Atlanta tri-weekly journal. [volume] (Atlanta, Ga.) 1920-19??, 1924-08-16
~ IBBON in his celebrated work entitled
.NChe Decline and Fan Of The Rom n


~ IBBON. in his celebrated work entitled,
THE Decline and Fall of the Roman
- Empire" takes account of the decline
Of religion among the Roman people which
was so intimately and vitality related to the
decay of their commonwealth.
Among other striking observations he says:
"The various modes of worship which pre-
vailed in the Roman world, were all consider
ed by the people as equally true by the
philosophers equally false; and by the
ma gistrate as equally useful
The attitude OF the magistrate with refer
ence to religion is especially interesting.
Amid popular superstition and philosophic
skepticism, the ruling classes in religion
nothing more than its utility. In it they dis
cerned a force which they believed tended to
promote social order and political tranquil
lty Hence they patronized it and sought to
use it for the accomplishment of the ends
which they conceived it served well.
But can any religion survive long after it
has ceased to command belief and has come
to be considered for it's utilitarian value
only? TO ask the question is to answer it.
A religion must be believed or it must
perish. Its utility can not outast the conf
dence whith is given to it. When it is cor
rupted and enfeebled by doubt it ceases to
have power to restrain vice, inspire virtue,
or promote any other worthy object. Chris
tianity is not an exception to this obvious
principle. faithless Christianity of mere
sentiment is an utterly forceless thing.
1t is quite the vogue with many in our day
to say "Christianity is life, not doctrne.
But it has no power to produce life in the
soul apart from the belief Of its tenets
The essential doctrines of Christianity are
far more matters Of fact than they are mat
ters of speculation, or theories, or philoso-
ply. They are nothing more 4.or less than
the Interpretation of the historical facts upon
which the religion of the Christ rests. When
its doctrines are renounced the facts of its
history are rejected, and nothing is then left
but a formless and forceess sentiment with
no more power to regulate life than the
memory of dream can control conduct.
The matter has been we'll put recently by
a forceful writer, who says: THE relation
between Christian doctrines and Christian
facts Is such that they stand or fall together.
The facts without the doctrines are meaning
less; the doctrines without the facts are empty
In the nature of the case, a Christianity
which rC-ts on a factual basis will be a doc
trinal Christianity; and vice versa, can
have a non-dOctrinal Christianity only as we
have Christianity that is independent Of his
tOrical facts. We can have a nOn-doctrinal
or even a christianity that ascribes a sec
ondary Importance to doctrine, only we
implicitly deny that it takes its stand upon
foundation of historic fact. Nothing is more
certain than that Christianity that stands
squarely upon a series of supernatural his
torical facts will be doctrinal Christianity. If
this We're more generally realized there would
be few calling themselves Christians who
would decry Christian doctrines. Those who
saw off the limbs on which they sit are not
usually aware'of what they are doing
The force of these clear and cOgent state
ments The Apostles Greed exemplifies. In
that great formula Of faith certain facts are
explicitly disclOced, namely, that Jesus Christ
was conceived by the Holy Ghost, born of
the Virgin Mary, suffered under Pontius
PLATE, was crucified, dead and buried, and
the third day rose again from the dead. y
Here are certain things which are alleged to
be facts. They are not doctrines, but facts,
if the New Testament history is true. 1t is
worse than idle to decry them as tenets Of
mere creed. creed long and universally
accepted states them facts, but it does not
originate them and then employ them for
speculative purposes. 8
If they are not facts, then the Christian
religion is false and its historical records are
utterly discredited-and that is the end of it.
If its affirmation of these be found false, it
can not be honestly held, nor can it be relied
on TO serve any worthy end; can not be en-
ployed as a force to elevate personal charac-
ter or promote the welfare of mankind.
In a late issue of the Worlds Work an
article appears written at the request of the
editor by an anonymous writer, which reveals
astonishing ignorance of these plain truths
or amazing indifference to them
The writer Is said to be a busy man Of af-
fairs, of wide reading and scholarly attain
mentS. He tells his readers that he was
brought up in the atmosphere of a Christian
household which had wholesome moral quail
ity that has helped him to withstand many