"By What Authority?" A Fundamental Question by Delavan L. Pierson, Editor, The Missionary Review of the World, New York City questions harass the
present a large business corporation. Other representatives of the corpora- a tion are working in the same field. All are recognized as honorable, conscien– tious men who wish to advance the in– terests of the corporation. A letter purporting to come from the home of– fice gives certain .information and in- 1 structions to the agents, and claiming to reveal the will, workings and plans o of the corporation heads. One agent t reads the instructions and says: "This ' did not come from the president. It i was written by an office boy who knew a little, but not much." Another says: "It did Itot come from the home office at all but is a forgery and misleading. I understand what It says but do not believe it and will not follow Its instructions except Inso– far as they appeal to my judgment." ' The third representative concludes: "This ' communication bears the neces– sary marks of authenticity. I do not un– derstand the reason for all the require- i ments but will follow the Instructions to the best of my ability." Evidently, while these men hold such diverse views, they cannot agree or work together satisfactorily. 0nly one can be right and the fundamental question to be answered first is: "!~ this communication authentic and au– thoritative?" If the document and program have been tested for years and the man who believed and followed the instructions has been honored by the home office, then his case is greatly strengthened. If, again, a special member of the firlll has come out to the field, has declared the document to be trustworthy and has left explicit interpretations and further instructions, then it would seem
minds of Christians in these days of feeling for sure foun– dations. Is the Old Testa-
ment true? Was Christ born of a Vir– gin? Can we believe in the miracles? Did Christ physically rise from the dead and ascend into heaven? Was He crucified to atone for our sins? Conscientious, intelligent, devoted Christians differ as to these points. They cannot or do not agree. What difference does It really make? Has the liberal "Modernist" as much right to his opinions as the conservative "Fundamentalist," and vice versa? This Is an Important question. It 11 splitting the churches. Methodists, Baptists, Presbyterians, Episcopalians, Disciples and Congregationalists are more and more separating Into two opposite camps, divided on the question as to what shall be taught from pulpits, In denominational institutions of learning and through the Church press. After all, the one fundamental ques– tion, on which Christianity rests is that asked of Christ-"By what authority"? Does our faith rest In ourselves or In human wisdom or does it rest in Jesus Christ and His teachings as recorded In the New Testament? If it rests on the authority of human experience, in– vestigation and philosophy, then one man has as much right to his opinion as another and the majority is apt to be correct. If we have the authority of God's revelation then only those who accept and correctly Interpret that revelation can claim to believe and proclaim the truth. An Allegory A young man goes to China to re-
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