New-York tribune. [volume] (New York [N.Y.]) 1866-1924, 1892-05-19
THE GENERAL ASSEMBLY.

This Is an important month for Prcsbytcr-
ans To-day the General Assemblies OF the
| PRESBYTERIAN Church North, the Presbyterian
| Church South, and the Cumberland Presby-
terian Church begin their sessions respective
| ly in Portland, Ore, Hot Springs, Ark, and
Memphis. Tenn, and next Wednesday the
General Assembly of the United Presbyterian
Church will meet at Allegheny, Penn The
only one of these gatherings, however, which
will arouse any general interest is the Portland
General Assembly and that, not simply be-
cause it represents the greatest branch of Amerl-
can presbytcranism, but because issues OF
paramount Importance to the Church will come
before it, Readers of THE tribune hardly
need to be informed that these issues in brief,
are the revision of the Westminster Confession
of Faith. the alleged heresies of Professor
Briggs, and the relation of Union Seminary to
the Church. As to the revision Of the Con-
fession, it is not easy TO say what Will be done.
The revision movement originally started
by liberals. who felt that the old Confession
no longer expressed the doctrinal views OF the
Church. and naturally, of course. was opposed
by the conservatives. But the issue did not
long retain that cear-cut form. The uneX
pected strength which the liberals developed
soon suggested 10 the more radical OF them
that mere verbal revision of the Confession
would accomplish only a small part of what
they had in view and therefore many of them
practically drew ont from the movement and
began to advocate the shelving of the Con-
fession As an obsolete historic document, and
the PRONUNCIATION of short, simple, and COM
prchensive Greed as the doctrinal standard of
the Church. On the other hand, the extreme
conservatives, seeing the strength of the liberal
movement. decided 10 support mild revision
Of the Confession, which would touch no essen
tial doctrines, hoping in that way to head off
the whole movement. This new alignment OF
parties will explain many of the otherwise con
fusng moves made during the last year, and
will furnish an ineligible key to the action
of the present General Assembly. The extreme
liberals will oppose revision, and the extreme
conservatives will advocate it for exactly the
same reason, namely, because they alike be
lcvc that it does not amount 10 much. And
all their efforts will be directed TO gaining the
men on the fence over to their side.
But after all, the interest in revision is large
ly speculative and theological, and no matter
what the General Assembly does. a large sec
ton of the Church will practically continue
to repudiatc the Confession as true expression
of their belief, without perhaps saying much
about it. The question that will really stir the
General Assembly to its depths will be the
much more concrete ono of Professor Brggs's
alleged hercsy, which, in fact bids fair to split
the Church in two The views of Professor
Briggs, for which he is being called to an
count, are so well known that it is unnecessary
to refer to them here. But a word or two of
explanation may be given as to how the case
is to come before the General Assembly 1t is
due to the pulling and contradictory action
Of tho Ncw-York Presbytcry, which has put
itself on record as on both sides of this much
vexed question. Having begun by electing
Briggs men to the last General Assembly, and
almost at the same time voting to try Pro-
fessor Briggs for heresy, it apparently got ont
Of that dilemma last fall by voting to dismiss
the charges which its Committee of Investiga-
ton brought against him. But those who
supposed that the matter was thus happily
ended were soon undeceived. The Committee
of Investigation claimed that it was not the
creature of the Prcsbytery which had called it
into existence, but was an original party to the
action, representing the whole Presbyterian
Church, and in that claim it was sustained by
. ruling of the Moderator and vote of the
Prcsbytcry. Thus armed with original and
general powers, and irritatcd by the circum-
stance that Professor Briggs presumed to de-
liver course of lectures in this city, it de-
tcrmined to appeal from the presbytcrys non
action on tho charges, not to the synod, the
next highest body, but To the General Assem- |
bly, the highest body of all and that body |
is now to say what it will do with the appcal |
Before answering that question two other
questions will have to be answered. namely
Is this committee, appointed by the New-Yorl |
Presbytery, no longer creature of the Pres |
bytery, but a Prosecuting Committee of the |
Presbyterian Church? And if so, does the
complaint which Professor Briggss friends have |
made to the Synod, which meets next fall, act |
as stay to any present action by the General |
Assembly? The possibilities of debate in |
settling these preliminary issues are almost |
unlimited and it is more than likely that in |
the stormy discussion which will be aroused
the real issue will be lost sight Of In other
words the General Assembly may never get
to the question of Professor Brggs's heresy
at all, in which case the matter will drift along
for another year. AS to the status of Union
Seminary there need not be much discussion.
The Seminary is so evidently out of sympathy
with the traditional views of the Church. and
so determined to assert its independence of all !
ecclesiastical control, that severance of the