Richmond enquirer. [volume] (Richmond, Va.) 1815-1867, 1857-06-12
NEW SCHOOL pRESBYTERIANS.

| Til. New School General Assembly of ths Presby:
.srign Church has jas, closed on session Mt Clevo
| land. The a:tepiaDcJ was lIr-e, aud much impor
tan, business came before ihsm all Of which wss
promptly and harm ,nously disposed OF, except ths
question Of slavehoIdng in re Ctnrcses. This WAS
early introduced from both South and North, both
desiring some fnality. There wara 22S members
present thirty OF whom were ffom slavehoding
States. Of theso Southern ulsnbers twenty signed
! aud presented paper, in which they say
"Slavery does ex,-t bv Divine ordination and re-
| cognitpn sor wise purposes! I:!a. s!.l calno; bs
predicate of ti relation itself bat of tbs abuse of
that relation. That it stands in the sama category
with the family relation in bs fact that it is ordained
of God, in The sense ao"ve explained. When we
say III is right, iur our churches to hold slaves un-
der ths present clrcumsances we mesI! 10 say mat
they acting consistently with the spirit anu letter
vi The Gc:re! n 50 G"ing
Theresult was the adoption Of resolutions, by q
vote Of l67 to IS, affirming tie pa.t testimony of the
church against slavery from 1877 to the present time
and further stating
"lt il with deep grief that we now discover that a
norton of the church ut the South has far depart
c.. !o:n the established doctrine Of The church i'll re-
on to slavery 20 m.intan that " is IN ordinruce
of Cod and tha: the system OF slavery existing in
these limited States sCrIptgE3l and right. Against
iiis new and alarming doctrine feel constrained
TO bear our solG,a testimony. y - Ut war with the
whole spirit mud tenor Ofth gospel Of love and good
will ~ well as eLhrrreD' 10 lie conscience OF the
Christian world We hav3 no sympathy or fellow
ship With il; ani exhnr ~ our people to eschew
il as seriou. and perncioas error Ac.
Against tnis act twenty Southern members entered
n protest, of which the following E cnpy
"Tha undersigned, Southern Ministers and Ruling
Elders protest against The present decision OF the
General Assembly.
1--WE protest because, while paat General Assem-.
bles have asserted tia. the system Of slavery ID
wrong they have heretofore affirmed that the slave
hoiuer was ~ controlled by State laws, obligations
of guardianship, ami humanity, that he was as thus
situated, without censure odum "a the master -
This evernent 10 In. testimony OF past Assemblies
hss 90 (ar satisfied the Souh rs 10 make II unneces-
sary 10 De- than protest ngoinst the mere anil
slavery part of such testimony.
w. protest then, nov. ;has the p-ascnt act oil the
Assembly ia such assertion Of the sin OF slavery ns
deyradas the whole Southern Church-an assertion
without authority from the Word of God or the or.
ranio law OF the Pr-sbyter;an body
I'VE protest that such action i under pTeaent con-
dtions, the virtual excIudng o. Tho South whatever
be the motives OF those who do the deed.
we protest that such indirect excsiop /. unrights
ous, oppressive, un:'!sd ar lhe exercise Of usurped
mower, d-s,rucye Of the unity Of onr branch OF the
church hurtrnl 70 the North and 10 tho South, and
( adding 10 tls nsri: ,;s he Union of these States