Year: 1875

A UNITARIAN CLERGYMAN OF NoRTHFIELD ON


MODERN oRTHoDoxY-THE CHRISTIANITY OF


THE PRESENT IN THE LIGHT OF cHRIsT's


TEAcHINGs-THE sCEPTIcIsM OF THE AGE


AND THE REASONS THEREFOR


NoRrHFELD, Mass, Sept 90 1876.


The first open rebuke and criticism which Mr. Moody
has received since his arrival in this country has been
right here in his native town. 1t yesterday.
forenoon in the shape of powerful by Rev. T.
p Sunderland the pastor of the North6eld Unitarian
church. and the discourse was of such positive aud
unmstakabe character that it will hardly attract less
popular attention than have the celebrated sermons
of the distinguished evangelist himself The
Unitarian and orthodox churches the only in
town, and, while they have always been on friendly
terms with each other, the uon-church people sympa-
thizc more with Unitare-.sy-. Tbs outside feeling is
probably of account way the other and
only mention it to show that far popularity
among the worlds people is concerned the Unitarians
have the best off Among the members of this church
is brother Of Mr. Moody, and so prominent is he in
the flock that he reoces the double title Of deacon
and Sabbath school superintendent The evangelist
Moody, it is said has made persistent attempts to
bring his Unitarian kin and kith to ortho-
doxy, but the latter refuses TO secede from
his chosen creed. He attends his meetings and on
occasion he was among those who stood up for
prayers but for this he sharply criticised that
doubt if he will again invoke orthodox suppicatons in
his behalf The Unitarian pastor has also attended Mr.
Moody's meetings and his reflections and ideas of the
same embodied in the remarkable sermon which he
preached yesterday The evangelist when he arrived
in town. invited to attend the Unitarian church.
and vaguely rumored that his decnaton was in no
wise gracious. Whether this be not the discourse
OF Mr. Sunderland does not indicate Inasmuch as the
doctrines laid down by the Unitarian divine likely
TO attract considerable attention and comment Iappend


REV MR. suHpERLAYDs SERMON


Mr. Sunderland selected his text from Acts xiv, IA
CATER the way which they call heresy, worship the
God of my athersn He said


1t is always incumbent upon those who persist in
maintaining different form of religious doctrine or
worship from the majority of the people OF the COM
munty country in which they dwell to be always
ready on any fitting occasion to give reason. shall
occupy the time before this morning in stating as
briefly and plainly as can, why !, for one find my
self compelled to take my stand outside OF orthodoxy
and to worship the God of fathers in the way that
the majority Of the people in this country and Chrsten
dom call hcresy believe nothing OF value than
Christianity ever made its appearance among men
But believe that what Is generally understood by
Christianity today whether Protestant countries or
Catholic is not pure, original Christianity Jesus
taught Christianity by lip and le but that it is Chris


anty corrupted and corrupted by the Introduction of
elements entirely foreign to it, and essentially bad
These bad elements do not OF course more than to a
limited extent destroy the Christianity with which they
mixed but they are nevertheless, far as they
themselves CO. corruptng


Mr.. Sunderland then proceeded to denounce the or
thodox doctrines based upon the ideas of the fall the
through ADAM and that Jesus Christ the sacred
person the Trinity, down to earth for the pur-
pose of reconcng God to SO enabling the lat
ter TO escape endless punishment pronouncing them
anti Christian, and then proceeded to inquire in what
respect Is orthodoxy anti Christian? {? repy chiefly
In four respects--


FSrst-Orthodoxy is not taught by Christ but instead
contradcts many OF his planest teachings


Second-lt is unreasonable.


Third-It is essentially immoral


F0uru-The time and manner of ts usurpaton of It's
place in the Christian Church be clearly traced
history. :, H.. :


l regret that can discuss each Of these points onv
very briefly this morning The first specific charge
mako against orthodoxy, then that il is not taught
by Jesus but instead is clearly in contradiction with
many Of His most prominent and repeated teachings
10. 40 oegin win, Jesus nowhere gives any ntmation
lhat DO knows anything about any trinity,
and expressly calls HIS Father the only
God whereas He usually calls Himself the Son OF Man
and never calls Himself by any title that hints that He
is God while He declares outright that His Father s
greater than He And as TO His unity with the Father
He declares II to be Of the kind of His unity with
His disciples and Gods unity with all His loving and
obedent children, viz the unity spirit of love OF
aim. of desire. Orthodoxy, on the contrary de-
simply mysterious, but asefcontradictory statement
ad, that Jesus is the true God eternal omnipotent
that the best and truest conception Of God which we
get that Of father who always loveand ALWAYS
will love every human child of his who forever desires
his childrens best welfare and neither has his heart
seeed against them when they sin so that he does moi
wish TO save them, nor his hands tied by igments of
law or justice so that he save them 1nttI for
sooth has died for them 10 make his heart
relent to unbind his hands Nothing of
that kind does Jesus teach but instead that
God watts all the day long for his erring children 10
come back TO him. even the father in the parable OF
the Prodigal Son waited ready rejoice and clad To
forgive always without anybody TO die in thar pace
before he forgives any than the father Of tho
prodiga wanted somebody TO die before no would for
give his repentant boy But contrary to ali tina
orthodoxy teaches that God has always beon angry with
his human children when they have suned and either
could not would not (you may take which horn of
the dilemma you pease) forgive them no matter how
deeply they repented, until an innocent person died in
their stead


WHAT Is sALvATIoN7


Again Jesus taught that salvation is prImarlv and
essentially salvation frsm SHINING and salvation unto
present holiness and consequent happiness Ortho.