Daily Kennebec journal. [microfilm reel] (Augusta, Me.) 1870-1975, 1924-01-21
RECORD AUDIENCE
HEARS REV, BUCkNER
ON CHURCH DISPUTE

why had not Christianity, after
nearly nineteen centuries of exist
ence. been able to make such a dis
aster as the World War impossible?"
asked Rev. Arthur Buckner near the
end Of his discourse. Jesus and Paul,
Rival Founders of Christianity" yes
terday morning. "The answer may
be this" he said. during these nine
teen centuries ninety nine, per cent
OF all the sermons, hymns, creeds and
rituals have concerned themselves as
to who Jesus was not and not as to
what he taught"
Once more the attendance record
for the season was broken by the
audience which came to hear Rev.
Arthur Buckner of the local Unita-
rian Church deliver his third sermon
on the Fundamentalist- Modernist
controversy. In his Introduction he
answered several questions which had
been proposed to him regarding the
subject of his sermon last Sunday,
He said that he welcomed these ques-
tions and should be glad to receive
more, promising to answer them as
best he could. In his sermon yester-
day morning he said In part:
Read in the Gospel according to
Matthew chapters 5, 6 and Z. Here
Is the worlds greatest religious and
social literature, and, believe, genu-
inely from the lips Of the worlds
greatest phrophet. 1t contains hu-
manity's great treasure-the. Beati-
tudes! Humanity's greatest prayer
greatest thought Of God-"Our Fa-
ther!"
Read, then, II you please, after
you have finished the chapters s, 6
and 4. of Matthew, the very next
chapter. Herein is gone the simple
and irresistible style. Gone the pro-
found vision of life! Gone the mag
netic rub with n great personality!
Here in the eighth chapter is present
ed hating and discontfnous account
of magician. The sublime Jesus
has been displaced by a mystical
Christ. In my mind, and. am very
sure that in your own mind, also. the
sublime prophet Of Matthew, Chapter
I, cannot be identified with the con-
jurer of Matthew, Chapter 8.
"'But', you ask most naturally.
How Is one to know which parts of
the Bible to accept and which to re-
ject?' Or more embarrassing still,
How shall we know which portions
Of the very Gospels themselves to be-
lieve?' The problem is a large one.
Let us do our best. rejoicing in our
snledid freedom from political. eccle-
siustical or social restraint. My own
father, who is one of the most rug
ged thinkers I have evei known, was
not so fortunate in connection with
another thesis in another denomina-
ton.
Through out the three snyoptic
Gospels we have two mutually eex-
elusive. contradictory and utterly ir-
reconciable conceptions. One is the
conception Of the historic Jesus. The
other is the conception Of the mysti-
cal Christ. The first had it's origin
in the personality Of the great pro-
pjhet himself. The second had its ba
sis principally. although not exclu-
sively, in the mind of the greatest
theologan of history, the Apostle
Paul The only possible clue for an
Intelligent reading of the synoptic
Gospels Is to isolate these two antag-
oristic elements as best we can. This
mean. OF course, that we should re-
discover, go far as is possible. the
very teachings Of Jesus. familiarize
ourselves with his beautiful; character
and then. frankly reject those in
congrupus. elements tracable to Paul,
or more broadly, the Pauline theolo-