"Till death us join! O voice yet more Divine That to the broken heart breathes hope sublime; And shattered powers We still are one, despite of change and time. "Death with his healing hand Shall once more knit the band Which needs but that one link which none may sever; Till through the only Good, Heard, felt, and understood, Our life in God shall make us one forever." In reply to the question, Do you regard this as a demonstration of immortality? we answer, No. Immortality is not demonstrated by philosophy. It is far too large a truth for that. Philosophy cannot demonstrate God, nor the principle of causality, nor identity, nor the self! And no student of philosophy who understands himself tries to or wishes to. The personal self, the personal God, the life of the spirit-these are mighty truths which, like mountain peaks, emerge more and more clearly out of the mists and shadows as philosophic thought frees itself from the uncritical prejudices of sense and liberates itself from the fallacies which have arisen out of the inherent weaknesses of language and from the shadow cast by its own logical processes. In this larger assurance which grows out of personal life itself we rest; content to know that if the natural world is to be intelligible, and if our human life is to have a deeper meaning, it can only be through these majestic truths which ground the present and fleeting in the Eternal and Abiding. Francis Li Strickland ART. XI.-SAXON METHODISM THE kingdom of Saxony is a state of the German empire, and lies in the south central part of the realm, bordering Bohemia along the Erz Mountains. It was the center of the Reformation, the protector of Luther, and the shield that warded off the powers of Rome. Throughout the people are characteristically Protestant, and memorials to the great reformer are seen everywhere. But the spirit of Luther seems to have fled its former habitation and the gospel to have lost its power. The court is Catholic, and the cross of wood is making slow but sure progress in this land it once committed to the prince of evil spirits. The established churches have many pews to rent, and the stock in trade becomes less and less every year. It will soon be below par, if the renowned professors (to whom Christian schools in America send their brightest young men) get a few more broadsides at the "Impregnable Rock." The spiritual condition of Germany is lamentable indeed, but the dawn cometh. Methinks I see its rays not in the east, but in the south and west. The liberties of modern Europe date from the French Revolution, and France takes the initiative now in that which will be in the not far future the fact of all Europe-disestablishment. When that comes and the great Protestant denominations, with that Christian rivalry which is so wholesome, can work side by side, then Zion's wheels will move in this land of knowledge and dearth. I But to Saxon Methodism. God is providing now the means he will use later for the salvation of this land-Methodism. speak only of the Leipzig District of the North Germany Conference. Here has been the scene of the greatest success. During the last year 672 members have been added. At Plauen, where the Annual Conference was held in June, 147 have been received. This has not been the result of special services, but of constant interest during the entire year. Crowds attend the preaching of the Word, the chapels are filled, and vast throngs from far and near come to the more important meetings. This is characteristic of the entire work except in the large cities. At the Conference in Zwickau two years ago Bishop Vincent preached to 4,000 people; at Berlin last year there were 2,500 at the afternoon service; and on June 12 last in Chemnitz Bishop Burt spoke to 2,000. In Plauen the following Sabbath there were 3,000 at the meeting. There were press notices of the Conferences in the Leipzig dailies. One very striking feature of the movement is the number of young people interested; in fact, they seem to be in the majority, and the activity is remarkable. Methodism is reaching the young people of a manufacturing Germany and putting sunshine in their hearts, joy in their faces, and songs on their lips. I have heard music before, but these young people's choruses, numbering hundreds of voices, can soon make one forget all but heaven. Leaving religion out, the movement is of great worth in a social, material, and ethical way. Methodism here has outgrown its secthood and is an acknowledged fact. It was graciously recognized in June by the emperor for the first time in a telegram addressed to the South Germany Conference of the Methodist Episcopal Church, at that time in session. This was not, however, in keeping with the idea of a policeman who, when the writer inquired for the Methodist church in a certain city, gravely made the declaration that it was no church, but a chapel, and the people no churchmen, but dissenters. Whatever that policeman may think, Methodism has force enough to absorb the United Brethren Church, with a thousand members and eight ministers. But all is not clear sailing, by any means. There are persecutions of such a character that one must think of Russia, not Germany, when told of them. At one place a member died, and the pastor of the established church forbade any funeral service. This was heeded except at the grave, where a prayer was offered. The Methodist minister who prayed and the man from whose house the funeral took place were fined twenty marks each, and several other active participants smaller amounts. At another place prayer was forbidden in the Methodist chapel. Only singing and speaking were allowed, but when the people came to the service they prayed silently upon taking their seats. A policeman one Sunday morning looked in and saw this. As a result, the preacher was fined one hundred marks. Only the children of Methodist parents are sup posed to be taught Methodism, and these are supposed only to attend Sunday school. Some negligent parents permitted their children to accompany them to church, and this little act cost the minister a fine of four hundred marks. Of course, there is no way of redress, as dissenters have no religious rights except those granted from above. At a distance of four thousand miles Germany seems a unity, but upon coming nearer that union is broken by some twenty-six petty kingdoms which up to 1870 practically managed their own affairs. Twenty-five states grate inwardly to-day over the predominance of one, and the dead poets must have nightmares yet over a "United Germany." One need not be astonished over peculiar things, especially here. In this land of scholars and ignorance, of freedom and despotism, of advance and stagnation, three centuries live side by side. Perhaps it might be of interest to the readers of this article to know the process of getting out of the Lutheran or established church in order to become something else. First, one must give public notice of his intention, then after a lapse of four weeks repeat this notice. After that he must go before the court to get his request granted. For all this there is a fee ranging from five to fifteen marks, according to the place. The local pastor of the establishment may make this very hard, and as a usual thing these men have no love for Methodism. After the court grants the petition the person is recorded as a dissenter, and, as a presiding elder put it, "he is blacklisted." Yet this does not affect the man in his business relations. He stands an equal show for a government position with the churchman. In the face of these obstacles the conclusion must be reached that German Methodism is genuine, and from the present signs there will be a "Methodist Episcopal Church of Germany," the leading Protestant denomination, a power for good in the spiritual, educational, and civil life of the New Fatherland. userantluckies ART. XII.-WHAT THE IMPRISONMENT DID FOR SAINT PAUL THE reader of the book of Acts is disappointed at its abrupt close. Many questions arise: What became of the apostle? What did he do during the imprisonment? Why was he imprisoned? This latter question has been variously answered. Some have said it was that the prison epistles might be written; others, that patience and kindness might be taught the apostle. But these seem to be results rather than reasons, and another may be given which will explain these two. It is that the apostle may have the opportunity to stop and see the new conditions and the new needs. For twenty to twenty-five years he had been working at fever heat on the basis of the revelation received in the Arabian Desert. During that period he had been unceasing and untiring in his work of an evangelist, and he had not stopped to work out the problem any further. That which takes place in the life of nearly every great evangelist now takes place in the life of Paul. He becomes less of an evangelist and more of a pastor. The imprisonment did two things for the apostle: 1. It established his authority as an apostle. In Galatians he is fighting for his rights, defending his apostleship, storming the breast works of the enemy. Prior to the imprisonment he was moving rapidly from place to place, seldom stopping long in any one, and always meeting Jewish opposition. Now he is before the church as a "prisoner for Christ." This period produced a series of prolonged trials and disasters that attracted attention. He had had persecutions before, but they were isolated and when he was less known. These later trials won for him the thought, the prayers, and the attachment of the church. The enforced inactivity brought him into less open opposition. Thus his authority had become fully established. It is the same difference that is to be found in John Wesley in 1750 when the Established Church had shut the door in his face and John Wesley in 1780 recognized everywhere. The later epistles show nothing of the apostleship controversy. That is accepted, and Paul writes in calm security. |