San Antonio light. [volume] (San Antonio, Tex.) 1911-1993, 1923-01-29
ISSUE PUT UP TO BISHOP
AS RECTOR CHARGES RICH
INFLUENCE CHURCH ACTION
Friends of Doctor Grant Say He Has Proof That High
Finance and Modern Religion Are lnterlocking
and That Pastors Who Preach to Masses
Will Be Shorn of Support.
BY JUNE HADDAWAY.


Copyright 1928, by The San Antonio Light.
New York, Jan. 29.-Whether thigh
finance" and modern religion are in
terlocking developed today a problem
that threatened to eclipse the controver-
sy between Biship William L. Manning
of the diocese of New York of the Pro
testant Episcopal Church and Rev. DIR.
Percy Stickney Grant, rector of the
Church of the Ascension of that de-
nomination.
The church, already split wide open
as a result of the Grant developments,
is rapidly taking sides on this latest
question thrown as a bombshell by DIR.
Grant as a qualifying defense TO his
refusal to withdraw voluntarily from
the Episcopal faith. 1t is the culmina-
ton of allegations which have been
made, more or less yelled, for a number
of years that any pastor of a New
York fashionable church who strayed
from the dogmatic doctrines of religious
belief and preached the religion of the
masses was doomed to opposition that
eventually would close his pulpit to
him.
Rockefeller influence has been open
ly charged with influencing pulpit ut.
terances, not alone in New York but
throughout the United States. Other
leading men of wealth who have been
prominent in church circles have been
alleged 10 have resented liberalism in
the pulpit with the result that when
their support was withdrawn from GER
tain churches the trustees of those in
situations have compelled changes in
preachers.
Say He HAS. the Goods"
These charges in the past have been
more or less yelled. Today they are
in the open and the intimates of DIR.
Grant assert that he "has the goods"
| to prove his case. In his sermon Sun
day DR.. Grant threw down the gauntlet
to his enemies and specifically charged
that the fight against him is "inspired
by capitalistic interests working under
the surface" That is as far as he is
prepared 10 go at this time. The next
move is up TO Bishop Manning Should
the latter order heresy trial and there
are few in church circles today who be-
lieve this can be avoided. then Dr.
| Grant is publicly TO state just who
the capitalists are that are interested
in driving him from the pulpit.
incidentally the recalcitrant rector
OF the Church of the Ascension Carried
the war into Africa" when he re-stated
his views on re-marriage of divorced
persons while his twice divorced
fiancee. Mrs. Philip Lydig sat an in
terested listener in a rear pew. Bishop
Manning had warned him that he could
rot wed Mrs. Lydig without violating the
church canons and had intimated that
the rector had changed his views on
this particular topic since his engage
ment.
DR.. Grant denied this. insisting that
he has entertained his present opinion
for forty years and asserted that
women are rising, demanding a change
in the marriage laws. They wOuld
broaden and unity the divorce laws
And they are the ones interested for
two-thirds of the divorces are granted
at the request of women"
While waiting for Bishop Manning
TO make his next move. the ministers
of the New York diocese are lining up
behind either DR.. Grant or the head
Of the church. It admittedly is sur
prising the strength of the Grant
camp. Squarely aligned in his support
are a number of the best known preach
ers of the Episcopal faith. They do
not all agree with the views that Or.
Grant is enunciating. but they are a
unit in insisting that the ministers of
the gospel cannot allow themselves to
be gagged and that the successful
preacher must take into account the
trend Of modern thought in their dis
courses.
Brooklyn Pastor Opposes Bishop.
The Rev. DR.. ]. Howard Melsh. rec
tor of Holy Trinity. the very fashion
/ able Episcopal Church of Brooklyn who
is one of the spokesman for liberal
thought in the denomination. has taken
a position in opposition TO Bishop Man
ming.
A heresy trial is the last thing any