least warrant for the supposition that our Saviour uses them to describe the unending torment of immortal men. He ought to know, for the truth has been set before him, that the resurrectionhope, as outlined in the Old Testament, and as confirmed in the gospel of the New, furnishes an altogether different standpoint from which to estimate the words of Jesus upon this whole subject, and that the Apostles so viewed them; for never once do they address men from the standpoint of the Westminster teaching, that unjust men stand on the edge of such awful doom to ceaseless torments in an endless hell. Their doctrine is, "Whose end is destruction." And their declaration is that even out of this destruction unjust men are to be raised from the dead. They cannot come forth in the personalities which were consigned to destruction, because unjust, but for other forms of judgment in the flesh, so that the image of God, in which they were ideally created may be finally realized in them. The doctrine which Jesus taught, that God is the Father of men, forbids the idea that these evil personalities, in which this divine sonship fails to be realized, are the whole of man, and that in their destruction in death and hell the real man is destroyed. The provision of resurrection in Christ is God's affirmation of His right to reclaim this, His own child, and to re-invest him with another personality suited to his further training and correction. It is because men have confounded the eternal destruction of this old and carnal man, which refuses to be spiritualized, with the destruction of the man himself, that they have fallen into such gross mistakes as are embodied in the Westminster symbols. There is a divine self in every man, beneath this external self, which cannot be destroyed because it cannot sin, and because it is begotten of God. The resurrection of the saint is the complete personalization of this divine nature in perfect, heavenly manhood. The resurrection of the unjust, while it is their failure to reach this goal of manhood, and their condemnation to the hazard and suffering of another trial in the flesh, is yet a merciful provision for their beginning once more to tread the path which leads to the goal.

Post-mortem probation, therefore, is either true or not true, according to the point from which it is viewed. As respects the

human personality which has failed to become a fit temple for God, it is not true. As respects the immortal spirit which dwelt in that personality, it is true that it must go on with its effort to mold for itself in human nature a personal expression of God which death and hell can never destroy.

DR. COLFELT'S RESIGNATION.-The Presbyterian community in this city has been profoundly stirred by the resignation of one of its ablest preachers and the pastor of what is perhaps its foremost church in Philadelphia. Dr. Colfelt was greatly admired and beloved by his congregation, and when such a man leaves such a place under the stress of strong convictions of duty, there must be something wrong in the system that compels the change. Dr. Colfelt seems to have yielded to the behests of the system without first, as it seems to us, doing his full duty toward it. When a few years ago the same necessity was forced upon us, we felt bound, before taking the step, to discharge what we believe to be a solemn duty put upon every minister by his consecration vows to seek to promote the purity of the Church by pointing out the error into which she has been betrayed and to strive for its removal. In the Presbytery and through this publication we labored to this end, and only withdrew after submitting the matter to the Presbytery and asking its judgment in the case.

Dr. Colfelt has been an earnest advocate of Revision, and he very likely has satisfied his conscience in this matter by his efforts in that direction. We wish, however, that in addition he had frankly stated the points at which he believed the Church to be at variance with the truth, and had sought to recover her where she has gone astray. It is impossible to see how anything wrong in doctrine in the Church can ever be set right, except by the candid and earnest efforts of her ordained servants, whose loyalty to her highest good will prompt them to lay down even their ecclesiastical lives in the service of their brethren.

The only point, therefore, of criticism which we would make upon Dr. Colfelt's admirable letter-which is given below-is that it assumes that a man's love and loyalty for his Church can be shown in no other way than by strict conformity to its tenets,

whereas he may sometimes give the very highest proof of loyal and devoted service in opposing them.

"PHILADELPHIA, September 19th, 1892. "To the Session, Board of Trustees, and Congregation of Oxford Church:

Having experienced a very considerable change in theological belief, I deem it no longer compatible with my ordination vows and my conscience to continue as your minister, sincerity being. above all things vital to the preacher. I can conceive of nothing baser than for one to believe one system of truth in his heart and expound another with his lips.

"To be consciously at variance with the tenets of one's Church, and use one's position not to indoctrinate and fortify but to undermine and destroy the congregation's belief in those tenets, is a part too disingenuous for a manly minister to play. Better a thousand times sacrifice the emoluments of the most popular ministry, face poverty, rend asunder the most tender ties, pluck out one's eye, than violate in the most sacred office on earth the integrity of one's conscience.

"Convinced, therefore, that I cannot sincerely preach the Presbyterian dogmas from your pulpit, and with an eye single to the peace and prosperity of Oxford Church, I herewith tender my resignation as your Pastor, and retire henceforth from the Presbyterian ministry.,

"Believe me that this step has not been taken without the utmost deliberation and without much struggling and suffering.

"For all the patience and loving kindness which I have received universally at your hands I am profoundly grateful. Invoking the choicest blessings of Almighty favor on the entire Church, each office bearer, every household, and especially on the young people, and begging of you but one final kindness, namely, that you will spare me the formal farewell,

"I am yours affectionately,

"LAWRENCE M. COLFELT."

ANOTHER INSTANCE.-A paper sent to us from Denver gives an account of the withdrawal from the Presbyterian pulpit of the Rev. Walter G. Rudolph, pastor of the Westminster Church of that city, on the ground of his rejection of the doctrine of endless future punishment. He believes and has preached that the wicked will be eternally destroyed.

If all the Presbyterian ministers who secretly believe in the final extinction of the wicked were to openly express their belief there would be many more enforced vacancies. This brother had the courage of his convictions, and the Presbytery invited him to resign.

We have personal knowledge that this so-called heretical opinion is indulged by some men who are among the most highly esteemed in that communion.

We observe, by the way, that the report in the Presbyterian of this case states that Mr. Rudolph "disbelieves, now, in the doctrine of future punishment." Religious papers, of all others, should speak the truth, and especially when the character and reputation of a minister of the Gospel are involved. In the paper sent to us from Denver, a full report is given of Mr. Rudolph's statement before the Presbytery and to the Church, in which he explicitly declares that he does believe in the future punishment of the wicked, and that it eventuates not in their endless torment but in their eternal destruction.

EXTRACTS FROM LETTERS.

It seems fitting that in this closing number we should give extracts from some of many letters received, testifying to the usefulness of this magazine, and regretting its discontinuance.

From a Presbyterian minister in Ohio:

DEAR BROTHER BAKER :-The announcement that you had decided that the publication of WORDS OF RECONCILIATION must be discontinued made me sad. Yet, if you are satisfied that it is the Lord's will, we must acquiesce. If I were able, how glad I should be to share the burden of its continuance and wider dissemination. But I do not believe your labor and sacrifice have been in vain, or that your testimony will cease to bear fruit. The Lord guide you to and bless you in whatever work He has for you.

From a Congregationalist minister in Massachusetts:

While I regret that you should abandon the publication, I admit the cogency of your reasons for it, nor do I at all wonder at your

course. The eight volumes together constitute a library I hold to be one of the most valuable contributions to the Literature of Eschatology now extant.

I am truly grieved that it should not go on.

From a lady in Washington, D. C. :

I desire to thank you most warmly for the light you have thrown upon the doctrine of the Resurrection. The work you have done in this direction is enough for a lifetime, if you did no other.

A lady who has been a generous supporter of this work writes from Newport, R. I.:

I am just on the eve of leaving for Europe, but I cannot resist writing to tell you how grieved I am with your decision to discontinue the magazine. I shall sadly feel the want of it.

Its mission to lift off the yoke which our fathers had bequeathed us, to hold up the joyous hope of a redemptive resurrection, as well as to enlighten and instruct in the wise and all-merciful purpose of God, has certainly been faithfully fulfilled, and I feel sure the light of your teachings has come to many a burdened heart that you know not of. I most earnessly thank you for the enlightenment and profit I have received through your writings.

A Boston subscriber writes:

We were not surprised at your announcement of discontinuance, as you had before prepared us for it as a possibility. We have been deeply interested and much profited by its teaching.

Before our announcement we had received the following from a Presbyterian pastor in Kansas:

I write to renew my subscription to WORDS OF RECONCILIATION and to express my thankfulness, even at this late date, that your magazine still lives. Enclosed find post-office money order for $1.00, which should have been sent much sooner, but I have had to remove my family twice during the year, and while my income has been small, expenses have been great.

But you must not think that I am losing interest either in yourself or the magazine. It grows richer with every number, and you are certainly filling a unique and much-needed place in the theological world. In my humble opinion, your little magazine is shedding purer light upon the great problem of human life and