Carolina watchman. [volume] (Salisbury, N.C.) 1871-1937, 1918-02-27
LUTHER. CALVIN, KNOX Us. MODERN Church
How Protestants are Being Crushed and Loss
THEIR Religions Backbone.

4VA1
THEIR Religions Backbone.
In a very luminous article in
which he tells why Romanists,
today, are so free to deny every
matter of history, or of certain
fact which was being accepted
byithem in silence fifty years ago,
Rev. Juan Orts Gonzales, in the
Guatemala News, for December,
1917, shows that one reason is
Rome's growing confidence in her
strength and power and the fact
that Protestants are entirely too
conservative and considerate to
be consistent.
Along this line he says:
Il ask any candid reader who
is familiar with the writings of
Luther, Calvin and Knox whether
he believes that those reformers
would be granted hearing to-
day from the most influential
American Protestant pulpits.
The writer himself, who has
raveled long and far in the
South and in part of the North,
las often heard words like these:
What you have to say is true,
)ut you cannot say it here. Oh,
ia my congregation there are so
many intermarried with Catho-
lies. Oh, many of the members
of my church have Catholic cus-
toners or Catholic partners. and
they will resent the issue and
you will get me in trouble Oh,
it is pitiful to have to say it, but
1t is true: In many Protestant
American pulpits Luther could
not preach today, because he was
too plain spoken about the abuses
Of Romanism: Calvin would be
excluded from many Presbyte-
rian pulpits, because he was too
radical; Knox would be shocking,
because he was too bitter against
relics and purgatory; even Paul
would be warned by many of our
easy going sessions and pastors
to soften his language and his
teaching.
Can you imagine Luther's
reformation without his preach-
ing against the abuses of Roman
ism? Can you imagine Calvin's
work without noticing his expos
ures of Romanism? Can you
imagine Knox preaching without
attacking indulgeuces, relics and
the like? And yet, American
Protestants expect to save Prot
estism and be silent about the
vital issues of Professionalism.
American Protestants call them
selves followers of Luther, Calvin
and Knox and sons of the Reform.
alton, when they are afraid to
speak out upon the principles of
Reform alton. That inconsistent
attitude distresses me more than
the real power of Romanism.
e" X * That word 'publici.
ty' used so frequently and wisely
by President Wilson as the only
remedy to save the country from
trusts, bribery and tyranny of
millions, is not only the best
remedy for social evils, it is also
the best and most efficacious
remedy for saving the country
from the religious evils of Ro-
manism. Awake! and stand for
publicity. Expose fearlessly any
lnachination of Rom nism wheth-
er that will please or displease
your people. Do not forget, my
brethren, (and l speak particu-
larly to minlsters) that you have
not been called to be at peace
with your congregation but to
teach them the truth as it is in
Christ Jesus"
No better summary of condi-
tions has been offered of late in
so few words. In the first part
of the quotation given we find
the reason for Rome's bold
and arrogant front and in the last
portion we find the advice that.
if followed, will as surely break
the power of Rome as did Luther
when he faced death for principles
without which life would have
been a burden to him and genera
tions that have followed.
The Rev. Juan Orts Gonzalez
(Rev. G V Frdryssa) is the au-
thor of "Romanism Captivating
Rafora protaSt - He iS q