The daily Gate City. [volume] (Keokuk, Iowa) 1855-1916, 1865-10-28
T.e world on the Church.

inaugurated in the Synods of st. Louis and
Louisville, is to be pushed not only by all the
power of pro-slavery and secesh preachers,
but also by all the influence of the copperhead
leaders and the copperhead press The New
York World opens ont in two column leader
in support of the reaction inaugurated by DR..
Anderson, of St. Louis, and DR.. Wilson, OF
Louisville, in the interests of slavery and
treason. 1t comments in severe terms on the
action of the General Assembly at its last
session, and insists that that body shall retrace
its steps and repudate its dehverances, and
array itself IN favor of slavery and adopt the
principles of the preachers ofreligion in the
South.
Christianity, or Presbyterianism, at least
according to the New York World. is, by vir,
tue of its principles, in favor of slavery and
on the side of rebellion, and declaration of
the church in condemnation of slavery and
of rebellion, is according to the same author
ity mere political radicalism, inconsistent
alike with the principles Of rebellion and the
traditions of the church.
sembly was influenced by fear and corruption
in taking their position, and not by their own
convictions of right and duty. In other words
they were in favor of slavery, and neutral
rather than loyal, till the pressure of public
opinion and the fear of the Secretary of War
drove them from their moorings.
That we do not misrepresent the World, let
the following extract bear witness. 1t says:
SIN the succeeding assemblies the radical
element had the control of things, and step
by step the Presbyterian church drifted from
her ancient moorings, and was swept away in
the political current New laws were needed,
and they were readily manufactured; new
readings Of old texts on one hand, and a con-
venient forgetfulness of former standards on
the other. The most humilating part Of the
sad story is not that the pressure of outside
radical politics was constantly visible in the
formation of her annual resolutions, but that
the few conservative members that were found
in her courts had constantly before their eyes
a wholesome dread of civil vengeance if they
ventured to obstruct the course Of the tide
What sadder commentary uponthe instability
of human organizations can be imagined than
that stately church, which had borne the
buffettings of thousand tempests, had brav
ed the rage OF ancient royal prosecutors,
should at last succumb or quail at the small
growlings of SIMON CAMERON and EDWIN M
STANTON
But the General Assembly at its last ses-
sion reached the elimination of its offences
in the eyes of the World which says:
''The elimination came, in due course, du
ring the sessions of the last assembly. To
~ IoI kn1 IL <,f AL
discovery that slavery was a sin against God.
How terribly sarcastic in its irony does the
World become in its structures on the last
General Assembly! But the honor accorded
TO that Assembly is altogether at the expense
of truth for II made no discovery, but simply
reiterated truth solemnly proclaimed by the
General Assembly in 1918.
81 The Assembly of that year declared in its
dehverance in the name Of the Church that:
ave consider the voluntary enslaving of one
part of the human race by another, as q gross
violation of the most precious and sacred
rights of human nature; as utterly iaconsis-
tent with the law of God, which requires us
TO love our neighbor as ourselves; and as to-
tally irreconcilable with the spirit and princi-
Piles of the gospel OF Christ, which enioin
that "all things whatsoever We would that
men should do to you, do We even so to them
And in view of the Inconsistency of sla-
very both with the dictates of humanity and
religion, the General Assembly declared
that it was the duty of all Christians to
efface this blot on our holy religion"
All that seems to imply very clearly that
slavery is a sin against God, and consequently
the General Assembly of 1864 is not entitled
to the honor of discovery, SO crushingly
attributed to it by the New York World
That leading organ of Copperheadism in
the concluding lines of its labored editorial
utters the following sentiment
"There is blood upon which our divnes
may more proftably discourse than upon tina,
SO lavishly shed upon our battle fields. One
may be well remembered while time endures.
The sooner the other is forgotten the better.
Tho soeasr the blood of patriots who have
fallen in deisncs of the Union and the Gov.
srnment is forgotten, the better, says the
World. The better reiteratss the Copper.
Hedu party WHICH seems pOWcE tuFoukH TIE hu
of Southern traitors whose offered hands drip
with the blood Of our patriot soldiers g lavish.
ly shed upon the battle field" by the machin.
tions Of these same traitors. That blood
must be forgotten, the sooner the better, the
heroic deeds of our patriot soldiers must be
swept into oblivion, lest they offend the ten
der sensibilities of Southern traitors and
Northern sympathizers.
Now in our view the blood of patriots pour.
ed out In defence of the country is only less
sacred than the blood of Christ and his mar
tyrs, and should never be suffered to sink into
oblivion or fade into forgetfulness a. long as
time endures. And that politician or party
that insists upon the dogma that the blood OF
our soldiers lavished on the bsttle-f field should
be forgotten the sooner the better is rotten .,
the core and smells of treason all over. And
yet it is an essential condition to the reunited
Democracy Of Copperheads and traitors that
the blood Of loyal soldiers should be speedily
forgotten, for it was shed in the subjugation Of
rebels, and in defence of the Union and the
Government which they sought to disrupt and
overthrow.
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