Worcester daily spy. [volume] (Worcester [Mass.]) 1850-1888, 1859-02-19
RELIGIOUS SUMMARY.

pied, and Tor augnt that appears, MAY sun
serve the parish for fifty years to come. The
pastorate of this church has been vacant but
a little more than two years since 1885, peri
cd of 223 years. The present pastor of the
society was ordained July 9TH, 1906, and
though rising of eighty years of age, yet
walks the streets with more elastic step than
many men of fifty.
PERPLExING QUEsTIoN.-What 10W They
do Uih t?"-A regularly ordained minister of
the Presbyterian church having gone over to
the Baptists and received call to church i'll
Central Ohio, it became a perplexing question
with his Baptist congregation whether he
ought not to be re-ordained. After much dis
cussion of the question they wrote to DIR.
Wayland, asking his advice. He returned for
answer this sentence of you are prepared
to say that the Presbyterian church is not a
branch of Christ's church, let the brother be
reordained by all means"
IMPOSSIBLE UNIoN.-Efforts are making to
unite the Northern and Southern wings of
Methodism, as before the separation, but lions
Herald advises these lovers of union to try
their hands first at uniting Protestanism and
Roman Catholicism. 1t pronounces the divi-
sion great blessing, and anticipates from it
soon large church spotless from, and earnest
ly protesting against, slavery.
The long pending church quarrel in South
Amherst was settled by referees r. A. Chap
man of Springfield and VIM. Hyde of Ware,
last week The Congregational Society had
split and the question was which organization,
the old or new, should have the meeting house.
1t was given to the new, on the condition that
it pays back to the members of the old two
thirds of the money they contributed to its
erection, whenever they shall demand it.
Now we trust this scandal of religion will be
dried up, and that both sides will undertake
to be the Christians they profess to be, let
alone strife and the lawyers.
The New York Examiner favors the consol-
idation of the Baptist theological seminaries.
1t states that in the three principal seminaries,
Newton, Hamilton and Rochester, they have
ten professors to teach less than half the num-
Der of students that four professors instruct at
Princeton, and asks, "why should it cost Bap.
lists three or four times as much to educate
minister as it costs Old School PresbyteriaEs 2"
The First church in Springfield, Rev. Mr..
Parsons, have substituted the Sabbath-school
for the usual services in the afternoon, and the
pastor breaches in the evening. The plan is
working well. The Sabbath-shool has increas-
ed from 200 to $50, and is largely composed of
adults. The pastor has Bible-class of 30 or
40 men. The services in the evening draw in
some who would not otherwise go to church.
The Rev. Dr. Cunningham, the successor
of DR.. Chalmers, in the chair of theology in
the Free Church College, Edinburgh, has been
presented with the sum of f6, 500, $3.50, 000)
subscribed mostly by gentlemen in Edinburgh
and Glasgow, in acknowledgement of his SER
vices to the Free Church. DR.. Cunningham
was at the same time presented with a service
of plate. The entire subscription amounted
to G6, 900.
Mrs. Everett of Newipswich, n. H., recent
y deceased, left the sum of $1,000 and her
lwelling houses and lands adjoining to the
Church of that town, on con-
1ition that its members, now divided upon a
question of minor Importance and worshipping
1T different places, shall become reunited.
Rev. Mr. Bassett, the Congregational cler-
5yman at Washington, preached a stong anti
slavery sermon last Sabbath, says the Tribune,
n which he censured the Republican party for
lot urging the abolition of slavery in the Dis
riot Of Columbia
Last week on Wednesday, a Methodist
church, built at a cost of $4,000, was dedicated
ut Oakdale, West Boylston; sermon by Rev.
DR.. Haven, editor of Zion's Herald.
Rev. Moses Howe, who for the past four
teen years has been the chaplain of the New
Bedford Port Society, has, during that period,
preached 2,2l2 sermons, attended 1850 funer-
ais, married $50 couples, placed on board of
whale ships sailing from that port packages
5,2l1 Bibles and 1928 Tesla
ments, settled voyages for seamen, the pro-
ceeds ofwhich amounted to over $265, 800, has
received and expended for benevolent purpos-
es 81, 252 50, besides visiting the sick, and at
tending to the other ordinary duties of pas
tor. During his whole ministry of about forty
wears hp has nraopha6 9fQ r;aI
l ,524 couples, and attended more than 1000
funerals.
Coqirmation.-In the year 1857 about 1O,-
900 persons were confirmed by the Bishop of
London; in the year 1858 very nearly IA 000
of whom a, 554 were males, 1. e the females
were in the proportion Of two to one to the
males. That is within about $500 of the
whole number reported in the Church Altman
&C as having been confirmed in the United
States in the year 1878, that is to say, in
each diocese for the year prior to the publica-
ton of the last annual report OF the 1854
thus reported, 1897 were confirmed in this di-
ocese.
The Baptists in Great Britain and Ireland
have 80 associations and 1,917 churches, with
a membership Of 101 1897, of whom 10 ,542 were
added during the year; in which also there
were 70 new houses of worship built, en-
larged, and Is new churches formed. The
largest individual membership is that of the
new Park Street Church. London, of which
the renowned Rev. Charles II. Spurgeon is
pastor, and which reports ,046 communicates.
AT the recent anniversary of the Tract Soci-
ETY. of the Methodist Episcopal Church, il was
stated that the Methodist Book Concern in
New York publish annually 1874, 800 vol
ulnes. Its daily issues are II ,147 volumes
Iu vol, o,,1
during its working hours. The circulation of
religious periodicals every year issued from the
Concern in New York and Cincinnati amounts
to 9,S88,295 copies.
The fiftieth anniversary of Park street
Church, Boston, is to be observed on the 9th
inst Rev. Silas Aiken, ID. D., of Rutland,
Vt, will preach in the morning, Rev. Joel
Lindsey, ID. d., Of Greenwich, Conn. in the
afternoon lin connection with the communion
service and the admission of members), and
Rev. Edward Beecher, d. D., in the evening
These are each former pastors of the church.
Rev. j. M. Coburn has resigned the pastoral
charge of the Second Baptist Church in Man
chester, N. H., having preached for them five
years. During his pastorate they have built
good house of worship, 129 have been bap-
tized and so added by letter. Rev. X S. Hall
Of Lake Village has accepted an invitation to
become their pastor.
The minutes of the Baptist Convention, held
at Windsor, VT, being its thirty third anniversa
ry, show that the aggregate membership in
seven associations to be 1921, last year 7413
showing an increase of 400.
Ihirty-six Congregational ministers deceas-
ed during 1858, whose average age is nearly
66 years-the oldest being l09, the youngest
80.
The state of religious feeling in Amherst
College has been very interesting through the
year. The revivals last winter, commencing
soon after the COLLEGE East was one of the