I. REPORTS ON THE STATE OF RELIGION IN VARIOUS CHRISTIAN COUNTRIES. Delivered on Friday, October 3d, 1873. DIVISION I-CONTENTS. PAGE 71 76 78 85 90 95 1. DECOPPET: Religion in the Reformed Church of France.... 8. KALKAR: State of Religion in Scandinavia. 11. FLIEDNER: Evangelization of Spain. 12. KALOPOTHAKES: Religion in Greece... 13. MURRAY, ROBERT: The British Provinces of North America..... 129 14. MURRAY, WILLIAM: Christianity in the West Indies.......... 133 ON THE POSITION OF THE PROTESTANT RELIGION IN FRANCE, AND PARTICULARLY OF THE NATIONAL FRENCH REFORMED CHURCH. BY THE REV. AUGUSTE DECOPPET, B.D., Pastor of the National Reformed Church in Paris. DEAR BRETHREN,-In the absence of Mr. | and of several free Churches of different ages Bersier, who was to have addressed you upon and denominations. the state of religion in France, allow me to treat a portion of his subject, inviting your attention to French Protestantism, and particularly to that Reformed Church which I have the honor of representing here. I have always found that there is some difficulty in speaking of one's own church in the presence of representatives of other churches; for one can not say all the good or all the ill of it that comes to one's mind. One hardly dares to say all the good, lest one should seem to boast; while, on the other hand, the Church is a mother whose infirmities and weaknesses her children would fain leave veiled. I am embarrassed by the conviction that there is much to commend in French Protestantism and the Reformed Church, and that, unfortunately, there is much to lament. I propose to ask you to hear both sides, with the hope that the good will at least counterbalance the evil. These Churches live in excellent harmony. The Evangelical Alliance is no vain word with us, in proof of which I may state that the evangelizing and charitable societies of the various churches work in common. And here, be it said, by-the-way, I see the best means of confirming our common ties. Let us work with one heart in doing God's will on earth-better work together than dispute together. Thus, then, we have union among us. Shall we one day attain to unity? Will the time come when we shall form one sole Protestant French Church? I hope so; for this unity would be very desirable. Let us not delude ourselves; in Catholic countries divisions in Protestantism are a source of weakness to ourselves and a serious obstacle to the evangelization of the peoples of the Latin race, who have a strong tendency toward unity and centralization. We must strive to remedy these divisions wherever possible, bearing in mind that unity was the principal Among the virtues that we readily recognize in our American and English brethren —and their number is by no means small-object of the prayer of our Lord for his disis the love of facts and figures. We are quite clear that you are thorough positivists in the best sense of the term. Let me then begin with figures. The Protestant population of France is still but a feeble minority, which holds its own, but does not sensibly increase. Before the late war we numbered about a million. The annexation of Alsace has taken from us 250 communities, numbering some 200,000 members. It also took from us one of our theological faculties, that of Strasburg, deservedly famed for its learning; and thereby weakened considerably Protestant influence in our country. ciples in all ages: That they may be one, as we are one" (John xvii., 22). In our day the elements of union among the different members of the great Protestant family are much more important than the causes of division. Our several communities ought not to content themselves with a merely Platonic love; theirs should be a real love which blends them into one body. For is it not the grand aim of the Evangelical Alliance to hasten the day when there shall be one fold under one Shepherd? In France the time is perhaps not very far distant when the various evangelical fractions of Protestantism will form a single church. Already Our churches are divided into three prin- earnest hopes in this direction have been cipal groups or rather into two families-expressed in many quarters, and when the the Lutherans, half of whom were torn from us by conquest, and the Reformed body. The latter is made up of a mother, whom we must account as already aged, since it dates from the earliest days of the French Reformation, and of several daughters-I speak of the National Church, which is united to the state, and consists of about 630,000 members, progress of ideas or the natural pressure of events has brought about the separation of church and state, the fusion of which I speak will perhaps be well-nigh accomplished. Meanwhile, as I have already said, we are laboring together in our country at God's work-and these labors, thanks to God and the aid of our foreign brethren, are not with out fruit. Most of our evangelizing societies | ernment posts. But it is not so with Protwhich were founded at the beginning of this estantism. It is but a stranger with uscentury are not merely still supporting them- misunderstood, despised. Is this because the selves, but are for the most part in a satis- [French character is hostile to it, or that Protfactory state, and developing themselves steadily if not rapidly. turn toward us, and whenever we have an opportunity of addressing a Catholic congregation we are listened to with marked interest and sympathy. France is much better disposed toward the Gospel than is generally imagined. She thirsts after truth, after religion; but what wonder that she rejects that which is offered her, when this religion checks all her liberal aspirations, and treats as accursed whatever she calls progress? And hence it is that, notwithstanding all the pilgrimages and so-called. religious manifestations of the present day, provoked by the fanaticism of the priests, the chasm grows deeper and deeper in our country between modern society and Catholicism. But faith comes by hearing, and how shall she hear without preachers? estantism is not suited to France? It would be a great mistake to think so. France is Thus we are "up and doing." It may not hostile to Christianity; she ignores it. even be said, without exaggeration, that She is indifferent, superstitious or increduProtestantism in France possesses wonderful lous, because the Gospel is unknown to her. vitality. Yes, the existence of Protestantism I am convinced that when we shall have in our country, after so many struggles and real religious liberty, when we are able to persecutions, is neither more nor less than a spread broadcast the seeds of evangelical miracle of the faithfulness of God. On an faith, Protestantism will make way in our old seal, the device of which has been pre-country far and wide. Already do many seserved, the French Church may be seen repre-rious minds, disgusted with Ultramontanism, sented under the image of the burning bush of Moses, with this motto: Flagror, sed non comburor-"I burn, but am not consumed." These words sum up the tragical history of our Church. This Church has been essentially militant; she has known better, perhaps, than any other what it is to fight for life. This must not be forgotten in explaining the present position of Protestantism in France. If it has not sensibly increased, if it has not acted powerfully upon the masses, this is to be attributed to the precarious and stormy character which has almost always marked its existence. Conquest is difficult to a society that has to devote all its strength to self-defense. At this very moment Protestantism is greatly cramped in its movements. The liberty of propagandism* has almost always been greatly restricted in France-narrowly limited by chilling and excessive regulations. In our unfortunate country it is not as in free America; it is difficult to stir without authorized permission. Without government authority a lecture can not be given, a place of worship opened, a meeting held, or tracts distributed. Added to this, the Catholic priesthood is very powerful more so, alas! at the present time than ever, exercising, particularly in small towns and country places, considerable influence upon those in authority. It succeeds in fettering us in a thousand ways. It does all it can to discredit us in the eyes of the nation, attacking us violently from its pulpits, and not hesitating to employ against us the grossest calumnies. Most young Frenchmen are brought up in a holy horror of Protestantism; and traces of this early impression are even found clinging to the minds of men of independent thought-nay, of those whose boast it is that they are free-thinkers. It is not unusual to hear from their lips, or find in their writings the most untrue assertions relative to the history and doctrines of our Church. Protestant citizens, as such, are generally esteemed and loved. They are found in the first industrial ranks, in the army, in the various walks of science, and even in gov* An awkward word this: we speak of "making converts,” but I see the inconvenience of this ex pression. Protestantism has thus a great mission to fulfill in France, and one to which it is fully alive-that of giving her the Gospel. God has preserved it as if by a miracle, that it may become the salvation of our country. It is the ark that floats upon the troubled waters of infidelity and superstition, and which contains the family from whence a new people shall spring. In order that this mission may be accomplished, there are two desiderata-religious liberty, and the settling of internal struggles. 66 Of religious liberty, in the first place. I have already been able to show you how restrained and inadequate this liberty is. When will it be more ample? If our famous gouvernement de combat" succeeds in reestablishing the legitimate monarchy, we shall not find that it will bear us liberty in the folds of its white flag. If, on the other hand, as we would fain hope, the present political crisis results in establishing the Republic on a firmer basis, an era of liberty may begin in France which we shall be able to turn to account by sowing the good seed of the Gospel in that vast field which has been furrowed by so many and so sad trials. A new work was founded last year at Nimes, under the name of the "Mission of the Interior," the object of which is to group together all our forces with an eye to evan gelizing. This work adapts itself to needs | ligious questions, and to give a reason for which are so urgent, and is so clearly a Chris- their faith. It has served also to dissipate tian duty, that it can not fail to extend itself. many illusions by showing what befalls Allow me to seize a moment here to explain Christianity when its supernatural basis is what I understand, as applied to France and removed. to other Catholic countries, by an "Internal Mission." This struggle would, doubtless, have had neither the same duration nor the same violence if our Church had not been united to the State; but this union at the date when our Church accepted it at the hands of Napoleon, in 1802, was unavoidable. It was the official recognition of its existence and its rights, the proclamation of liberty of conscience and equality of "communions." It. appeared at the time an immense benefit; and it was so indeed, for it was the reparation of past injustice and the right of citizenship restored to Protestantism. To which we may add that at that epoch the severance of Church and State was an idea This mission, as I conceive it, should be confided to pastors or laymen devoted to this one object, who are gifted with the ability of speaking in public. They would go from town to town and from village to village announcing the Gospel-and this, not in the form of sermons, but by means of meetings, addressing their hearers in plain, popular language, as free as possible from theological technicalities. These meetings should be announced by means of placards and the public press, and held, not in buildings consecrated to religious services, where no one would attend them, but in any convenient that had hardly presented itself to men's concert - hall, assembly - room, or theatre. | minds. Whatever attempts of this kind have been recently made have met with signal success. But the seed must be sown broadcast. The Gospel must be published. It must at all costs penetrate beyond the temples in which it has been too closely confined and brought to the doors of the ignorant. But-and I insist strongly upon this point--we must have for this work men who have no other ministry, and who can devote themselves to it alone. Catholicism has its preaching friars. Let Protestantism, too, have its preaching confraternity at last! It would require more time than I have at my disposal were I to retrace, however roughly, the history of the present crisis. I will limit myself to describing its position at this moment. Our Church was deprived of its synods three centuries ago. The last, held at Loudun in 1659, was dissolved by Louis XIV. Our fathers well understood the weight of the blow struck by the great despot at their Church; for Daillé, the president of the synod, protested energetically, declaring that it was absolutely impossible that the ReformThe second great task that must be ed religion could be preserved without holdachieved if Protestantism is to take a prop-ing these assemblies. Later, Napoleon I. reer footing in France, is the settling the great stored to our Church its legal existence, but internal struggle between faith and Ration- he did not restore its synodical organization, alism that has disturbed the National Church and such was the general lukewarmness that for about half a century. So long as this no one claimed it. Our communities were struggle lasts, our Church will not be able therefore obliged to live apart from one to make any important conquests. This another; they had no means whereby to exstruggle, indeed, absorbs the flower of our press their faith in concert, and to form resstrength instead of concentrating it in ex-olutions in common. It was a body without ternal action, and has, moreover, singularly a head, or rather it consisted of scattered helped to discredit Protestantism among members, with no ties except common memCatholics. The spectacle of our discords-ories, a common liturgy, and a common adoften violent discords-is far from being ministration. Thanks to this disorganizaedifying, and they furnish the enemies of tion, Rationalism, at first moderate, and still our Church with a plausible pretext for their holding in a measure to the supernatural elassertion that Protestantism leads neces-ement, and eventually more and more negasarily to negation, and that it is on the high- tive, spread itself, unchecked, in certain road to dissolution. churches. The law declared, truly enough, But no! The crisis through which we are that it was the business of the consistories passing is not a dissolution. I will describe to watch over the maintenance of discipline its true nature in a few words: it is the ef- and of the liturgy; but when these consistofort of a Church which, after having been ries, appointed since 1852 by all the faithful, thrown down, scattered, almost destroyed, belonged for the most part to the radical is laboring with patient energy to rise again party, this law became a dead letter. Thus and reconstitute itself consistently with its was there an end in the Church to all fixed own laws. Notwithstanding its distresses, authority whereby to defend her against the this struggle has neither been carried on innovation of doctrines to which she had without dignity nor without utility. It has hitherto been a stranger: her self-governcompelled many minds to shake off their in- ment was gone-she was cut adrift-a vesdifference, to concern themselves about re-sel without a rudder. Such a state of things |