678 



PRESBYTERIANS. 



adopt it, but that the diligence of the committee and 

 its desire to acquiesce in the will of the Church be 

 commended. The Assembly also rejoices in the 

 spirit of fraternity and mutual confidence manifested 

 by the two committees in conference. 



This report was unanimously adopted. On the 

 general subject of colored evangelization the 

 many deliverances of former assemblies were re- 

 affirmed expressive of the deep interest of the 

 Church in the salvation of the colored people 

 within its bounds, and its duty to give them the 

 Gospel. 



In view of the fact that the plan of co-operation 

 with the Presbyterian Church of the United States of 

 America proposed by the Birmingham Conference 

 has been rejected by this Assembly as not favorable 

 to our people, the Assembly reaffirms with emphasis 

 that in the ultimate establishment and maintenance 

 of a separate and independent African Presbyterian 

 Church lies the surest and quickest way to the evan- 

 gelization of the negroes. This opinion is confirmed 

 by our own experience, and by the history of the 

 Colored Baptist and Methodist Churches. By this 

 plan the Assembly does not intend to sever all con- 

 nection with the colored churches, but desires to give 

 them the largest and freest opportunity for self-sup- 

 port and self-development; and the Assembly pledges 

 itself to continue to aid them in the education of their 

 ministers and in evangelistic and sustentation work. 



In the case of an appeal of the Presbytery of 

 Charleston against the Synod of South Carolina 

 a question of the lawfulness of working in a tele- 

 phone office on Sunday was involved. Miss Sadie 

 Means, a member of the Second Presbyterian 

 Church of Columbia, S. C., was so employed, and 

 was disciplined by the session of the church for 

 violation of the Sabbath. The action of the 

 session was confirmed by the presbytery, but was 

 reversed by the synod/ The Assembly, having 

 heard the appeal, found that the record of the 

 case did not clearly show that Miss Means came 

 before the session of the church to make known 

 that she was guilty of violating the Sabbath as 

 charged, and that therefore it lacked the state- 

 ment which would authorize a judgment without 

 process ; that the decision of the session was 

 reached without trial ; that it was made in undue 

 haste, at the first and only sitting of the court, 

 so far as the records showed ; and that the sen- 

 tence of suspension from the communion was of 

 excessive severity. The Assembly therefore ex- 

 pressed it as its judgment that the appeal be 

 not sustained, and that the decision of the Synod 

 of South Carolina be affirmed. In connection 

 with this judgment, the Assembly deemed it 

 wise to reaffirm its immutable conviction of the 

 universal and perpetual obligation to remember 

 the Sabbath day to keep it holy. 



An amendment to the chapter of the Book of 

 Order relating to the ordination of ministers was 

 approved, to be sent down to the presbyteries. 

 It provides that, except in extraordinary cases, 

 no probationer shall be ordained until he shall 

 have taken a regular course in some approved 

 theological seminary, or the equivalent of the 

 same under some approved teacher of theology ; 

 and that whenever any presbytery shall see rea- 

 son to depart from this rule it shall always make 

 a record of the fact upon its minutes, with the 

 reasons therefor; and prescribes the rules for 

 trials for ordination. A report which was adopted 

 concerning young people's societies advises that 

 such societieb should be organized and kept 



under the control of the sessions ; that, while 

 affiliation between these societies and those of 

 other evangelical bodies is not forbidden, sessions 

 should maintain a careful oversight over the na- 

 ture and influence of such associations ; that, " in 

 societies which are constituted of both sexes, 

 sessions should take care that the women and 

 girls do not trangress the limitations of Scrip- 

 ture by conducting meetings or by engaging in 

 public prayer and exhortation " ; and that associ- 

 ations formed among different societies for con- 

 ference or co-operation should always be within 

 presbyterial lines and under presbyterial con- 

 trol. A committee was appointed to'confer with 

 the home mission authorities of the Northern 

 Presbyterian Church with a view to agreement 

 for avoiding unnecessary competition and waste 

 of men and means in the territory occupied by 

 both Churches. 



A decision was given that a Swedenborgian's 

 ceremony of baptism is not lawful baptism ; also 

 that immersion is not a Scriptural mode of bap- 

 tism, but irregularity as to mode does not inval- 

 idate the ordinance, and persons baptized by im- 

 mersion under the authority of an evangelical 

 Church should not be rebaptized on being re- 

 ceived into the Presbyterian Church. 



Synod of Brazil. The missions in Brazil 

 of the Northern and Southern Presbyterian 

 Churches are united in the Synod of 'Brazil, 

 which meets every three years. The third trien- 

 nial meeting of this synod was held in Rio de 

 Janeiro in September. Thirteen American and 

 12 Brazilian ministers and 14 elders were present 

 at the meeting. A discussion took place con- 

 cerning the relative power and influence of the 

 foreign missionaries and the native pastor. It 

 was agreed that there should be no separation 

 of the two, but all should work hand in hand. 

 The Committee of Home Missions reported that 

 $25,000 had been contributed in three years by 

 the Brazilian churches to that cause. At least 

 10 young men were candidates for the ministry. 



III. United Presbyterian Church in N 7 orth 

 America. The following is the summary of the 

 statistics of this Church as they are published in 

 connection with the proceedings of the General 

 Assembly of 1894. The statistics for 1893 are 

 also given for comparison : 



