The Guthrie daily leader. [volume] (Guthrie, Okla.) 1893-1996, 1915-10-18

Ut Is an appalling thought that the
church should have had part in
the crime OF Calvary. and yet It did
and that the chief part The church
Is really the villain OF the plot
What was the sin Of the church
that crucified Christ Or. to put 1t
another way. what are the character
istics OF a perverted religion? They
are chiefly two:
4. The ecclesiastical mind.
Y. The ecclesiastical conscience.
The ecclesiastical mind Is closed
mind land there Is nothing VI rrr
sents so mach as being pried open to
receive new idea Its settled rule
OF Judgment its accepted test Of
truth, Is What Is new Is never true
and what Is true is never new Phil
IN Gilbert Efiemmerton has apply COM
ps.red the conventional process Of re-
Tgious instruction and training to the
Lrocess on etching on glass. The
msad II the plmil Is first covered
with an impervious coat of pious
nreudlce. The pattern of the desir-
ed creed is then carefully traced
with the stylus Of authority; and
then only in the mind exposed to the
sand.blast OF reality and the acid
test OF exnerience. which cut along
the exposed lines only and the desir-
cd creed is 'ndelibly engraved upon
the mind.
The other characteristic of a rer-
verted religion is the ecclesiastical
conscience II Is strikingly illustrat.
cd hv one Good Friday scene. A
procession IS sweening through the
streets Of Jerusalem hound for the
governors palace Who compose this
procession? They are the RELIGIOUS
leaders OF the neople, the prominent
divines. the chief ecclesiastics, the
dignitaries and nrelaies Of the church
and ithn Sanhedrim, the chief relig-
ious legislative body OF the nation. 1t
Is as II you rolled into one the Pres
hvterian general assembly. the Meth
odist general conference. the Fpisco-
pal general conference the Roman
Catholic hierarchy and the House of
Lords, with the whole bench OF bish-
ops.
What e the business 4ney haves in
hand? They are intent on commit
JAnE l1A EICdltot EllIlt III nlSbol9
crime at which the whole world
has shuddered ever since They
would cruelty the Son Of God? But
at Pilates threshold they stop. Why?
An. thev have stumbled across a stat
ute with n penalty, cannon Of the
church with a sanction. And these
peonle have great resnect for penal
ties and sanctions, II they have little
for truth and righteousness. II they
should enter heather house that
Passover morning, they would be-
come ceremonially defiled and unfit
to partake OF the sacrament They
would lose their reputation for strict
chnrchmanship. They are indefin-
itelY scrupulous and utterly unprin-
cinled entirely sincere and vet COM
pletely untruthful and unrighteous,
pieus and perverted
The ecclesiastical conscience"
holds the precept SO near the eve
that II hides the nrinciple; it subsd-
tutes petty. thumb-nail rules for the
fundamental law Of righteousness. It
makes Righteousness a substitute for
Righteousness instead OF means
thereto. II puts technical priests
and properties in the place Of char
acter. 1T makes churehmanship 20
for religion and "churchianty" for
christianity"
And the ecclesasiteSl conscience is
not confined to the church. The
LAWYER who makes a legality his test
instead OF justice: the merchant who
Is satisfied simply to conform to the
code Of his trade. whose excuse for
any dishonesty Is. "Thev all DO II"
the gentleman or LADY who puts
good form and manners in the place
OF sincerity and kindliness Of heart,
and politeness in the place Of cour-
tesy ail are alike animated by the
conscience.
1t was this ecclesiastical mind and
this ecclesiastical conscience which
.rncified Jesus Christ
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