Atlanta semi-weekly journal. (Atlanta, Ga.) 1898-1920, 1916-07-18

The care of the current rationalism
of our times is the desire to get rid OF
any supernatural element in religion.
It was manifested at first by the ef-
fort to eliminate the supernatural from
the Holy Scriptures. These sacred
books were treated by the rationalists
as any other literary works. The He
brew prophets and psalmists were put
on a level with the Greek dramatists
and poets. Homer and Isaiah were
made to sit down together on per-
feet equality before the critics for ex-
animation and classification.
After thus degrading the Scriptures
to a secular level. the rationalists pro-
ceeded to deal with the person of Christ
in the same manner. The virgin birth,
at the beginning of His life in the flesh,
was categorically denied, and His res
direction and ascension, at the end of
His earthly ministry, were fatty re-
pudiated. He was placed among the
religious leaders of mankind in the same
class with Confucius, MahOmet and
Buddha. At best he was esteemed as
no more than a very good man, and a
teacher, who was rather more wise than
most other teachers of mankind.
along the same lines, and are seeking
to reduce Christian experience to a ma
turalistic level.
With reference to the new birth they
ask, as did Nicodemus of old, How can
these things be?" They differ from
the doubling man of the Pharisees in
that they substitute a sneering skep-
ticism for his wondering perplexity.
The rationalists were comparatively
hor lac. TI,0ry 10y XI,oSv
own class in candid, honest and undis-
guised hostility to the Christian reli-
giOn. But they became dangerous when
certain of them took orders, entered
the pulpits as preachers, and in the
House of God opposed the supernatural
revelation of the God of the house.
Wolves are never so bad as when they
fare forth in Sleeps clothing to de-
YOUR the flock of the Good Shepherd.
The ratiOnalists in the pulpit scout
the inspiration of the Scriptures, de-
ride the incarnation, deny the virgin
birth and repudiate the resurrection of
Jesus. They presume to question the
Hebrew prophets, who claim to speak
at the command of God. and they re-
fuse to allow that the Christ of God
had either a supernatural entrance into
the world or a supernatural exit from
1t. Most logically they proceed then
to reduce all Christian experience to
the plane of naturalism, and we hear
now thepulpit terms employed 10
define and describe conversion which
can mean nothing else than that no di-
vine element enters into it. Religion is
DENIED as the response of man to an
eternal energy within his soul" and
the ordering of his life in accordance
character building" by processes of
natural instruction and a careful re-
gard Tor environment. Mankind is tn
be renovated by processes of eugenics
rather than by divine forces of regen-
GRAFTON.
Now, whatever else all this sort of
thing may be, IT is most certainly not
Christianity. No man of clear under
standing can fail to see this, and no can
did man will deny it,
The terms in which Christ and the
Apostles express the Christian life. in
both its beginning and progress. set
1orth that life as a most supernatural
and unearthly thing
To NicOdemus Jesus said, ''Except a
man be born again, he cannt see the
Kingdom of God"
81 Paul writes to certain Christians of
MS day, You hath he quickened, who
were dead in trespasses and sins" Again
he says, The Father hath delivered rs
And yet again. he says, "In time past We
walked according to the prince of the
power of the air. But God, rich in mer-
cy hath quickened us, hath raised us up.
hath made US sit in heavenly places in
Christ Jesus
St John describes the experience of
conversion is passage from death into
life, saying, I'VE know We have passed
from death unto life"
And these passages are not exception
al. The conception of Christian life
which they contain pervades the whole
body of the Hebrew and Christian Scrip
lures. Prophets and apostles every
where in their writings speak in the
same unearthly tones of a supernatural
life sprung by the indwelling of the
divine Spirit in the human soul. It is
one of the fundamental ideas of the
Christian religion, which is not so much
here and there, as everywhere, in the
sacred writings. 1t is persuasive
throughout the whole system of Chris
tianity like the life-blood in the body.
We may reject Christianity outright, If
We will; but we cannot reject this idea