The Birmingham age-herald. [volume] (Birmingham, Ala.) 1902-1950, 1923-05-09
"CHURCH BEHIND Me-"
SAYS BISHOP MANNING
REPLYING TO GRANT
New York PreIate Pleads For
Adhesion To Fundamental
Doctrines

NEW YORK, May s.-Declaring
that the whole diocese of New York
is behind me in my recent contro-
versy," Bishop William r Manning
of the Protestant Episcopal diocese of
New York, delivered an attack on
preachers and teachers who do not
preach what they have taken VOWS
to preach" in an address at the 140th
annual convention of the New York
diocese today.
Bishop Manning did not directly
name Rev. DR.. Percy Stickney Grant,
rector of the Protestant Episcopal
Church of the Ascension, whose views
on church doctrines recently caused
controversy with the bishop, but
his address largely was devoted to a
reply to the contentious of DIR. Grant
on church doctrines and practice. He
declared there was no conflict be-
tween religions and science and as
serted that the element OF tn super
natural must enter into religion
His address followed a resolution
proposing appointment of a special
committee to draft a proposal for
examination as to the mental com
potency" of ministers who insist on
retainin positions of trust and
emolument as preachers and teachers
in church whose doctrines they
openly repudiate."
n
The resolution was believed to
have been aimed at DR.. Grant and
was sent to committee after a dis
cussion which brought about some
opposition. 1t also declared that the
insistence of clergymen upon his
right to hold his post while dissent
ing from the creed lis so abhorrent to
the universally received and accepted
standards of right and wrong as to
cause grave doubt as to his mental
responsibility"
After referring to the obligations
and responsibilities of ministers,
Bishop Manning declared there was
no reality in the supposed conflict
between science and religion, and
that the belief that science was COM
mitted to the materialistic philosophy,
excluding belief in the supernatural
and possibility of miracles, was out
of date.
"The first requirement Of us who
are called to preach the gospel is our
own true personal faith in Jesus
Christ" he continued. THE supreme
requisite In a Christian minister is
sincerity for the sake of his influence
on others and for the sake of his
soul. The note of simple living faith
in our preaching counts for more
than all other qualifications and
nothing else whatever can take the
place Of this. We must bring all the
powers of our mind into this service.
Not many of us, l think, would be
willing to describe ourselves as
either fundamentals or modernists in
the common acceptation of those
terms.
O O o
Position of Church.
Most Of us believe that we are
standing for something which is
larger than either of these positions.
We stand for the faith as held and
taught by the Catholic church in all
the ages since the day Jesus Christ
rose from the dead and we stand Tor
this gospel as this church has re-
ceived IT, We find nothing in TINS
faith which contradicts or denies or
conflicts with the rights of reason.
I'VE fnd nothing in the CHRISTIAN
faith which conflicts with the scien-
tific theory of evolution, but on the
contrary this theory as to the pro-
cess of creation seems to us to pring
into clearer view both the MAJESTY
of the Creator and the glory of MS
revelation of Himself In the incar-
nation"
A resolution attacking the modern
list in the Episcopal church also was
introduced 1t denied the right or the
modern churchman's union, com
posed of rectors and laymen, TO IN
terpret the church creed according 10
its own will and opposed the doc
trine of progressive revelation