Who maketh the clouds His chariot,Who walketh upon the wings of the wind.

1936· 1 937

VOLUME 15. NO. 18

Oetober 10, 1946

MACHEN • EDITORGRESHAMJ •

•

Leslie W. Sloat

•

•

Waters in the

Wllderness

•

aareuee W. Duff

Ned B. Stonehouse

University Board

Meets

Eeomenieal Synod

Life of Jesus Christ

Guardian

News Commentator

THE PRESBYTERIAN GUARDIAN274

.~fAMlLYALTARRedemption Thoughts

OCTOBER 19DEUT. 30:1-10 (6)

WHEN the Lord Jesus told Nico­demus that he must be born

again by the Spirit He was but statingan old truth in a new way. God is theactive agent in regeneration. By Hispower He changes man's heart, renew­ing it, or bringing about the new birth.And the one renewed is to give evi­dence of his inward change of heartby wholehearted love for God. Thushe will choose those outward practiceswhich are pleasing to God.

OCTOBER 20PSALM 51 (10)

In his extremity of repentanceDavid turned for help to the One whohad first called him from his state ofsin. God had changed his heart andnow that it was weighed down withguilt David called upon the Lord tocreate within him a clean heart. It isGod alone who knoweth the heart;He alone can give peace of heart.

OCTOBER 21PSALM 119:25-32 (p)

One notable feature of this Psalm isespecially prominent in these eightverses-the psalmist calls upon Godto conform him to God's will andways. Expressed here is that thirstafter the knowledge of God. Also thefountain of such knowledge is re­vealed. There is not only prayer foran understanding of God's ways, butalso a purpose to follow in them.

OCTOBER 22JEREMIAH 24 (7)

God's power is always at the com­mand of His purpose. By the figure ofthe good basket of figs God revealedHis purpose to restore from captivity.By His power Jehovah would givethem a heart to know Him. To know,is in this case, to love, to obey withthe whole heart. So ought we to knowHim today! Do you have that knowl­edge of God which springs forth toloving, faithful obedience?

OCTOBER 23JEREMIAH 31:27-37 (33)

There is but one way that the gra-

cious purposes of the new covenantmay be fulfilled in the heart of man.It is the sovereign work of God. InHis time, in His way and in whom Hewills God implants the mercies of thecovenant. He adopts us into Hishousehold where we are evermore Hispeople and the Lord is eternally ourGod.

OCTOBER 24EZEKIEL 11:14:25 (19)

Three things are observable in thememory verse. The first is the effectof sin upon man's heart-it is as stone.Secondly, man is helpless in this con­dition, else God would not have toact. Third, only God can and does giveus a receptive heart of flesh, or faith.The following verse most certainly setsforth God's purpose in thus changingour hearts.

OCTOBER 25JOHN 6:49-7 1 (65)

Total depravity is not some man­made doctrine of the Reformed Faithbut an integral part of the Scripture.In this one chapter Christ twice makesthe unqualified statement that no mancan come to Himself and salvation ex­cept the Father draw him. Sin leavesman entirely at the mercy of God. Butis there anyone more merciful? Is any­one more gracious? Is anyone morelongsuffering? Is anyone more able tocall and quicken whom He will thanour almighty and sovereign God?

OCTOBER 26JOHN 15: 1-12 (5)

Not only does sinful man make themistake of thinking that he can workout his own salvation, but often aChristian has the sinful thought thathe can serve Christ in his ownstrength. It is necessary to dependupon God both for wisdom andstrength in any Christian endeavor.Apart from Him there may be greatactivity but precious little will be ac­complished, in fact, from the eternalstandpoint, absolutely nothing.

OCTOBER 27I CORINTHIANS 3:1-11 (7)

With the hypodermic needle of suc­cess or fruitfulness Satan often injectspride into the Christian. Such a treat­ment must be fought with greatenergy. For pride will not only killone's effectiveness in Christian work,

October 10

but it also detracts from the glory ofGod. How useful and usable is thatservant of God who says sincerely, HIam nothing."

OCTOBEIt 28COLOSSIANS 1:1-13 (12,13)

Elsewhere we are told to offer thesacrifice of praise to God continually,that is, the fruit of our lips, givingthanks to His name. In today's pas­sage we are given the basis for suchcontinued thanksgiving. God hath gra­ciously fitted us for a spiritual heritage,He has delivered us from darkness andits power and He has translated us,by redemption, into the kingdom ofHis dear Son. Let praise sound forthcontinually for all His wonderful worksin our behalf!

OCTOBER 29II TIMOTHY 2:16-26 (25)

All spiritual 'exercises which we arecalled upon to manifest are from God.In this and other passages we learnthat repentance, love, faith, in fact,every grace is from God. Truly Heworketh in us both to will and to doof His good pleasure.

OCTOBER 30I CORINTHIANS 15 :1-11 (10)

There was probably no one sogreatly endowed by nature and train­ing for his ministry as was the apostlePaul. Humanly speaking, men wouldexpect him to succeed because of hisnative abilities. But Paul was great inmore ways than one. He was greatin humility-HI am the least of theapostles." He was great in giving gloryto God-HBy the grace of God I amwhat I am." All saints are as de­pendent on the Spirit for holy affec­tions as sinners are for the gift offaith.

OCTOBER 31I CORINTHIANS 1: 1-10 (9)

In His faithfulness, God not onlyelected certain people to salvation butalso effectually calls them. By HisSpirit men are called unto the fellow­ship of His Son Jesus Christ. Theoutward call that comes to all throughmessages, tracts and Scripture readingis implemented by the Spirit who re­generates and brings to conversion.This is seen strikingly in the conver­sion of Paul who to the very momentof his vision was a zealous enemy ofChristianity.

-HENRY D. PHILLIPS

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Th, Presbyterian Guardian Is published semi. monthly from September to July. Inclusive., and monthly in August '" The Presbyterian Guardian Publishing Corpora­tlen, 728 Schaff BuU-Ging. 1505 Race Street. Philadelphia. Pa., at the followin&' rates. payable in advance. for either old or new subscribers in any part of the world. posta..prepaid: $2.00 per Year; $1.00 for live months; five or more copies either to separate addresses or in a package to one address. $1.25 each .Per year; introductory rate tor new_ribers onI,y. three months for 25c; 10e per sinllie copy. Entered as second class matter March 4. 1937. at the Post OJllce at Pbil&doiJ>hia. P .... undor the Act of March S. 1111.

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1946 THE PRESBYTERIAN GUARDIAN 275

The First EeulDenieal Synodof ReforlDed ChurehesP.rt Two: 'mport.nt Decisions

By DI,t. NED B. STONEHOUSE

I N AN earlier report published inTHE PRESBYTERIAN GUARDIAN a

month ago, I sought to inform Ourreaders concerning the constituency,background, authority, and purposeof the First Ecumenical Synod ofReformed Churches, which had con­vened in Grand Rapids on August14th. The promise was made at that

. time that, following the adjournmentof the Synod, a supplementary reportwould be forthcoming which wouldrelate some of its most important de­cisions.

When the Synod adjourned onAugust 30th, it could not claim thatit had solved all of the problems facingReformed Christendom. But it clearlycould be credited with an earnest de­sire to come to grips with such prob­lems and to lay a solid foundation forthe future. Unavoidably much timewas consumed with fashioning plans

/ for the Second Ecumenical Synod,Considering the limitations imposedby the unavoidable lack of advancepreparation and by the brief periodat the disposal of the delegates, theimmediate fruits are far hom negli­gible.

Among the questions which theReformed churches had been facing,and which received some attention atthis Synod, were those relating to theneed of a more precise formulation ofthe doctrine of the Inspiration of theScriptures; the foundational signifi­cance of the doctrine of creation overagainst modern evolutionary teaching;the development of the Reformed con­ception of Eschatology in relation toaberrations like Modern Dispensa­tionalism and the Barthian Theology;the doctrine of the Church and therelation of Church and State. On thesematters the Synod did not attempt tomake pronouncements. But in orderthat such questions might be treatedprofitably at future Synods, commit­tees were erected to prepare reportsto be published as soon as possible.

The Synod did not, however, hesi­tate to affirm unequivocally its adher-

ence to the Scriptures as the infallibleWord of God. In a "Testimony,"which took account of "the aversionto, this only and unshakable founda­tion" and its terrible consequences forthe life of nations, families, and indi­viduals, the Synod gave expressioneloquently to its fervent faith in theinspiration and authority of HolyWrit.

Doctrinal Declaration. The Synod also undertook, 'in re­

sponse to the request of the Nether­lands Church, to declare itself withregard to a doctrinal pronouncementof this Church, adopted at its Synodearly in the present year. For someyears a controversy had been ragingwhich centered largely in the doctrinesof the covenant of grace and of bap­tism. Although not attempting toevaluate the controversy indetail, theSynod did declare the doctrinal de­liverance to be in accord with theScriptures and the Confessions. Al­though the text of this deliverance israther long, it is being presented herebecause of its intrinsic interest. TheEnglish text is the rendering of theRev. H. J. Kuiper, Editor of TheBanner.

"On the basis of the Holy Scriptureand of the Confession of the Church,the Synod declares:

"( I) In the covenant of grace itpleases the Lord to deliver man, fallenin Adam, from his misery and again toreceive him into his fellowship (Gen.3:15) .

"To that end He has laid theiniquity of us all on the MediatorJesus Christ (Isa. 53:6), who with hisdeath and shedding of his blood hasconfirmed the new and eternal testa­ment, the covenant of grace and ofreconciliation (Form for Commun­ion) .

"Through the Holy Spirit, the Lordimparts to his own this salvation ob­tained by Christ, in which grace, oncegiven them, he mercifully confirmsand powerfully preserves them even tothe end (Canons of Dort, V, 3).

"( 2) In this covenant the Lordcomes to us with the promise of sal­vation and on this ground with the re­quirement of faith and conversion.

"These two, promise and require­ment, are joined to each other in sucha way (Gen. 17:7; 18:19) that man'sresponsibility is fully maintained andnevertheless the Lord in his covenantis not dependent on what man does.For in the promise he testifies not onlythat every one who believes in the Sonhas eternal life (John 3:36), but healso assures us of the Holy Spirit, whoproduces faith, whereby he imparts tous Christ and all his benefits (Isa.59:21; Jer. 31:31-34; Gal. 4:28, 29;Heb. 8:1O-1l; Heid, Cat., Ans.74).

"Accordingly he works in his electthat which he requires of all (Canonsof Dart, III-IV, 10), fulfilling in themall the promises of the covenant,reckoning not "the children of theflesh" but "the children of the prom­ise" for a seed (Rom. 9: 6-8; Gal.3:16) .

" ( 3) According to the Word ofGod the children of believers as wellas adults are included in the covenantof God and in his Church, and aresanctified in Christ, so that they sharein the promise and are placed underthe requirement of the covenant(Gen. 17=7; Heid. Cat., Ans. 74; Formfor Baptism, Q. 1).

"At the same time Scripture alsoteaches that not all are Israel who areof Israel (Rom. 9:6). Nevertheless,the Church, since it is not given herto judge that which is secret, shouldnot make a distinction between mem­bers and members, but, building onthe promise of God (Ps. 22: 31; Isa.44:3; 59:21), and in accordance withthe language of Scripture (Mark 10:14; Acts 16:31,34; Eph, 6:1), should'regard and deal with the children,unless they reveal themselves as unbe­lievers, as those who share in the re­generating grace of the Holy Spirit.(The Synod has chosen this expressionto leave room both for the view thatthe children are. to be regarded as re-

278 THE PRESBYTERIAN GUARDIAN Octobe.. 10

generated, and for the view that theyare to be regarded as children who areor wiII be regenerated, though bothviews naturally are conditioned bywhat follows in this declaration con­cerning the sovereignty of God.)

"This does not imply that any defi­nite statement can be made, on thebasis of God's Word, concerning thetime at which the Holy Spirit .beginshis regenerating work in the elect; theLord fulfills his promise sovereignly,at his own time, whether before, dur­ing, or after Baptism.

"Further we say with our Confes­sion that godly parents ought not todoubt the election and salvation oftheir children whom it pleases God tocall out of this life in their infancy,since they are holy, not by nature, butin virtue of the covenant of grace(Can. of Dort, I, 17). Likewise, inthe training of their children theparents shall always proceed from thepromise of the covenant and pleadthereon,

"The Church shall exclude from itsfellowship those who in unbelief andimpenitence despise the covenant ofthe Lord. She declares thereby thatsuch have no part in thc Kingdom ofChrist and as covenant-breakers aresubject to the judgment of God aslong as they do not repent (Hcid,Cat., Ans. 85).

"(4) The children of believersough t to bc baptized on the groundof God's promise and command;which Baptism signifies and seals thewashing away of sins through theblood and Spirit of Christ [Hcid. Cat.,Ans. 69, 70).

"Therefore the Church thanks andpraises the Lord for his fatherly good­ness and mercy which he has shownto "us and our children" (Thanks­giving from Formula for Baptism) andshe calls all to faith in that promise ofthe gospel which comes to them inBaptism. For without faith the sacra­ment will be to them of no avail butwill make their judgment heavier, asalso' our Confession states that the un­godly receives the sacrament to hiscondemnation but not the truth of thesacrament (Belgic Conf., XXXV),which is Jesus Christ, without whomthe sacraments are of no moment(Art. XXXIII).

"( 5) The covenant of the Lordobligates everyone always to provehimself earnestly whether he truly be­lieves in the Christ of God (II Cor.13;5) and brings forth fruits of thank-

fulness (Heid. Cat., Ans. 64); forScripture says that only he that be­lieveth and is baptized shall be saved(Mark 16:16).

"In accordance with the foregoing,the Synod rejects every conceptionwhich, in the doctrine of the covenant,fails to do justice to the election ofGod and the effectual operation of theHoly Spirit, and which identifies thecovenant promise with a conditionalassurance.

"Finally, the Synod would in allearnestness call attention to it that aswe ponder in faith on the connectionbetween God's responsibility and ourresponsibility we should not be wiseabove what is proper. Here too theword applies: 'The secret things be­long unto Jehovah our God; but thethings that are revealed belong untous and to our children forever, thatwe may do all the words of his law'(Deut. 29:29)."

Reformed Churches in GermanyOne decision of the Synod may be

of considerable importance for themaintenance and development of theReformed Faith in Germany. The Re­formed Churches of Ostfriesland andof Grafschap Bentheim, although de­nominationally connected with theReformed Churches of the Nether­lands, have not been permitted by theAllied authorities to resume contactwith these churches. They have, forexample, not been permitted to senddelegates to the synodical meetings inthe Netherlands nor to send their stu­dents to the denominational seminary.The ecumenical Synod, taking stock ofthis grave injustice, prepared a peti­tion which seeks to influence the au­thorities in Washington to take stepsto amend this situation.

Constituency of the SecondSynod

One of the most thorny problemsconfronting the delegates was that ofdetermining the character of the nextSynod. On the one hand, there wasthe conviction that the present synodwas essentially preparatory for a muchbroader future gathering. But, onthe other hand, it was determined thatat all costs precautionary measuresshould be taken to preserve the dis­tinctly Reformed character of the as­sembly. This end was promoted, firstof all, by the adoption of the follow­ing statement:

"The foundation of the Ecumenical

Synod of the Reformed Churches shallbe the Holy Scriptures of the Old andNew Testament as interpreted by theConfessions of the Reformed Faith,viz., Holvetiea Prior, Heidelberg Cate­chism, Confessio Callicana, ConfessioBelgica, Confessio Scotica prior etposterior, Westminster Confession,and the Canons of Dort.

"It should be understood that theseScriptures in their entirety, as well asin every part thereof, are the infallibleand ever abiding Word of the living,Triune' God, absolutely authoritativein all matters of creed and conduct;and that the Confessions of the Re­formed faith are accepted becausethey present the divine, revealed truth,the forsaking of which has caused thedeplorable decline of modern life. Ithas to be emphasized that only awholehearted and consistent return tothis Scriptural truth of which thegospel of Jesus Christ is the COre andapex, can bring salvation to mankindand effectuate the so sorely needed re­newal of the world.

"Because of the diversity in theForms of government of the ReformedChurches, uniformity of Church polity

. cannot be stressed as a fundamentalrequisite except in so far as the prin­ciples of this polity are contained inthe Reformed Confessions, e.g., theHeadship of Christ and the marks ofthe true Church (the preaching of thepure doctrine of the gospel, the pureadministration of the sacraments, theexercise of discipline) .

"All churches which, in the judg­ment of this Synod, profess and main­tain the Reformed faith will be invitedto participate 111 the EcumenicalSynod, on the basis mentioned above.Moreover, they will be kindly re­quested to express their explicit agree­ment with it, and all delegates to theSynod will have to testify their adher­ence to the confessions of the Re­formed Faith and to the aforesaidstatement."

The final paragraph was adoptedonly after considerable debate. Severaldelegates, having in view the difficultyof selecting certain churches and pass­ing by others, judged that it would besufficient to leave the ultimate de­cision to the consciences of thechurches. The contrary point of viewprevailed, however, and, as amended,the statement was understood as re­quiring the Ecumenical Synod to de­termine which churches were to be

(See "Synod," page 278)

THE PRESBYTERIAN GUARDIAN 377

Waters in the WildernessBy the REV. CLARENCE W. DUFF

Orthodox Presbyterian Missionill')" in Eritrea

,,

Y· ORANES and I piled our tent andpoles (borrowed from Mr. Ma­

haffy), a box of supplies and utensils,a bucket and lantern and two briefcases crammed with books and Bibleson and in the native owned and oper­ated bus that leaves Ghinda eachsummer evening for the hot baths ofABet (pronounced eyelet). The occu­pants of the bus were in holiday moodas we rolled merrily around the curvesand hairpin switchbacks to the hotplain below. Turning off the mainhighway we went across the dustyflats, here and there descended into adry water course and drove throughthorny acacia trees and bushes to thecomfortable Italian hotel where all theItalian passengers alighted. The busthen drove the native passengers andmyself back in another direction to themain native encampment.

Sitting just behind me on the waydown was an Ethiopic priest. Hearingme speak in Amhanc to the bus driver,he spoke to me and told me he wasone of the monks from the old Bizenmonastery, about 15 miles fromGhinda on the road to Asmara. Hesaid the monks had a house at the hotbaths and very kindly invited me togo with him there. His invitation pro­vided me a friendly contact and a placeto pitch our camp for the next fournights. The three other Bizen monksoccupying the rude house at the timewere courteous but not over friendly.Occasionally I shared the shade oftheir porch or wall at midday whenmy tent was too hot.

A motley crowd frequents the heal­ing waters of Ailet at this season.Mohammedans and Christians (Ethi­opic, Roman Catholic, Protestant),from Asmara and Massawa, fromnorth, south, east, and west in Eritrea,from the northern provinces of Ethi­apia as far as Adigrat and Adua andAxum, speaking Amharic, Tigrinya,Saho, Tigre, Arabic, Hebrew-theycome to wash in and to drink of thewaters that have become so famous fortheir cures. The sick, maimed, lepersand those with festering tropical ulcerscome for healing. Those-who have

been helped in the past come to pre­vent a recurrence of their diseases.Healthy looking specimens from thecool highlands come to enjoy the heatof Ailer, others from Massawa andnearby to escape from the extremeheat and humidity of the coast. Thepopulation is not large but alwayscnangmg. Most people stay for a weekto fineen days.

Idleness is the rule. After nightfalland before light in the mornmg prac­tically the entire population leavetheir rented huts or their open campson the surrounding hillsides and godown to wash in pools in the rocks orimmerse their bodies in wells scoopedout of the sand in the river-bed. Thewater is so hot that I could scarcelywash my hands in it, after it was car­ried to my tent in a bucket from thespecial well reserved for drinking andcooking purposes.

Durmg the day quite a few of thepeople migrate to other valleys a mileor two away where are various wells orsprings or little streams or water flow­ing tram pipes stuck into the rockysides of a gorge. The various springshave been blessed by the Moslemsheiks in the name of some famousMohammedan. The Christians oftenpraise God for giving them the waters,but I fear usually trust and pray forhealing in the name of a saint or angel.

Yohanes and I, armed with anAmharic Bible, Tigrinya Gospels ofSt. John, and a Tigre New Testament,followed the people to these streamsand springs, and found many opportu­nities to converse about Christianthings with individual men or groups.One day beside the stream not farfrom the Italian hotel we had a longconversation about the Bible and theChristian faith with several Moham­medans from Adua, in Ethiopia. AnEthiopic Church man from the coun­try above Ailet came along to help us,and when the Moslems had gone tobathe he stayed to ask us more of ourteaching. Yohanes stood with mc indefense of the Protestant faith, but Ihad sometimes to curb a slight tend­ency to sacerdotalism inherited from

his Swedish Mission (Lutheran)teaching.

At this place we drank of the waterfrom a little pipe stuck into a cleft ofrock in the hillside. Our Moham­medan friends told us that this wasexceptionally beneficial water. Yearsago before the pipe was inserted acertain woman had put her hand intothe cleft to catch some water, whena serpent took hold of her hand andbit severely. Her arm and body swelledup at once, but she was healed bybathing in the nearby hot water. Afterthat she could charm any snake, nomatter how deadly. She told them shehad played with their grandmother,and they all obeyed her.

Another day we sat under bigspreading acacia trees in the streambed below a rocky falls at the top ofwhich people were bathing in a lovelystream of water, comfortably warm,issuing from a large pipe that con­ducted the water from a spring some­where in the hill above. We werehaving a good talk over the Bible withsome men who were listening atten­tively to what we taught, when ourfriend the Bizen monk, Twolde Birhan(Born of Light, or Son of Light), ap­peared. He began to question meabout some of our "heresies." He wasnot unkind or discourteous, butseemed earnestly to believe the Copticdoctrines. Though I was sorry to havethe former conversation interrupted,yet Twolde Birhan's questions andarguments gave me a very good oppor­.tunity to set right several misconcep­tions of our teaching, combat seriouserrors and explain some importanttruths such as Christ as our only medi­ator instead of Mary and saints andangels and priests, and justification byfaith alone without the works of thelaw.

I had little difficulty winning mypoints so far as proof from the Biblewas concerned. Though my friend themonk didn't admit that any of histheories were wrong, he was at quitea few places left without any argu­ment, and I believe those that werelistening in were inclined to scethat

278

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THE PRESBYTERIAN GUARDIAN Oeto.ber 10

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the Bible was on my side. No EthiopicChurch Christian questions the au­thority of Scripture as the Word ofGod. The trouble is that the church'smethod of interpreting Scripture isextremely allegorical and very often'most illogical. Besides they include somany extra books in the canon ofScripture, and make so much of thechurch fathers and tradition, that oneis often left far behind in regard tothe minute details of a Bible incident.For instance, Twolde Birhan's accountof Eve's conversation with the Devilor of Mary's with the angel Gabrielwas far removed from the simplicityand dignity of the Bible record. Thecredulity of these people is amazing.

In other conversations TwoldeBirhan asked me if it is really truethat it is light in America when it isnight here. I assured him it was so,and spoke of how day and night,summer and winter, the phases of themoon, etc. may be explained by therevolution of the vanous bodies. Heprofessed skepticism, and intimatedthat all knowledge gained outside theScriptures was likely to be false and ofthe Devil. He preferred the explana­tion of the Book of Enoch regardingthe seasons and months, that the sunhad twelve windows, one for eachmonth so that some days and monthsare longer than others. I fear he mis­represented Enoch somewhat.

He was confident that motion pic­tures were of the Devil, since men andobjects appeared and disappeared in away that he apparently attributed toblack magic.

This monk was a gentle, likableman. In many matters he evidenceda true appreciation of spiritual truthand appeared sincere in his convic­tions. He gave me a hearty invitationto visit him at Bizen, which I didsince, together with Mr. Mahaffy andDonald.

After the monk left for the encamp­ment I ate the light lunch I hadcarried along and was invited forcoffee with several folks who had madea little fire under the trees beside thestream. They were families who hadcome from Axum. One, the wife of apriest, had been reading for some timeduring the forenoon in a TigrinyaGospel of John that she borrowedfrom us.

The last evening I had an excellentopportunity to explain our teachingand important ways in which it differsfrom the Coptic and the Roman Cath-

olic in answer to the questions askedby the two bus owners, Moham­medans. They seemed to feel that myexplanations made the Christian faithmore reasonable than they had con­ceived of it from their contacts withthese other churches. We had anaudience in which were at least oneRoman Catholic woman, a Copt andother Mohammedans.

I had gone on this excursion withthe intention of visiting the towns ofAilet, Ghumhod, and Azus, campinga few days at one or the other andtrying to hear and practice pure Tigre.I found, however, that they were prac­tically deserted villages at this hot anddry season of the year, almost theirentire populations having migrated tobetter grazing lands higher up. Mostof the merchants and their familieswent elsewhere for the season, some tothe hot baths nearby. The languagesspoken about the resort were as greata babel as we find at Ghinda. Findingmany who understood Amharic, I feltit a real opportunity to bring theWater of Life to this wilderness whereso many are seeking the water thatcannot heal the disease of sin .norquench the thirst of the soul. We havegone back since to hold a little meet­ing and hope to go several times againin the month or more that remainsbefore the season ends. Another yearwe hope we can have regular meet­ings at least twice a week through theseason when the people come for thebaths and perhaps keep 'a supply ofBibles and literature on hand for thosewho wish to read. We trust that thusthe good news may go into many partsof the country and fountains of livingwater spring up in this dry and thirstyland. "For in the wilderness watersshall break out, and streams in thedesert" (Isa. 35:6).

Pastoral Efficiency

T HE Broadway Baptist Church ofChicago suggests the following

ways to reduce pastoral efficiency:"Stay away from church, especially

when you know only a handful willbe present. Stay away from theWednesday evening prayer services be­cause there never is a large grouppresent. When the sermon is overleave the church in a hurry withoutspeaking a word of encouragement tothe pastor. When you get sick don'tlet him know about it, and then criti-

cize him for not coming, to see you."Never invite him or his family

out to dinner in your home. Theynever enjoy a social hour. Pay just aslittle as you can to the church andthen always grumble about the churchwanting money.

"Never give up your allegiance toyour former pastor. Constantly quotehim in all things and keep him in con­tact with everything that is going onand ask his decision in the matters ofthe church. Never give your pastoranything except what you promised.This might make him think you ap­preciate him.

"Always have some fool excusewhen he wants you to do somethingin the church. That is what you payhim for. Never call at the pastor'shome, but raise 'Billy Cane' if he doesnot visit you once or twice a week.

"Don't ever offer to help in anyway, for he might think you are 'but­ting in.' Act as cold and indifferenttoward him as you can and he willthink you are dignified. Never bestowany kindness upon him or his wife ontheir birthdays, wedding anniversary,pastoral anniversary, Christmas, etc.Just forget them entirely, for theymight think you love them. Theselittle remembrances would be tookind."

Synod(Concluded from page 276)

invited. But it proved impossible toaccomplish this aim within the timethat the Synod was in session, and inthe end the Synod did not invite anyparticular churches. Instead, it was de­termined that the delegates of thethree churches should constitute com­mittees which should bring nomina­tions to their own national Synods.Thus the final determination of thechurches to be invited from Americawas left to the Synod of the ChristianReformed Church.

The next Synod will convene inAmsterdam, in August,1948, or as'Soon thereafter as practicable. Variousdetails are to be worked out by aCommittee of Three in consultationwith the Reformed Church of Amster­dam, which was designated as the call­ing church. May the great Head of theChurch guide as the various decisionsare carried out in order that this move­ment for unity in Reformed Christen­dom may prosper!

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THE PRESBYTERIAN GUARDIAN

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supply virtue; and in your virtueknowledge, and in your knowledge self­control; and in your self-control pa­tience; and in your patience godliness;and in your godliness brotherly kind­ness; and in your brotherly kindnesslove" (II Pet. 1: 5-7).

From the Editors'MAIL BAG

Dear Sirs:I write to express my appreciation

of your courage. In a day when manyevangelical publications are given to amost discouraging disregard ror purityof principle in tne interests of a carnalscheming for irresponsible popularityand the promotion ot transient per­sonal opinion, it is a distinct pleasureto find m the GUARDIAN a policy offearless resolution. All lovers ot truth,whetner or not they agree with youreditorial opinion, must admire yourcourage ana obvious faith in the abilityof truth to vindicate itself. And therecarl be no doubt that the God ofTruth, for His own glory, will emi­nently honor those who have sufficientfaith in the-Faith to be fearless forits sake.

Yours for a continued constancy,WILLIAM D. GRAYWelsh, Louisiana

Dear Sirs:I took part in the action of the

Christian University Association meet­ing which has been condemned by Mr.Marsden and THE GUARDIAN as being"unethical, immoral and flagrant sin."I want to make it strongly known thatI object to being judged by any per­son or group who set up their ownstandards of right and wrong.

At the meeting certain recommen­dations were made to the Board-thatwas in accordance with the Constitu­tion. The Board had called the meet­ing of the Association, then we as theAssociation chose to continue themeeting at a later date,-this too wasconstitutional. That is all there is toit, and to read into these actions im­morality and sin is judging in a wayonly God is able to do.

In your editorial you claim "manyif not most" of those who so votedwere unaware of the moral implica­tions and were led astray. This is onlyguess work on your part and shouldnot be presented as almost certain fact.

Mr. Marsden reports that we re­fused to reconsider and so can finned

(See "Mail Bag," page 283)

promising, as anyone with .a sensiti,,:cconscience who has had WIde expen­ence in fundamentalist circles cantestify. Personal reputations are pro­moted at the expense of fairness, andthe publicity reaction is more jealouslyguarded than the principles of God'slaw.

Without any question these factsare a great trial ot mind and heart tomany Christians. When they seehonored friends divided by doctrinaland ethical questions they are grieved.Often the divisions are aggravated byhonest and sincere differences of opin­ion. They may be due to ignorance,to misunderstanding, to dullness ofperception, but, at times, they woundthe spirit and disturb the mind quiteas much as, perhaps more than, thosewhere the cause of division-is plainer.

What should the resource of theChristian be in such straits?

The heart of the remedy is to befound in distinguishing between thegreat cause that consists of the de­fense, proclamation and propagation ofthe truth of God and the individualsand institutions which are the tempo­rary means of advancing that cause.God's cause Can never know defeat inany ultimate sense of the word. Its em­bodiment in one or another person ororganization may for a-time be usefuland then lose its place of utility. Thishas happened ever and again. THEPRESBYTERIAN GUARDIAN itself is en­deavoring to maintain a course thatwas once represented by honored jour­nals which have ceased to exist or havelost their usefulness.

God's Word has made it plain (1)that no man or institution shall attainto sinless perfection in this age, (2)that the attainment of an age of per­fect righteousness must await the re­turn of Christ, (3) that not all whoprofess the name of Christ are wisedisciples.

In the light of these things; let usremember our own faults and failures,let us recollect the hasty and imperfectjudgments which we have made in thepast, and let us, in the midst of con­fusion, seek for diligence. For we areenjoined, "Keep thy heart with alldiligence; for out of it are the issuesof life" (Prov. 4:23) and "adding onyour part all diligence, in your faith

(Due to the illness of the ManagingEditor the Rev. Leslie W. Sloat haskindly assisted the editors in the prepa­ration of this issue.)

EDITORSNed B. Sronehouse

Paul Woolley

ADVISORY COUNCILRobert L. AtwellJohn P. ClellandLeslie A. Dunn

John Patton GalbraithEdward L. Kellogg

1505 Race Street, Philadelphia 2, Pa,

E. P. Clowney, Managing Editor

Confusion

ASIZABLE proportion of the Amer­ican population can remember

the days of comparative peace andquiet which were characteristic of thepre-1912 period, and it is difficult forthem not to consider such times asnormal and to long for their return.We fear, however, that any hope ofsuch a return is but chasing the will0' the wisp and had best be resolutelyput aside. In whatever direction welook, confusion reigns.

It is not necessary here to discussthis point in detail with respect to thepolitical and economic organization ofsociety. It is likewise true to a con­siderable degree in the realm of socialand individual relationships. Whatmore immediately concerns us is theconfusion in the religious scene and,particularly, within the church ofChrist.

The organized churches are, in alltoo many instances, divided betweenmodernists and evangelicals. Sinfulunbelief has crept into the hearts ofmen, and positions of -trust and au­thority as well as positions of simplemembership are occupied by men whodeny the faith which is the bond ofunity of the children of God. Evangeli­cals have generally felt, and rightly so,that in many instances an ethical ques- 'tion was involved here as well as adoctrinal one. When a church requiresits officers to subscribe to a system ofdoctrine as a condition of office, is itright to make that subscription, whenit cannot be made sincerely in thehistoric sense of the words? Evangeli­cals have usually said, No. They havebeen right.

But ethical laxity has not been con­fined to the modernist camp. Funda­mentalist ethics are all too often com-

'7IW -;;:~l&dmt-GUARDIAN

The Life of Jesus ~hrist

THE PRESBYTERIAN GUARDIAN

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Oetoller 10

olios, but all too often our publicappearance of religion is not matchedby the private practices of a trulydevout life. It is in connection withthe matter of prayer, that Jesus givesus the model for all such approach toGod, which we call The Lord'sPrayer.

Next comes a warning against set­ting too much store by earthly things,as money and possessions. The treasureworth having is treasure in heaven,which will be ours throughout eternity.If we seem not to have enough for ourimmediate bodily needs, we are to re­member that our all-sufficient Fatherknows even better than we do thethings of which we have need. "Seekye first," commands Jesus, "the king­dom of God and His righteousness,and all these things shall be addedunto you." What a rebuke this is toour worldlyanxietyl And what a prom­ise it is! The chief business of thechurch is not in the field of economicsor social theory.

After this there are instructions con­cerning the relation of a man to hisfellow, in which we are warned not tojudge a man too hastily, and to becareful of that which we do, that itbe effective. Men are to be known bytheir fruits. As good trees do not bringforth bad fruit, or vice versa, so evilhearts do not bring forth good fruit,and vice versa. So the fruit of a man'slife is a good indication of the innerheart. And finally Jesus speaks of thecoming judgment. In it He Himselfwill be the Judge. He will determinewho shall and who shall not enter theeternal kingdom. And many who havethe forms of external religion will onthat day be found on the outside.Those who do the will of the Father,in truth, will be received. The firstrequirement of that will, is that werest upon Jesus, in trust, for our soul'ssalvation. .

The Sermon is brought to a closewith a double parable. There is de-

• scribed a foolish man, who builds ahouse on the sand. When stormscome, the house is demolished. Andthere is described a wise man. Hebuilds his house on a foundation ofsolid rock. It stands firm amidst thestorms. Those who listen to what Jesussays, and do it, are like the wise man.Their lives will be built on unmovingrock, and they will be strong in Chris­tian character. Those who refuse tohearken to His words will be overcomeby the tempests of life. The only

A Home Study Course

By the REV. LESLIE W. SLOAT

recognition of one's own spiritualpoverty, in sorrow for sin and a patientwaiting on God. There is a longing forrightcousness, there are outward actstit mercy and kindness. And finallythe growth of righteousness in char­acter and conduct brings its inevitableresult in opposition and persecutionfrom the forces of evil. Christians arenot to seek to be persecuted, but those

, who have reached the stage of beingpersecuted for righteousness' sake aredescribed as specially blessed, in thatthey are made partakers of the kind oftreatment -that was accorded the trueprophets of ancient time.

Then our Lord points to the dis­tinctive place and consequent respon­sibilities of discipleship. Disciples ofHis are a light in the world. And theyare to be such a light, not by observ­ing the law of God according to thefalse interpretations of scribal andpharisaic tradition, but by observingit according to that true inner andspiritual understanding of it whichJesus is about to indicate. He had notcome to destroy the law. The law, evenits least jot and tittle, shall never bedestroyed. But people need to under­stand that sin consists not only in cer­tain external acts, as murder andadultery, but in the total inner atti­tude of the heart. Anger and envy, lustand greed, are as much transgressionsof the law as any acts. God requiresthat we shall be perfect, even as HeHimself is perfect. That is our goal.

Jesus discusses three outstanding re­ligious practices of the time-alms­giving, prayer, and fasting. He pointsout that since they are done with re­spect to the Father in heaven, theyshould not be done in a way that at­tracts the attention of men. The Jewsof that day often made an ostentatiousexhibit of their righteous acts. Theypublicized their giving, made longprayers on street corners, and dis­figured their faces when fasting. Jesussays that these things ought to be doneina private fashion, for the eye ofthe heavenly Father, not the eye ofthe man next door. Surely we need tobe reminded of this in our own day.Protestants may not carry about astring of beads which thcy are con­tinually fingering, as do many Cath-

,

280

LESSON 13The Sermon on the Mount

SCRIPTURE: Matthew 5-7; Luke 6:1-49

THE controversy with the Jews overthe proper observance of the Sab­

bath day, which had apparently begunin Jerusalem, continued on the returntrip to Galilee and it seems naturalto think that Luke is dealing with thisreturn trip when, in his sixth chapter,he reports another outbreak of theconflict in connection with the pickingof corn or grain on the Sabbath. OurLord's answer to the charge, throughthe use of some Old Testament illus­trations, establishes certain principlesin the matter. The first is that worksof necessityare proper on the Sabbath.The second is that work involved inthe conduct of worship is proper onthat day. And the third is that worksof mercy may well be done on a dayset apart to the Lord.

Luke then records the names of thedisciples whom Jesus had called to beHis followers. These twelve continuedwith Him during His ministry, one ofthem became a traitor and then com­mitted suicide, and the remainingeleven, along with Paul, were thefounders of the Christian church afterthe departure of Jesus.

It is at this point that Luke insertshis account of the Sermon on theMount. The version of Matthew,which differs from Luke's in some par­ticulars and may well have beenspoken on a separate occasion, islonger, and Matthew seems to indicate.that it came earlier in the ministry ofJesus. In our study of the Sermon, weshall use Matthew's account of it asour source.

The Sermon was delivered to thedisciples in particular. It is intendedfor all Christian people, and may beconsidered as the divine standard ofChristian conduct, the law of God forthe life of His people. We may lookupon it as designed to restore a correctunderstanding of the Old Testamentcommandments, but also to supple­ment them by fuller explanation.

First are the Beatitudes, a series ofbrief sentences describing the trulyblessed man. Here is described the de­velopmcnt of character in a true Chris­tian. ~e see the beginnings in a

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foundation upon which it is safe tobuild our lives, is the sure foundationof God's unchanging Word.

If the Sermon on the Mount givesexpression to the duties of the ,Chris­tian life, it in no less degree exaltsJesus Himself as the Lord of the Chris­tian life. Jesus claims an authority ininterpreting the Old Testament pre­cepts, and an authority in giving Hisown commands, which sets Him apartfrom the rest of mankind. And whenHe asserts His own position as Judgeat the last day, we recognize that th~

authority He claims is justly His.None but the Son of God could speakthus, and speak true.

Small wonder then, that when Hewas finished, the people were aston­ished. They were not accustomed tosuch authority, even in pompousscribes. Here was a new voice. Theworld today needs to attend again tothe words which it uttered.

QUESTIONS ON LESSON 13

Detail Questions:1. What name is given to the dis­

course of Jesus which openswith the Beatitudes?

2. What are the Beatitudes, andwhy are they so called?

3. Is it sinful to envy or hate an­other person, if 'One does notactually injure that person?

4. What is the goal we are to seekafter in life?

5. Where in the New Testamentdo you find the Lord's Prayer?

Discussion Questions:1. Discuss the differences between

the "righteousnesses" of Scribesand Pharisees, and those whichJesus requires.

2. In our Christian conduct, whoseapproval should we especiallyseek? What effect will this haveon us? Is there any area of lifewhere this is not true?

3. What do we learn concerningJesus Himself in the Sermon?

4. What are some of the stormswhich Christians have to face?In what way will a knowledgeof the Word of God help us to •weather such storms? Whatwere some of the storms JesusHimself had to face?

5. What, in your opinion, is thebest way to make the Word ofGod a foundation of your life?

Bruce Hunt Sails

According to a telegram received atthe Foreign Missions office on Septem­ber 21, the Rev. Bruce Hunt, Ortho­dox Presbyterian missionary, expectedto sail from Seattle on Thursday,September 26, aboard the MarineFalcon of the President Line, boundfor Korea. The Church should bemuch in prayer that the way may beopened for Mr. Hunt to resume funmissionary work. For the present hisfamily must remain in this country.

Later: Delayed by the strike, Mr.Hunt sailed from Vancouver, B. C.,on October 1.

Tichenor to Be Ordained

Nottingham, Pa., a place famous inthe history of the Presbyterian Church,was the scene of the September meet­ing of the Presbytery of Philadel­phia of the Orthodox PresbyterianChurch. The Stated Clerk of Presby­tery, Rev. Henry D. Phillips of theBethany Church of Nottingham, rep­resented the Church as the host ofthe occasion. Elected as moderator forthe ensuing year was Professor R. B.Kuiper of Westminster Seminary. Itappears to be the intention of Pres­bytery to reopen the Calvin Instituteof the Bible at as early a date as provespracticable.

The major part of the session ofPresbytery was consumed by the ex­amination for ordination of LicentiateC. Alan Tichenor of Philadelphia,who received, at this meeting, a callto the pastorate of the Knox Churchof the same city. Mr. Tichenor dis­tinguished himself by the modestyand lack of bravado in his bearing.Ashe was one of five who presented to .Presbytery a proposed Answer to thecomplaint 'against the Presbytery inconnection with the licensure andordination of Dr. G. H. Clark, he wasquestioned at somewhat greater lengththan usual. There appeared to be gen­eral satisfaction throughout the Pres­bytery as to his position on all pointsexcept those connected with the doc­trines of the incomprehensibility ofGod and the noetic effects of sin.Difficulties in connection with thesepoints were not resolved to the satis-

faction of all, but, in view of certainconsiderations concerning Mr. Tiche­nor which appeared in the course ofdiscussion, the Presbytery finally de­termined by majority vote to proceedwith the ordination. The service is tobe held in the Knox Church of Phila­delphia on Thursday evening, October'10. The Rev. Messrs. S. J. Allen, H. J.Hoeflinger, Robert Strong, S.T.D.,and others will participate.

The Rev. Robert L. Atwell wasreceived from the Presbytery of NewJersey, was elected to the Committeeon Young People's Work, and is tobe installed as pastor at Middletown,Pa., this month.

The next regular meeting of thePresbytery will convene at the Media­tor Chapel, Philadelphia, on Novem­ber 18.

China Bible Teaching

THE East China Theological Semi­nary, now located at Hangchow,

that famous ancient city of gardensand lakes, is to benefit from the teach­ing services of the Rev. Egbert W.Andrews, missionary of the OrthodoxPresbyterian Church. This Seminaryis supported entirely, except as regardsthe personal services of Mr. Andrewsor other foreign members of its staff,by Chinese contributions. The major­ity of its board of control are alsoChinese, the foreign minority mem­bers being representatives of the ChinaInland Mission.

The presence of large numbers ofMandarin-speaking refugees in theShanghai area also offers opportunitiesto Mr. Andrews to preach "the gospelto these neglected people. They arenot able to understand services con­ducted in the Shanghai dialect. Formonths now Mr. Andrews. has beenliving at great personal sacrifice on asleeping porch. Living accommoda­tions are at a tremendous premiumin the Shanghai area, and the amountscharged as "key money" are fabulous.

Fakkema on Tour

MR. Mark Fakkerna, the GeneralSecretary of the National Union

of Christian Schools, is making an­other speaking tour through the East

j

1

282 THE PRESBYTERIAN GUARDIAN Oetoher 10

Terminates Services of General SecretarySends Statement to Members

~hristianUniversity BoardHolds Fall Meeting

visiting Christian school centers inThe Orthodox Presbyterian Church.Those living in the East who wouldlike to contact Mr. Fakkema may doso by writing at once to the office ofthe National Union of ChristianSchools, 11005 So. Michigan Ave.,Chicago 28, Ill. The contemplateditinerary will cover the larger part ofthe month of October.

Westminster Trusteeto Japan

THE Rev. William A. McIlwaine,D.D., a trustee of Westminster

Theological Seminary, and missionaryto Japan under the PresbyterianChurch in the U.S. (Southern), ex­pects to sail again for Japan thismonth. Before the war Dr. McIlwainetaught in the Central TheologicalSeminary at Kobe. Originally underthe joint control of the Northern andSouthern Presbyterian Churches ofthis country, the Seminary becameindependent when the control of theNorthern Church threatened to in­troduce modernism. The war forcedthe closing of the institution. Someof its Japanese professors have nowbecome ministers of the new Chris­tian Reformed Church of Japan. Itis hoped that soon a seminary canbe opened to do the work formerlydone by Central Seminary. Efforts tobuild up a library are already underway. Information may be secured fromMajor Lardner W. Moore, 0-511444,IMTFE GHQ SCAP, APO 500, c/oPostmaster, San. Francisco, Calif.

It is reported that 52 protestantmissionaries of all denominations havenow been cleared for Japan. The ma­jority of them will engage in educa­tional work.

THE Trustees of Westmin-ster Theological Seminary

have extended a cordial invi­tation to the public to bepresent for the inaugurationof the Rev. Edward J. Young,Th.M., Ph.D., as Professor ofOld Testament. The servicewill be held in the Seminaryauditorium on Friday evening,October 18th, at 8 P.M. Dr.Young will deliver an addresson the subject, "The Author.ship of Isaiah 40-66."

THE regular fall meeting of theBoard of Trustees of the Christian

University Association was held on Sep­tember 11 at the Central Y.M.C.A.in Philadelphia. Twenty-three of thepresent members of the Board at­tended. Four newly elected memberstook the pledge of membership in theBoard. These were the Rev. P. Y.De Jong, Ph.D., John Hekman, R. P.Jobson, and Thomas McIlwaine. Theofficers of the Board were re-electedand are Ned B. Stonehouse, Th.D.,President; Howard D. Higgins, D.D.,Vice-President; Robert K. Rudolph,D.D., Secretary; Lambert Steen,Treasurer. Glenn A. Andreas, and theRev. Messrs. John Clelland, WilliamHaverkamp, Robert Marsden and JohnMurray were elected to constitute,along with the officers, the ExecutiveCommittee of the Board. The Boardreceived assurance from its legal coun­sel that its constitutional powersgoverning nominations and electionsto the Board were clear and that thesecould not legally be challenged.

One of the actions of most interestto the public was the termination ofthe services of the Rev. Edwin H.Rian, LL.D., as General Secretary. Inconnection with this development, theExecutive Committee has issued thefollowing statement:

October 2, 1946.To the Members of theChristian University Association.Dear Friends:

The Executive Committee- of theBoard of Trustees of the ChristianUniversity Association of Americadeeply regrets that it has to inform the

- members of the Association that theBoard of Trustees at its meeting onSeptember 11,1946, considered itselfcompelled to terminate the services ofDr. Edwin H. Rian as general secre­tary of the Association. No doubtmany of the members of the Associa­tion will be greatly surprised at suchan action on the part of the Board ofTrustees. It seems to the ExecutiveCommittee that some explanation ofthis action should be sent to the mem­bers of the Association.

Without question, it is through the

activities of Dr. Rian that many mem­bers had become acquainted with theChristian University Association andthrough his influence had been con­strained to become members. In theminds of many the movement wasclosely associated with the name andpromotional activities of Dr. Rian.

It must also be said that, althoughthe idea of a Christian University inthis country did not originate withDr. Rian, yet it is exceedingly ques­tionable if the Christian UniversityAssociation would have been estab­lished a few years ago if it had notbeen for his impetus, zeal and pro­motion. '

It becomes for these reasons all themore necessary for the members of theAssociation to be informed of the rea­sons for which the Board of Trusteesterminated Dr. Rian's services as gen­eral secretary.

Over a period of time it becameincreasingly evident that Dr. Rianwas out of accord with certain policiesof the Board of Trustees, policies, in­deed, which deeply affect the char­acter of the movement and of the Uni­versity which it seeks to establish andmaintain. Of such divergence of view­point we shall give one or two ex­amples.

The Board of Trustees has notevaluated the suitableness of candi­dates on the basis of denominationalaffiliation. It has rather exercised greatvigilance in making nominations tothe Association for membership onthe Board of Trustees. Dr. Rian hasfrankly confessed that he considersthis type of selectiveness on the partof the Board as failure on its part tocarry out the intent and provisions ofthe Constitution of the Association.The Board, on the other hand, isdeeply convinced that this type ofvigilance is indispensable for the di­rection and preservation of the move­ment to the end that it may fulfil thevery purpose contemplated and ex­pressed in the Constitution.

It is in this light that a statementmade in a communication recentlysent to members of the Association isto be evaluated. This statement avers

.. /,

#a n f .t rft' 't

1946 THE PRESBYTERIAN GUARDIAN 283

'II

Faithfully yours,N. B. STONEHOUSE,

President.

the Board, wishes Dr. Rian well andhopes that his great talents will beeffectively used in some other field ofservice to the promotion of the king­dom of our Lord and Saviour.

The Executive Committee alsohopes that the members of the Asso­ciation will be persuaded of the neces­sity and wisdom of the action takenand will continue to give to the Asso­ciation their hearty and prayerful sup­port.

On behalf of the Board of Trustees,I am

Mail Bag(Continued from page 279)

our transgression. What transgression?Certainly not one against the law ofGod or the law of man, but perhapsagainst the wishes of certain men, yes-so we are judged by them and calledsinners in the sight of Almighty God.To this I protest.

Very truly yours,HENRY P. ALLEN, JR.

Reply by Mr. MarsdenGentlemen:

Thank you for your invitation toreply to the letter of Mr. Henry P.Allen, Jr., regarding the recent ma­terial which appeared in the July 25thand the August 25th issues of THEPRESBYTERIAN GUARDIAN.

In the first place, may I make clearjust what I meant when I said thatcertain actions taken at the meetingof members of the Christian Univer­sity Association on June 27th were"unethical" "immoral" and "flagrantsin." The constitution of the Associa­tion clearly gives control of the callingof meetings to the Board of Trustees.It carefully circumscribes the rights ofmembers and the rights of meetings.It does not provide that meetings ofthe members can convene from timeto time to review actions of the Board,but merely that the Board shall makea report at an annual meeting. It is thepurpose of an action and its effect that

• determine its moral character. My con­tention was that the purpose and theeffect of the motion to hold an ad­journed meeting to review future ac­tions of the Board were to arrogate tothe meeting rights that the constitu­tion grants to the Board. This is a

(See "Marsden," page 287)

of Trustees. The only feasible solutionwould have been either to terminatethe services of Dr. Rian or for thepreponderating majority of the Boardto resign. The Board members couldnot so lightly relinquish their responsi­bilities. And so the only practical andproper alternative was to terminate theservices of Dr. Rian.

Members of the Association shouldunderstand that the then-current ap­pointment of Dr. Rian terminated onSeptember 30th. He had been reap­pointed for one year at the Fall meet­ing of the Board in 1945. No injusticewas done to Dr. Rian in terminatinghis services nineteen days earlier thanthe end of the period of his appoint­ment. By action of the Board his salarywas not only continued until Septem­ber 30th but also extended an addi­tional month, until. October 31, 1946.It is distinctly misleading, therefore,to allege, as has been alleged in a com­munication sent to members of theAssociation a few days ago, that "onSeptember 11th, Dr. Rian was dis­missed as General Secretary withoutnotice."

It is quite unfair to allege that theBoard is responsible for "the deplor­able financial situation." The presentfinancial condition is indeed not asatisfactory one, and it had becomeprogressively worse during recentmonths. It must be remembered thatthe unsatisfactory financial state de­veloped during Dr. Rian's tenure ofoffice. The Board had not publicisedits differences with Dr. Rian and it canhardly be charged that the Board isresponsible for undermining the con­fidence of some members of the Asso­ciation.

In view of the present financialsituation, the Board was compelled togive consideration to the advisabilityof the sale of the Widener Estate. TheAssociation has considerable equity inthis property and that equity mightseriously have been jeopardised if theBoard had not taken due account ofthe situation. It should be noted thatit is not accurate to say that the Boarddecided to look into the "possibility"of the sale of the property. This issomething quite different from con­sideration of the "advisability" of sucha sale. Rather than being charged with"drastic and reckless actions," becauseof this procedure, the Board should beacknowledged as proving itself a faith­ful steward of its trust.

The Executive Committee, as also

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that "Dr. Rian was dismissed as Gen­eral Secretary ... because of his standfor historical, ecumenical Calvinism asopposed to a personal and narrowCalvinism represented by the Boardof Trustees." It must be denied thatthe Board stands for "a personal andnarrow Calvinism." The Board stands,indeed, for historic Calvinism. But itis also exceedingly jealous that thoseelected to the Board of Trustees shallnot only subscribe to the Reformedstandards mentioned in the Constitu­tion but shall also have a sound andintelligent understanding of the im­plications of historic Calvinism for thedirection and conduct of such an in­stitution as the Christian UniversityAssociation hopes to establish. Dr.Rian, on the other hand, has avowedhis opposition to the type of selective­ness and scrutiny that the Board hasexercised for the purpose of insuring,as far as possible, that only men en­dowed with such an underst!nding ofthe implications of historic Calvinismwould be elected to the Board. Fur­thermore, the Board is not committedto any other type of Apologetics thanthat enunciated in the Basis, Purposeand Declaration of the Constitution ofthe Association (Article II).

Dr. Rian has also a different con­ception of the provisions of the Con­stitution respecting the prerogatives ofthe Association. When the Constitu­tion was framed and adopted the pre­rogatives of the Association were verycarefully restricted. It was deemed tobe in the best interests of the move­ment to do so. Hence the Constitu­tion distinctly provides: "The Associ­ation shall meet once each year at thecall of the Board of Trustees. At thisannual meeting the Board shall makea report of its work to the Association.All actions taken at the meeting, per­taining to the work of the Association,shan be presented to the Board in theform of recommendations" (italicsours). But Dr. Rian believes that it isthe prerogative of the Association toremove members of the Board ofTrustees or even the whole Board. TheBoard, on the other hand, maintainsthat the Constitution not only doesnot contemplate any such possibilitybut very distinctly provides against anysuch action on the part of the Asso­ciation.

For such reasons as these it becameevident that Dr. Rian could not possi­bly promote the work of the Associa­tion under theauspices of the Board

r284 THE PRESBYTERIAN GUARDIAN Oetolter 10

GUARDIAN NEWS

COJ'J\J'J\Ei'rrj.\r 0 RVIEWING THE NEWS FROM THE RELIGIOUS NEWS SERVICE AND THE RELIGIOUS AND SECULAR PRESS

Protestant Episcopal Con'VentionPostpones PreslJopalianismRevises Marriage Regulations

J

substituting for ,"for as much as allmen are conceivedand born in originalsin" the words "seeing that all menof their own nature are inclined toevil."

Civil Rights Denied

T HE Jehovah's Witnesses are stillstraining the patience of people

with the result that their rights areoften unjustly' denied them. Thesheriff of Laconia, Iowa, used 150

CHunCH AND STATEWho Rides the Bus?

THE easiest way to get state sup­port for private enterprise with a

religious basis has proved to be freerides for private school children at theexpense of the state. In Massachusettsand New Jersey bus transportation toprivate and parochial schools,providedfree by the state, is now legal. In NewYork State the Bethlehem CentralSchool District board reversed itselfon a ruling which previously bannedRoman Catholic pupils, and has pro­vided a bus route convenient for

.children attending certain Catholicschools. The Roman Church has beengetting some of the same "gravy" inPennsylvania. And when the SchoolBoard of Kennett Square decided tostop transporting parochial school stu­dents, the students marched downthe street and boarded the busesanyway. Since then 66 taxpayers havetaken the matter to court in an at­tempt to oust the directors.

In Massachusetts an initiative peti­tion is being circulated seeking therepeal of the law which permits suchfree transportation. Signers includethe Rev. Dr. H. J. Ockenga of ParkStreet Church in Boston, West­minster Alumnus, and the Rev. Dr.Charles E. Park of the First Church(Unitarian) .

The AmericanCivil Liberties Unionis following up the issue in NewJersey and hopes to have the practicediscontinued.

disease, impotence) had existed priorto the first marriage.

A film and radio commission is tobe set up, and new translations of thePrayer Hook into French and Portu­guese (for Brazil) are to be under­taken.

The Church followed the modernistfaith in approving membership in theproposed National Council of theChurches of Christ which is to be thenew super-inclusive and super-modernFederal Council.

Another interesting action of theConvention had to do with AnglicanChurch history. American schoolpupils are commonly taught that KingHenry VIII established the Churchof England after breaking with Romeover a question of divorce. Anglicanchurch historians maintain, however,that the Church of England severedrelations with Rome two centuriesearlier, when English courts disavowedthe Roman Curia and kings assumedthe right to appoint English bishopswithout Vatican consultation. Andcomplete separation took place onlyin 1562, some fifteen years after thedeath of Henry. The Church's Di­vision of Christian Education was in­structed to take steps to eliminate theformer teaching and replace it withthe latter.

In Canada the counterpart of theProtestant Episcopal Church, theChurch of England in Canada, con­sidered church-union too. The onlybody with which they are makingprogress, however, i~ the UnitedChurch of Canada. They refused toalter the canon on divorce, butamended the table of prohibited de­grees of kindred and affinity.

Modernism showed up at the heart,however,when permission was grantedto modify the baptismal service by

I T HAS been a long time since resi­dents ofPhiladelphia have seen as

much clerical garb as was visible onthe streets in mid-September when thetriennial General Convention of theProtestant Episcopal Church was heldthere. Labels bearing the word"Bishop" in 24- or 3o-point type weredisplayed on many lapels and hotelswere filled to bursting with clergymen.

The Convention did not, however,rush down the road to submersion inthe common mass of American liberalprotestantism as rapidly as some mod­ernists had hoped. Most importantaction, perhaps, was the decision tostudy in commission the matter ofunion with the Presbyterian Church inthe U.SA. for another three years,but not to send the proposed plan todioceses and districts for their study.The Lambeth Conference of 1948 isto have an opportunity to discuss thematter also. Lovers of the Gospel willapplaud this putting on of the brakes.Even the visiting Archbishop of Can­terbury seems to have contributed tothis end, though he did not publiclyadmit the intention, by saying in NewYork just before the Conventionopened, that federal union ofChurches was far preferable to a seriesof constitutional mergers.

The hope of the union still burns,apparently, for the House of Bishopsin a pastoral letter stated, among otherthings, "While we have not yet dis­covered a common basis upon whichwe may achieve organic union withthe . Presbyterian Church in theU.S.A., we shall continue in oursearch for it, so that such union maybe achieved."

The Church stated that remarriageof divorced parties might be permittedif bishops discovered that certain im­pediments (such as -insanity, venereal

1946 THE PRESBYTERIAN GUARDIAN 285

special deputies to keep a group ofthem out of town last month on thepoor plea that some people disagreedsharply with them and so there mightbe violence!

In Montreal 800 cases are beingkept on the court rolls against thempending the decision on an appealfrom a conviction on a charge ofpeddling without a license. Apparentlypetty persecution of religion is stillpossible in both the United States andCanada. It cannot be forgotten that"eternal vigilance is the price of lib­erty" and that every citizen mustresist this sort of needling by thecivil authorities. A better way to com­bat the errors of Jehovah's Witnessesis by circulating information abouttheir teachings and organization. Auseful recent volume on their systemand methods is by H. H. Stroup: TheTehovah's Witnesses (Columbia Uni­versity Press. $2.50. May be obtainedthrough THE PRESBYTERIAN GUARD­IAN).

MISCELLANYlVf~thodists Ecumenical Too

T.IE Reformed Churches of Dutchbackground are not the only oncs

planning ecumenical gatherings. TheCouncil of Methodist Bishops has an­nounced that an Ecumenical Metho­dist Conference will meet in theUnited States in September 1947.Chief difference will be that theMethodists will go in pretty consist­ently for modernism. Representativesare expected from Africa, Brazil, GreatBritain, Ireland, Japan and Mexico.

A Methodist layman, Sydney Wal­ton, has just purchased The BritishWeekly, famous old nonconformistpaper which, two decades ago, gavesuch great publicity to J. GreshamMachen's What is Faith? The editor,D(. John Hutton, is retiring becauseof ill-health. With movie magnateJ. Arthur Rank already on their rolls,British Methodists are well up in thefield of publicity media.

Np-w Christian School

T HE establishment of Christian dayschools is becoming a matter of

news. Religious News Service reportsthe establishment of such a school inthe chapel of the Christian Reformedchurch of West Sayville, N. Y., underthe sponsorship of a Board of ChristianParents of the community. The schoolis non-denominational in character,

i,

Lw....""",,C"" "

and the teacher is the wife of theChristian Reformed church pastor.We like to find this kind of news inthe News Service.

The Canadian Union Paradise

REPORTS of the recent meetingof the General Council of the

United Church of Canada remind usagain of its great preoccupation withsocial and economic affairs. Pro­nouncements were adopted concern­ing the level of industrial production,wage rates, picketing, workers' healthbudgets, and the right to strike. Butthere were no balancing pronounce­ments about the threat of modernismto the preaching of the doctrinal foun­dations of the faith, so far as we havediscovered. However, a helpful asser­tion was that of the retiring Secretaryof the Board of. Christian Educationthat more effective and systematic in­struction of youth in Christian doc­trine is necessary.

The problem of low salaries in. theministry was also attacked. A schemefor a salary pool was deferred forfurther study but the minimum salarywas upped $100 a year. It appeared,also, that all of the problems con­nected with married women clergy­men had not yet been solved.

Cqtholics in Northern Ireland

T HE Rev. John A. Kensit, battlinganti-Romanist of the Church of

England, has been visiting NorthernIreland. He reports that RomanChurch members are buying up farmsfrom protestants and that old man­sions are becoming monasteries andchurch schools.

This is somewhat less surprisingthan it otherwise would be, becauseof the tremendous inroads made bymodernism in the protestant churchesof Northern Ireland. The PresbyterianChurch of Ireland has particularlyfallen prey to it. God has not leftHimself without a witness, however,for the valiant Irish EvangelicalChurch boldly proclaims the faith ofthe Scriptures and the WestminsterStandards. Their Evangelical BookShop on College Square in Belfast isa storehouse of good books and dis­tributes' them far and wide. A colpor­teur works constantly for the Churchthroughout Ireland, going up anddown the roads to visit the homes,Catholic and protestant, and to pre­sent the opportunity to purchase theWord of God and helpful books. A

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THE VIRGIN BIRTHOF CHRIST

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•••••••••••

286 THE PRESBYTERIAN GUARDIAN Oetobe.. 10

monthly magazine, The Irish Evan­gelical, further advances the cause oftruth. Editor of it is William J. Grier,a graduate of Princeton Seminary in1926 and a noble representative of thePrinceton-Westminster tradition andspirit.

Shades of JennyOne of the more famous incidents

of Scottish history, according to com­mon opinion, was the action of theserving maid who tossed her wooden'stool at the head of a bishop who wastrying to introduce a formal Anglicanservice into the worship of a congre­gation of Scotch Presbyterians, duringthe Reformation of the seventeenthcentury.

Recently during AQglican servicesat the Church of St. Cuthbert inKensington, members of the NationalUnion of Protestants of England en­gaged in a somewhat similar riotousscene. This was directed against theuse of "high church" rites. One manstood up in his pew during a solemnmoment in the reading of the Mass,and shouted that that was a protestantand reformed church, and masses areunlawful. Other objectors scatteredleaflets about the room as worship­pers and police endeavoured to quellthe disturbance. According to somereports a bishop in the pulpit was forsome reason tackled in good rugbyfashion during the course of the up­roar. Eventually the disturbance wasbrought under control.

The National Union was organizedin 1942 and claims a membership of25,000. It is set to oppose the use ofMass and other "Romish" practices inthe Anglican churches. It has causeddisturbances on several previous occa­sions. It represents, apparently, themore militant group of "low church"supporters. The conflict between highand low church groups has been oneof the interesting features of Anglicanchurch history.

Revival in IrelandKing's Hall, Balmoral, four miles

from Belfast in Northern Ireland, isthe scene of a recent revival move­ment. Religious fervor reminiscent ofMoody's revival there in 1892 is beingmanifest at meetings sponsored by theIrish Evangelization Society.

The hall, which had been convertedinto an airplane factory during thewar, accommodates 6,000 persons, andis being taxed to capacity for evening

) 'c-j . ? f'

services. Daytime services are also wellattended.

One of the leading speakers hasstruck a much needed note, when hedeclared, "The world is hungering forsomething more than a new order.Once again, Britain must take a standon the Bible."

Ahsentee MembersAn Anglican rector in Camlough,

North Ireland, has decided upon anew form of approach to memberswho persistently absent themselvesfrom the church. He has decided thatthe church must go to them. So ac­companied by a choir and wearing hissurplice, he recently marched throughthe village, stopped outside one of thehouses, and proceeded to conduct afull-fledged service, even though it wasraining at the time.

Apparently the owner of the housewas not impressed. He declared thathe would not be forced into going tochurch. And he added that if the prac­tice was continued, it would stop otherstay-away-ers from ever going to thechurch again.

The problem of absentee membersis certainly one that needs to behandled by the ruling bodies of thelocal congregations. But we think thatsomething more than a formal serviceon the door step is needed.

Fettered EducationA warning that attempts to secular­

ize education will end in "nationaliz­iIJg and destroying" it was sounded byBernard Cardinal Griffin, Archbishopof Westminster, at a luncheon follow­ing exercises in Birmingham Universityat which he received" the honorarydegree of doctor of laws. The degreewas conferred by Anthony Eden, Brit­ish Foreign Secretary, who is chancel­lor of the university.

"All human activity is graduallybeing circumscribed by politicians, andthroughout a great part of Europe,the state is abrogating to itself all di­rection of the human mind," CardinalGriffin declared, "but without theguidance of Christian philosophy, sec­ular learning and mere physical sciencewill encompass the destruction of man­kind.

"The modern trend goes far beyondthe conscription of manpower. Scienceis being conscripted in the name ofresearch and national security, and lit­erature is controlled in the name ofthat ugly thing-propaganda. If we

«

are not on guard, learning itself willbe fettered in the name of liberty andequality, and those who attempt tosecularize education will end by na­tionalizing and destroying it."Dulles vs, Brunner

John Foster Dulles, chairman of theFederal Council's Commission on aJust and Durable Peace, and Dr. EmilBrunner, noted Swiss theologian, dis­agreed on an important question inthe deliberations of the recent Cam­bridge conference of the World Coun­cil. Advocating a sympathetic under­standing of Russia, Dulles declaredthat no political system is incompati­ble with Christianity, although hewarned that "our Christian societycannot compromise its belief that thehuman personality is sacred and thatmethods of the purge and coercionare incompatible with a Christianpeace."

Dr. Brunner replied that he couldnot agree that there was no politicalsystem incompatible with Christianity.He declared that the arguments ad­vanced for an understanding of totali­tarianism in Russia could have beenapplied equally to the Nazis, and said"the church must say that this is'wrong."

BIBLE

Dialect No. 764Addition of three new languages to

its list of translations during the pastyear have brought to 764 the numberof non-English Scripture texts pre­pared by the British and Foreign BibleSociety.

Intended for use in West Africa,the new translations include the Gos­pel of St. Mark in one of the Bassadialects of Nigeria: the Gospel of St.Matthew in Baouli; and the Gospel ofSt. Luke in Mana. The Bassa transla­tion was made by the Rev. G. Curryand marks the first time this dialecthas been reduced to writing.

Bihle in TechnicolorProduction has been started on the

first of 150 movie shorts in which the'complete Bible will be narrated insound and acted out in color movies,it was announced recently at the "NewYork office of the American Bible So­ciety. The pictures will be producedthrough a financial grant by theCharles Anson Bond Memorial TrustFund.

"

1946 THE PRESBYTERIAN GUARDIAN 287

THE BOONE PUBLISHING CO. •P.O. BOl( 200. DES MOINES, lAo

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tend to take an action that was wrong,but that does not in any way affect theobjective wrongness of the action.

Within the past few weeks anotherfactor has entered the situation. It hasbeen brought to the attention of theBoard of Trustees of the ChristianUniversity Association by the legal ad­visor of the Association that there wasnot a quorum present at the meetingof June 27th. This fact was notknown, as far as I can learn, to anyoneat the meeting, nor was it known toanyone who wrote on the subject ofthe meeting in the GUARDIAN.

The statutes of the Commonwealthof Pennsylvania in which the Associa­tion is incorporated as a non-profitcorporation provide:

"Unless otherwise provided in thearticles or by-Iaws-

" (1) The presence in pers<1Il or byproxy, if the by-laws permit voting byproxy, of a majority of the membersentitled to vote shall constitute aquorum" (Purdon's Pennsylvania Stat­utes Annotated Sec. 2851-605, P:962). The statute goes on to state thatif less than a quorum attends at thctime and place of the meeting, thosewho have gathered may adjourn to an­other time and place.

The by-laws do not provide forproxy voting and at the meeting inquestion there were perhaps eight percent. of the members present, insteadof the required majority. It is obviousthat the one proper item of businessat a meeting in which there is noquorum present is an adjournment toanother time and place when a quorummay be gathered. If the members hadrealized that there was no quorumpresent they doubtless would havedone no other business than adjournto another time and place with thehope of gathering a quorum.

The object of the adjourned meet­ing, as expressed in the gathering ofJune 27th, I consider highly improper.The object was said to be to give theAssociation an opportunity to reviewthe actions of the Board concerningrecommendations made at the meet­ing. However, it must be admittedthat for the purpose of securing aquorum, the motion to hold an ad­journed meeting was perfectly legaland ethical, and in that sense, and inthat sense alone, there attaches to themotion no unethical and immoralcharacter.

Each picture will cover a specificepisode or a small series of chapters.The first three will be devoted to theNativity, the Woman of Samaria, andthe Parable of the Sower. Followingthese will be 23 pictures covering thefour Gospels.

The shorts will be released as theyare completed and will be made avail­able for showing in schools, churches,and theaters. Present schedule callsfor release of one picture every twoweeks.

Fourteen Million TextsThe American Bible Society distrib­

uted more than 14,500,000 copies ofthe Scriptures throughout the worldduring the past six years as part of itsWar Emergency Program, it was an­nounced here. The texts were printedin forty different languages.

Marsden(Continued from page 283)

transgression of the moral law of God~when we take what belongs to some­one else, whether it be his property orhis rights, we violate God's law.

I have been surprised to learn thatsome people think that the adjective"immoral" has connotations having todo with the Seventh Commandment!The word, in accordance with theprimary meaning given in leading dic­tionaries means "contrary to the morallaw." None will dispute the fact thatwhen we take what belongs to anotherwe are breaking the moral law, and,in that sense, we are doing somethingimmoral. As I said at the meeting, Idid not intend to accuse anyone whovoted for the motion I denominated"immoral" of voting for a motion thathe considered immoral. I'm sure thatthose who supported the motion didnot agree with my estimate of its im­moral character-otherwise they wouldnot have supported it. I confess thatI have been shocked at what seems tome to be a lack of moral perceptionin this matter on the part of peoplewhom I know to be fine Christians,and I still hope many more of themwill come to agree with me concern­ing the character of the motion inquestion.

The statement in my former articlesterming these actions "flagrant" sinfailed properly to take into accountthe fact that those who supported theaction did not realize its moral sig­nificance. To be sure they did not in-

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CHRISTIANITY AND LIBERALISMBy J. Gresham Machen. D.D•• LiILD.

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Dr. MQ:chen's purpose was not "to decide the reliqiousissue of the present day. but merely to present the issueas sharply and clearly as possible. in order that thereader miqht be aided in decidinq for himself:' He suc­ceeded so admirably in this objective that even thosewho differed with him hiqhly respected his views. as setforth in this book. The followinq subjects are dlscussedwith incisive clarity: Doctrine. God and Mem. The Bible.Salvation. and The Church. fl.SO

WHAT IS FAITH?By J. Gresh~ Machen. DoD" Litt.D.

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