Ottumwa tri-weekly courier. [volume] (Ottumwa, Iowa) 1903-1916, 1914-10-24
Report of the Seventy Third
Annual Baptist Contention

Washington, Oct. 23.-The Baptists
of Iowa are now holding their
seventy.third annual state meeting
with the First Baptist church of Wash
ington; Rev. d. /. Coon, pastor, this
week. A large crowd of delegates as
sembled for the first meeting on We'd
nesday evening, October 81. After q
song by the choir under the lead of #.
r. Gage, brief prayer was offered by
Rev B. F. Patt of Ottumwa. President
J. R. Vaughan of Waterloo then declar.
ed the convention open for business.
DR.. ]. w. Bailey of Pella, the president
of the state pastors conference presid-
ed over the remainder of the session.
An eloquent sermon was delivered
by Rev. l.. E. Viets of Iowa Falls on
"The Patriotism of God" from Luke
1S:29-3O.
He said the text was used for use
of illustration chiefly. Not jingoism IN
mind Patriotism Is needed In days OF
peace. Evils against which 1t contends
are more stealthy, more persevering.
We had hoped days of war were passed
for good. Arbitration may be desirable
for war is terrible. Yet it is not easy
to see what is to be SO serviceable IN
electrifying the nations patriotism and
communicating to it an ardor which
refuses during many years to dim It's
glory. Certain it is that under the
reign of peace we must in season and
out of season, look to the patriotism
of the country, that it suffer no diminu-
ton. in vigor and earnest work. War
is one of the emergencies which from
time to time arise testing to the high
est pitch the patriotism of the self
conscious resulting in fuller estimate
of the value of the country and insti-
tutions which it is the duty OF patriot
ism to defend
The congregation sang "The Son OF
God goes forth to war" Prof. Ernest D.
Burton of the university of Chicago
and chairman of the board Of education
of the Northern Baptist convention,
gave short statement of the work OF
the education board and introduced
Rev, Frank w. Padelford it's corres-
ponding secretary who spoke on bap-
fists and the Educational Passion. he
suggested that the founding OF Brown
university in 1874 marked the first real
expression of educational interest. III
those days the educational spirit made
slow progress. There were little more
than thirty Baptist ministers IN the
whole country with college training
and only eight who had received the
honorary degree of Doctor of Divinity
At the opening of the new century,
Baptists began to get something OF the
educational passion and new lnstltu-
tions began to spring up. In their ap-
pea, for a regenerate church, they
found themselves opposed by many
ministers and laymen who we're train
ed in the schools, but who has lost all
semblance of spiritual life. They had
the idea that their mission was to
evangelize and not to teach. Coptinu'
ing he said, Eve as Baptists have oeen
constrained by the first two command
ments of the great commission and
have gone everywhere as evangelizers
and baptizers and unfortunately have
neglected the other command of Jesus
which he has made equally as binding
on his people to teach and instruct
those who have accepted the faith.
There is no real or fundamental incom-
patibility between learning and spirit
uality In fact the great spiritually
minded leaders of every generation
nave O0Ou HIGH VI 81 uuAtIOA oHN SNSSs
ton.
On behalf of the executive commit
tee of the state pastors conference,
Rev. Roy F. Barrett of Burlington read
the following recommendation which
was unanimously adopted:
Believing that it is in line with the
organizational trend in the Baptist de-
nomination, that 1t will give ample OPP
portunity for the attainment OF the
ends for which the pastoral conference
was organized, and that 1t will render
possible more efficient service in carry
ing on the whole work, your executive
committee favors and recommends Cd
that the pastoral conference cease to
exist as a separate organization, (2)
That it ask the Iowa Baptist conven-
ton to so receive and relace it to the
work as to make it an integral element
of the convention to be known as the
pastoral commission, (3) and that the
committee on revision Of constitution
be asked to embody this recommends
ton in it's report for adoption by the
convention.
The Thursday morning session of the
convention began promptly at with
devotional service led by Rev. W. l..
Dorgan, Of the First Baptist church,
Waterloo. Prof. J. @. Brown directed
the singing. President J. r. Vaughan
then delivered his annual address.