The Newtown bee., 1905-11-17

The attitude of many toward the Church is peculiar. They admit that Christ is good, and.true and beauti- full; but they have no use for His Church. They can say nothing against Christian conduct and character, for it is the best the world has, of course; but still they neglect, or refuse to be taught in the school of Christ; they are not willing to enter into the fel- loWShip of His family; they do not obey His simplest commands; they do not take His name upon them by holy baptism; they stumble over the weak ness of those who try to be faithful; they cavil at the abuses of religion; and sometimes such persons assume to he superior in conduct and character to those who profess better things.
 Now what do these people want? Would they have Christianity without the Christ? But that cannot be. The truth and the love of God is not to be found as it is in Jesus, in any other. There is no other name under heaven given among men by which we can come home to our Father as we can in that of the meek and lowly Son of Man. Would they be saved without the Saviour? Do they prefer to climb up some other way into the fold of the divine Shepherd? Do they expect to have and enjoy the benefits of salva- tion without any regard for the Church of the living eternal God, refusing or neglecting to use the means to the end?
 Men do not act in such wise toward any other Institution of the many which have been established for the mutual good of the human family. If one wants to do business he enters +l, ,J If h,,ci world, and takes his place among the fellows of his own class and kind, and uses the means available to the desired end. And he does not mistake the means for the end; nor exalt the end so as to neglect the means. The means and the end must stand in right relations, from start to finish. Science, common sense, and universal eXperl- ence teach that. If one wants to be social he goes into society, and be- comes an active, responsive member of l the circle he seeks. There is no other way. l one would become wise and cultivated he goes to the schools and colleges, and keeps himself in touch with the sJudent-life, and scholarship of the times. That is the best course. 1 Now Christianity works by the same laws. Religion has the same human nature, and social relations to deal with in the Church, that we ind in business, in society, and in educational institutions. The means are divinely adapted to the end. But we must use them, in religion as in the other great interests of the world. We must use them willingly, intelligently, and l faithfully. or we cannot expect to reach the desired results. The means are nothing in themselves. What are churches, sacramentS, services, in themselves alone? What do the forms of our divine worship amount to with out the quickening power of the di- vine life Of the Spirit of Christ?
 For neither is the church anything,
 nor business, nor society, nor schools and colleges, nor any of the inStitu-
 tDns of tlIe word, "but a new crea
 iurc'-thc results of this life summed
 ID in moral character, spiritual attain
 nentS, arG the divine culture, Whicf
 i> all that we can carry with us into
 the eternal kingdom which is from
 Gpd, cOtujng down into the hearts
 minds, and wills of the children O1 earth. The germ of the gOdlike wa! , created in l>: tine world in which we
 begin our cn'iocinuS being IS beautiful ly fitted to be our home In these nor
 tai relations; Christ has died to vii
 our love: the Holy Spirit woos ou
 souls; and every work of God, in Ma
 ture, and hy Grace would tend tt
 make us "a new creation"
 John c. Rasmussen of Bridgepor