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Religious Liberty Institutes

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Review and Herald Publishing Association · Takoma Park Station, Washington, D. C. · Jan 1, 1914

FromReview and Herald, Vol. 91, No. 1.

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Religious Liberty Institutes

By W. F. Martin

IN harmony with recommendations passed at the North Pacific Union camp meetings last summer, plans were made to hold religious liberty institutes in the different conferences of the union.
The Western Oregon Conference arranged for institutes in ten of its leading churches. In addition to religious liberty, other important subjects were studied, such as organization, Sabbath school and Missionary Volunteer work, and our church schools. The studies on religious liberty were taken almost entirely from the Bible. In view of the fact that God's people will soon be called to stand before the courts of the land to give a reason for refusing to worship the beast and his image, it is surely time that all should make a careful study of the Bible principles of church and state. A true understanding of this question will be necessary to enable one to stand in that time of trial.
Again: God's people will at this time have an opportunity to witness for the truth. To do this, it will be necessary to have a personal knowledge of the teachings of the Bible concerning the relations that should exist between the kingdom of God and Cæsar. At the institutes held in western Oregon the study was conducted by comparisons. The church and the state were each studied under the following heads: (1) its origin; (2) its head; (3) its purpose; (4) its weapons; (5) limits of its authority; (6) derivation of its power. A good interest was manifested in all these studies.
At a number of places one or more evenings were devoted to lectures on religious liberty. These were always well received, and usually attended by a number not of our faith. At almost every place the merits of the magazine Liberty were presented. This met with a hearty response, and a goodly number of subscriptions was received. This magazine is doing an excellent work, and should be given a wide circulation among all classes of people.
The last of the institutes was held in the Central Church, Portland, Oregon. Now, after five weeks of strenuous work, all who have been engaged in this work feel that the time was profitably spent, and that it means an uplift to the churches visited. We also believe that the cause of the message was decidedly helped thereby. The writer plans to assist with similar meetings in other conferences in the union.
W. F. MARTIN.