694 



PRESBYTERIANS. 



The Committee appointed in accordance 

 with this resolution consists of the Rev. Dr. G. 

 B. Strickler, chairman: the Rev. Drs. M. D. 

 Hoge, J. R. Wilson, T. D. Witherspoon, and W. 

 . F. Junkin ; and elders Dr. W. P. McPheeters, 

 of St. Louis, Mo. ; T. H. Carter, of Texas ; R. 

 T. Simpson, of Alabama; and W. S. Primrose, 

 of North Carolina. 



Several matters were acted upon in rela- 

 tion to the " Centennial Celebration " of Pres- 

 byterianism in the United States, to be held in 

 Philadelphia in May, 1888. The Assembly re- 

 plied to invitations from the Presbytery and 

 from the Second Church of Philadelphia to 

 hold its next meeting in that city, that it was 

 not deemed judicious "to appoint a meeting of 

 the body outside our own bounds, or to depart 

 from the invariable custom of meeting within 

 the limits of one of our own churches." Also : 



That the General Assembly adjourn to meet next 

 year in the Franklin Street Church, Baltimore, ten- 

 dered to the Assembly by the pastor, so as to secure 

 the fullest co-operation in this celebration. 



That on Memorial Day, the fourth Thursday of 

 May, 1888, the Assembly shall suspend its usual ses- 

 sions, allowing all its members to participate in this 

 reunion. 



That the following be appointed as the speakers 

 who shall represent'this Assembly in the centennial 

 celebration : Dr. B. M. Palmer, Dr. M. D. Hose, Dr. 

 J. L. Girardeau, Dr. M. H. Houston, Dr. W. W. 

 Moore, Dr. Jerry Witherspoon, Hon. J. Randolph 

 Tucker of Virginia, Hon. W. C. P. Breckenridge of 

 Kentucky j Hon. J. S. Cothran, of South Carolina, and 

 Hon. Clifford Anderson, of Georgia. 



That the matter of raising a memorial fund be left 

 to the different portions of the Church which may 

 choose to embark in it. 



That the Assembly recommend to the Presbyteries 

 to collect historical material within their bounds, and 

 forward the same to the Assembly of 1888. 



Assignment of subjects for speakers : 1, " History 

 of Presbyterianism Its Work for the Future," Dr. 

 Girardeau ; 2, " Calvinism and Keligious Liberty," 

 Mr. Breckenridge; 3, "Adaptation of Presbyte- 

 rianism to the Masses," Mr. Tucker ; 4, " City Evan- 

 gelization," Dr. Hoge ; 5, " Calvinism and Human 

 Progress," John Cothran ; 6, " Lay Etfort among 

 the Masses," Mr. Anderson ; 7, " Foreign Missions," 

 Dr. Houston ; 8, " Home Missions," Dr. Moore ; 9, 

 "Children of the Covenant," Dr. Palmer; 10, 

 " Closing Address," Dr. Witherspoon. 



A fraternal answer was returned to the de- 

 claration of the General Convention of the 

 Protestant Episcopal Church (see "Annual 

 Cyclopedia" for 1886) concerning Christian 

 unity ; but further action on the subject was 

 remanded to the General Assembly of 1888. 

 Continued interest was expressed in the " Al- 

 liance of the Reformed Churches holding the 

 Presbyterian system," and approval of its 

 efforts to promote closer fellowship and co- 

 operation among those churches. 



In answer to overtures touching the acts 

 of the last Assembly respecting the theory of 

 evolution, and the power of the General 

 Assembly over theological seminaries and their 

 instructors, the Assembly " declined to for- 

 mulate any detailed explanation of the acts of 

 the last Assembly, as any such statement, how- 

 ever expressed, could only be regarded as a 



new deliverance on the same subjects which this 

 Assembly does not feel called upon to make." 



Approval was given to the formation of a 

 Synod in Brazil, to be composed of the pres- 

 byteries which shall be separated from both 

 the Assemblies in the United States, to con- 

 stitute in Brazil a distinct and independent 

 Church, free from foreign control ; and it was 

 further advised that the missionaries of this 

 Church in Brazil, " as soon as these native 

 Presbyteries can be safely left, push forward 

 as rapidly as possible into the destitute regions 

 beyond." 



The eligibility of ruling elders to the 

 moderatorship having been affirmatively de- 

 cided upon by the vote of the presbyteries, 

 such amendments of the " Book of Church Or- 

 der " as would bring the other provisions of the 

 book into harmony with the change were pro- 

 posed and referred to a special committee. 

 The presbyteries were directed to take the 

 matter of Sabbath observance under presby- 

 terial supervision, and to adopt measures to 

 discourage and stop unnecessary riding by 

 ministers and members in Sunday trains and 

 steamboats. 



Conference of Northern and Southern Presby- 

 teries. The Committees of Conference of the 

 Northern and Southern Presbyterian General 

 Assemblies met in Louisville, Ky., December 14, 

 for the discussions of questions concerning the 

 relations of the two bodies ; but no report of 

 their proceedings or conclusions will be au- 

 thoritatively published till the meeting of the 

 General Assemblies in May, 1888. 



III. United Presbyterian Chnrch In North America. 

 The summary of the statistics of this Church, 

 as they were presented to the General Assem- 

 bly in 1887, gives the following footings : Num- 

 ber of synods, 10; of presbyteries, 60; of min- 

 isters, 736, of whom 523 were pastors and stated 

 supplies, and 213 were without charge; of li- 

 centiates, 46 ; of students of theology, 55 ; of 

 ruling elders, 3,515; of congregations, 885, of 

 which 609 were provided with pastors and 

 stated supplies, and 276 were " vacant " ; of 

 pastoral charges, 678 ; of mission stations, 144 ; 

 of new stations during the year, 22; of mem- 

 bers, 94,641 ; of members received during the 

 year on profession, 7,408 ; of baptisms during 

 the year, 2,840 of adults and 4,316 of infants; 

 of Sabbath-schools, 937, with 9,220 officers and 

 teachers and 83,617 pupils. Amount of con- 

 tributions: For salaries of ministers, $482,020 ; 

 for congregational purposes, $274,602 ; for the 

 boards, $167,010; for general purposes, $49,- 

 C09 ; for quarter-centennial, $4,619; total, 

 $977,860; average per member, $11.51; aver- 

 age salary of pastors, $935. 



The receipts of the Board of Church Exten- 

 sion for the year had been $25,658. Appro- 

 priations had been made for the ensuing year 

 of $13,600, of which $10,400 were to be in the 

 form of donations and $3,200 of loans. 



The receipts of the Board of Home Missions 

 had been $39,964. The board had granted aid 



