The central Presbyterian. [volume] (Richmond, Va.) 1856-1908, 1880-04-14
For the Central Presbyterian.
Assembly's Committee of Home
Missions.
AFriendIY Criticism.

MISSIONS.
A Friendly Criticism.
MeSSrS Editd1S,-It is known to most
of our people that there are in our AS
sembly several Presbyteries which do not
cooperate, in every particular, with the
Assembly's Committee Of Home Missions
in respect to some details of administer
ing the work of missions in their own
bounds Not all of the non-concurring
Presbyteries have the same reasons for
their course, and not all are alike as to
the nature and extent of their non-con-
currence. Their only common peculiarly
is that they do not in all respects concur
IN the Assembly's plan. The Presbytery
of East Hanover Ito which the writer be-
longs and to which reference is had in
this article) is one of these Not one Of
these non-concurring Presbyteries, so far
as the writer is aware, has ever intimated
that its people or ministers had any doubt
of the need of having the work Of Home
Missions vigorously carried on, or ex-
pressed any lack of interest therein. The
difference of opinion has respect simply
to methods of doing the oOork-all of them
being perfectly agreed that the work is
urgently needful, and that all who can
contribute anything to it are under SOL
emn obligation to do so. The question
as to how large a proportion of It's con-
tributions any particular Presbytery
ought to employ within its own bounds,
depends largely of course upon the ex-
tent and character of its own mission
fields, and the spiritual destitutions ex-
listing therein, and entire unanimity in
settling this often difficult question is not
to be expected. There are also a multi
tude Of similar questions which arise
from time to time in the prosecution of
this great work which many of us are dis
posed to believe good men may differ
about, and which each Presbytery is best
able to decide for itself. Our Assembly
as Is well known, lays down certain set
of rules, more or less inhexible, for the
guidance of its central Committee in Bal
timore, and orders that these rules be
applied over the entire Church. from
Norfolk, Va to San Antonio Texas-in
all sorts of Presbyteries and in every class
of fields.
Now we are sure that the honored
brethren composing the Central Commit
tee of Home Missions have the good oi
the whole Church at heart, and, however
anxious they may be to have all the Pres
byteries cooperate fully with the Assem-
bly's scheme, would not, knowingly, cast
unwonted reproach upon any who saw
fit to differ with them 1t is known that
they heartily dislike the course pursued
by the non-concurring Presbyteries, and
in their zeal to prevent other Presbyte-
ries from following what they sincerely
regard as bad example, it is to be feared
they now and then use language, not
only In private, but in public gatherings
and in the Church papers, which unin-
tentionally does injustice to beloved
brethren. We have now in view pas
sage in recently published circular OF
the Assembly's Committee which makes
allusion to the non -concurring Presbyte-
ries in a way which seems to us hardly
fair, and which is certain to produce a
wrong impression. We are so sure that
those brethren (of the Co1nmittee) mean
well, and that they have their patience
sorely tried by the difficulties of their
work, that we have no heart to saw one
unkind or spiteful word-our criticisms
are those of brother aiming at the good
of our Church as a whole.
The passage referred to is as follows
There are some $4,000 of our members
who are in Presbyteries which do not CO.
operate with the Assembly's work and
which are chiefly engaged in attending
to the wants Of their special fields but
deducting these, we still have about lOO,-
600 members in the Presbyteries which
are united in carrying out the General
Assembly's scheme for the upbuildng
and extension-of the Church" !"
Now we not only deny that the Com
mittee has any right to rebuke, even in
directly, any Presbytery for taking its
own mission work into its own hands, but
we deny that the passage quoted above