Untitled article by W. A. COLCORD.

Pacific Press Publishing Company · New York · December 8, 1892

FromThe American Sentinel, Vol. 7, No. 48

One Creed.

By W. A. COLCORD.

SAYS the Union Signal of November 10:

The great congress of all religions to be held at the World's Columbian Exposition in June of 1893, promises to afford a rallying point from which is sure to radiate the light of knowledge, the warmth of love and the actinic ray of practical results in favor of one creed.

And further remarks that—

Whoever contributes by a single utterance to such a heavenly consummation has not lived in vain; whoever by emphasizing the difference that separates the groups in political or church life into antagonistic factions, has lived by that much to curse and not bless his race.

Thus it was in the days of Constantine after Church and State had been united. Constantine himself stated it as his design “first, to bring all the diverse judgments formed by all nations respecting the Deity to a condition, as it were, of settled uniformity.” And to the contending factions and quarrelsome bishops in the professedly Christian church at that time, he thus pleaded for unanimity among them and rest from their contentions:—

Restore me then my quiet days and untroubled nights, that henceforth the joy of light undimmed by sorrow, the delight of a tranquil life may continue to be my portion. . . . For while the people of God, whose fellow servant I am, are thus divided amongst themselves by an unreasonable and pernicious spirit of contention, how is it possible that I shall be able to maintain tranquility of mind? Open then for me henceforward by your unity of judgment that road to the regions of the East which your dissentions have closed against me, and permit me speedily to see the happiness both of yourselves and of all other provinces, and to render due acknowledgment of God in the language of praise and thanksgiving for the restoration of general concord and liberty to all.

But notwithstanding the calling of the Council of Nice, and the creed of Nice, and the emperor's threat of banishment to all who refused to subscribe to that creed, general concord was not restored, nor contentions and bickerings between former contending parties put an end to. Neither will the coming “congress of religions” which is to be held at the World's Fair next June, bring all the world to such a oneness of faith that religious controversies will cease.

The Union Signal further says:—

In the Bible we have a sufficient rule of faith and practice; the wayfaring man though a fool need not err therein, but he continually does so. If he did not stop at every opening in the woods and erect a guide-board he would get more rapidly over the ground. If only we could once for all accept the truth that religion is an affair of the heart, these brawling controversies would be at an end.

But after this great religious congress at the World's Fair is over, Catholics and Protestants, and the different sects of Protestants, in this country will still stop at “openings in the woods” and erect their “guide-boards,” and these “brawling controversies” instead of coming to an end will only increase, and differences be all the more emphasized; for, by the last source of authority in the Government, the Supreme Court of the United States, this has been declared “a Christian Nation;” religion has been appointed a seat in our governmental administration, and the question erelong to be settled will be, Which body of religionists shall occupy the seat? This seat will not long remain vacant, we may rest assured, for there are already too many aspirants for it; and when the question is once settled, by whatever means it may be, whether by court decision, legislative enactment, or bodily seizure, then “brawling controversies” will commence in good earnest, differences will be magnified, and molehills become mountains.

Thus, instead of the assured peace and desired unity and tranquillity in religious matters, as another has recently well expressed it, “old controversies which have apparently been hushed for a long time will be revived, and new controversies will spring up; new and old will commingle, and this will take place right early.” W. A. COLCORD.