New-York tribune. [volume] (New York [N.Y.]) 1866-1924, 1907-03-09
RITUALISM AND CREEDS.
DO They Haze the Effect of Limit
ing Freedom and Peace?

To the Editor OF The Tribune.
Sir; was brought up in the Episcopal Church and
am now one OF its members. OF late have thought
a good deal about the subject Of its creeds and wor
ship and have felt that there was a large amount
OF truth in the recent declaration OF President Eliot
Of Harvard that 'rtualsm and creeds bind and rlit
the human mind in relation to spiritual SUBJECTS
A personal friend OF the writer-a well known
Episcopal clergyman in Masachusetts-in speak
ing OF that Church says she has materialized the
Scriptures and the sacraments and everything
that she has touched" It's a severe cr1ticlsm'
but is II not in a measure true?
Only lately at a dinner given by our church guild
heard one Of our ablest Columbia University pro-
fessors say: What the pew asks Of the pulpit to-
day Is not the preaching Of dogmatism for that
is only puppyisn come to maturity and not even
religion but simply Christianity, and that too IN
q man 10 man way and without the use OF any
written discourse, The pulpit and the Pc" must
get nearer together
NV own rector has said 20 US from the pulpit;
when people become bound by the prayer DOOR,
instead of getting the spirit OF prayer. then the
prayer book is failing 10 do its work" Is 1t not
true that with many it fails all too oftenf
There IS a good deal Of material scaffOlding In
our forms OF worship and many support Its con-
tinuance because it is needed by the material
mind.
One influential EpIscopalian-a iournalist-sald;
DO not bother yourself moment on this ques-
tlou. wa who look at the thing rightly, whether
in pulpit or pew know how mtenable are many
things in our service and creeds, but what oil
that? You can make all the reservations you wish
ours IS as good a system as any Of them
Such an evasion OF this important question could
not satisfy any really earnest inquirer No man
l,noUreth God except He be revealed by the Holy
Shirt Jesus declared this in His teaching, and He
himself is the expression OF a spirit-dOminated
life and each one OF Gods children can be 50
ruIed IN his life II yields to the guidance OF the
Holy Spirit
What we need in our churches IS the spiritual
Interpretation of the Scriptures. that the people
may get hold OF God-nOt OF dOgmatism or formal
ism OF creeds and merely the letter. Led by such
nm Interpretation and by the Holy Spirit, prayer
will be the desire OF the individual heart and not
a more reading from books.
Surely we are nearing intellectual crisis In the
Church and the contest between liberalism In in
terpretation and unalterableness in creed and lit
erature as opposed to really spiritual under
standing OF the Gospels. seems to be near at hand
What. may ask has become OF the declaration
of ,o0s signed by twenty-one Episcopal clergymen.
recommending certain better methods for use In
our pulplts3 I know my pastor was one Of these
slRners and he IS thoroughly able to judge as TO
what IA needed in the way OF trained research
and the liberty Of historical research for quail
rcation in entering the ministry. This declaration
seemed at the time TO fade away into OBLIVION
What could have caused thisF
The oraplte of Christianity rests on the levels
Of human right and duty. and. as 1 believe. It is
divinely democratic. 1t evangelical among puDh-
cans aud sinners. It's mercies Ike dew zen not III
the gardens OF Herod but over abe gateways OF
tbe Moor There Is no fact in history and no force
in philosophy so submely solitary IN recogRizins
Christianity So let us have more Of l. In our
pulpits and then shall our people 1 mock d to the
shall tbemselves become true and loving evanse-
sts of the new yet os f9I8get q TSfSe ana
New York March g. 1901.