Fulton County tribune. (Wauseon, Ohio) 1883-1925, 1918-10-25

a Faith may be
Lssaessz=e@ssS2eA -=4z==ezA understood as the
body of Christian truth given once for
all in the first century, embracing the
fundamentals of our Christian sys-
tem-the infallibility of the Holy |
Scriptures, the deity of Christ, the lost |
state of man by nature, the only hope |
of recovery by the atonement of Christ |
on the cross, etc. This may be consid- |
cred from the standpoint of the church
in its visible form or that of the indi-
vidual, personal interest in the sub
ject being emphasized with reference
to the latter rather than with the for
mer. The aspect of the former, be-
cause it determines the aspect of the
latter, shall have fuller treatment.
Faith has had a varied experience.
For some three centuries it was held
with comparative fidelity. Then the
bracing Christianity as an element of
political life began to gather, For
some centuries there was great dark
ness. In the period of the Crusades
there were Pickering lights. Then
darkness came over Christian thought
until the days of HusS in Bohemia and
Wickliffe in England. Persecution in
Bohemia and Indifference in England
soon brought another season of dark
ness, until in Germany, under Martin
Luther, the light arose that has shone
for four hundred years, and accounts
for what we have of the true faith to-
day.
Is the faith of the church, as such,
| wreck today? Do we find all sails set
and drawing, bound confidently for a
| distant port? Or do we see that church
hesitating, staggering in the midst Of
| changing teachings as to fundamentals
like the ship with contrary winds and
laboring hard to avoid the rocks on
which it may be total wreck?
| Is it not true that some denomina-
tions of Christians while still clinging
J to orthodox creeds have abandoned
those creeds in their teachings? Faith
full men in some denominations are
now crying to their brethren to sup
press many of the church publications
as they are distinctly infdel in their
teachings. Is it not true that many
hungry souls go to church and come
away hungry because they have moi
heard the Gospel of Jesus Christ?
How about the individual? Not Ions
ago a young man, who was gradu
ate of one of Americas greatest uni
versities and was finishing his seconC
year in an orthodox theological semi
nary, said to the writer that he hat
| lost his faith, had no confidence in tn,
Bible, did not accept the deity of Jesu
Christ, and was thoroughly unhappy
This is an extreme case, but the write
has had many young people of libera
education give substantially the sam
testimony.
What is the somewhat remote rea
son for this situation as to religion
teaching? We must go to the land o
Martin Luther. The work of corrupt
ing the Bible had progressed Gnti
nearly all German universities an
theological schools had repudiated tn
faith of Luther, although clinging t
his name. Learned men said certai
results had been attained and thes
results discredited, the Bible. Wit
amazing rapidity this conclusion too
hold in England and Scotland and ou
own country. Destructive biblics
criticism and Darwinian evolutio
swept over nearly all our great I'm
versities and our Bible was in tn
scrap heap. Those of us who hav
watched the trend of German thet
, logical teaching have observed tr'
. mendous advance since the days {
Schleiermacher, Baur and Hoffman
J the days of Kuenen, Graf and CorHil
1t was bad enough with the forme
worse with the latter and the fin;
, plunge was made by men like Neits
che, who utterly ignored the Bib
: and defied God himself. Is it any wol
: der that Germany is suffering toda
and is it much less wonder that Il
Saxon world is suffering likewis'
When will men learn wisdom?
0 For the individual, especially 7
: spectfng young people, the old-fas
ioned religion must come back. II
y old religious home must be restore
S How many professedly religious hom
e are religious wrecks!
Back to God! Back to Jesus Chris
To thus get back we must get back
the Bible. Thank God it is being pu
lished as never before and the demal
for it is beyond the supply. Thai
God for this fact as to the hunger
the people for truth.