Take in contrast the language of James Smetham, when he was studying
the Epistle to the Hebrews: “The great difference of such a subject
from all others is that all the interests of Time and Eternity are
wrapped up in it. The scrutiny of a title-deed of £100,000 a year is
nothing to it. How should it be? Is there a Christ? Is He the heir of
all things? Was He made flesh? Did He offer the all-perfect sacrifice?
Did He supersede the old order of priests? Is He the Mediator of a new
and better covenant? What are the terms of that covenant? There are no
questions like these. All other interests seem low, trivial, momentary.”
III
Two affirmations meet us on the threshold of the Gospels. One is the
assertion of our Lord’s Divinity, which Mr. Gladstone called “the only
hope of our poor wayward human race.” “Immanuel, God with us,” has
been the conquering cry of Christian ages. “The Word was made flesh
and dwelt among us; and we beheld His glory, the glory as of the only
begotten of the Father, full of grace and truth.”
The other is the proclamation that a Redeemer had come to Sion. “Thou
shalt call His name Jesus, for He shall save His people from their
sins.”
What is the attitude of Spiritualism towards these central truths?
IV
THE DIVINITY OF OUR LORD
We need say little about the controversy on the Divine Nature of our
Lord which has broken out in the ranks of Spiritualism. The difference
was proclaimed in a letter to _Light_[35] by the Rev. F. Fielding-Ould,
a London clergyman, who is himself a Spiritualist, and whose writings
are recommended by Sir A. Conan Doyle. “No one,” says this clergyman,
“has a right to call himself a Christian unless he believes in the
Divinity of Jesus Christ. He may be a person of estimable character,
and greatly developed spirituality, but he is not a _Christian_.” On
the truth of our Lord’s Divinity the Church is erected. “Take it away,
and the whole elaborate structure falls into ruins. It is upon that
rock that the great vessel of modern Spiritualism is in imminent danger
of being wrecked.... In the Spiritualist hymn-book the name of Jesus is
deleted--_e.g._, ‘angels of Jesus’ reads ‘angels of wisdom.’ At their
services His name is carefully omitted in the prayers, and the motto of
very many is, ‘Every man his own priest and his own saviour.’ Christian
Spiritualists, who rejoice in many of the revelations of the séance
room, are alarmed. They are quite prepared to allow every man to make
his own decision, but that the movement as a whole should be identified
with Theism, and that they themselves should be considered as having
renounced their faith and hope in Jesus Christ is intolerable.”
Public-domain text, read in full here on John Shaqi.
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