The Yazoo Democrat. [volume] (Yazoo City, Miss.) 1858-18??, 1858-11-27

they view, with the deepest concern, any
vestiges of slavery which may exist in our
country, and refer the churches TO the re-
cords Of the General Assembly, published at
different times, but especially to an overture
of the late Synod of New York aud Philade.
phia, published in 1887, and republished
among the extracts from the Minutes of the
General Assembly of 1893, on that head,
with which they trust every conscientious
person will be fully satisfied" Digest, p. 807
In 1915: "The General Assembly have
repeatedly declared their cordial appreciation
of those principles of civil liberty which ap
pear to be recognized by the Federal and
State governments in these United States.
They have expressed their regret thas the
slavery of the Africans and their descend
ants, still continues in SO many places, aud
even among those within the pale of the
church Digest, S08.
ACTION OF 1918.
"Expressing the opinion of the Assembly
in general as to sIavery"-fling more than
two entire pages of the Digest. | give the
following extracts:
"We consider the voluntary enslaving of
one portion Of the human race by another as
a gross violation of the most precious and
sacred rights of human nature as utterly
inconsistent with the law of God, which re
quires us to love our neighbor as ourselves,
aud as totally irreconcilable with the spirit
and principles of the gospel of Christ
at is manifestly the duty of all Christians
who enjoy the lightof the present day, when
the Inconsistency Of slavery, both with the
dictates of humanity and religion, has been
demonstrated and is generally seen and ac,
knowedged, to use Their honest, earnest and
unwearied endeavors to correct the errors of
former times, and as speedily as possible to
etface this blot on our holy religion and to
obtain the complete abolition of slavery
throughout Christeudom and if possible
throughout the world"
awe rejoice that the Church to which we
belong commenced as early as any other in
this country, the good work of endeavoring
to put an end to slavery, and that in the
same work many of its members have ever
since been, and now are, among the most
active, vigorous and efficient laborers. We
do indeed tenderly sympathise with those
portions of our Church and our country
where the evil has been entailed upon them
where great and the most virtuous part
of the community abhor slavery and wish its
extermination as sincerely as some others
but where the number OF slaves, their iguo,
rance and their vicious habits generally,
render an immediate emancipation inconsis-
tent alike with the safety aud happiness of
the master aud slave. With those who arc
thus circumstanced we repeat that we ten
derby sympathise At the same time, we
earnestly exbort them to continue and if
possible to increase their exertions to effect
total abolition of slavery See Digest,
pages 500 and $40.
AoTIoN IN 1915.
In 1916 the COMMITTEES to whom the pa,
pers and memorials on the subject of slavery
were submitted, say in their report:
"The Church of Christ is a spiritual body,
whose jurisdiction extends to the religious
faith aud moral conduct of her members,
She cannot lcgslate where Christ has not
Icgislsted, nor make terms of membership
which He has not made. The question
therefore which this Assembly is called to
decide is this : Do the Scriptures teach that
the holding of slaves, without regard to cir"
cumstanccs. is sin, the renunciation Of
which should be made condition of mem
bershp in the Church Of Christ? 1t is inn
possible TO answer this question in the affirm
alive without contradicting some of the
plainest declarations Of the word of Cod
| We feel constrained to say that however de-
srabe it may be to ameliorate the condition
of the slaves in the Southern and Western
States, or to remove slavery from our counS
try, these objects, we are fully persuaded,
can never be secured by ecclesiastical legise
lation."
The report is long. The above extracts
are fair specimen of It's general tenor. l.
was adopted with the two resolutions which
it embodied, as follows;
"Resol0ed, |. That the General Assembly
of the Presbyterian Church in the United
States was originally organized, and has
since continued the bond of union in the
Church upon the conceded principle that the
existence of domestic slavery, under tht
circumstances in which it is found in The
southern portion of the country, is no bar tc
the Christian communion"
90, That the petitions that ask the As
sembly to make the holding of slaves il
itself matter of discipline do virtually re
qure this judicatory to dissolve itself anc
abandon the organization under which, BY
the Divine blessing, it has 50 long prospered
The tendency is evidently to separate thi
northern and southern portionsofthe Church
result which every good citizen must de
pore as tending to the dissolution of thu
Union of our beloved country, and which
every enlightened Christian will oppose a
bringing about a ruinous and unnecessary
schism between brethren who maintain |
common faith
"The yeas aud nays being ordered, wer'
recorded" [Yeas 1853, Nays IL, ExeuseC
Al Minutes, lS45, p l6. Digest, p SlS
This action Of ls45, having seeming ten
dency Southward, aud having been claime'
as sort of triumph in this direction, tn
Synod Of Cincinnati, five Presbyteries an,
many ministers, ruling elders and member
of The Church, in the Northern States