Newspaper Page Text
The Presbyteri
Vol. 96. No. 22. RICHMOND, VA.
JU '
ttf the South
"Hrj .i May 31, 1922.
CHARLESTON Assembly has passed into
hi story. There was nothing spectacular
:il>out its proceedings or radical in its actions.
It was a body of men who did their own think
ing. There was no leader who gathered about
him a following which he could carry with
him, because of his personal influence. The
reports of the executive and ad interim* com
mittees were given careful consideration. The
reports of the standing committees were care
fully prepared, and in most cases they were
fully discussed. Most of the actions of the
Assembly will meet with the hearty approval
of the great majority of the Church.
REV. DR. R. C. REED, "the grand old
man," as some one dared to call him,
had many warm friends of long standing among
the members of the Assembly, and by the time
the body had adjourned he had won the ad
miration and esteem of all who sat under his
rule. His courtesy, gentleness, fairness and
impartiality were all that could be desired. So
far as we can recall his decisions were never
questioned, but once, and then he was sus
tained by an overwhelming majority. No one
questioned his judgment in the appointment
of committees, and he did much to facilitate
the work of the Assembly by the way in which
lie handled its business.
THERE was a touch of sadness in the hearts
of many of those who have attend the As
sembly on previous occasions in recent years,
when it was found that because of failing
health, Rev. Dr. T. H. Law, for some years the
stated clerk, would not be present and that he
had sent his resignation of that office. He and
his faithful wife, who always accompanied him
and aided him in his work will be very much
missed. The Assembly was exceedingly for
tunate in having a man who for some years
lias been Dr. Law's assistant, as permanent
clerk. In this position Rev. Dr. J. D. Leslie
had had a training which especially fitted him
for the office to which he was elected, as suc
cessor to Dr. Law. The work under his giiid
ance moved along as smoothly as if no change
of officer had been made. May he have many
years in which to sei*ve the Church in this im
portant position.
CLOSER relations with other churches was
a matter which claimed the attention
of the Commissioners before they left home
and after they reached the Assembly, as it did
the Church at large. The committee appointed
last year to confer with other Presbyterian
and Reformed churches, reported that it had
met with the committees of several other
'?hurches, and had proposed to them a plan of
federation. This was acceptable to some of
the other churches, but the committee of the
Northern Church said that their church would
not be satisfied with anything less than out
and out organic union. Our committee recom
mended that the whole matter be dropped. But
the Assembly adopted the Constitution for the
Federal Council, which our committee had pre
pared, and practically said to the other
churches, "This is our plan for closer relations,
'f you want closer relations with us you must
adopf our plan, or else propose some better
plan, but we do not care to consider organic
union."
ONE fact which a large part of our Church
seems to have overlooked is that we, as a
Church, are already in a federation of the
Presbyterian and Reformed Churches. This
federation is known as the General Council of
the Presbyterian and Reformed Churches in
America. It is composed of our Church, the
Northern and United Presyterian Churches, the
Dutch and the German Reformed Churches, the
Southern Synod of the Associate Reformed
Presbyterian Church and the Colored Cumber
land Presbyterian Church. This is an organ
ization which has done very little more than to
attempt to cultivate good will anvong the
churches of which it is composed. At a meet
ing held last March amendments to the Con
stitution of this Council were declared adopted,
which give the Council the authority to take
over and conduct any part of the work of the
constituent churches, which may be committed
to it. That is, if two or more of the churches
want to unite in mission or any other kind of
work, the Council will act as their agent in
carrying it out. Whether anything will come
of this remains to be seen.
I
MONT RE AT is to be the place for the
meeting of the next Assembly. This is
a dream which has filled the mind of the man
agement of that attractive place for some time,
but it has never seemed practicable to have the
meeting there before. Now that the wonderful
new auditorium has been completed, it will
furnish an ideal place for the sessions of the
Assembly. The hotels will furnish all the
rooms that are needed and will provide the
meals. And no doubt, some of the private
cottages will l>e opened by their owners, who
will want to attend the meeting of the Assem
bly. This arrangement will give the Commis
sioners a chance to get better acquainted with
each other than they cai) when scattered over
a whole city. The late spring weather and
mountain scenery will make this a most at
tractive place for the gathering of the repre
sentatives of the Church.
REPORTS from the churches showed that
the general work of the Church is in bet
ter condition than it has over been. The con
tributions to some of the causes were not quite
equal to those of the preceding year, but the
total for all causes was greater than ever 1)0
fore.
JUMP IN, GENERAL ASSEMBLY, was the
legend seen on the windshileds of many
automobiles on the streets of Charleston, especi
ally about the church where the Assembly met.
That meant that any member of the Assem
bly might get into any such car and he would
lie carried anywhere he wanted to go. That
was typical of the attitude of the pastor and
his people. They asked the Assembly to jump
into the church with all of its wonderful equip
ment, which provided for every want of the
members. They threw' wide open their hearts
and their homos and said to their visitors,
?WIA
"Jump in," and they found a gracious and
cordial welcome that left nothing more to be
desired. The pastor, the committees and the
members of tho church were always on hand
to render any service possible. The ladies
each day served delightful lunches with a grace
and cordiality that made the members of the
Assembly always eager to go to tho dining room
when lunch time came. Former Governor W.
A. MacCorkle, an honored elder of the host
ehureh, and his charming wife threw open
t.hoir magnificent mansion and invited the
whole Assembly to take lunch with them 0110
day, and nothing that occurred gave the mein
Ikts of the Assembly more pleasure.
REQUESTS came from the laymen of tho
Church, that they be organized in con
nection with the Assembly along some plan
similar to that of the Woman's Auxiliary. Of
course there were some, who said that such an
organization is not needed, that the Church is
all the organization that is needed. But the
large majority of the Assembly was of the opin
ion, that if the men could be so organized and
would take hold of the work of the Church with
the same energy and zeal which the women
have shown, the Church would make such
growth in all of its activities, as has never been
known. Steps were taken looking to the ac
complishment in the near future of the desired
end.
Representatives of the churches
seemed to l>e in a more hopeful condition
than they have l>een for some time. Much less
was heard al>out hard times and business de
pression than was heard last year. All seemed
to realize the needs of the work in its various
departments, and there was present an evi
dent determination to take hold of the great
work of the Church in earnest and with zeal
and energy.
ANEW ORLEANS secular paper makes a
most happy suggestion. It is that we
have, as soon as practicable, a "No Observance
of Anything Week." The setting aside of
"weeks" to definite objects, the calling of the
Church to use its Sundays for specific mention
and unfolding of schemes, enterprises, move
ments, a majority of them by no means con
nected with the great objects of the Church's
life and organization, has become so common
that in many cases it has l>ecome almost a nuis
ance and has defeated its own end. Were all
the demands, most of them from outside of the
Church, responded to, there would be no time
left for her normal work. And as if they have
the right to commandeer the time and service
of the Church and to designate days and ask
for their olwervanec and for special sermons
on special topics on special days, the projectors
of the enterprises concerned, most orf which are
of a secular or semi-secular nature, most
sharply criticize and berate the Church when
she declines to yield to their wishes and says
that she must reserve a little time for her own
objects and business. The Church should l>e
firm in her reservation of her time for her own
ends and in declining to allow herself to be
used for outside purposes.