The Birmingham age-herald. [volume] (Birmingham, Ala.) 1902-1950, 1905-10-15


just this word more: 1t Is the spirit of
Christ which is insulted. 1t is the spirit
of Christ which Is barred out whenever
anywhere such action is taken as thal
which shut tho doors of the lnter-Church
conference In the faces of the Unitarian
delegates and far rather would STAND
at this time with the Christian men ex-
cluded than with the Christian men re-
sponsible for their exclusion"
The Rev. DR.. A. j. Dickinson.
DR.. Dickinson, pastor of the First Bap-
fist church, said:
"It occurs to me that 1t would have
been eminently wise to have Included the
IJnitarians in the number invited to the
convention. | have always held that they
were believers In Jesus in the sense re-
quisite to salvation of the SOUL
at Is not necessary that one make an
inventory of divine attributes and sub
scribe thereto in order to reap the saving
benefits of Jesus. Lots of people have been
saved who never had any Intelligent con-
ception of the dogma of the DIVINITY OIL
Jesus or the doctrine or the unity OF
the Godhead. They simply trust the Loro
for whatever He Is and find Him true to
their need and walt for better concep-
ton of His essence and personality 10
come through further light.
"When we come to see Him as He is
we will all marvel at the inadequacy OF
our theology compared to the ah-sui-
ficiency of His person. and learn that we
are saved by His grace through simple
trust in Him and In spite OF much super
stition and error. The Unitarians as well
as the rest of us will have much theology
to rectify when the fuller light snail
come | fall therefore to see why the
committee should have had an examina-
ton in theology so prematurely. Besides
In the form that theological thought as
sumes in our day 1t would take an expert
theologian to appreciate the difference be-
tween the Unitarian forms of belief. 1t
Is little more than a question of theolog-
ical theory and but little affects the re-
quisites of Jehovah to do justly, love
kindness and to walk humbly with thy
Cod W
God Great Enough.
"The Lord is great enough to be appre-
hended by faith that is as grain OF
mustard seed, but too great to be compre-
hended In the most profound theology.
1t occurs to me therefore that the right
place to have drawn the line for partici-
pants in this federation of Christians was
that of a personal trust In a personal
Saviour / fall to see the logic that ad-
mits a accommodation and excludes
Unitarian. The former is certainly the
least evangelical of the two. BY this
whole effort, If 1t is to start out with
'~N'f'N@
ure.
american Christianity Is so leavened
with the doctrine of religious liberty and
individual accountability to God. for
which the Baptist preachers of century
and half ago went to Jail, that ecclesi-
astical unity under imposed tests will ex-
plode and only issue In yet further
division of sects. The unity Of the spirit
In the bond of peace is all the unity pos
sble in a Christianity so thoroughly
leavened with the freedom wherewith
Christ sets free. A federation based on
trust in the Lord, and liberty to serve
Him according to the dictates of each
conscience. and personal accountability to
Him on the part of each might be possi-
BILE. But speaking for Baptists l may
say that they will not take part in being
entangled again in the yoke of secta-
rian sacramental bondage. They stand
for a Christianity which is spiritual, free
and therefore catholic and ruled by the
royal law of liberty. In any procrustean
ecclesasticism they may be always num-
bered as non-conformist, dissenters and
separatists.
1--WE believe In fastening spiritual life
by the largest liberty and the greatest
burden of Individual responsibility. Who
art thou that judgest the servant OF an
other? To his own Lord he standeth or
falleth. Yea he shall be made to stand,
for the Lord hath power to make him
stand A profession of faith In Jesus
ought to be sufficient prima facie evil
dence OF any mans Christianity which
even committee of federation should
respect / hope the Unitarians will push
their claims to seats before the conven-
ton. They have an opportunity to do
that convention a great service. The day
is passed when religious beliefs are set
tied by a show of hands In any council,
however Ecumenical They are settled
by the consensus of the best scientific
scholarship like all other matters per-
tinent to life.'
DR.. Stagg.
Said the Rev. DIR. John w. Stage, pastor