Article February 7, 1901 Issue

Religious Items

The editorial columns of a recent number of the (Unitarian) Christian Register contained the following: "The tendency to fall in with what is supposed to be the spirit of the age is very marked in many of our religious exchanges. It is believed that he people are tired of religion. Therefore, substitutes for religion are sought for with an eagerness that bodes no good for the next generation. One may find everything now in a religious paper from nove's to war news and political essays. The reaction from the old dogmatic narrowness and stiff doctrinal discussions is natural enough, but there is danger of mistaking the real meaning of the so-called spiritual decline in America. Those who have identified religion and theology, and especially those who have regarded the old theology as sufficient and final, may not understand that the objection of the people is not a revolt from religion, but a revolt from the doctrines and systems which obscure religion. The preachers and the churches who shall be happy enough to preach and teach religion pure and undefiled in a way to feed the mind, the heart, and the conscience of the people, will have no reason to complain, no matter what the statistics may show concerning the decline of the church in America."

The New Church Life says: "In a recent address delivered in Philadelphia before a class of young men about to enter into the world of business, ex-President Cleveland bears some remarkable testimony as to the state of the Christian world. In the course of his remarks he says, "There seems to be an inclination in these days to adopt the version of the Golden Rule proclaimed by the cunning, horse-trading, money-lending character portrayed in a late popular novel: "Do unto the other fellow the way he'd like to do unto you, and do it first," 'And Mr. Cleveland shows that, in his opinion, it is not the atheist or the agnostic alone who thinks thus, but the professing Christian, the man who with his mouth applauds the truths of religion. 'This interpretation of the Rule,' he continues, 'if seriously proposed, would arouse loud and extended protest; and yet thousands and thousands of those who would protest the loudest are daily and hourly acting in precise accordance with such an interpretation. If they should candidly and truthfully express their ideas of the Golden Rule, they would say it was well enough for children, but utterly unsuited to the stress of business life."

A sermon published in the (Methodist) Christian Advocate contains the following:—

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