Evening star. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1854-1972, 1906-11-30
RECTOR ON CRAPSEY
REV. MR.. BOWLING THINKS HE
ACTED WRONGLY.

to be the theme of widespread discussion
here. The Rev. DR.. George Thomas Dow
ling, rector Of St James Episcopal Church,
Brooklyn. and very prominent member,
has this to say Of the action of the bishops
in the New York Tribune:
LAS a pronounced broad church man,
whose whole sympathies are with those
who would interpret the Scriptures and
the creeds not according to the letter
which killeth,' but the spirit which giveth
life, and as one who, years ago, after long
elaboration, regrettfully parted with the
Christian denomination in which he was
born, to identify himself with the Profess
tant Episcopal communion, because he be-
lieved, as he still believes, that 1t was the
roomest church in Christendom, will you
permit a brief statement of certain elemen-
tary ethical principles which seem to him
to underlie this whole discussion concern
Ing the case of one who is beloved by all
who know him, the Rev. Algernon S.
Crapsey.
What are the limits of liberty in the
Interpretation Of the creed? Well, there are
no limits ecept the limits of Gods truth.
For what is truth? Reality. Whatever
is real is true; whatever Is untrue is un-
real: If our creed is real we Epscopalians
need not to be afraid Of the light If it
Is unreal, or If We suspect it is, then we
ought to be afraid of the darkness, for it
is not the church which shall preserve the
truth. In the end it is, and always must
be, the truth which must preserve the
church.
Core Of the Question.
But now-and here it seems to me we
approach the very core Of this whole ques-
tion-suppose a man is an ordained minister
of the Protestant Episcopal Church; what,
then, are the limits of his liberty in the
Interpretation Of the creed? The writer
may be very obtuse, but it certainly seems
I'm hof fhnr No apIxr
They are, of coruse, the limits of the Prot
estant Episcopal Church
The liberty of investigation is as wide as
the universe of God. No man is compelled
to sign a creed but when he does he volun-
tarily thereby places himself under bond to
keep the peace, or else quietly to pass out
and permit others to keep the peace. The
question Is not whether he is in the right.
He may be In the right and all the rest of
us who differ from him may be in the
wrong. If SO, SO much the better for him
and SO much the worse for US. But the ques-
ton is whether as a minister of the Pro-
testant Episcopal Church he is in the right
place. The question is whether it is not
the only manly thing for such one to do
voluntarily to relinquish the perquisites and
prerogatives of an office when even for con-
Sc1entiouS causes he no longer fulfil
its obligations. He ought not to be put out;
and for two reasons The first Is that
heresy trial ninety-nine times out of hun
dred does more harm than the heresy which
ing to stamp them out. And the other
reason is that it ought not to be necessary.
Such one ought to go out. And if any
say that by giving such counsel we are re-
stricting his liberties 1 answer: No, just
the opposite. We are liberalizing his re-
strictions. We are taking down the bars
instead of putting them up. We are point
Ing him to where he can present his latest
thought, whether it be Unitarianism, Sabel-
lianism. Atheism, Nothingarianism, any,
thing, absolutely with no one to hinder or
make him afraid We are pointing him to
where he can find for his parish what Har-
rlet Martineau was accustomed to describe
as the broad and breezy common of the
universe
Need Not Want Pulpit.
mo earnest man. such as DR.. Crapsey,
need be in want of pulpit. And If the worst
comes to the worst, barrel heads are cheap
and street corners are plenty. True, it may
require sacrifice, but all of US have to sac
rifice for the truth. Some of us have Some
of us who are proud today to number our
selves among the members of this church
can say With great price purchased l
this freedom
And then, again, perhaps he may be
wrong, and all the rest who differ from him
may be right. That at least Is possible.
And If, as st. Paul said, They who preach
the Gospel should live by the Gospel the
converse is equally true that they who live
Dy the GOSpel should preach the Gospel.
And the Protestant Episcopal Church holds,
if it holds anything at all, that Unitarian
ism Is not the Gospel.
Il am not talking now of variety of In
terpretation l am not talking now of the
man who, like David, takes the old ark
and puts 1t on a new cart. Every genera
ton needs new cart-a fresh and often a
larger Interpretation of the truth That
must be permitted, and in this church 1t Is
permitted. AS Bishop Doane has we'll ex-
pressed 1t. The church in it's liturgy and
hard and fast fnsistence upon definitions
and details 1 am not talking about the
man who puts the old ark on new cart,
but of him who uses the very position the
church has given him to smash the old
ark. Where, them shall we draw the line?
Here! AS an ordained minister of the
Protestant Episcopal Church 1 have right
to explain the creed, but as an ordained
minister of the Protestant Episcopal
Church 1 have no right to explain it away
When Robert ElSmere can no longer stand
in his chancel and say I believe without
making believe. then, in the name of God
let him go where he believe.
THAT, to my mind. Is the conclusion of
the whole matter. Let man preach what
he believes. Woe to him if he should
preach anything else. But when the time
comes when he can no longer believe what
he has promised to preach then let the same
open, by his own hand. to let him out Thus
he will retain the respect of his brethren,
he will retain the respect of the man on
the street and he will respect himself
mo one can read DR.. Crapsey's letter re-
Gently published, without recognizing the
profound beauty of the mans character,
his spirituality and sincerity. But DIR.