The Detroit times., 1916-10-14
Three Great Religious
Gatherings On
Schedule
EPISCOPALIANS
NOW IN SESSION
Convention in St. Louis
Being Watched With
Much Interest
BY The RELIGIOUS RAMBLER

BY The RELIGIOUS hNmo- EN.
Three great religious ga'her.I2-
OF general religious interest mas.
this month Of October -.me ta5-
will loom large IN religious history
The Protestant Episcopal church
nov IN session 40 81 Louis 'a.
American board of commission
for foreign missions holds ire one
hundred and seventh meeting DO To
ledo. O.. Oct 2f2T and 'he Dis
ciples o; Christ are meeting IN ge7.
eral convention In Des Moines con.
tinuing from Oct 2 unit. OCT l'.
The three denomination represent
ed are among the most potent m
America. There arc a million EpI--
copalians in the United States.
three-Qusrters of million CorE-e-
sationalists. and more than NH
Hon and a quarter Disciples o'
Christ. There Is not n community
OF any size in the country IN which
one or more of tt1~zr denomination
In not represented
Different considerations in each
case make the present sessions %
unusual importance. All have the
new conditions Of the world under
survey. and the seriousness of the
times adds an unusual spirit %
solemnity 10 the sessions The three
great gatherings are representative
with delegates present from every
part OF America and from foreign
lands.
II was away back IN 1882 in The
days OF King Edward VI 80 years
before the translation OF the King
James version cf the Bible. that the
Book OF Common Prayer took the
form that. substantially II now
wears, its translations being from
the WycliTe Bible There were
slight changes made al various
times. and during the common
wealth the use OF the prayer book
was suspended for Is years Under
Charles II was revised, and author.
iEed by parliament in 1862 When
put into use on 81 Bartholomew
day. 1000 ministers. of Puritan con
victions. surrendered their charges
rather than accept the prayer book
There have been minor change n
the prayer boo, since then both In
England and America specially In
this country. the elimination -
prayers for The royal family
Nov Il Is proposed after an these
centuries. 20 give the great volume
comprehensive revision. 10 enrich
and modernize and Amoricanize g.
and bring Il into fuller accord with
pressnt-day religious nrc This is
the epochal work that has employed
commission nf 81 churchmen for
three years. AMI INA, the rres ent
general convention of the Prare.
tant Episcopal church IN session a.
-. Louis Is undertaking While
the final adoption % the revision
cannot he effected FOR anothe- Fri.
ennium, the chanEcs sgrecd uron 80
~. Iouis will doubtless bo ratified
az the succeedirc general ronysr.
ton. 10 abide for another long 20
Rod, 10 guide ne devouops and
shape the religious thinking ~ mU
lions ~ person
An easily recognized Illustration ~
the widespread potency Of this book
IL its influence ir leading people 20
say. when repeating tho Lords
Prayer. Forgive We our trespasSes
as we forgive those who treFpass
against US -" "Trcspasscs' lis prob
ably in more general use than
debts" yet the word "trespasses"
10 not found in any Bible now in use
IN the rendering of the Lord s
Prayer. Matthew uses he word
debit" and Luke the word "sins
But the prayer book retains. from
the Great bible Of / 500. the use Of
the word trespasses." which wa.
discarded by the translators of the
King James version In 1911 n
probably would surprise even tho
average Episcopalian - be told that
the use OF the word 'trespssses" r.
learned not from the Bible but
from the prayer book
AZ St. Louis the adoption Of a r..
viscd hymnal is up. as well as &C
ton on the divorce question Tn,
underlying issue OF high" yersu,
low" church ls also sure 80 arise.
for the lines between the two par
ties are steadily being drawn NOR,
sharply The actiop of the board
OF missions in participating viii
other Protestant churches. In th,
recent Panama conference. ma,
come up for review The eXtrem,
high" church wing claims that &
n IN closer sympathy With the no
Nan Catholic church than With IN,