, follow Him. but II Baal, then
follow him so can It be said 10 the General
Assembly II the God Of the Gospels be God,
follow Him but II the God Of the Confession
be God. follow him. They cannot keep the
one GOD for their creed and theological
seminaries and the other for their pupits
and common talk.
THE moral sense OF the people is shocked
nv the shilly-shallving OF the Presbyterian
Church az to the Confession. The present
connection Of the Presbyterian Church
with the Confession IL II were not so serious
would be a farce; being so serious, II Is a
crime. What must the people think Of the
ministers il they accept this God Of the Con-
fession; what must they they think Of them
II they do not accept him, but solemnly affirm
that they do in the act Of ordination7 A
sham theology is sure TO make a sham re-
ligion, and a sham reli gion IL sure to lead
to the horrors OF the Roman Empire and
the French Revolution, the eruption Of the
human volcano, most dreadful Of all 1t