The Pensacola journal. (Pensacola, Fla.) 1898-1985, 1911-01-17

fine SERVICE
ARcHDEAcoN W. B. ALLEN
PREACHED SERMON ON "THE
INCARNATION" TO A LARGE
AND ATTENTIVE AUDIENCE
CHRlsT'S LIFE AND .MlNlsTRY.

The services at st. Katharine's
church Sunday were unusually inter
esting and large congregation heard
Archdeacon w. B. Allen, NJ. A, preach
an eloquent and instructive sermon Oh
The Incarnation" His text was
found in Matthew 16:16-"S Simon
Peter answered and said: Thou art
the Christ the Son of the Living
God Archdeacon Allen spoke as
follows:
. There are many indications which
point to the incarnation }as tie great
question of the immediate future, and
as both historical and textual criticism
have now been carried almost to their
highest point, it is perhaps inevitable
that this most fundamental doctrine
of our faith should become increasing
ly prominent. The miraculous concep.
ton of our blessed Lord stands in the
forefront of the Christian creed, and
there can be little doubt that il was
the teaching of the apostolic church.
The silence of St. Paul is often
quoted. but this is surely not more
surprising than his silence, on nearly
all the events of Cbrist's life and min
istry. His first living contact with
Sui W DIS dI Tie pOluI VI lLo
resurrection glory. and it is easy TO
understand that his whole life and
thought would be suffused with the
early glow. 1t was not only sufficient
for him, it was, in truth, the allah
sorbing evidence of the divinity OF
his Lord. But, standing by itself, the
bare fact. of the resurrection could
not have established a claim so great.
1t was because it was the crown anu
completion of long series of remark
able manifestations Of wisdom and
power of which Saint Paul could NOT
have been ignorant. 1t was because
of the great personality who had de-
elared Himself before the resurrec-
ton that gave the resurrection its
worth and meaning. If Moses and
Elijah had actually appeared anu
mixed among men they would not
have been regarded as anything more
than the greatest. of prophets.
=. 1t was because the resurrection Of
Christ seemed to be the natural Sc
quence and sequel of His strangely
unique life that we accep 1t, as St.
Paul did, as proof positive that He
was the Son Of God. And so it, Is
with the birth of Jesus Christ. for in
both cases 1t Is the Life, standing
between these two epochs, with It's
dual element SO clearly marked which
gives to these great events their sig
nificanc and value. 1t Is very likely
that the records OF the Gospels are
only fragments Of vhat Christ taught.
But what fragments they are. How
they shine and sparkle as no othet
words have ever done before or since.
Great inteliects have como and gone,
but In no single instance will their
words bear the same close scrutiny.
so that almost every sentence has
formed the subject OF innumerable
| discourses. 1t Is this seminal, GER
minating power which makes the
| words of Christ TO stand alone in the
| literature of the world
But with this extraordinary teach
I ing power there Is allied power Of a
totally different kind-the power Of
working miracles, And when We con-
slider their number and variety, har-
monizing so well with their environ
men.. and appearing to arise naturally
out of the circumstances of the mo-
ment, it is impossible to question 81