The central Presbyterian. [volume] (Richmond, Va.) 1856-1908, 1879-11-05
STATE OF RELIGION


ance or rather non-attendance at Synod
came up as matter of serious considera-
ton. This Synod has under its care one
hundred and eighty churches, and so
ought to have had in attendance three
hundred and sixty delegates; but there
were in fact only seventy-One delegates
present, one-ffth of the whole number
The Rev. ]. H. Marshall offered a reso-
luton, the effect of which was to petition
the General Assembly to take steps to
abolish the Synod. This resolution was
referred to a committee, which reported
that "ths General Assembly take such
action as will either abolish the Synods
or else invest them with such standing
authority as will secure deeper interest
and more faithful attendance OH the an
nual meetings" Owing to the press of
business the subject was laid over Slntil
next year.
Our readers may have observed an ex-
tract in our last paper from the Philadel-
phia Presbyterian setting forth that there
is very bad state of things in the Synod
of Philadelphia felessness, occasioned
yworldiness and consequent general in
diEerence-neglect of known duties-a
low idea of the responsibilities of spiritual
hfe-a low standard of business and So
eial observation-disclosures to legal con-
tracts-increasing scepticism-neglect of
the Sabbath-the spread of intemperance,
etc"
In the Synod of Long Island the report
on ministerial education showed that the
number of ministerial candidates in the
Northern Presbyterian Church has stead
lily declined since 1874 50 that there
ara now 153 less than then. There ale
$50 churches without pastors.
The narrative on the state of religion
read at the Synod of New York, stated
that the number of church members IN
der the care of Synod has actually dimin-
ished during the past year"
1t is evident that in parts of our coun-
try at least, the spiritual condition OF
things in the Church is at low ebb.-
The dissemination of infdel literature
and the love of gain have done their
work. We have no idea that it is con-
fined to the Presbyterian Church. Why,
IS it not true that in all of our magazines
now-ScrlJner, the Ltving Age, the Con-
temporary Revie,O the Nineteenth Centes-
rg the atlantic Monthly, even the Brit
ISL Quarterly Repiesc-most, if not all,
Of them-we meet with downright assaults
on the Christian faith? Then look at the
tone of the secular press, semi-infdel, to
say the least, in our large cities. Is it
wonderful that generation is growing
up that believes in nothing?
We must s1Pplya Christian literature
to the people We must counterfeit the
tone of the current literature.
1t is gratifying to observe that the re-
port which we publish this week on the
state of religion in the bounds Of the Synod
of Virginia is much more encouraging.
Indeed we have cause for congratulation
that the Minutes of 1879 show substan-
tial progress in all the elements of eccle-
siastical growth in the Synods of Virginia
and North Carolina. The Synod of Texas
is in the same category. The Synod of
Georgia also did we'll But in five Of our
Synods there was very little growth, if
not positive decline.
In the Northern Presbyterian Church,
as a whole, the communicates increased
from 567855 in 1873 to 574,486 in 1879
an increase for the year Of less than
1000. The contributions of money actu-
ally fell off. Indeed in 1875, the aggre-
gate contributions of the Northern Pres
byterian Church footed up $9,626,594,
while in 1879 they amounted to only
S8,259,923. The times, we know, have
been hard; but that does not account fol
the small increase in membership.
While there is so much to encourage
us in the missionary fields, we observe
thatin the Northern Presbyterian Church
perhaps the most liberal in the country
the contributions for Foreign Missions
fell off from S508,52O in 1874, to 1881,
568 in 1879