Yorkville enquirer. [volume] (Yorkville, S.C.) 1855-2006, 1884-10-02
THE EVOLUTION OF ADAM.

THE EVOLUTION OF ADAM.
At the recent annual meeting of the
Board of Directors of the Presbyterian The
illogical Seminary, in Columbia, eleven OF
the thirteen directors were in attendance
Hon. James Hemphill, of Chester, Presi.
dent of the Board, was detained at home by
sickness, and Judge II. B. Fraser was Presl'
dent pro tenn. Rev. j. B. Mack, ID. d., Sec
retary Of the Board, was present.
A report was submitted showing the
bright prospects under which the Seminary
had opened on Monday, the 18th instant
Twenty-nine students are now in attendance
and the number it is believed will be in
creased to forty by the 1st Of October:
Professor j. II. Rayhill, of Illinois, has
been engaged as teacher of clocution, and
his course of instruction will be commenced
on the 1st of October.
The Directors had an exhaustive discus.
sion of the recent address of Professor James
Woodrow on "EvolutiOn," which has at.
tracted so much attention throughout the
length and breadth of the land, and the dis
cussiOn of which consumes large portion
of nearly every Presbyterian publication in
the United States, and especially in the
States whose Synods control the Seminary
A paper was introduced strongly COM
mending DR.. Woodrow and endorsing near
ly all the positions taken by him in the adj
dress on evolution.
For this substitute was offered which
enjoined upon DR.. Woodrow to cease teach
ing in the Seminary the views that eVolu'
ton is Gods plan Of creation and that the
body of Adam was probably evolved from
beast. This substitute was voted down.
The following substitute was then intro
duced, and was adopted by a vote of to 3:
The Board having carefully considered
the address Of DIR. Woodrow, published in
pursuance Of the request of this Board
adopts the following :<r1
1st. Resolred, That the Board does hereby
tender to DR.. Woodrow its thanks for the
ability and faithfulness with which he has
complied with its request.
I'd. That in the Judgment of this Board
the relations subsisting between the teach
ings of Scripture and the teachings of natu-
raj science are plainly, correctly and salts
factorily set forth in said address.
Sd. That the Board is not prepared tc
concur in the view expressed by DR.. Wood.
row as to probable method of the creation OF
Adams body-yet in the Judgment of the
Board there is nothing in the doctrine OF
evolution, as defined and limited by him,
which appears inconsistent with perfect
SoundnesS in the faith.
18th. That the Board takes this occasion
to record it's deep and ever growing sense
Of the wisdom Of our SynOds in the estab-
lishment of the chair Of 'the Perkins pro-
fessorship of natural science in connection
with revelation" and Of the Importance OF
such instruction as is thereby afforded, that
our ministry may be the better prepared tC
resist the objections of infdel scientists and
defend the Scriptures against their insidlous
charges.
The minority then entered their protest
against the action of the Board in refusing
to enjOin on Professor Woodrow not tC
teach that Evolution is Gods plan of crea
ton and that the body of Adam was prob
ably evolved from the lower animals. The
reasons given in the protest are:
l. Evolution is an improved hypothesis
and the Seminary is not the place for such
teachings.
2. Belief in evolution changes the inter
probation Of many passages OF Scripture
from that now received by, the church.
3. The view that the body of Adam was
evolved from lower animals, and not form
ed by supernatural act Of God, is danger
Gus and hurtful.
4. The theory that Adams body was
formed by the natural law of evolution
while Ewes was created by a supernatural
act of God, is contrary to our confession o.
faith as that confession of faith has been
and is interpreted by orr church.
). The advocacy of views which have re-
ceived neither the endorsement of the
Board nor that of the Synods having con.
troll of the Seminary; which have not been
established by science; which have no au.
thority from the Word of God; which tend
to unsettle the received Interpretation o
many passages of Scripture and to destroy
the confidence of the church in her doctrl.
nal standards; which have already. pro-
duced so much evil, and which will injure
the Seminary and may rend our church
ought not to be aNOwed.
This matter will be carried before the
four Synods controlling the Seminary and
be adjudicated by them. These are the
Synods of South Carolina, Georgia, Ala
bama and Florida. In the meantime Pro-
fessor Woodrow "holds the fort"
As laymen we take no part in this inter,
esting discussion, the subject Of which is
attracting wide attention at present; but
we find in The Christian at Work, a paper
published in New York, the following brief
allusion to the views as expressed by DIR.
Woodrow, and which we reproduceas show
ing the conclusions Of the editor as to the
tendency of DR.. Woodrow's hypothesis:
Dr. Woodrow seems to find himself surround
ed by a thorn hedge and to be busy in endeavor-
ing to find way out We have already n0ted
his peculiar view Of evolution as applied to
man--that Adam was eyOlutionlZed, and Eve
was made especially to order by the Almighty.
And now the doughty Professor shifts his
ground and holds out a possibility after this
fashion he suggests that in the production OF va
reties it sometimes comes from an accidental
variation in a single individual. The idea IS
that one may have appeared in this way-by
some abnormal departure from the structure of
his parents. 4 pair of apes may have thus CIV,
en- birth to a human being. This, as the Central
Presbyterian happily says, is no evolution IN
the ordinary sense, or in any proper sense; 1t IS
paroXismal evolution and an extreme case at
that If Dr.. Woodrow is to adhere to this def-
milton Of evolution, he will have to reconstruct
his whole system-or rather theory, for all sys-
tenn is precluded here. Evolution from the egg
we can understand, though we do not accept it.
terms AS it is much easier and far more sens-
BILE and philosophical to think that God created
man, as Dr. Woodrow admits that he may have
directly created woman, we prefer to hold to
that rather than to the doctrine that man was
made in the image of God by an accidental va
ration 10 our view, man was not created by
an actual variation, and then furnished by God
with a specially created wife to supplement the
deficiency of an accident. Think OF the whole
problem Of sin and Saviour dependent upon an
accidental variation! But DR.. Woodrow's hy-
pothesis leads exactly there, if anywhere
SOUTH CAROLINA NEWS.
- The Newberry cotton mill is receiving
the finishing touches. Work will COM
mence about the first of November with