Burlington weekly free press. [volume] (Burlington, Vt.) 1866-1928, 1906-01-11


Of the new year? AS the year 1905 has
slipped into the year 1906 we seem
to be in almost as dramatic a position
as were the Athenians when listening
to the preaching of the mighty Paul.
God in the first place has borne with
our ignorance theological. He mas been
dealing with our creeds great deal as
he has been dealing with the shrines
Of the Athenian worshipers. TO use
homely figure, he has been shutting
his eyes to our superstitions as moth
err sometimes pretends not TO see the
wrongdoings Of her little child, because
she does not think it best to correct the
boy now. Man in the past has been
holding the Baptist creed and the Epis-
copal creed and the Methodist creed
and the Presbyterian creed >and the
Lutheran creed and the Catholic creed
sometimes with as little intelligence as
did the Athenans worshipng at the
affairs Of Mercury, an Apollo. a Ju-
piter a Juno and Hephaestus. but
now men are beginning to realize that
while 1t IL important to adhere faith
fully to the creeds Of their respective
churches the supreme necessity Is that
they give their loyal worship to the
Holy Trinity. Of whom God is the Fa-
tner and Jesus Christ the elder brother
and the holy spirit is the paraclete.
And yet my friends, there was time
when Christian people built their Sec
tartan fences so high that they could
not see any good in any church unless
that church belonged to their own
household Of faith.
No sooner did John Wesley come into
touch with the Moravians and get a
broader conception Of Christ than had
the EpiscOpalians than at once the
chnncel Of the Church of England was
closed against him. To the Episco-
palian he became spiritual outcast.
No sooner did John Bunyan attempt to
start forth as nonconformist preach.
er than at once he had TO surrender his
pulpit for Bedford Jail. No sooner did
Albert Barnes. like st. John, get a
broader vision Of heaven than had his
ministerial brethren than he was de-
prived OF his Presbyterian orders, and
tho greatest Bible teacher and COM
mentator Of his generation had to sit in
the pew Of the First Presbyterian
church of Philadelphia rs worshper
instead Of standing in the pulpit rs a
preacher. All the prosecutions of the
dark ages were due to the worship Of
sectarian creed. All the horrors Of a
st. Bartholomew massacre and the
murderings Of the Covcnanters among
Scottish hills and the fiendish works
of a Bloody Mackenzie" and OF a
Bloody Mary" We're due TO the wOr'
ship at denominational altar instead
of the cross of Jesus Christ. Oh, re-
ligion, religion, what awful crimes
have been committed in thy name The
demons of the darkest cayerns and the
most bestial of sins have drcnched
their garments with human gore be-
cause under the helmets of sectarian-
ism they have been prompted TO I'M
sheath the sword Of bigotry. But now
all things are being changed. Paul re-
revealed the unknown God to the
Athenians. Jesus Christ has revealed
God to us. Now our religious teachers
have become so broad that they arc
ready to join all Protestant churches in
one great federation for Christian work
as long as the one cardinal doctrine OF
those churches is Jesus Christ the Saw
Jour. who has come to save man, 4
sinner"
Christian Federation.
And. mark You. this revelation OF
Christ has not been gladly acclaimed
by the churches during the past centu
ries. but only within the last few years
You must think of this church fellow
ship as n child W our youth ana not
as n blessing of bygOne generations. II
was as late as the life of Patrick Hen
ry. who died in 1899, that the Baptist
ministers OF old Virginia were called
upon to defend themselves in the Grim
inal dock because they were charged
with preaching the gospel of the sor
of God" You who are students of his
tory recall how the same eloquenct
which fired Nhe American colonists fol
"liferty or death reused the hearts OF
his jurors when Patrick Henry pleaded
for the freedom of the indicted Baptis
| MINISTERS, My NIOu. ne tlle'l' 'hu !
be that any man should be charged al
criminal for preaching the love Of
Jesus Christi" Then. again and agar
he waved the indictment above him AT
he said. For preaching the love Of
Jesus Christ" But now. thank God. al
such criminal trials are past. God has
revealed himself to us theologlcally
We know. and we'll know, that foreor
dinatiOn or Arminianism or belief IL
apostolic succession is not "ssenta
for salvation. Believe on the Lore
Jesus Christ and be saved, was thu
slogan OF Paul and is the slogan of thu
modern Christian pulpts. Sectarian in
tolerance is being rapidly demolished
We might have chung to our sectarian
ism in the past as the Athenians clunl
to their affairs of gold and silver an(
marble before Paul appeared. But w
cannot, we dare not do so now. Their,
is but one true altar, and that Is thu
altar Of Jesus Christ. And the time,
Of this ignorance God winked at. bu
now commanded all men every where
to repent" Repent, Repent. Repent II
Christ's name or We shall all likewise
perish.
But God has borne with our mora
ignorance as well as our theological in
tolerance. He has been overlooking TO
t,,r AZ, y, n x,1