To the Editor of the "Norta-Cuina Datty News."
Sir,—It is pleasant to see that, at last, a responsible Christian teacher feels himself challenged to write something about Mr. Coates' prophesies.
Even if his letter is a little vague, it is not difficult to read, between the lines, that Bishop Herbert J. Molony does not be-here in a second advent at the time predicted by Mr. Coates; otherwise, why should he "reluctantly break silence." No responsible Christian teacher, who believed in Mr. Coates' prophecies could break silence with reluctance.
Bishop Molony nevertheless continues:—'Mr. Coates has good cause to raise up his prophetic voice of warning, for there are many reasons leading us to think that the Lord is at hand. It is not a good argument to say that Christians of may ages have thought the same and have been disappointed. However "far off" an event may seem to be, if it be "divine it will surely come to The last sentence of this quotation is beside the point in question. No Christian doubts that our Lord will re-appear, sooner or later. The whole question under discussion is:—IWVill our Lord return on one of the dates ficed by My. Coates, or not; and Bishop Molony will scarcely deny that the probabilities are against Mr. Coates.
Hundreds of Christians have during the past 1,900 years thought that they had good cause to raise up their prophetic voices of warning that there were many reasons leading them to feel certain that the Lord was at hand. Everyone of these prophets gave reasons why they expected our Lord's coming at the time they predicted for the event to.take place. Nobody would have listened to them, had they given no reasons for their belief. A/J these prophets, who all put forth their several claims in very much the same manner as Mr. Coates now puts forth his, proved themselves false prophets. Should a thing, or an event, which has happend nineteen-hundred times before, always with identical results, happen once more, it seems reasonable to expect the result of the nineteen-hundred and first recurrence to be like the nineteen-hundred previous results.
I am, ete.,
Text read from the printed page and cleaned; old type leaves the occasional error.