The news & observer. [volume] (Raleigh, N.C.) 1894-current, 1902-05-22
THE ASSEMBLY SPEAKS
Declares That the Scriptures Warrant
This Belief.
ON PRESBY TERRAIN HOME MISSIONS
Ibis Address by President Roosevelt Marks The
Close of the Northern Assenbly's Gen.
tennial Celebration and Draws
a Great Audience.
(By the Associated Press. !

Jackson, Miss, May 20.-In the General
Assembly of the Presbyterian church to-
day the clerk read communication from
L. K. Cams, the chairman of the foreign
board of missions of Australia which was
accompanied by memorial to President
Roosevelt to prevent the sale and use
OF firearms on certain islands.
The overtures committee reported
eieven oVcrtures on infant salvation, de-
manding Il positive statement as to the
certainty of salvation OF infant, diving in
infancy and calling for a declaration
which will clear the church of false
charge that It holds that some infants
may be lost. The committee declined to
recommend resembling the action of the
last assembly as to certain foot notes on
page 81 and recommended change of
language in section 3 of the Confession
OF Faith in order that it may read:
All infants dying in infancy are in
Guided IN the election of grace and are
regenerated and saved by Christ through
the spirit who worketh when and where
he please"
The following substitute to section one
OF the report was offered by DR.. Hemphill
and adopted by the assembly:
In answer to an overture asking for
the resembling of the action in whole or
III part CT General Assembly at Little
Rock concerning chapter 10, section of
the Confession of Faith, the assembly
does hereby resciRd the fifth reason Of
the last assembly for declining to amend
the confession, the reason of the re-
sejnding being as follows:
Because while we have a well grouded
hope foun1e on scripture that all in
fants dying in infancy are saved, yet
the Confession of Faith goes as far as
scripture to justify a positive crcGal
statement upon this point"
The second section of the report which
was unanimously adopted reads
Furthermore we are persuaded that
the language employed III section three
Of our Confession of Faith towards in
fants dying in infancy does not teach
that there are any infants dying in in
fancy who are damned, but this section
only is intended to illustrate that those
who are in infancy are saved in different
manner from adults who are capable of
being outwardly called TO salvation by the
ministry of the word.
Furthermore we are purSuaded that
the holy scriptures when fairly inter
preted amply warrant us in believing that
all infants who die in infancy are in
cluded in the election of grace and are
regonerated and saved by Christ through
their spirit
An overture was filed with the commit
tee from the Bonneville, (Mss.) Pres
bytery demanding that the hymn begin
ming There is a fountain filled with
blood" be eliminated from the Presby-
terrain hymn book or else the line read
ing Sinners plunged beneath that flood
lose all their guilty stains
The overture sets forth that this SEN
tence is an eXaggeration of truth in rep
reSenting that the blood of Christ ever
flowed in quantities in which one could
be immersed.
A motion was made to table the item
f'that the entire sum collected, viz: $685.
O00, be returned to the United State gov
eminent" Adopted, ayes 159; noes, 105
The remainder of the minority report
was laid on the table by standing vote
and then DR.. McMurray moved a sub
titution of the compromise paper for the
majority report. The compromise pa
per was read again for the information
of the conference and at it's conclusion
many amendments were offered. None,
however, was adopted
Part of the compromise paper had up
to this time been adopted, while in the
midst of another parliamentary tangle,
the conference adjourned until night.