University Missourian. [volume] (Columbia, Mo.) 1908-1916, 1909-04-15
AN INCIPIENT
STUDENT REBELLION
TIE students of the Princeton the

Oloulcal seminary. which has Dcel
STYLED the bulwark of PRESBYTERIAN
orthodoxy in North America. are up in
arms. They issued manifesto. di.
rccted 10 the board of trustees. asking
that the curriculum be revised to in.
"ludc courses in sociology and the prac
teal problems that confront the pas
tor Of a church i'm his cure of souls
They intimatcd. further. that great
many Of the lectures delivered by the
members of the faculty We're needlessly
involved and obscure. and. therefore
difficult to assimlate. They asked for
more direct and simple eNpo>itory
methods. and plain speaking instead OF
he ''inkhorn terms" of which the old
Scotch rhctorician Wilson complained
~" centuries a"". Especially We're the
petitioners a""ricvcd 10y the ob>curity.
il not tlc oh-curation. of the course ot
lectures on "Thci~m" delivered by DIR.
ramri- Limil"v Patton. president of
the seminary. formerly president of the
university. and a man at luminous
reputation a. Il philosopher and pulpit
orator.
Or. Patton has met the ncipient re
'."iiiun with firm handed authority. lie
~ay- il i no concern "f the students 10
prescribe the matter or the manner OF
the lectures they sit under. lie con-
~'d,r~ their petition an amazing. impcr-
tinrrrc. and AVS tha; ii they do not
want to attend he seminary. "r his
lectures ON lhti-m. they arr under NJ"
-!a,ut"ry obligation 10 do -. Tn" I'M
mary can -rt along without them. The
.cniIr-c~ ar" hard. it i triIr. hut they
are essential. The study Of the New
Testament possibilities II knowledge ni
ia, Err"k tongue and for ihr course in
'rri-m philosophy is Justly prcrequi-
~il"
The students a; lalr used I" com
plain ri DR.. !.add'> philosophical pro
iuntily. They said h" wrote = text
book in his subject which the deity.
.n" German prof, S-or and DIR. Iadd
im~"l. understood followed ii Up with
-" which th deity and Dr. Laid un-
&cY>t cod. and now at last had written
one which only DIR. Ladd could under
stand. But the Yale men never went
:" the lengths OF these daring Prince
tnnian~. They never prescribed the
Kind of intellectual pabulum that
,h"uld he fed to them. II they found
that their philosophers. as Wordsworth
said OF the poet Spcnser. moved
through Il cloudcd heaven. they did not
complain to the overSeerS about it.
They stood hravcly up to the polySylla
blc-. hcroirally wrcstled with the met
arhv seal distractions. and looked wise.
even though they We're not. in the lee
tUrr room.
An old lady said 10 famous Phila-
,irlphia pastor: Doctor. what is the
iii-t duty of the pastor of the ilock:'
To feed the sheep. madam. Then.
doctor. he ought not to put the hay so
high III" sheep cannot get at it,
II is not easy to make abStruSc and
matters clear to every one.
There are ten teachers who know. for |
every one that can teach. Some OF the |
most learned savants have not succeed !
cd in imparting their learning. Prof.
Prircc of Harvard used to say that
college professor was lucky if he had
one pupil who really understood and
followed him. Given the teacher who Is
capable of making clear eXpo>itory
t statement. there must be also Il rccip-
lent capacity in the listener. As Tho
rcau said so wisely. 1T takes two to
peak the truth. one to speak the truth
mi one to hear it, The arbitrary sup
preston of the intellectual in>urrcction
1t the Princeton seminary has side
stepped. instead of solving. an interest
n" problem. - Philadelphia Public
.cd"cr