The Manning times. [volume] (Manning, Clarendon County, S.C.) 1884-current, 1909-04-07

the Truths OF Christ as our Pass
over and the git of the Holy
Ghost, is every day keeping an
Easter and Peutecostal feast:
The ecclesiastical historian Soc
rates (Hist. Eccl., V. 22) states
with perfect truth that neither
Christ nor his Apostles enjoined
the keeping Of this or any other
festival. THE Apostles. he
writes, had no thought of ap-
pointing festival days: but Of
promoting a life Of blamelessness
aud piety::' and he attributes the
introduction of the festival OF
Easter into the church to the
perpetuation of an old usage,
sjust us many other customs have
been established This is doubt
less the true statement Of the
case" Encyclopedias Britannica,
Vol. Z, Page GA.
Although the Introduction OF
the Easter customs can be traced
to at least the beginning Of the
second century, under the pro
test of many devout leaders Of the
church, it continued to be source
of great perplexity to those who
adopted it fol. three or four cen
turies. The Jewish wing of the
church contended for and prac-
ticed the rule on the Jewish Pass
over which fell on the 14th day
Of the moon. at evening, and the
Easter festival would immediate.
ly follow, entirely irrespective OF
the day of the week. The Gentle
element Of the church, entirely
unfettered by Jewish tradition,
identified the first day of the
week with the Resurrection fes
tival, and the preceding Friday
would be kept as q commemora
ton of the Cruclfxion, irrespec
tive of the day of the month.
This see-saw confession kept
the churches in division and up
roar over the time, the nature
and motive Of the feast until the
diversity of usage was gradually
brought to an end by a verdict o.
the church of Rome. Then fol
lowed the difficult question o!
computing the time which LASTED
until well into the eighth century
when a calendar was arranged tt
compute the time from, not {
natural moon but from an eccle
siestical imaginary moon. Hence
the time of Easter now varies
I not with reference to a partlcu
lar day Of the year. neither Of the
real moon. so that it falls by the
ecclesiastical code Of reckoning
anywhere from the 22nd of March
to the 25th of April.
It will be seen that the intro
duction of this unchristian cere
mony into the Christian church
has ever been a source Of grea
perplexity and often of sore tria
and abuse of the rights Of Chris
tian citizenship. One wing of {
contention over the rite woule
gainascendency and exclude from
the fellowship Of the church al
who differed from them in view
and practice of what had become
by prestige the most essentla
mark and service of the church.
When by Papal mandate these
quabbles We're settled SO that or
ganic peace reignedin the church
es over the former differences, i
was then thought best to extene
its observance over the entire
time allotted for the Jewish Pass
over, often ending the festivitle:
in scenes Of debauchery not les:
shameful than the Feast of Bel
shaZzar.
It has been clearly shown b,
the best authorities on record tha
it is neither an Introduction O
Apostolic precept or example
nor approved by the most worth,
church fathers in the immediate
apostolic succession.
The question then very peril
nently arises, why do Protestan
FChristians engage in the practice
To comply with t 3 rage of pop
ular sentiment! VIII it be admit
ted thatones creedal center has 81
far left the standards and require
ments of original Biblical teach
ings, that they would rather b.
governed by the mandates O
Rome and the giddy sentiment:
Of fuusanctiiedhuman societytha1
to stand for and uphold those sim
pie gospel truths in the name G
Christianity which find their law:
| in the revelation Of Jesus Chris
and the cry Of depraved human
souls:
It is not too late for Christian
| ity to correct its errors. Thi:
among other silly and hurtful in
Productions will need to be elm
mated ere the usheriug in OF tht
Millennial dawn.
II it shall be said that it is OBJ
served as a memorial Of the Res
direction of Jesus. one will inc
least of all that spirit in the rage
for ostensible excellence every
where manifested. Our Lord him
self gave the first day Of every
week as a memorial Gay Of his
Resurrection II was so celebra