The Mankato free press. [volume] (Mankato, Blue Earth County, Minn.) 1879-1924, 1904-10-21
Over Two Hundred Strangers
Come to the City.
Retiring Moderator Urges En-
dorsement for Manchester.
DR.. Geo. w. Davis of Mankato.
the New Moderator.
From Fridays Daily.

From Fridays Daily.
The annual meeting of the Presby-
terrain synod of Minnesota has brought
to the city some two hundred pastors
and lay delegates, the former greatly
outnumbering the latter. There are al
so present a number of members OF
the Woman's Synodical Society of Mis-
sions. who hold their sessions in the
lecture room while the synod is meeting
in the main room of the Presbyterian
church.
The synod will continue through to-
morrow, and will consider some import
ant church business, one of the most inn
portant being that relating to the sup
port of Macakster college. Very little
difficulty has been met with in furnish
ing accommodations for all, as the COM
mittee having this in charge has done
its work thoroughly.
The synod opened last evening with
devotional services led by the retiring
moderator, Rev. Thomas H. Cleland, ID.
D., of Duluth. The church was well fill
ed, many people from the city being
present. Prayer was offered by Rev.
George F. McAfee of New York, mem
is attending the synod. Music was fur
nished by the Presbyterian choir, and
was particularly good. A solo by Prof.
Benjamin Hoerger, new member of
the high school faculty, was particular
ly commented upon, as was trio by
Miss Clara Gerlich, George f. Brett and
Prof Hoerger. The latter has a fine
baritone voice.
DIR. Cleland preached a sermon that
was inspiring in its effect upon the
Presbyterians present. He chose his
text from 18th Luke, 4Sth verse. He
said that Presbyterians have reason to
feel proud of their past, from the
Huguenot war in France, the uprising in
England and Scotland, the American rev.
oiution, which the English king called a
Presbyterian rebellion, down to the pres
ent day. The blue Presbyterian banner
floats at PIT. Nome, the nearest to the
pole of any church banner, while the
bones of Presbyterian missionaries are
whitening in equatorial lands.
With such history behind it, the
church should ask what is required of
it today. We are first Christians and
secondly Presbyterians, and should well
come all criticism, high or low, and
should assume no trembling attitude of
anxiety for the truth. We must con-
tinue to be great character builders. God
give us men whom the lust of office can
not spoil, whom the spoils of office can
not buy. We should learn to measure a
man by his worth and not by his wealth
Every school house in America is a
pledge of better citizenship. Students
should be educated where they may not
only learn the diameter of time, but
the circumference of eternity, not only
the words of Plato and Socrates, but
those of the Master. Our church has
not kept pace in collegiate work. Oul
theological seminaries are better en-
dowed than our academies. We car
do with five instead of twelve seminaries
and release that much talent and wealth
for the benefit of the academies. In
Minnesota we have chance to concen
trate all of our wealth and talent OF
one college. Before this synod con
venes again, let the endowment of tina,
college be doubled. The stigma of g
synod without an endowed college must
be wiped out. The future of Presbyter
ianism in this great commonwealth an(
in the great northwest demands that
we make every sacrifice and bend every
effort through the coming year to ac
complish this. We may as well lower
our flag as a synod unless we have this
movement well advanced by another
year.
The railway and steamboat servic'
have brought the dusky face close tt
the white mans face, and all nation.
touch elbows. The Presbyterian churcl
had done one-fourth of the missionar.
work of the world. While the churcl
numbers 25,OOO,OOO members, and ha
great wealth, yet there has been NJ
proportionate increase of support for tn
missions.
We must as church adopt bette
methods and not linger in the shadows
If it means uniting of churches unde
one pastorate let it be done. We mus