Ottumwa tri-weekly courier. [volume] (Ottumwa, Iowa) 1903-1916, 1912-05-25
|BAPT|STS PLAN
Ne v UNION Of
CHURCH BODIES
Special Committee to Report
at Des MONIES on Cues
ton of Uniting All North
ern District Conventions.

! ClO1l VI O1llClllS AL 1NOl I'LL
, ern District Conventions
Des Moines, May 23.-The propose
to assess all churches of the Northern
Baptist convention to create a $4,000
pension fund for aged and infirm min
listers and missionaries met with con
! siderable opposition from eastern dele
gates in today's session.
According to the report of the fin
ance committee, which was submitted
the total budget this year will reach
nearly three million dollars, or about
$4,000 in excess of the budget fol
last year. The proposition was to add
$4,000 to this amount for the aged
ministers. Final action was deferred
until later in the convention.
Greetings were sent to the general
conference of the Methodist Episcopal
church at Minneapolis and the general
assembly of the Presbyterian church at
Louisville.
Greetings from the Southern Baptist
association were read by the Rev. S.
J. Porter of Texas at the opening OF
today's session of the Northern Bap-
fist convention. The two conventions
have been divided for some time over
the supervision of the mission work
in New Mexico and an agreement
looking toward greater cooperation i'll
national church work is expected to
be reached at this convention.
A special committee has been ap-
NJ will tho a6Vic.
ability of affiliating all state Baptist
conventions in the northern district
with the annual northern Baptist con-
vention.
The appointment of standing COM
mitteeS was announced today. Each
state is represented by one member
on each of the five committees. The
principal business of the day was the
election of officers of the American
Baptist Publication association which
was scheduled to be held shortly be-
fore noon.
"The Baptists are the only demon
ination which have not carried out
prosecutions Of other denominations,
for difference in faith declared the
Rev. Arthur S. Phelps of California in
an address before the convention. The
fast growth of the church was traced
by the speaker from the time Of the
revolutionary war, when there were
but few members, to the present time,
when it numbers five and half mil
lion.
Denver Wants 1913 Meeting.
Delegations from both Denver and
Detroit are making an effort to secure
the 1918 convention. The next meet
ing place, however, will not be cho-
sen until Saturday and delegates are
said to favor Denver. That the pres
ent day methods of teaching Sunday
scheel need improvement was the con-
tention of the Rev. j. NJ. Gurley of
Topeka, Kansas, who addressed the
The establishment of
schools for teachers was
urged. DR.. Henry F. Cope of Chicago,
general secretary of the religious ed
lcation association, also criticised the
present system and declared that ire
igious personality is not properly be-
ing developed in the children of to-
day"
The need. for the publication Of
cheaper bibles that they may be dis
-ributed among the foreign popula-
ton, was outlined by the Rev, C. H.
Sears of New York. The foreigners
receive biblical instructions eagerly,
according to DR.. Sears. For this rea-
son, he urged that there be more Of
The books printed so that they might
be distributed. The foreigner, he in
sisted, was mostly the equal Of the
American.
The report of the board of mana
gers of the Woman's American Bap-
list Mission society showed that the
society has finished the year free
rom debt.
Sermons Criticised.
Many preachers have lost faith in
heir bible was the declaration made
by the Rev. A. S. Hobart, D. D. AS a
proof Of his statement, the Rev. Mr..
Hobart offered in evidence the an
of Sunday morning SER
yices in the newspapers in which he
declared out of more than hundred
each week not one announced a text
rom the bible. And out of the few
excerpts from the sermons which ap-
3eared in Monday morning newspa-
oers, the Rev Mr.. Hobart said not
,ne was an exposition Of the scrip
ures.
The reason assigned for such al
state of affairs by the speaker was
he wave of higher criticism.
you have imbibed just enough
rom the critical writings and from
he magazines to dull the edge of your
and you are floundering
about with uneasiness concerning
your footholds," he declared with en-
ohasis.
Refuse to Attack Catholicism.
Bristol, Tenn, May 23.-The gen.
,ral assembly Of the southern Presby-
erian church refused today to adopt
he majority report of its committee
IN Romanism which suggests a plan
If attack on Catholicism by the Evan
,elical churches Of the United States
Ind Canada and the establishment of
| fund to support converts from among
he priests.
SALEM.
]. !.