The Washington times., 1922-06-17
PROGRESS AND
CONSERVATISM
SPLIT CHURCH

JILL UnUnUn
Two Parties Have Fought to
Detriment of World
Since Time.
BY REV. CHRISTEN e. SYBILRUD,
Pastor Of St. Olaf's Congregation
(Norwegian Lutheran Church
OF America).
From one point Of view the history
Of mankind may be regarded as o
continuous struggle between pro-
gressive and conservative ideas and
principles.
The old-established order of things
is continually being disturbed by the
awakening Of aew ideas. forms and
usages.
| Mighty changes thus go on.
At times very gradual and almost
unobserved by the contemporary age
like the slow-chang1ng processes Of
nature from night to day, from one
season to another.
At other times, and that quite
often, the clashing Of progressive and
conservative elements has burst
forth into mighty conflicts and cata.
clysms, that have swept almost
everything before It and shaken the
very foundations of society.
This conflict between the old and
the new is q continuous and world
wide phenomenon-the deep under
current flowing through the course
Of all human history.
1t explains to a large extent the
migrations Of races, the bloody wars
among nations, the revolutions within
governments. the rise of political
parties, the controversies and
schisms of the church, the struggles
and changes within each human
breast.
Looking now particularly at the
Christian church on earth we may
say from one point Of view that she
was born into this world in q strug-
gle between the old and the new.
The Master himself speaks Of this
conflict thus:
Matt. sI6-17-"No man putteth
q piece Of new cloth into an old
garment; for that which Is put in
tn fiji II up, taketh from the gar
ment and the rent is made worse.
Neither do men put new wine into
old bottles. else the bottles break
and the wine runneth out, and the
bottles perish; but they put new
wine into new bottles and both are
preserved" Mote: The bottles In
those days were made Of leather,
mostly goat skins, and when old and
dry would not stand the pressure Of
termenting new wine).
Jesus and His Disciples, represent
ing the new life and spirit OF the
Gospel. with its freedom, It's hope.
it's world-embracine mission, clashed
frequently with the religious leaders
Of His day until II all finally reach
ed its great. tragic climax In the
crucifixion on Golgotha. where false
conservatism attempted to silence
forever the lips OF this new proph-
ct" who even claimed to be the Son
Of God and their long-looked-for
Messiah.
But the lips were not silenced.
They still speak. The kingdom OF a
new dispensation which came by
Him could not be overthrown. II
still lives and moves and has its
being In the Christian church on
earth.
Jesus was more than a progressive.
He was at the same time truly con-
servative. He said:
"I am not come TO destroy, but TO
fulfill the law-and not one iota of
Il shall pass away"
All the essential elements Of the
old dispensation were conserved and
transferred into the new.
II In well for us of today to dis
tinguish between true and false con-
servatism.
True conservation always pre-.
serves essentials, fundamentals.
false conservatism overlooks these
and clings TO outward forms and
man-made frame works.
There are two. dangers confronting
church and society today. First,
o false. stagnant conservatism. that
conditions and needs of the times
and is blind to the law Of growth
and evolution also In the doctrine
and life Of the church. Second, O
radical liberalism that wants TO
throw overheard everything that Id
old--just because Il n oldr-even
fundamental dogmas and essential
truths, and rewrite the Bible and the
confessions Of the church for US, be-
cause they are all ,"out-of-date.
In order to escape the Scylla and
the Charybdis of these two extremes
the church (the state hkewise) should
be both progressive and conservative
In spirit.
Progressive enough to. cast aside
or change whatever has outlived its
Usefulness, but also conservative
enough to everiastingly cling to the
fundamentals which never outlive
their usefulness. Of which not one
late ~xynvr sho,sIH ha oha "A ~aA 0r
destroysd, whether II be N matters
OF religion or politics. u
True conservatism IL always pro
j gressive IN spirit and makes the
world move forward ut the same
time that It keeps 1t from going to
pieces.