The Jersey City news. (Jersey City [N.J.]) 1889-1906, 1900-04-03
CHURCH ROW IN COURT
Troubles Of the True Re-
formed Church Get Into
Court of Chancery.

On application of William H. Corbin,
Vice Chancellor Stevens yesterday after
noon, granted an order to show cause
why Thomas R. Snyder, Daniel Youmans
and William Pulls shall not be restrained
from further prosecuting suit which
they have pending in the name of the
True Reformed Church of Paramus,
Bergen County, for the ejectment of the
pastor and congregation and the
possession of the church property, which
consists of the building, a graveyard and
considerable land. The order to show
cause is returnable next week, Monday.
Lawyer Corbin in making his application
recited this story of the causes which
have led to the present action:-
I'm 1922 several congregations in Bergen
County, New Jersey, seeded from the
Reformed Dutch Church of America and
reorganized churches under the title OF
the True Reformed 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 residents of North Jersey as
the seceders, but they call themselves the
True Reformed Dutch Church. They
formed a Chassis known as the Chassis OF
Hackensack.
A similar secession took place at Owas-
co, in the State of New York, and several
seeding churches took the same name
there and called the Chassis the ClasSls OF
Union. These two Chassis dissolved, but
the Hacl1ensack Chassis continued untll
1890 consisting of some eight churcneS.
About the year 1899 there was a seces-
sion OF certain congregations from the
Free Reformed Church of Holland, some
IL AT1al ri
formed congregations in Bergen county
and elsewhere. They called themselves
the Holland Christian Reformed Church
of America. From about 1870 to 1890 there
were efforts made to amalgamate theSe
two churches in America.
In 1880 number OF congregations of the
True Reformed Church voted to Joln tne
Holland Church, other congregations vot-
ed against it, and the ParamuS Church
and the Schraalenberg Church voted to
defer action and never Joined it; never
theless, so many did join that the Clas-
sis of Hackensack of the True Reformed
Church died natural death and dis
solved, and thereafter, without ever
joining the Holland Church, the consis-
tories of these churches were accustom-
ed to send delegates to the Holland
Church Chassis, which was also called the
laIion continued until 1898, when the
Chassis of Hackensack rejected the dele
gates 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 organically connected
with it, but had simply sent representa-
tiyeS, it having no Chassis OF its own.
In 1899 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 still also retaining their form of gov
ernment, whereby they elected a minister,
elders and deacons, who together consti
tute the board of trustees
This action stirred up the Chassis of
Haekensack 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 of
the Paramus Church. The meeting is al
legged to have been held without any no
tice to the congregation. The commit ee
elected Mr.. Snyder an elder, voted to re-
move the censures and disabilities OF
Daniel Youmans SO as to qualify him 10
be an officer, and elected him, and made
William Pulls, of Hackensack, deacon.
THESE three men thus chosen called them
selves the Consistory of Paramus Church
and began an action in ejectment against
the minister, elders and deacons, seven in
number, of the Paramus Church.