Evening star. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1854-1972, 1909-07-26
DISCUSS DR.. ELIOT
Local Ministers AnalyZe the
New Religion
VIEWS OF DR.. SHANNON
Thinks DR.. Eliot Misquoted In State
ments of No Greed.
CRITICISED BY TWO PASTORS
Rev. Drs. helms and Leech Declare
Their Opposition to Some Of
Educators Utterances.
CRITICISED BY TWO PASTORS

The new religion. recently out
lined by DIR. Charles w. Eliot. president
jemeritus of Harvard University, before
the universitys summer school of the
lolosy, was discussed yesterday from their
pulpits by Washington PASTORS including
Rev. j. Henning Nelms, rector OF the
Church of the Ascension: Rev DR.. Arthur
W. Spooner of the Sixth PRESBYTERIAN
lChurch and Rev DIR. S. Y. Leech or the
Independent Lutheran Church.
In an interview today Rev. DIR. John
Reid Shannon. pastor of Metropolitan Me-
mortal Methodist Church, also took up
DIR. Eliot's utterances.
Il believe that by the new religion or
which DIR. Eliot speaks" said DIR. Shan-
non. che means Christianity as he inter-
prets it. and not a new religion In any
other sense than that. The Characters
tics of the new religion as he outlines
them, befit Christianity, as crown befits
a king, as a. dome BELTS cathedral"
What have you to say about his words,
There will be no supernatural element In
the religion of the future--no reliance on
Ianytling but the laws of nature'?'
THE laws of nature" continued Dr.
Shannon. "are simply Gods ways of do
ling things Our best scholars today de-
fine the supernatural as the natural ana
the natural as the supernatural. So Rob
ert Browning. the great poet. defines all
Gods laws. Dr. Eliot. doubtless, speaks
of Gods laws in the same sense. Goo IS
as much in natural law as In anything
that theologians in the past have called
supernatural
| What comment do you make upon Dr.
Eliots words: God will be so imml-
Inent in the religion of the future that no
intermediary will be needed? DE-
Shannon was asked.
1T Is so with Christianity" answered
the pastor That teaches that God Is SO
imminent that He is nearer to us than
our own secret thoughts; in Him we live,
as the birds live in the air, as the Hsii
live in the sea-.
What have you to say about DR.. Eliot $
; words: THE religion of the future Will
be bound by no creed? was the secono
Iquestion.
II do not believe that DR.. Eliot is cor
lrectly reported" continued the pastor,
when he is represented as saving una.
the religion of the future Will be Dound
by no creed Christianity is the life OF
God in mans soul. The creed Is man,
i Interpretation and comprehension OF that
life. A creed is no more Christianity IMAM
is botany flowers. geology the earth, as
as do the various sciences which explain
the vital phenomena to which they are
related But creeds may change without
the future needing any otner reHBioIl lndt
Christianity itself.
..All the old theological creeds may be
laid aside and yet Christianity still ABIDE
unframed. The old creeds are to CHRIS
tianity what the fogs are to the sea, the
clouds to the heavens-the sea abides,
! though the fogs pass away; the heavens
abide. though the clouds pass away
We believe the, hras s 5ssls With Of n sns
statements of its truths. Our age demands
new and better forms in which to express
their truths than the old theologles give
Of today God is keeping his children at
school, they cannot go back intellectually
It is impossible to crowd the oak back
Into the acorn, the eagle back into the
she'll
DR.. helms as Critic.
DIR. Nelms in his sermon declared that
DIR Eliot's religion, based upon the per-
sonal decision of it's followers as to what
right and wrong is to be and what the
) moral status of the community shall be.
: will lead to nothing but a rapid crum-
. bling of the social fabric. which will
bring state Of immortality and ldolatry
not eaualed in the days of the ancfents.
The rector'S discourse dealt with ST.
; Paul in Athens, when the apostle deliv-
; cred his remarkable address to the teach
ers and philosophers.
; Paul was speaking to men not bound
! 10 the traditions of his own faith, SAID
.. DR. helms, but intensely interested In
, religion: men of great learning ana cui
. ture, the greatest Of any age or land;
, They were the Athenian philosophers and
. scholars. leaders in thought in the age
!. in which they lived, the real leaders Of
secular thought, classic and profound.
: These men. he said, have not only as
B ,<fnvx.
: but authority as religious leaders They
were the brains and culture OF the great
Athens They had brought ST. Paul from
the market place land challenged MN 10
debate In the court. 1t was match be-
tween the philosophers and learned men
OF the age, thinkers who taught in the
. great universities, against the religion Of
. Jesus Christ.
. history tells US, caused the universities
; to lose their influence, and hnallE 10
: close. This was a contest as to Whetner
, the intellectual leaders were, by right
: Of that fact, to be. entitled to speak with
authority in spiritual matters.
Not a New Condition.
! The same condition has come to pass
. in different ages, and this same challenge
! is now in issue by many of the dis
tingushed professors of our best uni
. versities, who are leaders of secular
thought. This is clearly etlOeHceu ny tue
recent utterances of DR.. Eliot. He is
: not alone in this ism, as can be seen
. from the opinions and teachings or such
: thinkers as Profs White Of Cornell. Bow
. en- Of Boston. Hadley of Yale. Gliding of
Columbia, Ross of the University of Wis
/ consin, Hoffman of Union College. lough
of New York University. Mary Whit
tier Calkins of Wellesley and Schurman
of Cornell and others.
These distinguished scholars take prac-
{ tically the same position in condemning
the Christian religion and in fixing the
!. basis In what they are pleased to call a
!. new religion, as taught by the Christian
!. church. and suggest the basic principle
of the new religion needed, and soon to
be what the distinguished gentlemen
choose to make it. They make it quite
clear they have never read the Old or
. New Testament. or. IL they have. they
have forgotten the entire story OF the life
. and death of Jesus. They tell us that
. the new religion in its purpose must be
. religion of sacrifice; they forget the
. sacrifice of the humble life and death
. of Christ They tell US it must be a
religion of service to men. They ignore
! the teachings OF Jesus, basing the COM
: ing religion upon the very principle not
: simply In His teaching, but in His low
ing service.
They tell us the new ism must have
prevention as it's watchword. which was
the whole basis of the religion of Moses