The Book of Religions Part 14

"2. That mankind, therefore, are capable of repentance and amendment, and of arriving to the highest degrees of piety and virtue, by the use of their natural faculties and powers. That, indeed, external grace is necessary to excite their endeavors, but that they have no need of the internal succors of the divine Spirit.

"3. That Adam was, by nature, mortal, and, whether he had sinned or not, would certainly have died.

"4. That the grace of G.o.d is given in proportion to our merits.

"5. That mankind may arrive at a state of perfection in this life.

"6. That the law qualified men for the kingdom of heaven, and was founded upon equal promises with the gospel."

PRE-ADAMITES.

This denomination began about the middle of the sixteenth century. Their princ.i.p.al tenet is _that there must have been men before Adam_. One proof of this they bring from Rom. 5:12, 13, 14. The apostle says, "_Sin was in the world till the law_;" meaning the law given to Adam. But sin, it is evident, was not imputed, though it might have been committed, till the time of the pretended first man. "_For sin is not imputed when there is no law._"

The election of the Jews, they say, is a consequence of the same system.

It began at Adam, who is called their father or founder. G.o.d is also their Father, having espoused the Judaical church. The Gentiles are only adopted children, as being Pre-Adamites. Men (or Gentiles) are said to be made by the word of G.o.d. (Gen. 1:26, 27.) Adam, the founder of the Jewish nation, whose history alone Moses wrote, is introduced in the second chapter, as the workmans.h.i.+p of G.o.d's own hands, and as created apart from other men.

They argue thus:-Cain, having killed his brother Abel, was afraid of being killed himself. By whom? He married-yet Adam had then no daughter. What wife could he get? He built a town-what architects, masons, carpenters, and workmen, did he employ? The answer to all these questions is in one word-Pre-Adamites.

This reasoning is opposed by sundry texts of Scripture, (See Gen. 1:26; 2:7; 3:20. Mark 10:6. I Cor. 15:45, 47.)

PREDESTINARIANS.

Are those who believe that G.o.d, for his own glory, hath foreordained whatsoever comes to pa.s.s. (See Matt. 25:34. Rom. 8:29, 30. Eph. 1:3, 6, 11. 2 Tim. 1:9. 2 Thess. 11:13. 1 Pet. 1:1, 2. John 6:37; 17:2-24. Rev.

13:8; 17:8. Dan. 4:35. 1 Thess. 5:19. Matt. 11:26. Exod. 4:21. Prov. 16:4.

Acts 13:48.)

ORTHODOX CREEDS.

Orthodoxy literally signifies _correct opinions_. The word is generally used to denote those who are attached to the Trinitarian scheme of Christian doctrine.

The following article is found in the "Spirit of the Pilgrims," vol. v.

No. 1, and is supposed to have been written by the late Rev. BENJAMIN B.

WISNER, D. D., pastor of the Old South church, Boston.

The following summary contains the more material parts of the Orthodox faith. Those who embrace this system believe,-

"That, since the fall of Adam, men are, in their natural state, altogether dest.i.tute of true holiness, and entirely depraved.

"That men, though thus depraved, are justly required to love G.o.d with all the heart, and justly punishable for disobedience; or, in other words, they are complete moral agents, proper subjects of moral government, and truly accountable to G.o.d for their actions.

"That in the unspeakable wisdom and love of G.o.d was disclosed a plan of redemption for sinful men.

"That, in the development of this plan, G.o.d saw fit to reveal so much concerning the nature and the mode of the divine existence, as that he is manifested to his creatures as the Father, the Son, and the Holy Ghost; and that these three, each partaking of all the attributes of the Deity, and being ent.i.tled to receive divine wors.h.i.+p and adoration, are the one living and true G.o.d.

"That the Son of G.o.d, laying aside the glory which he had with the Father from everlasting, came down from heaven, took upon himself man's nature, and by his humiliation, sufferings, and death, made an atonement for the sins of the world.

"That, in consequence of this atonement, the offer of pardon and eternal life was freely made to all; so that those who truly repent of sin, and believe in the Lord Jesus Christ, will be saved.

"That men are naturally so averse to G.o.d and holiness, that, if left to themselves, they reject the offers of salvation, and neither repent of sin nor truly believe in a Savior.

"That G.o.d, being moved with infinite love and compa.s.sion, sends forth the Holy Spirit, according to his sovereign pleasure, by whose beneficent energy an innumerable mult.i.tude of the human family are renewed, sanctified, and prepared for heaven; while others are suffered to pursue the course which they have freely chosen, and in which they obstinately persevere till the day of salvation is past.

"That G.o.d, in his providential dispensations, in the bestowment of his saving mercy, and in his universal government, exhibits his adorable perfections, in such a manner as will call forth the admiration and love of all holy beings forever.

"That believers are justified by faith, through the efficacy of the atonement, so that all claims of human merit, and all grounds of boasting, are forever excluded.

"That the law of G.o.d is perpetually binding upon all moral beings, and upon believers not less than other men, as a rule of life; and that no repentance is genuine unless it bring forth fruits meet for repentance, and no faith is saving unless it produce good works.

"That those who have been renewed by the Spirit will be preserved by the power of G.o.d, and advanced in holiness unto final salvation. And,

"That Christ, as the great King of the universe, the Lord and Proprietor of created beings, will judge the world at the last day, when the righteous will be received to life eternal, and the wicked will be consigned to endless punishment."

"Since the reformation from Popery, those who profess to admit these doctrines, and others necessarily connected with them, and forming a part of the same system, have been denominated Orthodox, while to those who openly reject them, or any considerable part of them, this appellation has been denied.

"It is not to be inferred, however, that the Orthodox have been, or are, entirely _unanimous_ on the subject of religion. In matters comparatively unessential, and in their modes of stating, explaining, and establis.h.i.+ng essential truths, there has always been more or less a diversity. Thus persons may disagree as to the form of church government, or as to the mode of administering ordinances, and yet have an equal claim to be ent.i.tled Orthodox.

Or persons may disagree in their interpretation of particular pa.s.sages of Scripture, and as to the manner in which these bear on the doctrines of religion, without forfeiting their t.i.tle to the some honorable appellation. For instance, one person may regard a particular pa.s.sage as proof conclusive of the divinity of Christ, while another may be in doubt respecting it, or may apply it differently, and yet both be firm believers in the divinity of Christ. Many pa.s.sages which the old writers quoted as proof-texts, have, in the progress of critical science, been differently interpreted; and yet the evidence in support of the Orthodox system, so far from being weakened in this way, has been constantly gaining strength.

"Again: persons may disagree, to a certain extent, at least, in their statements and explanations of the most essential doctrines, and yet be properly and equally Orthodox. In ill.u.s.tration of this remark, several examples will be given.

"All Orthodox Christians believe in the full inspiration of the sacred Scriptures; or that the holy men, through whose instrumentality the world originally received these Scriptures, spake and wrote 'as they were moved by the Holy Ghost.' They believe in this as a _fact_ of the utmost importance. But there have been various modes of stating, explaining, and ill.u.s.trating this fact. Some, for instance, have spoken of two or three kinds of inspiration; others have insisted that there can be but one kind; while others have thought it better to state the subject in general terms, without attempting very minutely to define or explain them.

"All Orthodox Christians believe in the doctrine of the Trinity, or that the one G.o.d exists in a threefold distinction, commonly called persons,-the Father, the Son, and the Holy Ghost. They believe this as a revealed fact, and as an essential part of the Christian doctrine. But how differently has this fact been stated by different individuals! What different explanations have been put upon it! While not a few have preferred to leave the subject-as G.o.d seems to have left it-altogether unexplained.

"All Orthodox Christians believe in the universality of G.o.d's eternal purposes, in the certainty of their execution, and that they are so executed as not to obstruct or impair the free agency of man. But respecting the _manner_ of G.o.d's executing his purposes,-whether by the instrumentality of motives, or by a direct efficiency,-persons having equal claims to the appellation of Orthodox, have not been agreed.

"All the Orthodox believe in the natural and entire depravity of man; or that, in consequence of the sin of his first progenitors, and previous to regeneration, every thing within him, going to const.i.tute moral character, is sinful. But how many theories have been framed to account for the connection of our sin with that of Adam! And how many explanations have been put upon the doctrine of entire depravity! Some have made this depravity to extend to all the powers of the soul; others have restricted it to our voluntary exercises and actions; while others have confined it chiefly to a moral taste, disposition, or instinct, which is regarded as back of our voluntary exercises, and the source of them.

"All the Orthodox believe in the doctrine of atonement; but all do not state or explain this important doctrine after the same manner. Some suppose the atonement of Christ to consist wholly in his obedience, others wholly in his sufferings, and others in both his obedience and sufferings. Some hold that Christ suffered the penalty of the law for sinners, and others that he only opened a way in which, on condition of repentance, this penalty may be remitted. Some think the atonement made only for the elect, while others regard it as the propitiation for the sins of the whole world.

"The doctrine of instantaneous regeneration by the special operations of the Holy Spirit, is believed by all who have any claim to be called Orthodox. But this doctrine, like the others mentioned, is variously stated and explained. Some consider man as entirely active in regeneration, others as entirely pa.s.sive, and others as not entirely the one or the other. Some believe there is a holy principle implanted in regeneration, which ever afterwards remains in the heart of the subject, while others believe the change to consist in the commencement of holy exercises, which may be subsequently interrupted, though not finally lost. As to the manner in which the Spirit operates in regeneration, there is also a difference of opinion; some holding that he changes the heart by a direct efficiency, and others that this is done by the more powerful presentation and impression of motives.