The Birmingham age-herald., 1917-05-18
 Pastor of North Carolina Church Elected Unani- mously by Rising Vote HOURS OF MEETING
 AT SESSIONS FIXED Report of Executive Com mittee on Foreign and Home Missions Show
 Marked Success
Rx MAMIE BAYS

l seventh general assembly of the Pres 1 byterian church in the United States l on Thursday, was the election of Rev.
 John Miller Wells, D. D., native of Jackson. Miss commissioner from the presbytery of Wilmington synod
 of North Carolina. as moderator. pr. Wells is pastor of the First
 Presbyterian church at Wilmington.
 where he has been pastor for 16 years.
 one of the largest churches in the assembly and one noted especially for
 it's activity in advancing the interest ] of all the causes of the assembly. l The first of the three addresses to be ! delivered to the assembly on the subject I of family religion was delivered Thurs I day evening. The speaker was Rev, Walter L. Lingle, D. D., member of the faculty of Union Theological seminary
 Richmond, Va. What Father Owes l His Family was his theme. He em- phasized especially the importance of companionship between a father and his children, the importance of Christian cx- ample upon the part of a father before 1 his children, the importance of the Chris l ton home which the father should estab- l fish, characterized with blessing at inc I table, the family altar, the teaching of the word of God, so that the spirit of God will abide in the home. He showed also that the father and mother owe it to their children to see that they are edu. cated in Christian schools, and to insist upon their attendance upon worship in the house of God.
 Rev. A. B. Curry, D. D., of Memphis, presided at this session.
 Rev. John s. Foster, D. D., pastor of the First Presbyterian church of this city. will deliver this evening the second in | this series of addresses on family re- liglon.
 A most enjoyable social occasion of the assembly will take place this evening at 6 o'clock at the Tutwiler hotel when there will be a banquet rendered to the alumni of Union Theological seminary, Richmond. Every former student present at the as-
 sembly is most cordially invited by Rev. Walter w. Moore, D. D., president of the seminary, is guests of the institution. Thursday morning, in South High lands Presbyterian church, at Il o'clock, the general assembly con- vened. The sermon of the retiring moderator, Rev. c. w. Grafton, D. D., of the union church, Mississippi, marked the opening of the assembly, The words found in the Epistle to the Hebrews. the second verse of the twelfth chapter, constituted the text of Dr. Grafton's sermon: Looking unto Jesus, the author c'Arch egos') and finisher of our faith.''
 LIFE OF FAITH "The Christian life is one of faith,'
 declared pr. Grafton, in the beginning
 of his sermon.
 Now we are on the march to the
 heavenly home. No one of us has ever
 been there; no one of the race has ever
 returned to tell us about it, but we
 arc on the march and through the passing years we are travelling along. No one in sane experience would
 ever dream of turning back. We are
 sure of our destination and this as surance of the things unseen Is faith.
 'On the question of these two ma tures-human and divine-and their
 relations to each other" he said, the
 most subtle hereses have sprung up, Church councils have convened and condemned them, but they still insist on being heard The divine nature of the Goldman Is essential to all our hopes. It was the altar on which the
 human nature was laid and which gave all merit to the suffering the Goldman
 
 hall, and thence to the cross And when He groaned and suffered and died, it was the divine nature that made those sufferings infinitely meri- torious sufficient to satisfy all the demands of law and justice to sinful men.
 If there should ever spring up in our hearts ell-grounded doubt of the divinity of Jesus Christ. our hopes of salvation would all be shattered. If we were even in heaven and it were possible for us to doubt the divinity of Jesus Christ. our hopes would be covered with a cloud that could never be dispelled. Only the divine can sat isfy the divine"
 Following the sermon. the sacrament of the Lords supper was administered. ELECTION OF MODERATOR At 2:9O o'clock the assembly met for the afternoon session.
 Rev. c. ". Grafton, D. D., retiring mod orator, led the assembly with prayer. The first business was the election Of moderator, and four commissioners were placed in nomination. Only ministers or elders who are members of the assem- bly, then in session can be elected mod orator of the body, and the nominations
 were made in the following order: c. S.
 Mcdowell of Eufaula, nominated Rev
 Thornton Whaling, D. D., president Of
 the Columbia Theological seminary. Co.,
 lumbia, s. C., but member of the pres bytery of north Alabama; Rev. William Dinwiddie, D. D., of Clarksvile, Tenn. nominated Rev. A. B. Curry, D. D., of Memphis, Tenn: Rev. A. A. Wallace Of Mexico, Mo. nominated Rev. w. R. Dobyns, D. D., of St. Joseph, Mo-; Rev., E. R. Leyburn, D. D.. of Durham, N. c., nominated Rev. J. M. Wells, D. D., of Wilmington. N. c.
 motion, the election of Dr. Wells was assembly.
 HISTORIC GAVEL Dr. Grafton requested w. c. Wells, rul- ing elder, and issioner from Jack son, Miss, to escort his brother to the platform. Dr. Grafton greeted him as moderator. and he received from J. w.. Mccain of Waxham, N. C., gavel made from persimmon, hickory and cedar wood, the wood having been cut from trees near the birthplace of Andrew Jackson. On a Silver band was an inscription stating the gavel is gift from the presbytery Of Mecklenburg, N. C.. to the general as- sembly of 1917.
 Dr. Wells received the gavel and ex- pressed his appreciation of the gift and of the high honor the assembly has given him in electing him as moderator. On motion of Rev. T. H. Law, D. D.. Rev. J. D. Sibley. D. D., of Charlotte. N. C., and Rev w. F. Galbraith of Dal- las. Tex. were named as temporary clerks
 On motion, the privilege of the floor h