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10 (658) THE
And is this a work that can be done perfectly
in any haphazard way? If she has had any
success up to this time in her unsystematic way
of doing things we are to attribute it to the
goodness of God in overruling her delinquences
rather than as a proof that she has moved in a
perfect way. And if her imperfection in paying
has been so rewarded are we not justified in believing
that all her financial difficulties would
pass completely away were she to implicitly follow
the directions of God?
Many good men misunderstand the position
of the advocates of the Tithe system and as a
consequence misrepresent their teachings unintentionally.
We do not, by our insistence upon
the tithe, mean that a man has fully discharged
his obligation to God when he pays his tithe. We
mean that the tithe belongs to God as a debt we
honestly owe, and we mean that no man gives
anything to God until after he has discharged
this debt. We do not "give" tithes, we "pay"
tithes; then after we have paid our tithes we
must give to God as God has prospered us. We
give only our voluntary offerings. But tithes
are not voluntary in the sense that we may give
or withhold as we please. We owe them whether
we pay them or not. To withhold them is a fraudlllpnt
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same class as all other forms of dishonesty.
Paying tithes ought to be voluntary, just as
obeying God's commands of other kinds ought to
be voluntary. A man ought to voluntarily do
what the law requires. It is a serious error as
some argue that the paying of tithes loses the
charm of voluntary service if we understand it
Ito be commanded. The law of the state commands
honesty, but I am honest for a different
reason. I am voluntarily honest. The Bible
y commands the tithe but I voluntarily pay the
tithe. But the point in the tithe is just this;
God commands and demands it, yes, and more
than that, God collects it. "It costs a good deal
to pay the tithe to the Lord, but it costs a good
deal more not to pay it"?Whalon.
The advocates of the tithe believe as firmly
as any others that all we have is the Lord's, but
they give substantial proof of their belief by paying
this full measure in token thereof while
others take it out in saying so.
That there may be no doubt as to the correctness
of the position taken above that tithes
are paid and not given, let me cite you to scripture.
In the parable of the Pharisee and the
publican recorded in Luke 18:10-14, we hear the
self-righteous Pharisee say, "I fast twice in the
week, I give tithes of all that I possess." Now
refer to Matthew 23:23, and hear the Lord speak,
"Woe unto you scribes and Pharisees, hypocrites,
for ye pay tithe." This is conclusive. The godless
Pharisee said "give," our Lord says "pay"
tithe.
"HERESY TRIALS" AGAIN.
! This is a country of free opinion and free
speech. No one is debarred the privilege of
thinking what he will, and, if it contain no
threat against the peace and good order of
society, of such expression of his views as he
chooses to make. Last and least of all organizations
does the Presbyterian Church seek to re
strain suen iiDerty. out this church, as all other
decent bodies, does declare that men whom it
authorized to speak in its name shall be told to
?ct out when they cease to represent its tenets.
The church does not attempt to silence any dissentient
from its views, but it properly tells him
to air his views, if he wishes to proclaim them,
from some other platform. That is all there is
in the much talked of "heresy trials" over which
L
PRESBYTERIAN OF THE SO
thoughtless and unintelligent people are raising
such a howl. ' Common sense on the part of an
organization and honesty on the part of the individual
call for a separation when their views
diverge. And when we say honesty, we mean
both mental honesty and pocket-book honesty,
for the latter is involved in the case when a
man receives the privileges and emoluments of a
body and in return denounces its doctrines. Such
conduct would not be tolerated for a moment by
secular or political organizations. Where men
have not the decency to recognize the proper
course for them to take under such circumstances
the organization would quickly show them the
way, and the way would be out of the organization
double-quick.
SPIRITUALITY.
What is spirituality? It is a trait of which
all feel need, which all respect, and which all
who are rightniinded yearn for. Its absence is
a condition which all deplore and which greatly
weakens those in whom the absence is marked.
And yet just what it is one can hardly tell. We
recognize it, and we know when it is wanting,
hut it is hard to define it. It is not knowledge.
Many of the most intellectual and cultured
Christians are decidedly lacking in spirituality,
while just by them plain, unlettered believers
are radiant with it. On the other hand, knowledge
and mental power and grasp are not against
it, for many who are most developed in these respects
are also as notable for possessing spiritual
power. It is not wisdom. Highly spiritual people
can sometimes be very foolish, little as they
desire to be. It is not a matter of the individual
believer's manner or disposition. While some
seem to find it easier than others to manifest its
traits and to get the name for the possession of
it, through some refinement of manner or gentle
ness of expression or modulation of voice, the
careful analyst of character will see that it is
just as common in the brusque, abrupt, somewhat
rough and coarse, as in the other.
First of all, it is a gift. It is the work of the
Holy Spirit upon the crude material of the human
soul. Like patience, gentleness, humility,
submissiveness, obedience, and other products of
the mother graces of faith and repentance, and
being as it were a kind of combination of all of
them, it comes from the fountain of all grace
and of all graces.
It may also be developed, as other graces or
combinations of graces. The direction that we
grow in grace < ?? *& it. "W " a God c nn.>ar.ds
he makes possible. Its growth will be deter
mined by the desire to have it, by the amount of
the believer's communion with Christ, by his
association with that which is pure and good and
uplifting. It is largely the growth of the atmosphere
in which one's soul lives. If one lives
much with Christ, he will come out from his
presence with a face shining as Moses' did.
Spirituality is something very much above an
ethical situation or relation. In ethics the
great principle is doing what one ought to do.
It is like paying a debt. Spirituality is mther
holiness of character, life, speech, impulse, and
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than doing what one ought to do. It comes from
within, and is a shining out of some light that
has been kindled within and that has become an
inward power and not a mere mode of right doing.
It may be called, in some sense, the temperature
of the soul.
A recent writer has well said that it is characteristic
of the best type of character that it is
itself least conscious of the possession of it. So
is it here. The modern faddist who thinks him
0 T H [ July 12, 101L
self "sanctified" is about the last person whom
his neighbors regard as marked by spiritually.
It is a claim, while spirituality is life. And the
more claimant the pretender, the less inclination
has the world to yield credence to his assertion.
The announcement, "I am sanctified," is the
first and most emphatic proof such a deluded be
never gives uiui ne is not sancxinea. wnen
Moses came down from the Mount, he "wist not
that his face shone." When believers come out
from the presence of the Lord and bring with
them something of the holy atmosphere of that
rich presence, they are the last ones to know
what they are, and if they begin to claim something
special, men will suspect that they got only
so far as some outer court and that they never
saw the king in his beauty.
A FLEMISH LETTER.
This is the title of a volume which has just appeared,
written by the brilliant French writer,
M. Gaston Riou. The author has been an eyewitness
of the power of the Gospel in transforming
character and communities, and openly declares
that it is the one sovereign remedy for the
decline and impending collapse of the national
life of France. In this volume he relates his
observations of the fruits of evangelization
among the hardy mining populations of the
North. Quotations are made at length in the
Record of Christian Work.
Starting with a profound conviction that
France must come under the power of a regenerative
faith, or perish, M. Riou began his search
for evidences of the true faith where evangelistic
work was in actual progress. Among these
Northern miners aloni? t.h<? "Rolcrinn
found the object of his quest. He describes
vividly the dreary surroundings, the unbroken
monotony of life, the prevailing dense ignorance
and appalling effects of strong drink. The
children of school age work in the pits and women
are so accustomed to drunkenness among the
men that they treat it as a law of nature.
Cruelty on the part of husbands and fathers
follows as a certain consequence.
But in every community where a Christian is
found a company of believers is formed. The
miner abandons his old life, embraces a new
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yields to the peaceable fruits of righteousness.
Kindness to wife and children takes the
place of brutality. Good will to neighbors prevails.
Education of the children is provided for
though parents are illiterate. Pastoral supervision
is very helpful in it all. The wife becomes
neat in dress and orderly in her domestic surroundings.
The husband is welcomed home
from his work and the children from school.
The writer says he learned after a month's
residence to tell by the very look of a house
whether the tenant "marches to the gospel" as
the people say, or does not.
Of the effects of the new faith in inspiring
activity for the rescue of others and in the enjoyment
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our host impression from the words of the
author:
"In place of the reeking pleasures of the
drink-shop the convert has higher ones?in his
work for a cause. He has been taught that a
Christian is a man pledged to labor for the triumph
of justice and brotherliness. He knows
by heart the watchword of the new order: 'Let
everyone each year win a brother.' It's the laity
that recruits the Church, the pastor organizes
and instructs it. So you may see our improvised.
unnotU ~ 1
inviting nis neighbor to the meeting
which is held in the cottage of the last convert.
They sing hymns. The pastor or some lay worker
explains the teachings of the gospel, instructs,
feeds. Then follows a discussion. It's wonder