New-York tribune. [volume] (New York [N.Y.]) 1866-1924, 1874-03-26

an shall have been professionally refused. 1t
be reasonably 49, de6erntey as
Judge In the Of Thomson y Rehobotn q Piek-
anpealed TO NAV exercise his judgment whether TO
unite In n council not" And 10 must be unreasonaDB
refnsed-that H. nnreasonaby, in the judgment OF the
acgre we'd, fortified by that OF candid and impartial
third persons inasmuch as the party refusing y not 10
reason and so no unanimous judgment OF that character
can rightly be demanded. On the basis OF these TWO
parte council has recognized and reputable right
TO BE- But other In other words our denomination
has settled down upon the judgment tat the only posi-
BILE basis which an tJ paie council can De C0nefesa
tionsy called togstnef nndv doa5 n % crc
az against OF them; where this ultimate decision Oh
the normal tribunal Is tG Oy 5q parry TO De
Just feeling and unchrisan action, inns particular
method OF review unconstluonai uier an otn nde
cumstances whatsoever, becomes Gg,timatei Deeaus,
without IT." God should have left no means 81 .,
redress In such eaSeEwhicn ecn,u mo, hot ,%ere
be such thing an er pare council Nhere there
is no supreme tribunal holding ultimate ln ris.
innate function, but IN the Judgment Of az,
IN SOY DOM has come TO decision which must be final
unless this opportunity OF revision be Afforded, IL,
Bear in mind the express language OF tbs Boston pat
form already cited that IA refusal the part Of church
call council before trial does not give any occasion
for an CT plre council, aud IL will be seen To follow IN
evtably That the idea OF pdrte council be-
tween churches. under any circumstances OF ioI any
reason whatever, becomes Impossible ana ABSURD Dc
cause there is aud be COngregationa tl-
Dunal over churches, which though associated are u
NJ
na Judgment can be rendered, IN any such manner as
TO furnish what TO be the one Indispensable
prerequisite TO the legitimacy or an ~ pare cOuncl,
Let s Illustrate this. Here church which includes
member. A. b., who Is In good and reenlar but Dy no
means Igh standing; concerning whom nothing really
known which makes against his Christian character but
who is come to DO somehow uniavorapM re
member G. d., which gets To be notorious anu schDua
Both good quarreers Inc ennIen diledts o.,
committee the parties ana endeaNor 10 neaI te
breach That committee, after some labor hau Win
both ordinary church meeting when DO pre'ioui
haa haau uix that
from which A. b. Is absent, declare that they nave
looked into the subject ana tnk ootn are W De fro
church privileges for the space OF SIX months eo,ing
their written report win rt With its rider ana
the clerk the day notifies brother A. b. that ne nds
heen SUSPENDED for onehaf year He is naturally sur
psed and indignant, and at the next meeting protests
against such q summary process WITHOUT cIidtion,
charge or bearng-and asks that the vote be reconsd
cred ami that they at least give him fair trial The
church respond passing another vote tht nc DO Ga
He beseeches them to right this greater wrong in vain
His Trends plead with them; they answer mat tney
don't him. and that even II be be not guilty OF any
thing worthy stripes in this particular case they are
convinced that lie is generally unworthy anu dlscTeI
aT ana ccnSe and it is refused WHAT shall he do
Here he SUMMARY aud perempt0Illy put Outslue Va
that church. and OF all churches; denied everywhere
Christian ordinances u heather man ana publican
He thinks he don't deserve II, ana he KNOWS ne don
like H. and no knows that the grOssest i9jnstice-an
Injustice impossible to any secular tribunal In the CIVIL
lied world-has been done to hun IN MS summary eA
clusion There can be no possible doubt that under
these circumstances he the right TO call ex parte
council aud that that council would nave te ilsnt anu
the duty-the church continuing 0bdurac-to 40 nm
the service at least certifying that nothing has been
proved against his Christian character; that gross III
Justice has b; and that lar as those votes
OF suspension and accommodation are concerned thcy
were ConRregaOnay so illegal In their origin anu PRIV
cess as 10 be void aud therefore to JUSTIFY slsler
churches in regarding and treating him as still uncen
and OF right III as regular standing as nc nau
been before theif passage. such result puts new rae
upon his affairs. Its moral weight may work nun re-
dress iu his community; at any rate ~ WIN enan,e
Lin to at the table OF the lOrd WIN some oLel
church, and it gains him redress lmpossioie 10 DO
gained in any other manner panchard Wen o e
parte councils, in this view OF thelr use courts VI
rors, which the hunbes inenber Vi Cohsreea'ohai
church may appeal. View; p l2il .. c,uroo., ,ouo,
suppose another case. Here are two Congregational
churches site by side In the same community. Like IN
faith, they are unlike IN spirit ana WORKS one ~ con
sentative and Iespectabe the other radical ana PIE
beau TIe tide OF IncOngenly al length rises 50 heh
as to float them collision, and the Que refuses TO as
members the other aud INDUCES in various KIN
unlraternal acts, ending ia general cnirees Oh
heresy and nfdelty. Correspondence iOllO"s, making
bad matters All ends at last in the endeavor on
the part grieved church to get the whole subject
regnant spirit which inflicted tho wound prompts 30
Keeping the at distance, and all eIort III tat
unoeasnt-that is clear; they are dsgracefully dal-
aging to the of Cnrist-that is even more sadly
clear But is there "a for pdl te cOunclli
Clearly not There is such irfemedia1e hardship as
tojustify that These peops are NOT Wnora
They are really church as the other Inere Is no
iudieatory over them which has passed unemployment
upon them leaving them helpless until soine friendly
hand stretched to their relief The only tribunal
which ia above them lower than the throne Of God and
the Lamb that general Judgments Oh thelf Fellows
of the church aud OF the world and that has not yet
been umatcd, cannot be, until all the elements whcn
are bound up yet partly FUTURE snail have been
made apparent. so then there s no similarity Oetbecn
the two eases Whatsoever. The vital element which
egitlmated pnre council In the case between the
church aud the agyeved individual comes INTO hdt pc
tween church and church render an er pare council
inapt and irrational church situated as nave sup
posed may do well to call council In the interests O
light peace but IL would not be technically mutual
council church were 10 consent 10 JON III ~
as be er parte council II 1t continue 10 ue
cline. In either case aud III any case such council
outside OF the local church. and relating TO qnes-
lions county fellowship between local churches.
is third thing totally different species OF the same
genus; the KIND OF council which Thomas Hooker had
mind whose function is, as he says TO discover ana
determine Of doubtful cases either In doctrine or pric
tice, according TO the ruth Suryey, part ~, D. Sl,
take the good old phrase OF the iathers called "ior
&c. then we Congregatonalists have within the local
churches two kinds Of counciis-mutua or ex ParH-as
churches a species OF council neither mutual nor
e1 pdrte but simple calling together OF churches
to consult for light and peace.
Nor ought we 10 forget IN THIS connection the obvious
plains poken fathersthe plaster ot an az Pdre council
never could the sore OF a difficulty between
churches so that as 1t may not IN such cases lawfully
be- nold, could not offer healing even II It we're held
II Chilly called, in the matter OF the unlusty e2co-
muuicated man to whom have just REFERRED such
council offers two things: Access, with some moral
authority to the pIGe ear as an ~ Sanno OF
forfeited rights in furnishing ground on which other
churches may lawfully restore such one ~ ehurch
But Where two churches in variance were an er
pare council possible alternative TO one OF then lts
frightening of the (nOraD authority with which. as
ourcht was-wlthout liable TO appeal to tho general
moral sense while there has been no forieitng Of
rights no OF ordinances, aud no rupture OF any sort
i'm the regular ongong of that churchs affairs which
such result could offer itself To repair.
In order partly to reach the simplest analysis, but
mainly for the purpose Of emphasizing the neyertobe
forgotten fact that the only power winch be reached
in the case the result OF any council that II is ad
vsory "hath much force as there Is force In the
reason of IT, class together thee last two forms OF
council referred last evening by my learned brother
the pastor OF the Church OF the Pilgrims his third
form eccesiastical-for settling pastors &c; and this
fourth form) advisory councils call them all councils
for advice with the two subdivisions: !. Councils on