The Richmond palladium and sun-telegram. [volume] (Richmond, Ind.) 1907-1939, 1914-08-18
FAITH EXISTS
DESPITE SECTS
SAYS S|MMS
Pastor Tells Chautauqua Au-
dience of Mans Incurable
Religion Unkilled by Diff
ferent Practices.

ferent Practices.
Man is 'incurably' religious. know
he Is 'incurably' religious because ii
he had been durable. our behavior as
Bectarians and denominationalists
would have cured him of it long ago.
This is the essence of the lecture,
The Calf PATH" which p. Marion
Simms delivered to the large audience
1t the big Chautauqua tent yesterday
Afternoon.
Rev. Mr.. Simms is the pastor of
100000 institutional church in Vinton,
Iowa, and has established a national
reputation as a propaganda OF the
church unity idea. His address was
spiced with humor and wit and was
frequently punctured with applause.
Congregations Small.
congregations are ridiculOusly
small as a result of the division. TWEEN
ty per cent Of all the Presbyterian
churches in the United States have a
membership of 20 souls or less. In the
state of Missouri there are twenty-five
Presbyterian churches with men,
mership of three souls each, and in
California there are seven with a men,
bership of one soul each. The Presby-
terrain church is TO worse or better
than any other denominations.
"The evil of the situation is this:
Thousands of weak and struggling
churches are found all over the coun-
try in all denominations, and nearly
all Of them are situated under the
shadow Of other and stronger churches
where they can never hope to be self
supporting, and where they needlessly
divide the religious forces, and worse
still, we take large sums Of home mis-
sion money annually to build and main
tain these worse than useless church
es. l know one church where Presby
terians are thus worse than wasting
IS per cent of their home mission
money.
Makes Wages Low.
ministers are required to work at
starvation wages as a result of divis-
ion. The average minister's salary in
the United States is only 1868 and out
side the $50 largest cities the average
Is only $572. If this is the average,
think of the thousands who must re-
ceive 5000 or $500 per year. How self
respecting men can support their fam
flies and make good on such a salary
Is one of the wonders Of the modern
world.
1.-The unity of Protesantism can new
er be on the basis of uniformity; it
must be unity in variety There was
unity without uniformity in the early
church. The Gentle Christians were
admitted without being required to
conform to Jewish usage. The Jewish
Christians including the apostles, con-
tinued their Jewish observances in the
IL
relieved of this burden. From the be-
ginning it is plainly evident that there
were two parties among the Jews in
the early church but they lived togeth-
er harmoniously. There will always
be differences in practise, ritual and
teaching. Any other unity is both i'm
possible and undesirable. So we had
as we'll agree to disagree about some
things.
But we are fully convinced that a
very much larger agreement in theo-
logical opinion is possible where no
creed comprising more than the re-
Quirements to make a christian, is
imposed, than where one is imposed.
Creed-subscription as practised among
us. defeats it's very purpose.
Unite on Loyalty.
"The only possible basis for the uni
ty Of Professionalism, then, is a basis
OF loyalty to Jesus Christ, and of mu-
tual liberation among christians in all
non-essentials, a basis that allows the
largest possible room for adversely.
Diversity is a good thing and does not
need to be abolished. No man need sur
render any doctrine or practise that is
dear to him. The only thing required
for such unity is for each man to stop
trying to force his theological system
Of non-essentials on other people. All
christians have the essentials; he who
has the essentials may be trusted to
work out his own system of non-essen-
tials. No one need give up anything
except his ecclesiastical conceit, his
UNCONVENTIONAL pride and his inherited
prejudices And the loss of these will
be great gain.
differences Of opinion in theology
among us in such a unified church
would be no greater than they are now
in every one of our denominations. The
widest possible differences exist
among the ministers of our various
denominations today. Many of these
differences are never made public.
However, it never has been prevnted
1t never will be. Every church in the
land has discovered that it is neces.
sary to tolerate among its membership
and ministry great differences of indi-
vidual thought and belief. The result
is a growing spirit of liberation every
where. What we need, therefore, in
order to unity is not a reduction of our
creeds to common agreement, but an
agreement to exercise in the largest
unified church tolration of differ.
ences; a liberation which comedies
hot chricfion ho xal nj
with Jesus and his Bible.
Boys, Look Out for Green Apples.
Lester WQlrOth had a very Severe