The Jersey City news. (Jersey City [N.J.]) 1889-1906, 1900-05-21
CHURCH IN COURT.
Troubles of the True Re-
formed Church Aired
In Chancery.&
Mr.. CORBIN'S ARGUMENTS
Complicated Question of Ec-
clesiastical Law for
V. G. Pitney.


Vice Chancellor Pitney heard the applica-
tion of William H. Corbin for an injunc-
tion to restrain Thomas R. Snyder. Daniel
Toumans and William Perlis from prose-
cutting suit which they have pending in
the name of the True Reformed Church of
Paramus, Bergen county, for the eject
ment of the pastor and congregation and
the possession of the church property,
which consists of the building a grave
yard and considerable land.
Mr. Corbin began the proceedings by
reading his bill of complaint, which gave
this interesting history of the contro-
versy:-
I'm 1922 several congregations in Bergen
county seeded from the Reformed Dutch
Church of America and reorganized
churches under the title of the True Re-
formed Dutch Church; one of them was at
Schraalenberg and another at Paramus.
They were commonly called the seceders,
and to this day are known by the old resi-
dents of North Jersey as the seceders, but
they call themselves the True Reformed
Dutch Church They formed Chassis
known as the Chassis of Hackensack.
A similar secession took place at Owas-
co, in the State of New York, and sew
eral seeding churches took the same
name there and called the Chassis the
Chassis of Union. These two Chassis dis
solved, but the Hackensack Chassis con-
tinued until 1890 consisting of some eight
churches.
About the year 1899 there was seces-
sion of certain congregations from the
Free Reformed Church of Holland, some
of these seceders came to America and
formed congregations in Bergen county
and elsewhere They called themselves
the Holland Christian Reformed Church
of America From about 1870 to 1880 there
were efforts made to amalgamate these
two churches in America.
In 1890 a number of congregations OF the
True Reformed Church voted to join the
Holland Church, other congregations vot-
ed against it, andthe Paramus Church
and the Schraalenberg Church voted TO
defer action and never Joined it; never
theless. son many did join that the Gas
sis of Hackensack of the True Reformed
Church died a natural death and dis
solved and thereafter, without ever
ioinig the Holland Church. the consis-
tories of these churches were accustom-
ed to eesd delegates to the Holland
Church Chassis, which was also called the
Hackensac Chassis, and this friendly re-
lation continued until 1893, when the
Chassis of Hackensack rejected the dele
gate sent by the Paramus Church, be-
cause they were Odd Fellows. After that
the Paramus Church sent no more dele
gates and had nothing more to do with
the Holland Church. 1t never had been
constitutionally or organieally connected
with it. but had simply hsent representa-
tives, it having no Chassis of it's own.
In 1890 the officers of the Paramus
Church and many members petitioned the
Presbytery of Jersey City to put their
name on its roll and to take them under
its care. which was granted, they, how
ever, being allowed to retain their name
and stin also retain their form of gov
ernment whereby the yelected minister,
elders and deacons who together constl-
tute the Board of Trustees.
This section stirred up the Chassis of
Hackensack of the Holland Church, and
their Classical Committee, consisting of
three ministers, went to Paramus, and in
the house of Thomas R. Snyder held what
they called a congregational meeting or
the Paramus Church. The meeting is al
legged to have been held without any notice
to the congregation. The committee elect
ed Mr. Snyder an elder, voted to remove
the censures and disabilities of Daniel
Youmans so as to qualify him to be an
officer. and elected him. and made Will
lam Pulls, of Hackensack, deacon. These
three men thus chosen called themselves
the Consistory of Paramus Church, and
began an action in ejectment against the
minister, elders and deacons, seven In
number, of the Paramus Church.
Lawyer Solomon of Passaic, who ap-
peared for the defendants, read long an
awer in which he claimed that the men
who brought the suit had acted within
their rights.
The Vice Chancellor suggested that the
complaints allow the ejectment suit to pc
tried and have an injunction against anv
execution being issued. Mr.. Corbin OBJ
5ected. He said that the real party inter-
ested in the case was the congregation Of
the church, which could not be heard IN
the ejectment suit, and the only tribunal
TO which it could present itself was
Court of Equity. Argument then pro-
ceeded.