Article image
Article image
Article image
Article image
Article image
Article image
Article image
Article image

THE 'NEW THEOLOGY' THE POSITION SUMMED UP

In our issue of February 28 wa made editorial . reference to the sensation .created by the Rev.- R. J. Campbell, of the City Temjple, "London, who, while still professing to be a Christian minister, denied some of the fundamental dogmatic facts on which Christianity* rests. Mr. Campbell is but one of many of the not. Catholic clergy who, having no anchorage of fixed pon- " ciples, are driven hither and thither 'by every shifting wind of a destructive ' higher criticism '-. He has followed the Protestant principles to the logical conclusion that was foreseen and predicted long ago by Catholic theological writers. As the secular newspapers continue to give Mr. Campbell— who, by the way, is saw* to' be no biblical scholar— a great - free advertisement, we give hereunder two comments which will be both instructive' and interesting our readers. The first is extracted from the "recent Lenten Pastoral of the ARCHBISHOP OF MELBOURNE and runs as follows :— Great as is our gratitude to God for giving us the guidance of His Church in matters of discipline, much greater must it be for the blessing of being -members of that mystical body which He established on earth for the preservation of the true faith and the custody of Christian .morality. Considering the pride and perversity of the h'umjan mind, the- Apostle -—declared that ' there must be heresies,' just as Our Lord said there must be scandals. Since the days of the Apostles there have been Cycles of Unbelief and immorality. It may 'be stated, without any pessimistic exaggeration, that we are living in one of those cycles, and' that in no former age were the foundations of Christian belief and morality more widely or per- . sistently assailed. ' There are very few dogmas of faun or principles of morality left undisputed. The world witnesses a revival of nearly every ■form of ancientheresy,_ia|ndi every morde of "sensual gjiiajtinoation. You will ask, what is the cause, and what is the remedy ? ,-The remote cause, undoubtedly, is the ' abandonment of : the principle of authority, and the adoption of the principle of private judgment. When the authority of - the Church was rejected, and the Bible, interpreted by ._- private judgment, substituted as the Rule of Faith, it *'- was foreseen and foretold what disastrous consequences to faith! and morality,, would follow. At first it was claimed' that the Bible was. ,so plain and intelligible . that all who ran might read. But if that was denied, , it was contended that the illumination of the ~ Holy Spirit made manifest to every sincere inquirer the true "sense of even the dark and difficult passages of Holy Writ. Whem these two modes of interpretation were proved to. be insufficient by the discordant and contradictory results to which they led, then the necessity of study and of other human 'aids was admitted. 7 But study and the other human aids only served to lead to wider fliviergence and more definite contradiction. Then, in desperation, the Authority of the Church was agajn 1 invoked and partially recognised. But this new Church 1 was not the .old authoritative Catholic Church, -but a creation of .the • State, or of- private individuals, liable to error, incapable of enforcing its interpretation of the Bible, and, -therefore, of little ■ practical] use in determining its meaning. The result of all these varying standards "of faith and contradictory interpretations of Scripture was — Ist, the multiplication of sects; and', 2nd, the gradual diminution of- the authority of the Bible. It was clearly established by experience that if God had 1 given the Bible for the illumination of the world, He had not, according to the principles of its interpreters 1 , given any trustworthy key to its meaning. In such circumstances it naturally occurred to mien of weak faith and daring minds, 'to question whether God had really given the Bible at all as a guide to men. This inquiry, carried on in a thoroughly rationalistic spirit, without reverence for God or for authority, has led to the denial' of the inspir-

ation and truth of Scripture, and to the rejection of the very foundations of Christian faith amongst millions separated from the Catholic Church. In case of Catholics, no appreciable effect has been pfloduced. Catholics caiu afford to be tranquil and confident amidst the prevailing doubt and confusion - The Catholic ■ Church is old enough to have; seen the rise. and progress and decay and reappearance of all existing heresies. The arts and sciences are her hand- - maidens. Recent discoveries in every department she watches with intelligent interest. She is not opposed to the most searching and minute inquiry, as is often ignorantly stated, because she will not at once adopt what fiurther investigation- or the lapse of time may prove to be untrue. She weighs carefully, even though conservatively, the newest theories propounded by the Higher Criticism. She will nofc at once adopt a novelty, more particularly when it seems to conflict with the traditions of the past, but she will not reject it because it is a novelty, and ultimately she will adopt it, no matter how novel, provided it is established by "" solid proofs. During the time of inquiry and examination Catholics hold their souls in peace, because they know that truth is (great, and will ultimately, prevail* This confident attitude of Catholics is well illustrated in a modern work of fiction, ' When it Was Dark,' written by a non-Catholic, in which, by the macMnations of a Jew, the denial of the Resurrection of Christ is supposed to have gained wide credence amongst professing ' Christians. Some were simply astounded, and knew not what to think or where to turn for light and loading. Some were completely deceived, abandoned their faiih, and gave themselves up to a life of sensual eiijo ment. Others lost all interest in the good works in which they had been engaged, and" 'became utterly apathetic. But Catholics, as the author observes, were the only, persons unaffected by, the pretended' disproof of the Resurrection. They simply went on in the confident belief that time would unravel the mystery and ddsssipate the cloud which hung over the Christian world for a time. They were unmoved, because they -rested their faith, not on the learning or persuasiveness of any individual, !b;ut on the authority, of the Church, which is ' the pillar and ground of truth ' ; which is guarded by the infallible promise, and protected by the efficacious • prayer of her Divine Founder. But when a new theory is broached, or a new real or pretended discovery made, it is not merely in works of fiction that we find how weak, how shifting, is the authority of private judgment in the minds of the multitudes who profess to hold it as a sure guide in the interpretation of the Bible. A Typical Instance « is before the public at the present time. An English clergyman has denied the Fall of Man from his primal state of innocence. This denial, I take it for granted, regards the FACT, not. the mere debatable question of the literal or figurative account of the Fall: given in the Book of Genesis, otherwise there would • be no sufficient reason for the widespread alarm,;, and heated controversy, to which the denial has given rise. The denial of the FACT of the Fall involves the denial of the whole scheme of Redemption. It overthrows, in the minds of those who adopt it, the foundation on which St. Paul rests his reasoning in the - fifth chapter of his Epistle to the Romans, ' Wherefore as by one man sin entered into this world, and by sin -death : and so death passed upon all men in whomi all have -sinned. . . Therefore, as by the offence of one, unto all men to condemnation: so also by *the justice of one, unto all men to "justification of life. For as rbjy the disobedience of one man, many were made sinners : so also by the -obedience of one, many ~ shall -be made just' (vv. 12, 18, 19). In a word, the denial of the FACT reduces Christian revelation to chaos. But how is it received -by so many of the Biblereading, Bible-loving men and women of our day ? With undisguised approbation by some, with hypothetical adoption by others, and with shame-faced and half-hearted diffidence as to its adoption or rejection by more. Many who reject the authority of the Church are willing- to rest their faith on the authority of one man, of whose claims to be a safe guide in less important matters very different opinions have been expressed. Meantimethe authority of the Bible is being steadily • undermined amongst 'larige masses of men, and -those " who are weak in faith or lax in morals are hastening to tin conclusion that nothing in Scripture, nothing in an" form of revelation, is binding 'on the consciences of men.

THE. REV. DR. BARRY. The London ' Daily Chronicle ' has been publishing a number of opinions on his views.- Amongst those given is that of the Rev. William Barry, the well-known catholic writer, who says : As a Catholic priest I have no opinions of. my own. 1 teach what the Church teaches, and if I wanted to beach anything else 1 should begin by goin-g out of the Church, That • seems to , me the difference between a Protestant and a Catholic— a Protestant chooses what he will believe, and a Catholic accepts from his Church what he ought to believe. * I don't know whether Mr. Campbell could find' a .second man in his own Church who agrees with him, and it is quite probable he does not much mind whether there is a- second man ; but with" us it is quite different. We don't think the Church is worth -anything unless it teaches us. sWe don't profess to teach it. I have very great respect for Mr. Campbell, ami especially for his social work and for bis endeavor to be on goad terms with all kinds of Christians, but 1 am very much astonished at his complete change from the Calvinistic beliefs to one which is clean opposite to them. The Calvinist believes in predestination and in reprobation. Mr. Campbell does not believe in reprobation at all. He thinks that sooner or later all men, whatever they have done, will be made perfect by the Divine action ; and I think that creed is " a very bad one. I think it leads to the destruction of free will, and personally 1 most s-trongly disbelieve in it. Then Mr. Campbell says he does not desire to be called a Unitarian, and I suppose he knows best what he would like to be called, but in the account of Ms creed which I have just jead in the ' Daily Chronicle ' I do not see anything that is not Unitarian, and that it seems to me is the - extraordinary change. Mr,. Campbell has simply boxed the compass. He has iust gone round from one side of the-circle to the other. Of course, I am simply speaking "of his creed and his principles, and not for one moment of Mr. Campbell personally, for whom, I say once more, I have a great regard. Nothing is more certain, than that i> Roman Church: would condemn the points of ' the new theology on which he lays stress, and which seem to me the revival of many early heresies. Now that may be called bigotry. We call it dogmatic teaching.

This article text was automatically generated and may include errors. View the full page to see article in its original form.I whakaputaina aunoatia ēnei kuputuhi tuhinga, e kitea ai pea ētahi hapa i roto. Tirohia te whārangi katoa kia kitea te āhuatanga taketake o te tuhinga.
Permanent link to this item
Hononga pūmau ki tēnei tūemi

https://paperspast.natlib.govt.nz/periodicals/NZT19070314.2.17

Bibliographic details
Ngā taipitopito pukapuka

New Zealand Tablet, Volume XXXV, Issue 11, 14 March 1907, Page 12

Word count
Tapeke kupu
1,910

THE 'NEW THEOLOGY' THE POSITION SUMMED UP New Zealand Tablet, Volume XXXV, Issue 11, 14 March 1907, Page 12

THE 'NEW THEOLOGY' THE POSITION SUMMED UP New Zealand Tablet, Volume XXXV, Issue 11, 14 March 1907, Page 12

Log in or create a Papers Past website account

Use your Papers Past website account to correct newspaper text.

By creating and using this account you agree to our terms of use.

Log in with RealMe®

If you’ve used a RealMe login somewhere else, you can use it here too. If you don’t already have a username and password, just click Log in and you can choose to create one.


Log in again to continue your work

Your session has expired.

Log in again with RealMe®


Alert