Staunton spectator. [volume] (Staunton, Va.) 1849-1896, 1873-01-21
sTAUNTON, VA, TUESDAY, JANUARY 81, 1873.

gous liberty.
| Iher9ore, This com mittee agrees unanimous
~ that IL viii be expedent to appoint dele
gate 10 wait on tie Generally Assembly, With,
remonstraace aud petition against such assess
nenr
Accordingly, the Rev. Reuben Ford was ap
poiated
NIr- Madison, who had been, throughout the
S auch friend ut the b Bapisrs aud ot religion.
liberty. not 0nly III a most mastery manne,
iaDored against the proposed till on the Il )oi oi
tie House, uus also drew up thar memorial
which will for ages TO come rebound TO his
glory and which contains the most lucid aud
torclble statement hotn Of the doctrine Of rell
gious freedom aud oil It's true ba>is It may
certainly be called Baptis djouln ent this far,
that they only as q people held IT'S views and
pressed those views earnestly, consistently. un.
compr1mlsingiy.
A glorious victory awaited them. wv hen
the Assembly MET, say 5 Air. Rlyes, tine able
OF the Ii ,use ot Delegates alMvst sunk undeI
the weight OF the accumulated Copies OF the
memorial sent forward from the different coun-
fies, each with Its long aud denso column Of
subscribers, The tate ot the assessment was
eaitd Ire people WAC had been Appealed
10 had ansgered, aud, as Mr. Riyessays the as
,essment was abandoaed without aslruggle,' y
Moreover. the Act tor the esabi ,hment OF rsii-
gloos freedom proposed 10 l779. and as We have
seen SC warmly add publicly approved by lhe
General Assoc d lou was lm meGiatciy passed al
most al a mater oE course
Ii was not Ill al cr tie legislation Of 1899
aod 1902, that the fall irg,cii results ol TINS
grant Act we're fully reaiiz I'd. Then, the Old
Dominion, haviag been from her set,lemenr
aud tcr near!y 200 years uuder eccleslasicl'
domination, became a. last free State tree
not only from British mls:ule but rom that far
worse tyraaay that eaters The precincts OF the
>Oui aud comes between he soal and It's Maker
aud ,,uige.
And this result. whose beas6ts all etj jpy to-
day, due, under God. is largely would 1t be too
much to say mainly to tho Baptiss The
church historian OF Epi>ccpacy ii Virginia at
tributes iiie overthrow OF he hierarchy 10 Bap.
lists. lie, however, errs IN asciltiog their
curse to q desire tor revenge for the sulf rings
they had endured. That their personal wronys
entered lato the acc }uut Is pr1pabe. tor ihcy
were men. Du 1t Is certain heir entire coudUcJ
was charac.er zed by rare N Iteration, and seems
t., have been hroug hout, based On principle aGd
dictated by duty.
Nor serc they sati fed with what had been
etfected 10 their own State but sought to have
the dooiriaa OF Religious Lib-rsy i,coEporatcd
In the Cunstli ution OF the Unlted Slates The
Co"-ti' utioa OF the Federal Uulon was ad opted
IN 1887. Ii c0ntalued a provision iaa5 TO rci.i
sIous test should ever be rtqllTed q quail
d:at,ou Tor 0tice. At the meeting 0t the u eu-
raj COMMITTEE held March. 1888. the aestlon
0as taken up, now quote Senl.he whether
the new Federal Constitution uade sufficient
provisions for religious liberty, gu whion IL was
unanimously agreed iha; il did not. ~ pon
consultation with Mr.. M ads ~, says Howell
the committee determined TO address Gener4i
Washington At This meetiug Z cure - Jndence
Was present from the Baptists Of n Y, X. l..
aud Mass The CD operation OF the Baptist,
o these eta;es was secuej, aud Ii Aig. 1889
,he address to Wasi logton was prt s3n;ed. and
The yeiy next month there was carried through
CJug:css the Amendment which Is now the
Supreme Law OF ne United States on that suo.
jec-. it is set down as proposed By Viigiaia.
aud is the first amendment to the Constitution.
Ii Is iuliy up 10 the Baptist idea OF Religious
'reedcm, and Is largely trophy OF Yirglaia
Bap,ists.
IL few episodes ia Virginia Baptist history
Tor the period We haze passed ever. may nov
be glanced at, some OF which show, that those
IL Il were not Tree from the traii les Of hunsn
nature, bu' that they gere on the other iia od uu-
der he inHaetce 0! reguiatlVe principle which
GOULD not suffer them to wander lar aud l0ug
from lie rue path. That regulative prinei pie
is u suyreme regard to the will vi j esus CHRIST
as reyta a!ed lii his word.
Iu the General Association 10 l774 the ones
ton Wa; mooied whe her the oflce OF AZ )stle
mentioned n Ephesaus ". i, II, l3 stui ex
'sted BY majority, 1t Was deciGei that II
dit. IL Was elso rtsolsed to Fl he office pro-
vided suitable persons could be tuun1. Accord
ingiy, by private poll Samuel Harris was uoan-
lmou.ly ap:'ointel for she District South oi
J 4n.ea River, and he was so'emniy set apart by
the l;npo:lt,On of hauds Su0>aq ue0tly E!j II
Craig and john Waller were chosen for h
Nort.. side The work o; these mea was to
peIvade The Churches, see to ordination. ani
-et Ia order tUing, thar were waning. 1t was
really the ofi; Of b hop under another uaae.
Perhaps eur fathers were uuoonsciously ln-
Il ;encc by the system of Egi>copacy uud<I
which many Of them Rera reared. But the
arrangement lasted only year, and vas never
revived. As fyr the 4 posto i3 eli C IL is clear
that it, like the prophetic OH ;e Was extra0ril
nary aud depeaGlug on special INSPIRATION, ana
shat one impor ant func lou OF The apostles va:
testimony OF Christ life and works So that al
together, there are aad eau be IL slrlctness, nc
success rs 10 faa a pos les.
The year I7I5 was marked and marcei BY
d distressing oJntroyersV betgeea those hold
ing and those :sj ctlug what are cal!et calsii
| TIC doctilGei Al cue tinis echiSm seemed
| iumiaent, But good sense, rnodera ion ano
h.oiheriy love prevailed. and the brethren
agreed TO differ aud bear with one aaotnef
aud s, unity was maintained aud that wl.hou
any sacrifice If .iinc pie.
4 more important matter Is now to be no.
iced. FROM the first, the DAptists OF Virgia
| la had been somewhat divided, both in doc RI.
| ma! views, a1d 10 heir modes OF worship and
social habI's. The larger party, whlch cyIn.
| pos the General ASSOCIATION, whose history
we have sketched, was known as Separates. =
| They tolerated, 10 some ex:ent, arm!ui III doc
| triaeS, and were characterized by z &! whlcf
may in some cases have ruu into excess aud dl,
| order. The ether parry coup Joed tue k9iUck
toB Association, otherwise kuoan a. the AssJ.
cla i'm OF Regular BAplisis. They were re-
garded by he Separates as too high in doc
| zine. but scarcely particular enough IL some
practical matters, such as dress Tor exam ple. -
F1r sometime this prevented iui organic union
| though aifecti3aate, iraiernBl Intercourse va:
| tor the most part maintained. Bur 10 1887, I
| c.rn,lete uniou was Effected, the apprlia.,vet
Regular and Separate were buried; aud sincl
all have been kuowa may they cJntinu3 ever
to be known simply as Bsplsts.
| 1t i, worthy of remark that this u0ion wa
effected IN he midst OF wide spread and pow
| eriui Revival Of Religion lt was preceded
s-.d followed by rich displays of Divine Grace
| Ii Is ever thus The Outpourlng of Cod
| spilit biings christian brethren together, and
| their union cf hearts and Iabors, Is sure to be
ciowUed with l;h bies>lng.
When the wo k Of securing religious free
| d m was acc ,mpli,hed, the nain oecu upatl0n o1
the General Ctmbitec wa gone.
In he wear 1900 an organization was ri II