Daily State sentinel. [volume] (Indianapolis, Ind.) 1861-1865, 1863-07-03
Ifom The lIafll0fd Comm limos,
Political tauoticism Injurious ca
Ebristtnn,ty. Why are there 40 few
Additions To our ehurrhest

We hnd IN the second Il W proceedings. June
18th. i~da OF the ,uu' al con, eutiou Of the gen.
eral ,ssucaton of the Con 70 ninnnl churches
Com cellcut. hel At Hartford. the following
p'o eel ngr.
The 'crort of the committee on the question.
"Why re there So few addi,or- e. our churche.l"
VS. presente'l hy DE- Cleveland. of New II wen
The Substance oi he report WIS. that there hid
not been since 1883 nm outpourng OF the Holy
Ghost equal 10 the wants of the churches. II the
churches had been willing 10 kc In any persons
who had been heptiscd. and who had general
religious knowledge md fair mo"il character,
they would have been inll 10 IN unnrecedent OK
tent hut thew hive property refused 10 receive nny
save those who show u true regeneration. The
committee also deplorc the coldness that follow.
ell the periods of great reviVnls and the lack Of y
warm 60 operation on the part ct the lay mem
hers of the church The ministers 81 the gnsnel
we're also h 'mel for the l,Nity of the present In.
terest In the churches The rcpor, WIS accepted.
The report ct tho committee on more sen.
eral Observance of infant haprism WIS re I'D hy
Dr. X ; NTmilye, OF Est Windsor Seminary.
There are 2s3 churches in the State IN 1869
there were IS churches in which there we're no
infant baptism. and IL has been less IN comnnr
son with the Episconnl Church. IN The ratio of
one % five Out OF 2s3 churches in The State
there we're only II who blptizel ten and upward
Is one church in which there has not been hap.
tism in FIVE wears. There seems to be leaning
toward the B 'ptist theory, as opposed To- the sac
rament of infant baptism IL would seem that
FIVE Infants should occur To every hundred COM
muncants At present there are not two To
hundred Ministers and laymcn are both To
blame for the falling AWAY in the practice OF this
ordmlncc The report Of the committee verv
strongly urged the importance and necessity of
infant haplism The report was accepted
The great laxty OF the present interest in the
churches on the part Of the Ministers ia readily
accounted for. a good share of them are on the
siumn. sporting on naliiirs. and make their
churches mere caucus rooms or places for noliti
cal discussion. There arc - curse. few nd.
dtions" TO such church, cool refer 20 ioin
regularly organized D. teal pa.., h,n To con
meet themselves witha ch .ich pr, ng Ia leach
the principles and precepts &C IRE Prime of Peace
whilst ihev 80 pre- ching M. . iha most of the
time The Episcopal Church. Il ,pne,rs. bap
tizes menv more infauis-hve { one-'htn the
Congregational. The Episcora Church rarely
NEEDLES with politics. The result. quite reason.
ahle 100. il found in this report at the Concrega
tional Committee. These facts are worthy of
the consideration Of the Chri>tau community.
But we do not doubt that they II he lost upon
the churches. Indeed. another committee of this
sane General Assembly reports TINT the churches
OF the Association have shown Themselves most
truly l"val supporters of the Government and of
the mr. MES now fighting the battles of lihertv in
tho fcl-which Is ruth er hoa>tfui Of their polit.
icnl fidelity II church organz ,lions. md by infer
ence assumes that other churches may no, he
loyal IN the Government and the armies " which
l. not remarkable instance Of Christian char
nv Is It strange that thinking parents do not
Get their infants baptized in such political IN
sfitutionsf