Evening star. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1854-1972, 1912-05-23
.SPURN CHURCH WAR
Presbyterians Decline to AS
sail Catholics of Nation.
Committee URGES ACTION
Minority Report, However, Holds
Proposed Attack Inadvisable.
SINN0TT CASE Is ENDED
Review Not Granted, But Censure
Of Assembly Is Declared
Unwise.
Committee URGES ACTION
SINN0TT CASE Is ENDED

| BRISTOL, Tenn, May 23.-The Cen
eral Assembly of the Presbyterian
Church In the United States. in session
here today received an rejected
majority report from its committee
on Romanism. urging that the church
start q movement among the evan
gelical churches Of Jesus Christ IN
the United States and Canada, to
throw down the gantlet to the Ro-
man Catholic Church in America. to
undertake a comprehensive plan of
evangelizing Romanists and to estab-
lish q foundation for the support Of
converts from among the priests
monks and nuns until they are fully
instructed and enabled to learn gain
full occupations.
Judge Allen G. Hall, q noted lawyer
Of Nashville, submitted a minority re-
port from the Romanism committee,
urging against any such campaign and
declaring that 1t would precipitate the
church into political entanglements.
The committee was appointed on a
| resolution at Louisville last year, to
| report some practical method of ad-
vising our whole people concerning the
dangers involved in the pernicious
activity Of that powerful politico-re-
Roman Catholic Church"
Cause Of Opposition.
Judge Hall said that any method to
execute the program would be i'm
practicable, divert the church from its
proper mission of preaching the Cos
pei and precipitate it into political
controversies.
The majority report was submitted by
Thomas X. Johnson, D. D., and was
prepared after exhaustive inquiry and re-
search.
The majority report said Protestants
have been too much afraid Of dealing un-
charitably with the Catholics and urged
an aggressive. nationwide campaign
against the Church Of Rome. 1.-THE way
make Romanists evangelical" said the
committee.
The assembly took steps that will lead
to uniform distribution of the funds for
widows Of ministers and that will ulti-
mately lead to the abolition of the de-
pendent colony at Fredericksburg, Va,
| where the church has a large school.
sinott Case Acted On.
Final disposition was made Of the noted
case OF DR.. w. l. Sinnott against the
Presbytery Of North Alabama, involving
the right OF q lower court Of the church
| to 1ndorse prohibition. DR.. Sinnott COM
planned against his presbytery, and his
action, In the midst Of a fierce state wide
prohibition fight In Alabama. attracted
almost national attention. The assembly
refused to hear his appeal, and he was
| harshly censored. This year he made a
| fight to have the case reopened and his
condemnation removed.
The assembly held that the case had
been finally adjudicated and was not
| renewable. However. q resolution giving
the opinion that the assembly's censure
on him was unwise and hasty was passed
and the case goes into history. The as
| sembly then heard q resolution to de-
clare 1t the policy of the church that no
proposed law can be approved by court
of the church, but It was referred to a
committee.
TO Join Federated Council.
The assembly today voted to reunite
| itself with the Federated Council Of the
Churches Of Christ Last year 1t left the
council on the ground that 1t was doing
| things to interfere with the churchs idea
| Of the relation Of church and sSate.
DE-. w. 8. Jacobs was elected to repre-
sent the church on the councils executive