Evening star., 1941-03-25
Formal Rites Install
Executive Secretary
OF Church Federation
Dr.. William Burnhort
Sees Democracy Decline
II Christianity Fails

SeSS GeiiioSiuSy CeSline
If Christianity Fails
DR.. William r. Barnhart. former
head of the department of religion
at Hood College, last night was in
stalled as executive secretary of the
Washington Federation of Churches
at exercises at the Calvary Baptist
Church.
1t marked the first time that such
an officer has been conducted into
the church body with formal rites.
A little while before, at the 21St
anniversary dinner of the fedora
ton, the Rev. Oscar BlaCkwelder
pastor of the Lutheran Church of
the Reformation, was elected presi-
dent of the church group. He sue
Ceeds the Rev Edward H. Pruden,
who is pastor of the First Baptist
Church.
Vice Presidents Elected.
Other officers elected include the
following vice presidents: The Rev
John w. RuStin, pastor Of the Mount
Vernon Place Methodist Church:
Thomas r. Wilson of the Columbia
Baptist Association. and the Rev.
Peter Marshall, pastor of the New
York Avenue Presbyterian Church.
The Rev. J. Lloyd Black. pastor of
the Park View Christian Church.
was elected recording secretary and
Norton NJ Little. choir master of the
Mount Pleasant Congregational
Church, treasurer.
In his inaugural address, DR.. Barn
hart posed this paradox growing out
OF the current world situation: I'VE
are all trying to live by borrowing
money to make munitions to kill
ourselves"
IF western civilization should de-
stroy itself, I would offer that for its
epitaph." DR.. Barnhart continued.
H. c. Wells tells the story of a
superman who invents an airplane
and of an ape who gets hold of it.
That is becoming a true story of
modern civilization. We are
getting our centuries all mixed up,
with goth century science and cave
men ethics"
The question today. DR.. Barnhart
asserted, is not "is God on our Side?"
but ARE We on Gods side?"
Must Have Faith"
"In this mass murder today" he
continued, God probably isn't on
either side. We must have faith
that a God of love will be the final
victorious power in the universe"
DR.. Barnhart asserted that Chris
tianity is the foundation of democ-
racy and that the latter cannot exist
once the former is discarded"
In looking toward possibly
brighter future, the newly installed
executive secretary defined a King
dom of God as "a democracy where
every one would have an opportunity
to develop his creative capacities to
the maximum"
Only a democracy can perma-
nently survive" he said. Dictator
ship inevitably leads to abused power
and results in revolt. The only way
we can escape from that vicious
circle of dictatorship-abused power
is by some form of democracy"
In the course of reports in the
business session which preceded the
installation rites. DR.. Barnhart said
that the increasing population of
Washington has created a need for
the federation to appoint a relgi-
Gus education director and an expert
on religion and health.
Father Says Benediction.
DR.. John L. Barnhart of Balti-
more, father of the new executive
secretary, gave the closing prayer
and benediction.
Others who took part in the exer-
cises included Dr. Pruden, the Rev.
j. Hillman Hollister, the Rev. How
ard Stone Anderson, the Rev. G..
Ellis Williams, the Rev. Raphael H
Miller and Dr.. w. L. Darby, the past
executive secretary.
The new officers also became
members of the Board of Directors.
Other members of the board who
were elected last night include:
The Rev. R. L. Gregory, Clarence
Van Denmark, the Rev. E. L. Har-
rison, the Rev G.. o. Bullock, the
Rev. Warren D. Bowman, Charles
e. ReSser, the Rev. Howard Stone
Anderson, B. D. Voshall, the Rev.
Leslie L. Bowers, o. L. Beardsley,
the Rev. Robert J. Plumb, Dudley
N. Carpenter, the Rev William E.
Basom, the Rev. C. H. Wingert. the
Rev. Charles EnderS, J. Edgar Hiatt.
the Rev. Charles B. Foelsch, Hugh
V. Keiser, the Rev. j. Adrian
Pfeiffer, the Rev. S. Gill Spottswood,
the Rev. j. Campbell Beckett, the
Rev. H. w. Burgan, George Ward, |
the Rev. Paul Sperry, the Rev. John |
B. Kelly, William Gait Mish, the |
Rev. j. S. Albertson, Maj. Charles !
H. Dodd, H. Lee Smith, G. L. Nara
more, the Rev. c. c. Hung, the Rev.
A. E. Gingrich, the Rev R. L. Kin
cheloe, the Rev. Esther Boyer. all of
whom are also denominational rep
reSentativeS of the federation.
Other members of the board in
clude the following committee chair
men: Wilbur La Roe, jr.; the Rev.
G. Ellis Williams, the Rev. Horace
Cromer, the Rev o. G. Robinson,
Leslie Gewehr, the Rev. w. Kenneth |
Lyons, Mrs Ellis E. Fuller, Walter
W. Britt, the Rev. Ralph D. Smith. !
the Rev. Frederick B. Harris. the
Rev. H. B. Taylor, Stanley w. Bell, |
the Rev. Paul Schilling, the Rev. F. |
Bland Tucker, the Rev. Fred S. /