The state rights democrat. [volume] (Albany, Linn County, Oregon) 1865-1900, 1882-06-02

or lay elders in the Calvanistic ehurcber.
had TO do only with the government,
and not at all with the administration
sf doctrine or sacraments; Shile the
other on the contrary, was devoted en-
tirely, or at least mainly, to the service
Of the word and altar. Such distinction
Of ruling elders, belonging to the Iarity,
and tescEing prssbyters, or ministers
proper, G.st suggested by Calvin, and
afterwards further insisted on by many
Protestant Especially PresbyteriaD)
divines, rests, indeed, on very judi
cious ecclesiastical policy and is, SO far,
altogether justifiable but II cannot be
pT0Ded at all from the New Testament
or church antiquity, and presuppozes al
80 an opposition Of clergy and laity,
which did not exist under the same
form in the Apostolic period. TIE
only passage appealed to in support Of
il is ! Tim. 5: IT: "Let the eIders,
that rule well be counted worthy Of
double honor, especially they who la
bor In the word and doctrine. 'eThis
Especially we are told, implies that
there were presbyters, also who officially
had nothing to do with teaching, and
that the teaching presbyters were Of q
higher standing but this conclusion il
by no means sure, as may at first siGht
sPPear. For in the first place, il is
questionable, whether the emphasis
does not fall rather on chose who la
Dor" referring to the laborious diligence
ia teaching, as also on the "welp in .he
beginning of the sentence; making the
antithssis 70 Be, not that of teaching
and non teaching elders, but that Of
those who rule and teseh zsalously, and
those who beth rule and teach. injeed,
but without any particular earnestness.
In this view the passage would tell
rather for The union Of ruling and
teaching in the same Office. Bat sven
according to the other Interpretation.
it proves, at best, only the fact, that
there were Presbyters Who did not
teach. IL by no means sbews, that the
existence Of such presbyters was regu-
lar and approved by the apostle; wiieh
is here the main point. Nay unless We
would isVolVs Paul in self cOntIadie-
ton, We must suppose the very oppo-
ate. For in Tim 81. Tit. /: 9
comp 2. Tim. 2. "a he makes aptnsss.
20 teach an Indispensable qualification
for the sfiee of bishop without sxssp-
tisn. It has been supposed also that
the traces Of lay sldership were 10 be
in the old African church, and from
| these has been inferred its existence In
the Apostolic age. But when the
relevant documents Of the tine Of the
Donatixt controversies in the bskininx
sf the fourth century are more carefully
examined, it Is found that the "Een-
iorss, or "sssiores plsbis," in North
Africa were net ecclesiastical sficers at
all, but civil magistrates Of municipal
corporations.
i DIR, Schaf, sums up in this way
''The conclusion from all this, that the
preshyters or bishops sf the APoatslis
period were the regular tsscheis and
pastors, preachers and leaders ef the
congregations; that j: was Ithsir Office
to conduct ell public worship, to take
care Of souls, to enforce discipline, and
to take care Of souls, TO enforce disc
plins, and to manage the church prep
erty. OF course all had not the same
talent, one excelled in teaching, another
in pastoral duties, q third in the talent
for ruling; and We may readily suppose
that whore there were several OF them,
they divided the various duties Of their
r calling among themselves, according to
J endowments, taste and necessity. This
however, was always regulated by cir
, cumstanees, and by no means authorizes
US to suppose, that there were two diff
: fsrsnt kinds sf presbyterr, and tive
, separate Offices Of government and doc
: trine."
Il