Staunton vindicator. [volume] (Staunton, Va.) 1860-1896, 1874-04-17
A CHURCH TROUBLE.

TING TO OLD MINIsTERS-WHE MIN
IsTERs CHILDREN SHOULD Go To
SCHOOL.
sc. &c. sc.
A great deal Of interest has been created
n religious circles, among alldenominations
n Alexandria, Va, by the resignation of
Rev. DR.. Bullock, the pastor of the End
Presbyterian church there, and the contro-
versy out of which it grew. On Thurs
lay last Chesapeake Presbytery to which
DR.. BIS church belongs, met in that city. On
the next day his resignation came up as
the order of the day. The church notwith-
standing, the inclement weather-it was
raining heavily all day-was densely crowd
ed. We copy from the "Gazetie'' an ac-
count of the proceedings:
The order for the evening being to re-
ceive the resignation Of Rev. DR.. Bullock,
pastor of the I'd Presbyterian Church of
Alexandria, and to hear his reasons for
presenting it, the Moderator said the Pres
bytery was about to perform one of it's
most solemn and responsible duties, before
in which Divine assistance should
be invoked, and that he should call upon
Rev. Dr.. Leyburn to lead in prayer.
DR.. Leyburn responded in an earnest APP
peal to God to remove, by special blessing
from those who were interested in the res
ignation, all improper feelings and undue
excitement, and induce in them a DISPOSE
ton to do what was right. He invoked
heavenly grace upon the resigning pastor
in the act he was about to perform-so i'm
portant to himself and to his Church-and
upon the congregation, whose subsequent
action would be equally important, so that
what ever was to be the result, the occa-
sion might pass away happily and rebound
ty of his people.
REV. DIR. BULLOCK
then arose and addressing the Moderator,
said that four years ago he had been in
stalled as pastor of this church, in the
presence Of the Elders, who solemnly af-
tirmed their determination to assist him in
his duties. He then gave cursory review
of his life since he entered the ministry,
thirty seven years ago, having at that time
received q collegiate education, having al
most gone through a course of law, and be-
ing possessed of an independence but
feeling called of God to be His minister, he
obeyed that CALL and during the interval
between then and now, had, though never
by his own solicitation, been the pastor Of
congregations in the cities of Frankfort,
Louisville and Baltimore. In those con-
gregations he had for his constant hearers
MEN OF NATIONAL REPUTATION
Vice Presidents, Governors of States,
Judges of Courts, men of eminent ability
and well qualified to judge of the attributes
of apastor; yet they had found no fault in
him, they insisted upon his preaching to
them, they had protested against his leav-
ing them; and the churches under his
charge, by the grace Of God, had grown
and prospered. In his other relations-as
Secretary of the Board of Missions, Prin-
cipal of large female seminary of learn
ing, and temporary editor of a religious
paper, he had been. owing to Gods especi-
al favor. equally successful. Noreproach-
es had been cast upon him-he had been
treated with invariable kindness and cour-
tesey. He came to this city as he had gone
to his other charges, without solicitation
he had never preached here but once in his
life before he preached as pastor.
Two years ago two Oh the Elders waited
upon him to
REQUEST HIM TO SHORTEN HIS SERMONS.
His sermons were not longer here than they
were in the cities in which he had preach
ed before, and which had been the cause
of no complaint from the distinguished
men who had listened to them The morn
ing service prayers, hymns, lessons, ser
mon and nediction-consumed but one
hour and ashalf-surely not too long-and
the proposition to shorten it, and the man.
her in Which that proposition was made,
he considered degrading to himself-liber-
ties that had never been taken with him
even when he was a much younger
man, to agree to that proposition he
could not, especially as the same elders had
in the presence and hearing Of the younger
members of the congregation been COM
planning of and
FINDING FAULT WITH HIN FOR THE
LENGTH OF THE SERVICE.
He had then resolved to resign his charge
not wishing to be the pastor of a congre-
CATION having such members, and had writ
ten his letter OF resignation. but tore it up
upon learning that the subject was to be
dropped. The church, however, prosper
ed, both in increased membership and en-
larged contributions more than it had done
under the able ministration of his prede-
cessor; judge of his surprise then, shortly
after this, when he heard that representa-
tions had leen made in other cities by
members of this congregation that his
mission here had been Il failure, as it had
been in Baltimore, Louisville and Frank
fort. He had the authority of Mr.. George
Wilmer, the usher, and others, for saying
that the congregations were never larger
were failures in the other cities mentioned,
the churches in those cities did not think
so. The complaints went on, and one
morning he was approached by Mr.. George
Jameson, who said, 'Why Doctor, when
your children entered the Sunday School
yesterday dressed in the uniform Of Mr.
Carne's school, they produced as much ex-
citenent as if a bomb-shell had exploded
there you have shocked the whole congre-
CATION, and produced the greatest excite
ment among them
AGAINST CATHOLIC SCHOOLS
AND THEN SENDING YOUR CHILDREN
TO ONE OF THEM.
This is the school we have been trying to
break down for SO long, and you are en-
it ; [ said to my boy, pointing to
the uniform Stewart that s the badge of the
beast, I'd rather you would grow up with
out knowing letter Of the alphabet, than
that you should go to a Catholic" MI.
Edmund Wilmer, another elder, looked
and talked solemnly about the school mat
ter, and Mr.. Parrott, also an elder, was
dissatisfied likewise, though, to his credit,
he did not attempt to create dissension
among the congregation. He had not sent
his children to a Catholic school, but to Il
school taught by highly respected citizen,
to the Superintendent of Public Instruc-
ton of the city by appointment Of DR.. Ruff
ner, a Presbyterian, to the teacher of the
young candidate for the ministry you took
under your charge this afternoon-Mr
Loving-to one who excluded theological
subjects from his pupils curriculum, but
to one, however, who was a Catholic, and
being one, was a devout and consistent
one, and whom he accordingly bonored and
MI. Hallowell was a Hixite
Quaker, who denied the divinity of Jesus
Christ, but when he taught school here did
ever object to sending their chill
dren to him