THE FUNCTION OF THE CHURCH 153 



into one of spiritual culture and social service. No 

 controversy is ever settled save by the logic of facts, and 

 the logic of facts, through the verdict of the historical 

 outcome, is putting an end to this controversy in New 

 England. " What we are now getting,'' says Dr. 

 George F. Wells, " in the evangelical and missionary 

 movements of the present day, is a theology socialized — 

 the things of faith humanly lived and taught . . . 

 while the danger, if not the guilt, of the liberal move- 

 ment, because of a too persistent emphasis, is that of 

 not becoming a part of the socialized church she has 

 helped to nurture, and thus of becoming ineffective as a 

 mere sociology."* 



The liberal movement claims to have taught the 

 church that she has a social task, and the claim is ad- 

 mitted by many. But there was another and earlier 

 teacher. The tasks undertaken by Christian mission- 

 aries abroad formed the iirst leaven; and the Salvation 

 Army — whose revered leader, knighted long since by 

 the sword of the Spirit in Immanuel's hand, has just 

 l>een called to the presence of his great Conunanderf — 

 was the effective pioneer. And without being cognizant 

 of the details one may safely assume that through what- 

 ever group the impulse in New England came, it was 

 neither the blind passion of outraged humanity nor the 

 patient insistence of the scientific spirit, but the power 

 of the Holy Spirit of God working by love in hearts 

 renewed by faith in Christ which there as elsewhere 

 called the church's attention t<» the need of fuller, wi(l<'r 

 social service. 



• " An AnBwer to the New England Church Qu(«tlon." p. 8. 



t 0«-n»'ral Hooth's dfuth had b<'i-n announced In the press the 

 day before the flrst delivery of thlB lecture. 



