Church Sales of Work.
Recently an article appeared in the Women’s Column of the Glasgow Herald in which Church Sales of Work are dealt with in a satiric vein. “Nowhere,” says the writer, “is wider scope for envy, jealousy, and malice, for back-biting and back-chatting kept as a rule within the bounds of the law of slander and even within the limits of decorum. The Perfect Lady, if she gives her mind to it, can say a good deal without ceasing to be the Perfect Lady. Even if these be purged away there is usually an abundance of comical fuss and rivalry.” The sting of this satiric pen-picture is in its truth and it shows that in unexpected quarters the evils of church sales of works and bazaars are beginning to be felt.
“I never trouble to speak about sin.”
A friend sent us a copy of the Rye Lane Baptist Magazine (August) in which an address delivered by the pastor, Rev. Theodore M. Bamber, at Keswick in July, is given. The address contains the following sentence:—”So the Spirit of God comes to convict and while the preacher is speaking about Jesus Christ, the Holy Ghost is speaking about sin. I never trouble to speak about sin, because I know if I am speaking to the unconverted about the Lord Jesus Christ, the Holy Ghost undertakes to talk to them about sin, and He can do it better than I can.” These sentences contain a very subtle form of error disguised under a cloak of hyper-spirituality. A gospel that does not “trouble to speak about sin” is not the gospel of the New Testament. The preacher is not to ascend a platform of super-refined spirituality and remain silent about sin because it is the divine prerogative of the Holy Spirit to convince of sin.
The Salvation Army.
We call attention to an extract from Peace and Truth, the organ of the Sovereign Grace Union, which is printed on another page. The Salvation Army are living exponents of that Arminianism and Semi-pelagianism with which we dealt recently in the Magazine. The social work of the Army among the downtrodden and outcasts has blinded the eyes of many to its grave and serious heretical teaching. Methodism has been described as Arminianism set on fire and much of the drive in the Boothite movement is due to its strong Arminianism and Pelagianism; it is militant Semi-pelagianism. In view of the fact that its religion and social work are dovetailed it becomes a question for the conscience whether any financial support should be given to the Army by any that value sound doctrinal teaching.
“The Devil’s Rattlebag.”
Such was the happy, if stinging, epithet given by Alexander Peden to David Mason, a noisy, blustering religionist of his time. The name lost nothing of its aptness by its picturesque touch. It is a fitting description of some pseudo-scientists and literary men of our day among whom may be named Bernard Shaw and H. G. Wells. Recently the latter has been airing his opinions at the meetings of the British Association held at Nottingham. The leading lights in the scientific world gather to these meetings and air their opinions. Some of these are helpful and useful and are a real advance on our knowledge but if one wishes to get specimens of some of the most arrant nonsense he has only to read some of papers delivered at the British Association meetings. Take for instance this utterance of H. G. Wells in his presidential address to the section of Educational Science:—”All the historical part of the Bible abounded in wild exaggeration of the importance of Palestine. Nothing began there, nothing was worked out there. Solomon’s temple was smaller than most barns. It was time we recognised the extreme insignificance of the events recorded in Kings and Chronicles. Even if we think it desirable to perplex another generation with the myths of the Creation, the Flood, the Chosen People and so forth, we haven’t got the time for it.”
Strange History.
““Nothing began there; nothing was worked out there.” We wonder if Mr. Wells is in earnest! Do we understand him to say that nothing began in Palestine and nothing was worked out there? In a land where a work was done that lifted empires off their hinges and which is destined to vitalise the whole world. One might as well admire the peculiar judgment of an astronomer who ignores the existence of the sun in his calculations as give any place to Mr. Wells’ strange deliverance. Mr. Wells professes to be a historian who takes no parochial view of the trend of events yet, if he is judged by the above words, his vision is woefully circumscribed. He is troubled about many things in the Bible and if his writings mean anything he would replace them by the uncertainties of Evolution of which he is an ardent exponent. What he calls the myths of the Creation and the Flood will, we suppose, be replaced in the school curriculum by the fantastic theorising of the pseudo-scientists. Things have come to a low state when men like Mr. Wells are recognised as oracles and are listened to with respect in the educational world.
Forced Ecclesiastical Marriages and Ecclesiastical Divorces.
For some reason best known to itself the Scottish Press does not give the prominence to the ecclesiastical disturbances in the Church of Scotland as it does to those in some of the smaller denominations. As one reads of the unsuccessful attempts, however, of forced ecclesiastical marriages such as Latheron, etc., one does not need to possess a very active imagination to picture all the ill-feeling engendered by the efforts of those determined to bring together people who are quite determined that they will not. Then we have a new phase in the case of congregations such as Carradale in Argyllshire separating. Perhaps these congregations acted wisely in resorting to divorce for in all probability the marital relations were anything but happy. It is well that those who think that there are no ecclesiastical troubles except in the Free Presbyterian Church should have their attention directed to these cases.
A Mischievous Speech.
At a dinner held recently in Glasgow, Prof. Main, one of the University Divinity Professors, said in a speech: “I hope that the time will not come when we lose the tradition of a morning service on the Sabbath. And if there are some who in this bustling era, feel they need recreation on Sunday I think we perhaps ought not to lay intolerable burdens upon them. Rather should we say: We know you like recreation, but we would like you to know there is a tradition in Scotland for morning worship. So let us come to a compromise. Let us say—’No games on a Sunday until two o’clock.’ That will allow those who have to work that others may play a chance of morning worship.” It is this playing into the hands of the enemy by ministers that has been one of the chief causes of the great land-slide on Sabbath observance in Scotland. It is lamentable that one in Prof. Main’s position and with his early ecclesiastical upbringing should have given utterance to such sentiments.