Wheeling register. [volume] (Wheeling, W. Va.) 1878-1935, 1891-05-23
ONLY TRUE REPORT
or TH. WORK OF PRESBYTERIAN REVISION
< COMMITTEE
Presented 70 the General Assembly YeS!erday-lt il
Referred to the PresbyterieS for Acti0n-An
Elders Oaustic Remarks-A Presbyterian
Professor Resigns for Unique Cause.


byterian General Assembly met at a..
M After a season of prayer and con-
ference led by Rev. DIR. s. c. Logan, Of
Scranton, Pa, the minutes were read
and the Standing Committee announced.
The vote in regard to the proposed
change in the methods of amendments
to the standard, was: Ayes 91, noes
20, refused to report 6, and IA have not
reported. A committee was appointed
to canvass these returns from the Pres
byteries.
The report of the Committee on Re-
vision of the Confession of Faith was
read by Chairman Rev. VIM. c. Roberts,
d. D., President of the Lake Forest
University. He said that the copy from
which he was reading ives the only cor
rect one, and he regretted that some of
the daily papers had by some means got
hold of and published one of the par
italy incorrect copies. The following
abstract contains everything important
in this important and eagerly expected
report, which, it is believed, will be the
most engrossing subject that will come
before the Assembly.
In Chapter l. of 'The Holy Scrip
tures," Section 6, the words, "And the
truthfulness of history, the faithful wit
ness of prophecy and miracle" are in
serted as among the arguments for the
inspiration of the Scripture.
Chapter III. "Of Gods Eternal De-
cree" has Sections l and 2 unchanged
and Sections and stricken out. Sec
tion 5, which is portion of the present
Confession relating to foreordination,
becomes Section 3, and is amended to
read as follows: God, before the foun-
dation of the world was laid, according
to His eternal and immutable purpose
and the secret counsel and good pleas
ure of His will hath predestned some
of mankind unto life, and hath particu-
larly and unchangeably chosen them in
Christ unto everlasting glory out OF His
free grace and love, without any fore
sight Of faith or good works or perse-
yerance in either of them or any other
thing in creature, as conditions or
causes moving Him thereunto, and all
to the praise of His glorious grace"
Section remains unchanged and be-
comes Section 4. Section was amend
ed, and becomes Section 6, and is as fol-
lows: "The rest of mankind God was
pleased, according to the unsearchable
counsel of His own will, whereby He
extendeth or withdraweth mercy as He
peaseth. not to elect unto everlasting
life but to ordain them TO diShonor
and wrath for their sin, to the praise Of
his glorious justice; yet so as thereby
neither is any limitation put upon the
offer OF salvation TO all upon condition
of iaith in Christ, nor is restraint laid
upon the offer of salvation to all upon
condition of faith in Christ; nor is re-
strant laid upon the freedom OF anyone
to hinder his acceptance OF this offer. ,
Section is unchanged save in numer-
alton.
Chapter ", of "Creations, received
some amendments that are merely ver-
bal. The same may be said of the
changes in Chapter VI, of the "Fall OF
Man," Chapter VII, of Gods Covenant
With Man." and Chapter Will, Of
'Christ the Mediator" A chapter "Of
the Holy Spirit" is made Chapter IN.
The chapter on Free WILL" now
Chapter X, is amended by the addition
of these words: ''To the declaration on
the insuf1iciency of the will of man for
spiritual goodness; yet is his response
bility as a free moral agent not thereby
impaired" The chapter on the uni
versal Offer of the Gospel. is made more
complete in terms. The doctrines of
justification, of saving faith, of good
works, and of religious worship receive
only verbal changes.
In the pronouncement upon lawful
oaths, "Popish monastic vows" are de-
scribed simply as "Monastic vows"
Similar changes with regard to the
term "Papist" are made in the chapter
on marriage and divorce, and the Pope
of Rome ceases in the revision, TO be de-
scribed as anti-Christ. The. sacrifice OF
mass is ais referred to as "Roman
Catholic doctrine" rather than ''Po-
pish." but it continues to be designated
as abominably injurious.
The clause of Chapter NVI. is
changed to read as follows; "All in
fants dying in infancy. and all other
persons who from birth to death are
incapable of being outwardly called by
the ministry of the word, are redeemed
bv Christ and regenerated by the Spirit
who worketh when and where and how
He pleaseth." This is a radical altera-
tion, differing from the old Confession
in the insertion of the words, "all,"
''from birth to DEATH" 'are redeem
ed" and "are regenerated by the
Spirit"
An entirely new clause is the follow
ing: "Chapter NV, Section g.
There is no other head of the Church
but the Lord Jesus Christ, and the claim
of the Pope of Rome to be the Vicar OF
Christ and the head of the Church Uni
versal is without authority in Scripture
or in fact, and is usurpation dishonor-
ing to the Lord Jesus Christ"
After the reading of the report it was
moved that it be sent to the Presbyteries
as recommended by the committee. DR..
HAYES moved the report be adopted,
which was warmly seconded by DR.. j.
T. Smith.
One conservative elder said the Con-
fession of Faith was an anvil that had
worn out every hammer that had pound
ed it. The mischief had always been
started by the ministers, not the elders.
The New York lumber dealers and