Candor and honesty first; veneration for the fathers after. Would it not
conduce to real success if this matter were maturely and honestly
considered? It might arouse some amount of disunion and debate. But
would it not lift the whole tone of the missionary movement to a far
higher plane? And might we not believe that it would lead to more
sustained effort, and far greater success?

At all events, there is one matter well worth considering. How can the
Spirit of Truth lead us into larger visions of Truth if we willingly,
tamper with our most sacred convictions? Let us remember that there are
growing revelations. May we be of an open mind, and so in an attitude to
receive them!

It does seem to me that much of the activity of the evangelical churches
is in a large measure discounted by this want of candor. If earnest men
only knew how amenable the world would become to the Gospel, and what a
glad day they would usher in when they would candidly renounce the
doctrine of endless torment, I believe the majority would do it.
Surely, this would be one of the brightest days that has ever dawned on
the world.

Just now I have had a strange experience. On a certain Sabbath morning I
opened the Bible at random at the eleventh chapter of the Romans. That,
you know, is the great chapter about the Restoration of the Jews. I had
read some verses of that chapter, when there flashed on my mind the idea
that here we have a most profound argument for spiritual Restoration. I
had not been thinking at all of Restoration at the time; but here the
subject was forced upon me in quite a new light. As I read on, that
conviction grew. From the point of view of Restoration, the argument of
the apostle seemed coherent, profound, glorious. From any other