Kuyper antithesis

THE ANTITHESIS
BETWEEN

SYMBOLISM AND REVELATION.

LECTURE DELIVERED
BEFORE THE HISTORICAL PRESBYTERIAN SOCIETY
IN

PHILADELPHIA, PA.
BY

PROF.

ABRAHAM KUYPER,
D. D. LL. D. M. P.

/

HOVEKER & WORMSER LTD.
AMSTERDAM— PRETORIA.
T.

EDINBURGH.

&

T.

CLARK,
LTD.

LONDON: SIMPKIN, MARSH.\LL, HAMILTON, KKNT

&

CC'.

THE ANTITHESIS

SYMBOLISM ANDREVELATION.

THE ANTITHESIS
BETWEEN

SYMBOLISM AND REVELATION.

LECTURE DELIVERED
BEFORE THE HISTORICAL PRESBYTERIAN SOCIETY
IN PHILADELPHIA, PA.
BY

PROF.

ABRAHAM ^KUYPER,
D. D. LL. D. M.

P

HOVEKER & VVORMSER LTD.
AMSTERDAM— PRETORIA.
T.

EDINBURGH.

&

T.
Jb

CLARK,

London: simpkin, makshall, Hamilton, kknt,

co. ltd.

THE ANTITHESIS BETWEEN SYMBOLISM ANDREVELATION.

Mr. President, Ladies and Gentlemen, Availing myself much pleasure of the opportunity which your kind invitation

with
puts

my way, my design
in

to say a few
to

words to your honoured Society,

it is

not

give an elaborate lecture, but only to
falls

make

a few

remarks

on a subject that
This subject
is

within the limits of your interests

and mine.Revelation,

the antithesis between Symbolism and
is

or the current of symbolical religion, which of late
in

becoming almost dominant

England, and now already

in

a

considerable degree menaces our Calvinistic church-life.

The
ren

facts

need
is

hardly

any proof.

All over non-conformistic

England there
of the

no end of complaint, that so many of thechildgeneration
are abandoning the paths of their
their preference

second

fathers,

and are publicly and earnestly declaring

for the episcopalian services.

In one general assembly after another

one of the chief topics
tion:

in

order has been the ever-returning ques-

how
you
for.

to

keep the

rising generation in the fold. In so
this question,

much

asyou have followed the debates on
taken,
also

and the resolutions

looked

know in what way improvement at times has been The astonishing proposition to make non-conformism
by connecting with the church a dancing or boxing

more

attractive,

school,
sports,

or

a large

room

for ///door
I

and a broad
that

field for c'z^/door

speaks

volumes.

remembertwo years ago a Con-

gregational minister touched a different chord,

when he pointed

his

audience to the Calvinists in Wales and in Holland, who, in keeping

more

closely to their standards,

had no

difficulty
in

whatsoever

in kindling the love for their

own churches
of an
in

the hearts of their
in

children.
ness,

But

his voice

was a voice of onecrying England

the wilder-

and the uneasy

feeling

approaching ebbtide among
is

Methodists and Congregationalists
crease.
in

still

on the

in-

Even

outside
spirit is
is

the churches in the daily press this reflux

the general

watched so keenly, and

this increasing

sym-

pathy

for Ritualism

considered to be of so far reaching conse-quences,

that

liberal

papers

ascribe

to

it

for

a large part, the
at the last

overwhelming majority which Lord Salisbury secured
elections.

For three-quarters of a century,
remarkable change

as they frankly ack-

nowledge, non-conformism had been the stronghold of the Liberals,

and

it

is

this

in

the public mind, which,

reli-

giously beingmore
tlie

in

favor of Ritualism, turns politically to the

advantage of

conservatives and unionists.

The

interesting co-

ming forward

of the unionists under Mr. Chamberlain

was no doubt
no small

incidentally brought about

by Mr. Gladstone's persevering support
tell

of home-rule, but was countenanced, as they

us,

in

proportion

by

this

same...