The Birmingham age-herald., 1905-11-13
CHURCH FEDERATION WILL BE DISCUSSED InterchurCh Conference Meets Wednesday in New York MANY DENOMINATIONS The Unltarians May Be Excluded. Churches From All Portions of
 United States Will Be Rep.
 resented at Meeting.
MANY DENOMINATIONS

The opening of the Interchurch Confer ence on Church Federation which will begin it's sessions in Carnegie hall on Wednesday evening and continue for a week and which will be the largest in- terdenomnational gathering since the ecumenical missionary conference. will be the most important religious occasion of the year. Preparations for this confer ence have been going on for over three years, and it is hoped by it's promoters that 1t will result in permanent organ ization which will do away with much of the waste of Christian effort now due to competition between churches.
 The conference will be the first ever held with regularly delegated members Twenty eight denominations, having sev- enteen million communicants, will be rep resented. There will be five hundred dele gates to the conference, with three hun dred alternates. Many of the most prom inent church and educational leaders will be present, as well as a number of well known laymen, and the list of speakers
  politicians and soldiers, as well many of the best known preachers and the heads of theological seminaries and colleges
 Call for Conference.
 The conference is in response to a call sent out by the National Federation of Churches and Christian organizations af- ter it's annual meeting in 1902. The call sent out by the federation gives the ob- jects of the conference as follows:
 We believe that the growing interest in federation and the widespread conviction of the great possibilities contained in fed erative movements indicate that the time is opportune for the extension and strengthening of the principles of feder- ation. A national society like ours, how ever cannot undertake the immense task of organizing cooperative work in the thousands of cities and tens of thousands of towns in our country. It has neither authority nor desire to intervene in the great questions which vitally concern the various denominations as denominations. We believe that the great Christian bodies in our country should stand together and lead in the discussion of and give an im- pulse to all great movements that make for righteousness.
 We believe that questions like that or the saloon, marriage and divorce, Sab bath desecration, the social evil, child la bor. the relation of labor to capital. the hettering of the conditions of laboring classes, the moral and religious training of the young, the problem created py 1 foreign jmmigration and international ar bitration-indeed, all great questions in which the voice of the churches should | be heard-concern Christians or every name. and demand their united and con certed action if the church is to lead ef- fectively in the conquest of the world TOT Christ. It Is our conviction that there should be closer union of the forces and A most effective use of the resources of inc Christian churches in the different cities and towns, and, when feasible, Tn other communities and fields. with view to an increase of power and of results m all Christian work. The experience of the national federation has made 1t clear that very many of the churches of the sev- eral communions are ready to come closer | | Master. This has led us to raise the aues- ton whether more visible, effective and comprehensive fellowship and effort are not desirable and attainable.
 In order to secure an effective organiza- ton of the various protestant communions of this country for the practical ends | indicated. we would suggest that con ference of representatives accredited by the national bodies of said protestant de- nominations meet in New York city, No yember. 1905, to form such representa- tive organization as may seem proper to them. It Is understood that Its basis would not be one of creedal statement or gov ernmental form, but of cooperative work and effort. It is also understood that the organization, If formed, shall have power only to advise the constituent bodies rep resented.
 Appointment of Delegates.
 The call was responded to with enthu- siasm by almost all the evangelical churches. Delegates were apportioned on a basis of the number of communicants of each denomination. The Presbyterian Methodist, Congregational and Baptist churches VIII nave nlty ueleSdteS edcH, while the other churches will have less. Some of the smaller denominations will have only one or two delegates. The del egates have been named in each case by the highest legislative or advisory bodies l of the several denominations.
 l The only serious criticism of the con | ference has come because of the exclusion 1 of the Unitarians. The governing body | of that church. supposing that 1t had | been intended to invite it to take part, | appointed delegates, but they were in formed that the conference wal intended to include only evangelical churches. The executive committee of the conference was unanimous in making the decision, which was on the ground that many other denominations would not consent to con- | ference in which the Unitarians took part It is thought possible that the question may be brought up before the conference.
 Churches Represented.
 The churches which will be represented are Baptist. north and south; Free Bap- list, Christian connection, Congregational. Disciple, Evangelical association Evan gelical synod, Friends, Evangelical Lu- l theran, general synod Methodist Epsco- pal and Methodist Episcopal south, Meth odist Protestant. African Methodist Epis- |