PRESBYTERIANS. 



661 



(aiiiing during the year, and 111 church build- 

 ings had been erected. 



The Board of Foreign Missions had received 

 during the year $981,292. The missions among 

 the Seneca, Nez Perces, and Dakota Indians in 

 Mcxicu. Guatemala, United States of Colombia, 

 Brazil, Chili, West Africa, India, Laos, China, 

 .Japan, Corea, Persia, Syria, and among the Chi- 

 and Japanese in the United States re- 

 t n mod 210 American and 420 native ministers, 

 386 American'and 1,108 native lay missionaries, 

 384 churches, with 30,479 communicants and 

 3,430 added during the vear, 771 schools, with 

 29,011 pupils, 26,393 pupils in Sabbath schools, 

 167 students for the ministry, and $38,731 con- 

 tributed by the native churches. 



General Assembly. The General Assembly 

 met at Portland, Ore., May 19. The Rev. Wil- 

 liam C. Young, D. D., of Danville, Kv., was 

 chosen moderator. The Committee on a Consen- 

 sus Creed reported that, since its last report, ac- 

 tion looking to the formation of such a creed 

 had been taken by several churches, among 

 which were the Free Church of Scotland, the 

 Presbyterian Church in England, the Reformed 

 Church of England, the Reformed Church in 

 America, the Presbyterian Church in Canada, 

 the Cumberland Presbyterian Church, the Re- 

 formed Church of Hanover, the Presbyterian 

 Church in New South Wales, the Christian Mis- 

 sionary Church of Belgium, and the Evangelical 

 Syriac Church of Persia. The committee had 

 prepared a creed consisting of twenty-two arti- 

 cles. This creed was not submitted to the Gen- 

 eral Assembly for action, because it was the de- 

 sire of the committee first to arrive at an under- 

 standing with the committees appointed on the 

 same subject by sister churches. In reply to 

 overtures asking for the preparation of a shorter 

 creed, the Assembly replied that as the subjects 

 of the Consensus Creed and of the Revision of 

 the Confession of Faith would necessarily oc- 

 cupy the attention of the Church for a consid- 

 erable time to come, it was inexpedient to intro- 

 duce another kindred question at this time. 

 The committee appointed to confer with the 

 Board of Directors of Union Theological Semi- 

 nary concerning its relation to the General As- 

 seiiiMy, reported concerning the discussions it 

 had held with that body, the result of which was 

 that it was found impossible to harmonize the 

 conflicting views as to the meaning of the The- 

 ological Seminary compact of 1870. The board 

 adhered strenuously to the opinion that the 

 General Assembly had no right under the com- 

 pact to veto the transfer of a professor, and the 

 committee under its instructions could do noth- 

 ing more than to report the results of its work 

 to the General Assembly. It was believed, how- 

 ever, that the joint conference prepared the way, 

 in a large degree, for a better understanding be- 

 tween the Assembly and the seminary, and, in 

 the hope that an adjustment might be reached 

 in the near future, a paper was prepared by both 

 b< idies. and signed jointly by their respective 

 representatives, recognizing the fact that there 

 was a wide difference of opinion between the 

 parties in the matter of the interpretation of the 

 agreement or compact of 1870, and surest in.i; 

 that something like the following might be 

 done: 



1. Each party may fully respect the opinion* of the 

 other, and conclude for the preaent that the difference 

 is irreconcilable. 



2. The seminary might report to the next General 

 Aoemblj rabttuitUlly that their undovUndiiMi of 

 the compact differed from that of tin: General A 



bly o applied to transfer*, and that, although the 

 Assembly hud disapproved the appointment of Dr. 

 Briggy, the dinoton had not seen their way clear, in 

 view of their obligations, to do other than continue 

 him in the active duties of his office. 



8. The committee, on the other hand, might report 

 the facts to the General Assembly, and in view of 

 the relations of the parties, and in recognition of their 

 honest difference, recommend that the statvt qvo be 

 recognized, in the hope that some action may be taken 

 which may lead to a harmonious adjustment of all 

 the matters at issue. 



The trustees of the seminary submitted a sup- 

 plementary report denning their position in 

 the matter. They regarded themselves solemnly 

 bound by their interpretation of the agreement, 

 and must discharge their duties as directors ac- 

 cordingly. They saw no reason to modify their 

 understanding of the agreement, The board's 

 concessions to the General Assembly included 

 only one thing viz., the right to disapprove the 

 election or appointment of a professor. If Dr. 

 Briggs had been elected or appointed to the 

 chair of Biblical Theology, the disapproval of 

 the Assembly would have been decisive with 

 them. But a professor could be elected only ac- 

 cording to the laws of the institution, and ac- 

 cording to those laws Dr. Briggs was not elected. 

 The report was accompanied by a memorial set- 

 ting forth more explicitly the points of differ- 

 ence. In its final action the Assembly approved 

 the interpretation of the compact o'f 1870. as 

 expressed by the action of the Assembly of 1891 ; 

 declined to be a party to the breaking of the 

 compact with Union Theological Seminary ; ex- 

 pressed the persuasion that the Church should 

 nave direct connection with its theological semi- 

 naries and control over them ; appointed a com- 

 mittee to take into consideration the whole sub- 

 ject of the relation of the Assembly to its the- 

 ological seminaries ; to confer with the directors 

 of those seminaries, and to report to the next 

 General Assembly such action as may result in a 

 still closer relation between the Assembly and 

 its seminaries than that which at the time ex- 

 isted; recognized the status quo as to the differ- 

 ent interpretations given by the directors of 

 Union Seminary from that given by the As- 

 sembly's Committee of Conference, and. in ac- 

 cordance with the proposition suggested by the 

 Committee of Conference, agreed to submit the 

 difference of interpretation of the compact as to 

 transfers to a committee of arbitration : and 

 made provisions for the selection of arbitrators, 

 A minute was adopted reminding all under the 

 care of the General Assembly 



That it is a fundamental doctrine that the Old and 

 New Testaments are the inspired and infallible Word 

 of God. Our Church hold* that the inspired Word, 

 as it came from God, is without error. The assertion 

 of the contrary can not but shake the confidence of 

 the people in the sacred books. All who enter office ' 

 in our Church solemnly profess to receive them as the 

 only infallible rule of faith and practice. 



If they change their belief on this point, Christian 

 honor demands that they should withdraw from our 

 ministry. They have no right to use the pulpit or 



