The Salt Lake herald. [volume] (Salt Lake City [Utah]) 1870-1909, 1906-11-26

steal body of flesh, blood and bones. Such
an existence would seem TO be not glo-
rtOus. but horrible, and such a concep-
ton is to me, not only unbelievable. it
is unthinkable What ] do mean by this
phrase is that Jesus. having accomplished
his work in the flesh, assembled into the
higher life Of the spirit. Also when 1
say Of Jesus that he was conceived by
the Holy Ghost, born of the Virgin Mary,
| do not mean that the great and liv-
ing God in order 10 get into his world
had to Violate his wonderful law of hui
man generation. break into sanctities of
marriages and cause son of man to be
born without human father
Repugnant to His Ideals.
Such a notion is most repugnant to
my ideal of wise and holy God. ! was
not, therefore, alarmed; i was relieved.
when a careful study of the holy scrip
the origin of Jesus was without founda-
ton in history. Jesus was not lessened
in my worship. He was ennobled by this
discovery. When l reached the con-
cllusion, as l did some years ago. that
the infancy stories were not historical L
did not cease to believe in Jesus. l be-
lieved i'm him all the more. and ! gave to
the words conceived by the Holy Ghost,
born of the Virgin Mary. an interpre-
tatiOn that harmoniZed with my knoWl-
edge of the facts. He was the child OF
the holy seed, sanctified from his MOTH
er's womb son of God all the more.
in my estimation. because he was the
son of man.
Cannot Change His Mind.
Now this conception of Jesus. based
upon a careful study of holy scriptures.
is of the very warp and wool OF my IN
tellectual and spiritual life, and 1t IS not
probable that it Will ever change. L VIII
carry it with mt into that spiritual world,
where L shall see Jesus face to face But
/ am told by judicial decision that this
conception is not permissible in the mind
of minister of the Protestant Eplsco-
pal church. / bow to that decision. L
cannot change my mind. l therefore
leave the church. I do not blame my
judges; they acted according TO their
light-dO not blame me If L follow my
light. which is tightening me TO the ever
lasting day. But whether they blame OF
not. / cannot do other than l dol must
obey God rather than men.
But while ! thus feel that their de-
cision is final for me, | am equally GER
tain that it is not final for the church
I have reason to know that there are
hundreds of clergymen and thousands Oh
laymen in the Protestant Episcopal
church who have reached the same con-
clusiOn that | have, and, sir, beg to
say to them in this letter to you. tnat
their position in the church is just as
tenable as it ever was.
Contention Is For Truth.
This Judgment affects no person eX-
cept myself Let no one be dlsmayeG-
Let every man stand IN MS place, Sptdh
his mind boldly and the truth VIII soon
have such a multitude of witnesses that
all in the church must hear. So cor
fident am | of the truth as Ii IS IN Je-
sus that | appeal from those IN places
of authority in the church to the church
itself. TO the great body of the people,
secure in their wise, sane serene pos
session of the truth. Again l eXhort my
brethren of like belief to stay where they
are [ am about to carry our case %
the high court of the free intelligence
and the enlightened conscience OF the
world. and if ! win it there, | Will win
for every church and every soul in chris,
tendon If | fail in that court, IL VIII
he because [ am wrong in my concep,
ton of truth; and then VIII De gao
TO fail, for my contention is not TOT my
conception but for the eternal truth oil
God
Consecrates Himself.
let nv brethren within the church
abide the issue of this trial. For when
the great triumph of free thought has
decided this contention, the men VINO ad-
minister the church on earth VIII con-
form to this decision. 1t is to this work
of showing that God Is IN I--<l anu man
Is in God that l consecrate the rest OF
my life. .+ ,bot
7 do NOT love the Lord Jesus Christ, and
would not have served him 10 the last
in this church which is TO me the MS
toric church of the great English speak,
mo race if only its men in authority had
LOT me All | asked of them was toier-
ance But they have refused to extend
Tolerance TO such as I. and | must, with
a grief which only my heart KNOWS, ac