The Manchester journal. [volume] (Manchester, Vt.) 1861-current, 1915-04-01

~ N prevail against it.
lfASI0R RUSSflIll And will give
So unto thee the keys
Of the Kingdom of Heaven" The Pas
tor said In part:
For some unaccountable reason nu-
merous Catholics have gotten the
thought that | am their foe, just as
Presbyterians, Methodists, Episcopal.
ans. Baptists. etc, have gotten the in.
preston that | am their foe. ! am a
foe to no human being, and especially
TO no Christian. | believe more fully
than do Methodists In Free Grace
that ultimately Gods grace will reach
every human being. | believe more
emphatically than do most Presby-
terians that the Church Is an especial
~ elect class, and is now being gath
cred out of the world to be Coos
agents In the ultimate blessing OF all
the non-elect | believe with Baptists
that only the Elect, the immersed, Will
constitute the Kingdom of God, al
though | deny their claim that bap-
tism In water is the real immersion.
| hold, with the Apostle, that 1t Is bap-
tism into Christ's death. Similarly
hold TO the great Catholic doctrine that
there IS only one true Church, founded
by the Lord Jesus Christ through His
Apostles, nearly nineteen centuries ago.
Explains How They Deny Their Catho-
icity.
am aware that several churches
claim to be Catholic-the Anglican
Catholic. the Syrian Catholic, the
Greek Catholic. and the Roman Catho-
lie. Each claims to be the true Church
and reprobatcs the others as heretical.
But | take the still broader, catholic
ground. ! hold that the word catholic
means general; and that any limitation,
such as Roman Catholic, Greek Cathor
lie, etc. to that extent denies their
catholicity. Perhaps, therefore, ! am
really saying that | am more catholic
than any of these brethren.
| must prove my point or be misun-
derstood. hold, and few, If any, Will
dispute it. that the one catholic or unl-
yersal or general Church Of Christ is
the one mentioned in the Bible-"the
Church of the First-borns. written In
Heaven" If this be admitted, my next
is that the Lord in Heaven
records as members of His true Church
all the sanity whether Roman Catho-
lies. Anglican Catholics. Greek Catho-
lies, Baptists. Methodists. Presbyte-
rians, etc.--and none others.
Have we not here the one Church,
the Catholic Church. the universal, the
only Church which the Bible recog-
nizes? In the past we have been too
narrow and have supposed that God
was as narrow as ourselves ii was
on this account that In the past Pres'
byterians, Roman Catholics, Anglicans,
Baptists and Methodists prosecuted
and were prosecuted, because each
thought itself the true Church. Are
we not all getting broader conceptions
Of our God and Of His Church! DO
we not see that part Of our mistake
was in calling the outward organiza'
ton the Church of Christ. Instead OF
that the Lord alone
writes the names of the Church. that
He alone reads the hearts. that lie
alone Is the Judge. and that He alone
has the right to blot out the names OF
hose who become reprobatesf
Rectifyins Past Errors.
st. Paul wrote against the spirit OF
already manifest In his
iay-some saying. II am Of Paul";
,thers, IL am OF Peter; etc. The
APOSTLE asks. as Christ divided?' Il
Corinthians l:10-13l SO today, If with
is. he would ask. Why Romanists. An
cleans. Baptists. Methodists, etc.f Is
lot the name OF Christ enough! He
EXPLAINS that these different names OF
I'd signified a sectarian spirit, the spir-
{ of division. that failed TO recognize
Ht true l1tHu VI tijt NuuiNhF t'''' $3.50
representatives and Hls true mem
,ers. The trouble is the same today.
The entire foundation Of divided Chris
ianity would disappear and all the
rue Church Of Cbrist-all real saints
would be speedily manifest, If true
atholicity were acknowledged.
The one great obstacle TO unity Is the
rroneous doctrine respecting the eter
al torture OF all not members OF the |
.hurch. We must open our eyes wild
r and see that many OF our theories |
Fere not taught by Jesus and the
postles. We must see that the
,hurch IL comparatively small com.
any OF sanity footstep followers OF
esus irrespective Of sectaran lines;
hat the Bible teaches not thar these
re to look over the battlements OF
Ieaven TO all eternity and see all 9th
rs in torment. but that they are to
their loyalty unto death