Evening star., 1926-05-26
Majority Vote on immersion
Is Compromise - Funda-
mentaIists Not Satisfied.
BOLT is AVOIDED NOW;
FACTION MEETS TONIGHT
Ballot Shows 1000 for Resolution
to 1904 Against-Session
Is Tumultuous.

The Northern Baptist Church today
in tumultous three.hour session al
the Washington Auditorium side.step
ped for the present final decision on
the question OF A definition Of wha,
constitutes member Of the Baptist
Church.
BY large ma aiority the convention
adopted resolution sponsored by A
conciliation group by which belief in
ba aptism by immersion Is declared, but
which does not exclude from the gen
eral conference Of the church those
churches which practice open mem
bership."
The official count on the single bal
lot taken was 2.O20 for the cancellation
resolution and 1854 for the resolution
sponsored by the extreme fundamen-
talist wing.
Meaning OF Decision.
This decision by the general con
ference will mean that delegates 10
the convention must be members OF
the Baptist Church who nave neen
immersed, but leaves to the local Bap
tist churches the right to say what
shall constitute its membership.
The strife within the ranks OF the
church over the question of what Is a
Baptist, involved in the question OF
open membership, arose at the Seattle
convention last year when debate was
continued for days over the seating
of delegates from the Park Avenue
Church of New York, which accepts
into full membership those not I'M
mersed.
The threatened bolt Of the extreme
he
ton as the result Of the decision
of the convention failed to mate.
rialize today. Just what action this
faction will take, however. Is not GER
tain. A meeting to consider the vote
Of the convention has been called at
the Raleigh Hotel this evening by
leaders of the Baptist Bible Union.
which is the active machinery for the
fundamentalists.
Issue Yet to Be Settled.
Leaders of the strictly orthodox
group pointed out. following the morn
ing session, that the matter has not
been definitely settled and that at any
succeeding conference Of the Northern
church the entire question could again
be brought up without any previous
notice. DIR. Frank NJ. Goodchild, con
servative" fundamentalist. stated def
niteIy: THE question is never set.
tied until 1t is settled right. and 1t was
not settled right today, in the belief
of true Baptists."
The extreme fundamentalists take
the decision of the convention as an
acceptance of the policy of open
membership" such as is to be found
in the Park Avenue Baptist of New
York, of which Dr. Harry Emerson
L., m, he nj q ~
the majority of the convention intli-
Gated by their vote that they believed
the action taken to be the only pos
sible one in the interest of harmony
and continued operation of united
church.
Back College Students.
A direct answer was given yester-
day by two officials of the General
Conference to the charge of the ex-
treme fundamentalists. delivered many
times during the sessions of the Bap.
tist Bible Union of North America,
that the colleges and universities Of
the Nation had sold their souls" for
endowments made by Rockefeller and
other philanthropists fostering "ra.
tionalistic and materialistic thinking
A clear.cut declaration for faith in
both the college students and the de-
nominational institutions themselves
was voiced by F. w. Padelford and
William A. Hill Of New York in their
report as executives Of the board Of
education Of the General Conference.
They declared, however, that when a
Baptist college fails to give it's stu.
dents a training that Is. not distinctly
Christian in character 1t no longer
merited support Of the church.
The report, delivered jointly by the
two officers, denies that their Is any
atheism among Baptist college stu.
dents. The board executives declared:
Continued on Page S. Column 2)