Notes for Our Readers by Editor

Pacific Press Publishing Company · Oakland, California · Feb 6, 1893

FromSigns of the Times, Vol. 19, No. 14.

Notes for Our Readers

By Editor

ELDER COVERT's good series of articles closes with this number. We trust they have been a blessing to our readers.

We hope our readers will read the paper on "The Three Messages of Rev. 14:6-14," in connection with the article entitled "The Two-Horned Beast."

THE work that evidently sincere yet misguided Sunday-law people are doing, or endeavoring to do, in this State is clearly set forth in the article in another column entitled "A Petition for a Sunday Law." Let it be read and circulated.

WOULD that our readers would appreciate the blessings and benefits of Bible study. Mrs. White has given us precious thoughts on this subject in this and the last number of the SIGNS. The word of God is everything. Our faith rests upon that; our hope on its blessed promises. Following that the light grows clearer, the way more distinct. The word, received as the word of God, sanctifies; the word cleanses; the word builds up.

OUR Mission Field department has a much more limited amount of matter this week than usual, but, nevertheless, has some interesting items. Next week we begin a series of independent yet connected articles on "India," from the pen of Elder S. N. Haskell, who has placed special study on this field, as well as visiting it in person. These are not the same as those which have appeared under his name in the Review and Herald. Those who have read them will be better informed by reading these.

THE "Society of the Immortals" is the reported name of an organization in the First M. E. Church of this city. The report says that it grew out of a sermon by the pastor on "Giving." Half a dozen members at that time pledged to give one-tenth of their income for religious and charitable purposes, and afterward organized this society. What the object of the organization has to do with the name we cannot see. Does it mean that giving a little will buy immortality? or does it mean that those who belong to this society are advanced Christians and have attained to immortality? or does it mean that they are striving after immortality? or what does it mean? In any case it gives not an overpleasing compliment to the other members of the church. Then again, why not organize a society for every simple duty? Christ gave all; he requires not less of his people; and his word declares that a tithe is the Lord's. We do not give that, we simply pay it.

ERRATUM.—In the article on "Study of the Bible; Its Benefits and Importance," in SIGNS No. 11 of present volume, in the sentence, "There may be more than a dozen different subjects mentioned in a single passage"—the word passage should be "chapter." We cheerfully make this correction, to avoid a misunderstanding, simply remarking that a passage is not necessarily confined to a single verse of Scripture, although so used many times.

AT the new divinity school in Boulder, Colorado, a Baptist is the dean of the faculty. Its Church History chair is occupied by an Episcopalian. The chair of the History of Church Doctrines goes to a Universalist. Its professor of Systematic Theology is to be a Presbyterian, while a Unitarian teaches Comparative Religion, and a Congregationalist instructs in the ethics of Social Reform. This is what would be called modern "comity," we suppose, but for us we would prefer some of the old-time honest dogmatism, even though often erroneous, than this jellyfish union. The old-time dogmatism had backbone. The Interior fancies that the graduate of such a school, in fishing for men, would have a hard time in sorting his bait. That college, however, is about the way some of our churches stand except in name.