The Topeka state journal. [volume] (Topeka, Kansas) 1892-1980, 1910-03-12

Pastor Russell preached
# % twice here today. His dis
I course on Inferno" was de-
L4..=%g1 liVered in Brooklyn's largest
auditorium. the Academy of
Music. which was overcrowded. It was
estimated in advance that this sub
1ect would draw a larger crowd than
the tabernacle would accommodate.
The other meetings of the day were
held in the tabernacle. We report Pas
tor Russelrs discourse from the text
foregoing, as follows:
It is difficult to please everybody.
The duty of Christian minister is to
seek chiefly to please the Lord. LET
the words of my mouth and the medi-
tatIons of my heart, be acceptable in
thy sight, o Lord. my strength and my
Redeemer'' psalm xix, 14). Our min
lsterial friends seem to be annoyed be-
cause We preach the doctrines" of
Christ. In substance. their sentiment
is: Brother Russell. Do you not know
that in the fashionable topics of our
day doctrines are tabooed by the great
ministers of all denominations? In
paper announcements. it is now quite
the thing to discuss political, scientific
end sociological doctrines. You should
give the public lectures on subjects
like these: Social Democracy; Rapid
Transit in Brooklyn. from the text.
MANY shall run to and fro;" Female
Suffrage: The Boys Brigade; The Best
Novel Of the Year; The Narrow Way
of the Bicycle Rider: viii the Comet
Sweep the Earth With Its Tail; Can
Football Survive. ETC.: or occasionally.
for effect, gently rake the rich on bet
Trusts for soaring prices, or belabor the
TRUSTS for soaring prices of food. Such
topics as these, Brother Russell, inter-
est the Christian public in our day.
And the public constitute our principal
congregations when we lift our largest
collections. The only people who will
be interested in the doctrines you are
aol1i nJ6 nfIf nf a
folk, and you will find the majority of
them poor in this worlds riches. For
PHYS sake stop teaching the doctrines
of Christi Doctrines were good enough
in the days of Jesus and Paul and Cal
vim and Luther and Wesley, but the
PEOPLE arc not accustomed to them
nowadays.
have no fault to find with my Chris
various denominations. It is not tel
me, but to the Lord. that they must
give an account of their stewardship
of their grand opportunities for declar-
ing the Gospel of Christ. To their own
Master they must stand or fall. 1t is
not for me to for bid them because they
follow not with US. 1t is for each one
who stands as an ambassador or Christ
and of God to follow his own convlc- |
tions faithfully. Besides. am assured
that many of them are loyal to the
core.
1t 10 my understanding that, as a
minister of the Gospel, should take
for my guide in this matter the IN
structIons of my ordination. Like ST. |
Paul my ordination to preach the Cos
pei was from the Lord. must preach !
the message which l belieVe ne mas
ambassador I must preach the Word, |
following the example of the Lord and
the Apostles. AS they avoided politics,
SO must I. As they avoided vain phil. |
osophy and ''scienca falsely so called" |
SO must I. AS thew preached the doc |
trines of Christ, so must whether /
men hear or forbear to hear. re-
member the words of st. Paul TO TIM
othy: Preach the Word, with
all Iong-suffering and doctrine. For the |
time will come when they will not
endure sound doctrine: but after their
own preferences they shall gamer
teachers to themselves; having itching |
ears they shall turn away their ears
from the Truth and shall be turned
unto fables I'll Timonthy iv, 2-4)
There Is a Reason.
There must be reason why Cnrls-
abandoned the study of the Doctrines
of Christi set forth by the Apostles
and Prophets. Is it not because they
no longer believe those doctrines? is
Il not true that the college and semi
narv professors have led the maJority
Of the ministry afar into unbellef IN
the Bible, and that these ministers are
gradually leading their connd1nS hooks
into other pastures green" than those
W hich the Great Shepherd and his APP
pointed mouthpieces, the Apostles, APP
proved2 Is not the .higher-critlcism
infldelity of the colleges gradually PEN
etrating even into the Sunday school
lessons and even into the high schools
of our notwithstanding all faith IN
Gods book? But what led to this de-
parture from the Word of Goo-into
higher criticism infldelity and into
the evolution theory. which makes
void the Word of God; and into Chris
tian Science, which puts premium on
falsehood: and into Theosophy and
Spiritisna. the receptions Of the fallen
How comes 1t
that all these unscriptural theories
now flourish. whereas only century
ago Gods Word was respected and Its
doctrines were studied by Christian
people OF various and conflicting
creeds2 The answer is that with the
increasing light of our day the creeds
Of the past are seen to be fallaclous,
irrational. by all who use their think