Muscatine weekly journal. [volume] (Muscatine, Iowa) 185?-1890, 1859-04-22
The COnSrcgati0Daiist O.a the
Council ant tise Church Of the
PuritalnS.

IL Is well known THAT difficulty has for
some time existed in this church on Union
square. New York city-whch has great
ly disturbed its peace and that some con-
troversy as to Congregational principles has
grown out of the same.
1t appears that, more than We ago.
forty-six members of that church-on ac-
count of previous circumstances, which it
is not important here to detail, asked lette.s
OF dlsmlssion from that church to other
churches. These members were not under
discipline. In technical sense, they were
Sin good and regular standing" Yet may
majority of the church-felt
that they or many Of them) had been guilty
of acts which, while by usage insufficient to
expose them to discipline, did yet seriously
interfere with a conscientious iecommcnda
ton of them, in the usual manner and usual
form, to other churches. After delay of
some weeks, therefore, the church granted
letters, in the usual form, to a portion of
tie number, and gave to the others mod-
fed letters testifying to their uncensured
standing, but evadog the usual commenda-
ton. These letters were not newly con-
structed for the occasion, but were copied
verbatim from similar letters of dismissal
in use in some other churches where a con.
scientious desire to state the exact facts has
interfered with the use of the more ordi
nary formula. These letters being unsa,is-
factory to the applicants, were returned by
them, whereupon the church adopted three
resolutions to the effect, q that these breth-
rem having applied tor letters of dislnssion
''are hereby dismissed from their connec.
ton herewith; (2) that the church give
them certificates stating that "a. B. IS n
member OF the Church of the Puritans in
regular standing, and as such at his own
request, is dismissed with the view of
uniting with the - church, or such other
as he shall apply to for that purpose (3)
that these brethren shaving applied for
dlsnlsslonfr from this church, and having been
dismissed at their own request are deemed
no longer members of the same, or in anv
way subject to its watch and care,o The
brethren who were the subjects of these
resolutions decided to accept this DISPOSAL
OF their case, and after inviting the church
to become party to a mutual council for the
review OF the case, and upon its refusal to
do so, they called an erparte council, which
met on the 10Th of February last. This
council in its result (Which we published in
full, IN our issue of March 4th) took the
ground that if any member of the church
had any ground of complaint against these
members, or any Of them, it was his duty to
have taken the usual steps to REQUIRE salts
faction, and, failing in his effort, to have
brought the matter to the notice of the
church, which should have provided for an
impartial trial of such charge, and that in
the absence of any such charges, these
brethren were entitled to "fuil and uneoui.
vocal letters OF commentator, according to
the custom of the churches :" that the three
resolutions amounted TO exclusion without
trial, or charge, and were violation of the
rules of the church, and departure from
common usage, and an infringement on COM
mon justice; that it was not competent for
the council, under the circumstances. to
proffer counsel to the church, (Which had
not asked for it) but that these brethren
Sought to be recognized" as members of the
Church OF the Puritans, in good and regu-
lar standing, till they shall have been re-
ceived to membership in other churches;
that the censure implied against them in
the fact by which the church declared them
out OF Its watch and care, being out OF the
due course of discipline, is without warrant
and therefore, without validity and 1--WE
commend them accordingly to any churches
OF Christ to which they may severally ap-
ply for the privilege of communion and
A form Of letter, intended
to be in accordance with this result, was
prepared to be signed by the Moderator and
Scribe, and used by these members as their
letter OF admission to such churces as thew
might elect, Tn S letter, however, instead
of stating the facts in the case-that the
party "was on the 10th day of June, 1855"
a memb err of the Church of the Puritans in
good and regular standing, and being dis
missed by an erroneous judgment, and the
censure having been found to he unjust by
a council, l. deemed by that council vo,hv
OF uncensured membership in the Church of
the Purltans, and, therefore, worthy of ad.
mi, sion to any other church-proceede to
declare that these parties are members of
the Church of the Puritans in good and
regular standing, and to commend them, as
such to other churches. Concerning this
history we have a few remarks to make -
L. 1t Is clear to US that the church de-
parted from Congregational principles in
modifying the form of letters given. If
those brethren were disciplnable, thew
ought to have been disciplined; if not discipli.
nable, they We're clearly entitled to ''clean"
letters, in the ordinary form. No distinction
can practically be made in the case of those
who "are in goo aud regular, but by no
means high" standing; and perhaps it is
well that there can be nono, as it NAV con.
1uce to a careful observance Of discipline.
=. 1t is equally clear that the church did
wrong in voting that those members had
ceased to be members of the Church of the
Puritans when they had received the letters
in form as by the second resolution. 1t is
a fundam entail principle with our churches
that all members are somewhere in the
church, and, as we know no churches that
are not particular churches, all are members
of some particular church, and when letter
is given, as the member receiving it cannot
surely be member of the church which he
proposes to join until he had presented his
letter and it has been acted upon by them
favorably, he must remain a member of the
old church giving the letter, until he is &C.
tually received into the new, whether the
be day, or a month, or year.
3. 1t is clear that the aggrieved men,
oers had right to an ec-parte council, in
as they had been refused mutual
,ne by the church. -..
4. 1t is therefore clear that the er-parte
council had right to advise in this case.
.. Their decision must necessarily be-
tdvice, and advice only. That of all coun-
act simply as councils, and not
IS referees-is advice only.
6. They had, then, right to advise the
Church of the Puritans to retrace their steps.
md right the wrong which, they had done
% these exscinded members; and if they did
lot choose to advise the Church of the Pu-
itans, they had right to advise the MEM
'ers, calling them to apply to other churches
nd to advise other churches to receive them
IN the ground that they had unjustly and
severed from the Church
# the Puritans.
Z. This is all that they had right to do.
t is all which they did do-in their result.
their letter, drawn up to be signed by the
loderator and Scribe, indeed, went further.
nd declared The erscinded members to be stiX
members Of the Church Of the Puritans.
md, as such, recommended them to Other
hurches. This the letter had no right to