Evening star. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1854-1972, 1908-10-10
ALL ABOUT CHURCHES
Mr.. Curtis Takes Up the Sub
ject of Religion in Scotland.
OLD-TIME CUSTOMS GOING
Man-Made Hymns, Prayers and Ser.
mons Being Attacked.
CHURCHES WANT BLUE SUNDAY
Religious Statistics Scotch Congre-
gations-Ministers' Salaries
and Other Details.
OLD-TIME CUSTOMS GOING
CHURCHES WANT BLUE SUNDAY
BY WILLIAM F.. CURTIS.

By WILLIAM F.. CURTIS.
Special Correspondence OF The Star and the
Chicago Record Herald.
EDINBURGH, October 4. 1903.
A theological controversy is raging
among the Presbyterians OF Scotland. II
is nothing new. however; ii involves the
Interpretation of the Scriptures. forms of
worship and the manner Of observing the
Sabbath. These have been prolific sub
jects OF contention ever since the Ref
ormatiOn. The drift toward liberal
thought" as they call ii. which has pre-
vailed in the Established Church for many
years, has taken possession of the young
er generation of the Free and the United
Churches. and as a consequence the
Scotch Presbyterians, who for genera
lions were the personifcation Of the or
tkodox. are now getting very shaky in
their theology. AS a venerable divine re-
marked sadly:
1.-The doctrines of our fathers are go
ing to the dogs
Old-Fashioned Forms Dying Out.
The forms of worship in the Scottish
OF recent years. The old-fashioned doc
ly. and its series of conclusions. the long
prayers and the droning Of the Psalms
are practically obsolete in city churches,
and nowadays are found only in the coun-
try parishes and only in portion of
them. There has been a change in the
manner of preaching. as we'll as the
manner Of singing and other features OF
worship Presbyterian congregations are
no longer doomed to listen to sermons
of prodigious length. the ''OutpOurings OF
the vessels of wrath" or 1.-The thunder
ings from the pulpit that were SO COM
mon years ago. Ministers no longer try
to emphasize their meaning by shouting
by pounding the pulpit. by facial contor-
lions and violent gestures They do not
ding the pulpit in blads and fee out
of 1t" as they used to do. or startle their
hearers by routing (roaring) or attack
the emotions by the '.pech' or 'sough- -
There is no more "holy RAPTURE or
greeting or ''rousing whids' as the
various displays of emotion that were SC
common In past generations were called
The ordinary Scotch preacher today de-
livers his sermon In moderate. although
emphatic. manner, and his congregation
is satisfied to hear the truth without dra-
matte effect.
Tho Introduction of organs and choirs
has become general with acknowledge.
ments to MI Carnegiel and. greatly to
the grief Of the old-fashioned portion OF
the congregations, the use of gospel
hymns" and anthems instead Of the met.
rfcal versions of the Psalms OF David has
naturally followed trained singers and
musical INSTRUMENTS. But those who ad-
for their retention, not only in the gen.
eral assembly, the synods and presby-
teries, but In the newspapers, in daily
conversation and wherever men of con-
trary opinions meet.
Questions Debated in Newspaper.
L have been watching a curious debate
in the columns of the Scotsman, the
leading newspaper of the country, over
the hymn question. and some of the views
that have been expressed by correspond
ents in letters to the editor would be
considered very amusing by church peo-
pie In the United States. For example
a writer who signs himself Free Church.
man" says:
They have led the assembly to con-
denim the use Of hymns in public worship
because they are 'man-made.' But are
not the Psalms they use also 'man-made.
and quite as much SO as the hymns? They
do not sing the Hebrew orfgfnal-eg
Psalm I'll
g 'Ash'rey haish, asher to halak baatzath
r'shaim.
Ub'derek kattaim 10 amath.
Ub moshav letzim 10 yashav.'
Neither do they sing a literal trans
latiOn. as the following:
40 the blessings of the man who
Hath not walked in the council of the
wicked,
And in the way of sinners hath not stood,
And in the seat of skeptics hath not sat
But they sing a clumsy paraphrase of
the Psalmst's words as follows:
THAT man hath perfect blessedness
Who walketh not astray
In councils of ungod1y men
Nor stands in sinners way"
Again if it be unspiritual to use
hymns Of human composition in divine
worship, how can it be spiritual to use
man. made prayers and human sermons?
To be strictly logical our friends should
use only the Lords Prayer or the petit
tons of Solomon David and Daniel and
only the sermons Of Peter and Paul. IL
cannot be denied that the inspired
psalms come first in worship. There are
no hymns so grand as they, but since
they are not sung in the original, but in
the human paraphrase only, on what
grounds can the Free Church deny its
congregations the use OF the Scripture
hymns Of Cowper, Doddridge. Wesley and
Horatius BOnar. Free churchman OF
Free churchmen. which appeal to the
hearts Of the whole Christian world, be-
cause they reflect the spiritual senti-
ments and the Scripture lessons so beau
tifully.
Man-Made Hymns Denounced.
10 this appeal a gentleman on the other
side responds, with cutting sarcasm. and
says that it might be to the advantage of
many congregations if the Lords Prayer
and the prayers of Solomon and Daniel
and the sermons of Peter and Paul were
adopted today instead of many that are
heard from modern pulpits; and then con-
tinues:
But with respect TO the Psalms, have
in the worship of God? Have We not the
express command of an apostle to use
Psalms. hymns and spiritual songs and
can that be taken to mean other than the
Psalms of David? AS to Free Church.
man saying We do not chant the Psalms
in Hebrew. no refutation is necessary. 1t
is sufficient to say that the metrical trans
latiOn we use is most accurate and har-
moniOus and cannot be included in the
same category with man-made hymns any
more than the Sermon on the Mount can
be included with the new theology that
we hear so much about. The decay of the
Free Church is due, not to her holding
strenuously to the plain, simple inter-
probation of the Scripture. but to the toll
Grafton within her membership of men
holding such views as your correspond
emit"
Sabbath Amusements an Abomina-
ton.
Sabbath observance is also a subject of
great concern, and organized attempts
ora ba;p. p,odo tn nrocoruo tho I ord IS