The Truth at Last.—The “Scots Observer” has had a series of articles under the heading of “Why Revise the Creed?” appearing in its columns. These have been written by ministers of the Church of Scotland. We call attention to the Rev. D. W. P. Strang’s article. Mr. Strang is thoroughly drastic and would sweep the Westminster Confession off the boards altogether. “Why not, first of all, simply clear the whole situation by frankly recognising that the Westminster Confession functions no more as a living statement of the Church’s faith, and so leave the mind of the Church free to grapple with the realities of the position?” The creed revisers in the Church of Scotland are getting bolder now that expediency no longer acts as a check on their tongues and pens. We note another paragraph in which Mr. Strang says: “The Declaratory Acts of the former United Presbyterian Church and of the former Free Church now carried over into the Church of Scotland amount to a very drastic revision of the Westminster Confession, a revision so drastic that hardly one characteristic position of the venerable document is left unchallenged or untraversed.” To those of us who remember the tortuous logic and casuistry of the late Principal Rainy and his henchmen during the Declaratory Act controversy in the Free Church the above statement is refreshingly frank. If Dr. Rainy and the leaders in the Free Church in 1892 had been as frankly honest there might not have been so many duped by them. Still, after so long a time, it is something to know that the truth comes out at last.
Ignorance of the Creed Revisers.—One of the first essentials, one would naturally expect of men out to revise the Confession of Faith, is that they would have a nodding acquaintance at least with this valuable and venerable document. Our experience, however, is contrary to this and as an illustration we note the following points in the article referred to in the preceding note. Mr. Strang in summing up the virtues of the U.P. Declaratory Act (1879) mentions the following: “For the doctrine of the damnation of unbaptized infants and unconverted heathen, it substitutes the doctrine of God’s unconvenanted mercies” and “For the doctrine of the creation of the world in ‘six days’ it substitutes a sanctified and responsible liberty of thought enfranchised to follow and to receive the well authenticated teachings of science within its own sphere of right and duty.” We challenge Mr. Strang to show one sentence in the Confession that teaches “the damnation of unbaptized infants” and why should the Confessional doctrine of creation in six days be found fault with when the Scriptures say the same? Does the U.P. Declaratory Act daringly lay its heretical hand on the Scripture statement: “For in six days the Lord made heaven and earth, the sea, and all that in them is” (Exod. xx. 11)? and if not, why should it be exempted any more than the identical statement in the Confession? Better to keep by the sure statements of Scripture than the so-called “authenticated teachings of science” which during the last thirty or forty years have shown about as much stability as a weathercock.
A Move in the Right Direction.—We cull the following item from one of the dailies: “The Joint Committee representing the Amalgamated Union of Operative Bakers, Confectioners, and Allied Workers and the Scottish Union of Bakers, Confectioners, and Bakery Workers, have passed the following resolution:— ‘That this Joint Committee, representing organised bakery workers in England, Scotland, and Wales, having considered the increasing amount of production and sale of bread on Sunday, views the situation with alarm, believing Sunday work and sale of bread to be against the best interests of the baking trade and the nation. We therefore urge that an amendment of the law is necessary, and call upon the Government and all men and women of good will to assist in preserving the Sabbath as a day of rest.’
Presbyterian Minister’s Plea for Spiritualism.—The Glasgow Presbytery of the Church of Scotland had recently brought before it a proposal by the Rev. William A. Reid, retired minister of West Maybole, that a Committee be appointed to consider how Spiritualism might be incorporated into the activities of the Church. The Presbytery wisely turned down the proposal but if it be the case as Mr. Reid stated that many of the ministers and members of the Church of Scotland are believers in spirit communion and attend seances and that they have private meetings for communion with varying methods in their homes it is high time the Glasgow Presbytery should take more drastic steps. Mr. Reid expressed the prayer and hope in common with those who “practise spirit communion” for the time “when every congregation shall have some little sacred place set apart for the communion of the saints.” Mr. Reid we presume from the fact that he is retired has seen many years in the ministry and it is regrettable that he should round off his years of service by such utterances. As a specimen of how this cult has warped and perverted his judgment take the following utterance of his at the above Presbytery: “Without the support of present-day supernormal psychic phenomena the New Testament loses its meaning and the resurrection of our Lord becomes one of the many religious myths.” If Mr. Reid is correctly reported, and we have no reason to question the correctness of the report, one is amazed at such an utterance coming from a minister. Has the Christian Church all these centuries been waiting for the uncertain light of Spiritualism to explain the New Testament and its transcendent miracle—the resurrection of our Lord? Most emphatically, No, we answer.