Kansas City journal. [volume] (Kansas City, Mo.) 1897-1928, 1897-05-17
PRESBYTERIAN ASSEMBLY.
WILL BEGIN A TEN DAYS SESSION IN
INDIANAPOLIS THIS WEEK.
Six Hundred Delegates, Including Ex-
President Harrison and John
wannmaker, VIII Attend
Work of the Assembly.

Philadelphia. May 1.-THE 109th general
assembly of the Presbyterian church in the
United States will meet at Winona assem-
bly, grounds, Eagle Lake, Kosciusko coun-
ty, Ind, on May 20, 1897, and will probably
continue in session until May 81. The as
sembly will be composed of about 600 dele
| gates, one-half of them ministers and the
other half ruling elders. The delegates are
elected by ecclesiastical bodies called pres
byteries. and come from every portion of
the country. The Presbyterian church rep
resented by this general assembly is the
only one which has ministers and churches
in every state in the Union and, by the sta
tistics of 1896, consisted of 1853 cOngrega-
tions, 6,942 ministers and 943, lie members.
The contributions for congregational ex-
penses for the year 1896, were $40, 413, 7S5, and
the contributions for missionary and other
benevolent purposes, $3.50, go. The foreign
mission work of the Presbyterian church is
conducted in fifteen different countries. Its
missionary and benevolent work in the
United States is carried on by agents called
boards. These boards are eight in num-
Der. three of them located in New York
city, viz: The boards of hcme missions, for
eign missions and church erection; three
located in the city of Philadelphia. viz:
Publication and Sabbath school work, ed
ucation and ministerial relief; one, the
board of missions for freedmen, at Pitts
burg, Pa, and one, the board of aid for
colleges and academies, at Chicago. The
DO1TOS located IN New 1Ork occupy WfdL
is known as the Presbyterian building, cor
ner Twentieth street and Fifth avenue. and
those located in Philadelphia will soon re-
move from their present quarters at 1884
Chestnut street to the Witherspoon build
ing, corner of Walnut and Juniper street.
The lO9th general assembly will be opened
at IL o'clock a. m, on May 20. with d SER
men by the retiring moderator, Rev. John
/. Nithrow, d. D., pastor of the Third
P~resbyterian church, Chicago. Among the
John Wanamaker and other able and IN
tluential laymen. Among the ministers are
Rev. Sheldon Jackson. D.. D., Rev. Henry
c. Minton, ID. D., professor in the Presby-
terrain Theological seminary of San Fran
cisco: the Rev. Robert F.. Sample, D. D.,
Presbyterian church, New York city; from
Philadelphia, the Rev. Drs. John S. McIn-
tosh, S. W. Dana, NJ. J. Eckels, j. q.
The business of the assembly will consist
of two main lines of work:
First-The consideration of the annual re-
ports of the eight boards above referred TO.
This portion of the busines will take up
the sessions of five days.
S~ecOnd-The consideration of the reports
Of special committee, the most important
of which are the following: Committee on
the powers of the assembly and ~presbytery
in the care and licensure of candidates;
coT1mittee on voters at the election of pas
tors and other church officials; committee
on conference with the board OF home mis-
sions, on the presbytery build
ing. New York city; committee on methods
OF of church temperatures.
The reports of these several committees
nave not as yet been made public and it
is not the usage to give them to the press
prior to the meeting of the assembly.
With regard to the moderatorship Of this
new assembly. it is stated that the candi-
dates for the office thus far announced
are Rev. Henry C. Mintpn, D. D.. San
Francisco; Rev. Robert F. Sample. d. D.,
New York; Rev. Sheldon Jackson and Mr..
job Wanamaker, of Philadelphia. A mum
Der of the gentlemen have thought of
nominating ex-President Harrison, but he
has declined the honor on the ground that
he could not give the necessary time TO
the duties of the office. In connection with
the moderatorship, it is of interest to know
that a layman has never yet filled the po-
sition, and that there are persons who
doubt if the constitution of the Presbyteri-
an church will permit any other than n
minister to occupy the highest office In the
church.