The daily tribune., 1908-07-13
NOTABLE
HERESY
TRIAL ON

terian church has known in years will
be commenced today by the Ouachita
Presbytery, with the Rev. +. Il.
| Maddox, pastor of the First Prosby-
terrain church OF Texarkana, rs the
defendant. DIR. Maddox is alleged to
have cast doubts upon the inspiration
of the Bible and his views of saliva
tion are declared to be heretical.
Presbyterians throughout the country
will watch the trial with interest. as
it will cover practically the same
points as have already been decided
by the northern church but which
have not yet been brought to final
issue in the southe IN branch of the
den omination.
| DR.. Maddox holds that salvati on Is
an evolution from within and not an
| importation from without. that it is
IL development of divinely i'm
planted gift and not new gift
divinely implanted. He holds that
men are saved from sin by grace as
the child is saved from ignorance
by education. As to the Scriptures,
he holds that they are inspired. but
that they are not inerrant. The
authors of them were neither
reminiscent or infallible, and there
is no proof that they were made so by
inspiration. The thought of the
! Bible came from God, but men ex-
pres sed it as they understood it and
in language most Ineligible to them
and their contemporaries. Scientific
and historical errors and defective
conception of morality are due to tho
defective knowledge of the writers
and may be accounted by the date
when the book was written and the
elementary training of the author.
The trial Of David Swing of Chi
cage for heresy thirty years ago was
based on almost identically the same
points which appear in the indict-
ment against DIR. Maddox. In those
says Bushnell. Beecher and Swing
we're pioneers in transition that
had just begun, but which has since
swept almost all over the world. 1t
is urged here by Dr. Maddox's defend
ers that II he is to be prosecuted for
some of the same things for which
Swing and Beecher were years ago
by the Northern Presbyterian church.
which has since revised it's creed, it
would seem that the Southern church,
has not made any progress in the last
thirty years, and that the difficulty
is not with DR.. Maddox, but with
the Westminster con fession Of faith
This trial Of DR.. Maddox will make
the foruth case in which some Of the
younger men in his church have had
trouble. They have been dealt with
either by the local congregation or
the higher church courts, and two or
three OF them had TO leave the demon.
ination.
The present defendant Is very
able and scholarly man, aged about
40 years, who has built magni ficenl
church, drawn around him large
following of some of the most cultur.
el people of Texarkana and section,
whose congregations are with him
heart and soul.
The charges are based on utterances
in series OF sermons which DR.. Mad.
dox delivered In his cl urch in Texar
kama, and which attracted wide
spread interest in all Southwest Ar.
kansas and Northeast Texas. Large
audiences have heard the sermons
and seemed to approve the sentimen Il
expressed therein. Some members
OF his congregation complained that
their pastor was not orthodox, and
when the matter was brought to his
attention no asked for All expressi OH
from the church, which all but uDan.
imously upheld him In his theology.
Among the numerous members.
many Of whom are tho most wealthy
and influential families in the city
only one vote WAS cast against DIR.
Maddox. The charges made by the