The central Presbyterian. [volume] (Richmond, Va.) 1856-1908, 1881-07-06
For the Central Presbyterian
The General Assembly of 1881
No 9
The Diaconate

The Rev. DR.. Girardeau, chairman of
the Assembly's committee on the Diacon-
ate, read an interesting and exhaustive
discussion of the subject, which received,
as it richly deserved, the universal ad-
miration of the body. There was but
one opinion as to its ability.
DR.. Girardeau is an extraordinary man
in the discrimination and in the power of
his faculties. 1 never saw his superior
in the harmony and symmetry of his in
tellectual constitution.
l hope his report will be published in
some form at an early day, so that all
the ministers and elders may read and
study it, to the end that we may reach a
wise and scriptural conclusion when the
subject shall come up, as it will, in the
Assembly Of 1882.
The treatise was so good and so plau
sible that an excellent brother whose
POWERS Of digestion exceeded those Of
the rest of the Assembly, exclaimed that
he was ready to vote at once for its adop-
ton We had best not be too hasty in
our conclusions. This discussion should
Se pursued patiently and not cease until
we come to the bottom. 1 think that the
metaphysics and the logic of the discus
sion have gone far enough. DIR. Girar-
deau on the one side and DR.. Lefevre on
the other, have given the logic and the
metaphysics good shake up, to say the
least. See their gymnastic feats in the
Southern Presbyterian ReUieac of Jan
uary, 1879, 1880, 1881, and April, 1881.
One of the speakers in the Assembly ex-
pressed his surprise that DR.. Girardeau,
in searching after scriptural Office,
should use SO much logic and so little
Scripture.
The Doctors theory of the exclusive
ness and the catholicity of the Diaconate
will be regarded by many as new. I
think it may be not unkindly put, that
what was new was not true, and what
was true was not new. But lest this
way OF putting it may not be understood,
we wish to add brief statement of our
own views as opposed to those views in
his report to which we take exception.
Discarding the metaphysics and the logic,
let us look fairly at the scriptural phase
of the subject. Acts 4th, 9Th, and 9th
chapters.
1. The state of the Church was not in
a normal, but In an abnormal condition.
The society Of Christians in Jerusalem
Git is not said so of the Church elsewhere)
held "all things in common and they
lived on common fund. This was on
account Of three things, imagine, which
cannot now operate ordinarily with the
same force.
1st. The dreadful persecution which
befell all believers. They had their lives
in their hands and were in jeopardy.
This made fellowship in suffering, and
the rights Of property were gladly relin-
pushed that they might hold together as
a church Of martyrs.
I'd. The Spirit of God caused them to
make common cause in their efforts to
spread the gospel and
Sd. The early Christians lived under
the full persuasion that Christ was speed
lily to return in person to reign among
them on earth.
Now it will not suit to reason, from
this abnormal or extraordinary state Of
the Church at Jerusalem, to the ordinary
state of the Church on earth, and to con
clude that because the state Of Christian
society there and then demanded that
the ministers and elders should leave the