Daily Kennebec journal. [microfilm reel] (Augusta, Me.) 1870-1975, 1923-12-10
House Of Bishops
Letter Read, St. Marks

The following letter from the
House OF Bishops of the Episcopal
church has been ordered read in all
Episcopal Churches. 1t was read in
st. Marks this city on Sunday:
Brethren of the Clergy and Laity:
Grace be unto sou and peace form
God our Father and the Lord Jesus
Christ.
We are aware Of the widespread
distress and disturbance OF mind
among many earnest church people,
both clerical and lay, caused by
several recent utterances CONCERNING
the Creeds. Moreover, as the chief
pastors of the Church lsolemnly
pledged to uphold it's faith, we have
been formally appealed to by eminent
laymen for advice and guidance with
regard to the questions thus raised.
We. your bishops, put forth these
words of explanation and. we trust,
| of re assurance.
/. a distinction is to be recognized
! (aS in the CatechiSml between the
profession of our belief in. j. e., of en-
tire surrender to- the Triune God,
! and the declaration that we believe
certain fact about the operations of
| the Father, OF the Son, and of the
| Holy Ghost, our Creator, Redeemer
and Sanctitier. The former is far
more important as expressing our
! relation and attitude towards the
personal God. But the affirmation of
| the facts, declared by Holy Scripture
| and q part of the belief of the
| Christian Church from the beginning,
| is OF vital Importance to faith and
! life. The Christian faith may be
! distinguished from the forms in
| which it is expressed Gs some
| thing Inonnr ol,
, peronal, but not by contradicting the
| terms in which it has always been
| expressed.
Z. The creeds give and require no
| theories or explanations of the facts
| which they renearse. No explanation
is given of the Trinity, how God is
! at the same time absolutely one in
! His spiritual being. and yet exists in
a three-fold manner; nor concern
| ing the incarnation, of the manner in
which the divine and human natures
! are linked together in the One Per-
. son OF our Lord Jesus Christ: nor
! of the nature of the resIlTection
| body, Christ's or ours.
| 8. The. shorter Apostles Greed is
| to be interpreted in the light of the
| fuller Nicene Creed. The more
| elaborate statements of the latter
| safeguard the sense in which the
| simpler language of the former Is to
| be understood. for instance, with
| reference to the term, THE Son of
! God"
4. Some test OF earnest and sin
! cere purpose OF discipleShip. for be-
, lief ana for life. is reasonably re-
| quired Tor admission to the Christian
| society. Accordingly profession of the
| Apostles Greed, as summary of
CT, do, a l,,,. ,t,,
! from early days. along with ren,ncia-
ton of evil and the promise of
| obedience To Gods commandments,
! as a condition of baptism.
| 5. \ Clergyman. whether deacon,
| priest or bishop. is required as a
| condition OF receiving his ministerial
| commission. to promise conformity to
! the doctrine. discipline and worship
/ of this Church. Among the offences
| for which he is liable to be presented
, for trial is the holding and teaching
, publicly or privately. and adviscdly.
| doctrine contrary to that of this
| Church. Individual alterations, in
, teaching or practice, are regrettable
and eensurablc but they ought not
| to be taken as superseding the de-
! liberatc and written standards Of
| the Church. 1t is irreconcilable with
| the vows voluntarily made at
| ordination for Il minister of this
, Church to deny. or to suggest doubt
! as to the facts and truths declared
! Ill the Apostles Greed.
6. To deny. Or to treat as i'm
| material belief in the Creed in which
at every regular service Of the
! Church both minister and people
! profess to believe, is to tri1e with
words and cannot but expose us to
/ the suspicion and the danger of dis
honesty and unreality. Honesty in
| the use of language--to say what we
mean and to mean what we say
is not least important with regard
to religious language (and especially
in our approach to Almighty God.
| however, imperfect to express divine
. realities we may recognize human