USA > New York > A history of the purchase and settlement of western New York : and of the rise, progress and present state of the Presbyterian Church in that section > Part 27
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With a full Faculty, united and able, the affairs of the Seminary were in a prosperous condition, though somewhat embarrassed in consequence of inadequate funds ; but in 1843 a reverse took place by the decease of the venerable and very able Professor, Dr. Richards. This event occurred on the second day of August, of that year. Dr. Richards's health had been declining for two or three years, and his age, with increasing infirmities, admonished him and the friends of the Seminary, that the time of his departure was at hand. Still his mind was vigorous and active, his memory retentive, his temperature cheerful, and for the most part of the time he was able to perform the duties of his Professorship till a short time previous to his death. At the annual meeting of the Board of Commissioners a few days after his decease, the following record was made on their minutes, viz .- " Whereas it has pleased Almighty God, in his sovereign and holy Providence, to remove by death the Rev. James Richards, D.D., Professor of Christian The-
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ology in this Institution ; Resolved, that while, in the removal at this particular juncture of so able, faithful, and successful an instruc- tor of the pupils of this Seminary in revealed truth, we feel and sub- mit to the chastening hand of God upon ourselves, and upon the In- stitution, we do at the same time believe it to be our duty and privilege to remember with gratitude his great goodness in continu- ing the valuable services of the deceased for so great a number of years, and to such an advanced period of life."
At a meeting of the Board of Commissioners, Sept. 13th, 1843, Dr. Halsey tendered his resignation of the office of Professor of Ecclesiastical History and Church Polity, but at the earnest request of the Board, he consented to withdraw his resignation on condi- tion that the Board would consider him legally at liberty to retire from connexion with the Seminary at the end of six months, in case he should then consider it his duty so to do. To this condition the Board gave their consent. At the expiration of six months Dr. Halsey, deeming it his duty so to do, dissolved all his relation to the Seminary, and retired, attended by the hearty good wishes of all its friends, patrons, and pupils.
The Seminary was now left for a short season with but two Professors. The whole course of instruction was, however, re- gularly maintained, though the number of students was somewhat diminished. At the annual meeting of the Board of Commissioners held on the twenty-first day of August, 1844, Rev. Laurens P. Hickok, D.D., was elected Richards Professor of Christian Theolo- gy. At the time of his election he held a similar Professorship in the Theological department of the Western Reserve College, in the State of Ohio. After due deliberation Dr. Hickok signified his acceptance of the call to Auburn, removed his family, and on the eighth day of January, 1845, was, in accordance with the Ordinan- ces of the Institution, solemnly inducted into the station of Pro- fessor of Christian Theology in the Seminary.
In 1847, Dr. Dickinson resigned his office as Professor of Sacred Rhetoric in the Seminary-an office which he had filled with great ability-and retired from Western New York. At the annual meeting of the Board of Commissioners in June of that year, Rev. Samuel M. Hopkins was elected Teacher of Ecclesiastical History, with a view to his being elected Professor of that department at a future period, should the way be prepared. At a subsequent meeting of the Board, Rev. John Few Smith was elected to the Professorship of Sacred Rhetoric and Church Polity, made vacant by the resignation of Dr. Dickinson. Mr. Smith has signi- fied his acceptance of the office, and a day has been assigned for his induction according to the usages of the Seminary.
The permanent and productive funds of the Seminary consist of the appropriations for the support of the several professorships, the avails of which are sacredly pledged to this object. The first
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professorship fully endowed was the Richards Professorship of Christian Theology, founded by Arthur Tappan, Esq., of the city of New York, by a donation of fifteen thousand dollars, as has been already stated.
The amount of the fund belonging to the Taylor Professorship of Biblical Criticism is $16,026 71. This fund was derived from donations or legacies from several individuals. The largest sum received from any one source was from the legacy of Mrs. Fally Taylor of Bloomfield, which amounted to about $3,400.
For the support of the Bellamy and Edwards Professorship of Sacred Rhetoric and Pastoral Theology, there is a fund amounting to $16,333 44, derived from two legacies ; one of Col. Samuel Bel- lamy, late of Auburn, amounting to $7,200 of Auburn Bank stock, the other of Thaddeus Edwards, Esq., of Skeneatoles, amounting to $4,000.
For the support of the Professorship of Ecclesiastical History and Church Polity, there is a fund of $8,612 17, donations from dif- ferent individuals. The largest of these donations were those of Moses Allen, Esq., of the city of New York, and Aristarchus Cham- pion, Esq., of the city of Rochester. Mr. Allen's donation was $2,500. That of Mr. Champion, $2,000.
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CHAPTER XVIII.
The Exscinding Act of 1837. Terms, " Old School" and "New School." Alleged Reasons for the Act Plan of Union, its Origin. State of the Churches in Western New York. Examination of the Plan of Union : Examination of the Reasons al. leged for the Exscinding Act. Manner in which the Synods and Presbyteries were constituted. Charge of " Gross Disorders" examined. " Great errors in Doctrine" charged on the Exscinded Synods, or vague expression. Testimony and Memorial. List of errors. Extracts from the Minutes of the Synod of Geneva, the Synod of Genesee, the Presbytery of Buffalo. Report of the Convention of Auburn.
AN event in the history of the Presbyterian Church in Western New York, of a very noticeable character, and having an impor- tant bearing on its state and circumstances, has as yet been unno- ticed in this history. We refer to the Exscinding Act of the General Assembly of 1837, by which the two Synods in Western New York, together with the Synod of Utica and the Synod of the Western Reserve in the State of Ohio, were declared to be out of the ecclesiastical connexion of the Presbyterian Church. This sur- prising act of the Assembly produced an entire change in the re- lations of the Presbyterian Church in Western New York ; and, in fact, in its results divided the Presbyterian Church in the United States into two distinct ecclesiastical bodies of nearly equal num- bers, each claiming to be " The Presbyterian Church in the United States of America." Various appellations have been made use of to designate these different ecclesiastical organizations and those that adhere to them, some of which are of a highly opprobrious character. In this work we shall employ the term " Old School," to designate that part of the church which is under the care of the Assembly which meets annually, and which sanctions the exscinding act of 1837 ; and the term " New School," to designate the other Assembly, with those who adhere to it. These terms are better known, and, perhaps, are less offensive than any other that have been employed to designate the respective parties ; and it is cer- tainly the intention of the writer not to give needless offence. Though he is identified with one branch of the church, he has feelings of fellowship for the other, and esteems it as an important section of Christ's visible family.
The act of excision which was passed in General Assembly, June 5th, 1837, was couched in the following terms, viz.
"Be it resolved by the General Assembly of the Presbyterian Church in the United States of America,
"1. That in consequence of the abrogation by this Assembly of the Plan of Union in 1801, between it and the General Association
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of Connecticut, as utterly unconstitutional, and therefore null and void from the beginning, the Synods of Utica, Geneva, and Genesee, which were formed and attached to this body under and in execution of said ' Plan of Union.' be, and are hereby declared to be out of the ecclesiastical connexion of the Presbyterian Church of the United States of America ; and that they are not in form, or in fact, an integral portion of said church.
"2. That the solicitude of this Assembly on the whole subject, and its urgency for the immediate decision of it, are greatly increased by reason of the gross disorders which are ascertained to have pre- vailed in those Synods, it being made clear to us, that even the Plan of Union itself was never consistently carried into effect by those professing to act under it.
"3. That the General Assembly has no intention, by these reso- lutions, to affect, in any way, the ministerial standing of any mem- bers of either of said Synods ; nor to disturb the pastoral relation in any church; nor to interfere with the duties or relations of private Christians in their respective congregations ; but only to declare and determine, according to the truth and necessity of the case, and by virtue of the full authority existing in it for that pur- pose, the relation of all said Synods, and all their constituent parts, to this body, and to the Presbyterian Church in the United States.
" 4. That inasmuch as there are reported to be several churches and ministers, if not one or two Presbyteries, now in connexion with one or more of said Synods, which are strictly Presbyterian in doctrine and order, be it, therefore, further resolved, that all such churches and ministers as wish to unite with us, are hereby directed to apply for admission into those Presbyteries belonging to our connexion, which are most convenient to their respective locations ; and that any such Presbytery as aforesaid, being strictly Presbyterian in doctrine and order, and now in connexion with said Synods, as may desire to unite with us, are hereby directed to make application, with a full statement of their cases, to the next General Assembly, which will take proper order thereon."
The vote on the first resolution was taken by yeas and adopted, yeas, 115; nays, 88; non liquet, 1. On the second, third, and fourth resolutions, the yeas were 113, and the nays 60; the com- missioners from the Presbyteries belonging to these Synods being excluded from voting, after the passage of the first resolution. At the time of the passing of the first resolution, the Assembly con- sisted of two hundred and forty-nine members, one having obtained leave of absence, and thirteen from the Western Reserve having been excluded by a previous act of the Assembly, declaring that Synod "to be no longer a part of the Presbyterian Church." It, therefore, appears that, when the question was taken, forty-five members were absent, and that the number voting in favor of the resolution lacked nine of being an actual majority of the whole
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number of members belonging to the Assembly, and was less, by seventeen, than a majority of all who had been acknowledged as members of the Assembly. There is, however, no doubt in the mind of the writer, that had every member of the Assembly been present, and cast his vote, the majority would have been found in favor of the resolution.
It will be seen from these resolutions, that the act of the Assem- ly exscinding these Synods is grounded wholly on the alleged cir- cumstances, that these Synods were formed and attached to the Presbyterian Church " under and in execution of the Plan of Union " of 1801, between the General Assembly and the General Associa- tion of Connecticut, which plan, it is alleged, was unconstitutional, and therefore null and void from the beginning. The disorders charged upon the Synods, in the second resolution, are not stated. as authorizing the act of excision, but only as constituting a motive for immediate action on ground which was warrantable. The members of the Assembly well knew that, if errors in doctrine or irregularities in practice actually existed in any branch of the Presbyterian church, that branch could not be excluded from the church until a fair trial had been had, and the accused party allowed an opportunity for defence. No definite charges had ever been tabled, no witnesses examined, nor any opportunity for defence on the part of the Synods afforded. Much has been said respecting this Plan of Union, and much which, in the estimation of the writer, is wholly irrelevant to the subject for which it is brought. The reader who has attentively perused the preceding pages of this work, will recollect that, in 1801, far the greater part of Western New York was an unbroken wilderness. Only a few churches had been organized. Almost all the inhabited part of the country was missionary ground. The missionaries who visited the country were most of them in the employ of the General Association of Connecticut, or of the General Assembly of the Presbyterian Church. Inhabitants were rapidly pouring into the country from the New England States, particularly from Connecticut ; also from the lower part of the State of New York, from New Jersey, Penn- sylvania, and other States, in which the Presbyterian form of church government prevailed. The General Association of Con- necticut was doing much more than any other ecclesiastical body to furnish the preaching of the gospel for the destitute of Western New York. The Association was in correspondence with the General Assembly in the same manner as at the present period. It was a matter of high importance that no circumstance should arise to produce collision between the two bodies, or mar the fel- lowship between the large and respectable churches which they severally represented. Especially it was important that the few sheep in the wilderness should not stand aloof from each other, or be deprived of the ordinances of Christ's house, on account of small
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differences in sentiment respecting the eternal order of the church. Under these circumstances, and entertaining these views, the Gene- ral Association of Connecticut, at their meeting in June, 1800, ap- pointed a committee to confer with a committee that might be ap- pointed by the General Assembly of the Presbyterian Church, on measures which might promote union among the inhabitants of the new settlements, and the missionaries to those settlements. At the meeting of the General Assembly in May, 1801, the General Association of Connecticut was represented by Rev. Samuel Blatch- ford. It does not appear that either of the other delegates appointed by the Association attended. The subject was laid before the As- sembly, and a committee, consisting of Rev. Doctors Jonathan Edwards, John M'Knight, John Woodhull, Rev. Samuel Blatch- ford, and Mr. Isaac Hutton, was appointed to digest a plan of go- vernment for the churches in the new settlements, agreeably to the proposal of the General Association. This committee reported a plan which was adopted by the Assembly, and unanimously ap- proved and adopted by the General Association, at their meeting in June, and from that period considered as a binding compact be- tween the contracting parties. The Plan is as follows, viz.
" Regulations adopted by the General Assembly of the Presbyterian Church in America, and by the General Association of the State of Connecticut, with a view to prevent alienation, and promote union and harmony in those new settlements which are composed of inhabitants from these bodies.
" 1. It is strictly enjoined on all their missionaries to the new settlements, to endeavor, by all proper means, to promote mutual forbearance and accommodation between those inhabitants of the new settlements who hold the Presbyterian, and those who hold the Congregational form of church government.
"2. If, in the new settlements, any church of the Congregational' order shall settle a minister of the Presbyterian order, that church may, if they choose, still conduct their discipline according to Congregational principles, settling their diffi- culties among themselves, or by a council mutually agreed upon for that purpose ; but, if any difficulty shall exist between the minister and the church or any mem- ber of it, it shall be referred to the Presbytery to which the minister shall belong, provided both parties agree to it ; if not, to a council consisting of an equal num- ber of Presbyterians and Congregationalists, agreed upon by both parties.
"3. If a Presbyterian church shall settle a minister of Congregational princi- ples, that church may still conduct their discipline according to Presbyterian prin- ciples : excepting that if a difficulty arise between him and his church, or any member of it, the cause shall be tried by the Association to which the said minis- ter shall belong, provided both parties agree to it ; otherwise by a council, one half Congregationalists, and the other half Presbyterians, mutually agreed on by the parties.
"4. If any congregation consist partly of those who hold the Congregational form of discipline, and partly of those who hold the Presbyterian form, we recom- mend to both parties, that this be no obstruction to their meeting in one church, and settling a minister ; and that in this case the church choose a standing com- mittee from the communicants of said church, whose business it shall be to call to account every member of the church who shall conduct himself inconsistently with the laws of Christianity, and to give judgment on such conduct ; and, if the person condemned by their judgment be a Presbyterian, he shall have liberty to appeal to the Presbytery : if a Congregationalist, he shall have liberty to appeal to
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WESTERN NEW YORK.
the body of the male communicants of the church ; in the former case, the deter- mination of the Presbytery shall be final, unless. the church consent to a further appeal to the Synod, or to the General Assembly; and in the latter case, if the party condemned shall wish for a trial by a mutual council, the cause shall be re- ferred to such council. And, provided the said Standing Committee shall depute one of themselves to attend the Presbytery, he may have the same rights to sit and act in the Presbytery, as a ruling elder of the Presbyterian Church."
It will be recollected that at this period, not more than five or six churches of the Presbyterian order had been formed in Western New York, not one of which was connected with any Presbytery. The General Assembly, strictly speaking, had no jurisdiction over Western New York, not even over a single church. The same was true with respect to the General Association. The Ontario Association was in existence, with which a few churches were connected ; but most of the churches already formed, were in a state of entire independence, as it regards jurisdiction. Neither of the ecclesiastical bodies had any authority to dictate to the inhabitants of the new settlements, how they should organize their churches and transact discipline. But they were fully competent to instruct the missionaries in their employ ; and the instructions contained in the first article of this Plan of Union exhibit the wisdom and pious feeling existing in the contracting parties, and their earnest desire to promote the prosperity of the churches in the new settlements. That the General Assembly had a perfect right to enter into such a contract, it is thought no one will deny. On the principles of this article the early missionaries acted, much to the advancement of the interests of the cause of religion, in the region. The second and third articles of the Plan are to be considered in the light of advice to ministers and churches under peculiar circumstances, which it was peculiarly suitable that the contracting parties should give. Nor is it conceived that any article in the Constitution of the Presbyterian church forbids a Presbyterian minister to exercise the pastoral office in a church not connected with a Presbytery ; or prohibits a Presbytery from issuing a case of difficulty referred to them, although one of the parties at issue did not belong to the Presbyterian Church. It has been the case in repeated instances in Western New York, that a Presbyterian minister has had the charge of a Congregational church, not connected with a Presbytery, nor is it known that any evil has accrued from the circumstance. The connexion of a Presbyterian minister with a Congregational church has by no means been confined to the exscinded Synods. In the year 1837, eight ministers of the Presbytery of Londonderry, eight of the Presbytery of Newburyport, and four of the Presbytery of Charles- ton Union, are reported as pastors of Congregational churches. With regard to the case of a Congregational minister settled over a Presbyterian church, it is the writer's belief that no such case ever occurred in Western New York. Instances have often oc-
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curred in which ministers, coming from a Congregational body, have settled, as pastors, over a Presbyterian church, but in every case, as far as the writer's knowledge extends, the minister has become connected with the Presbytery, previous to his installation, according to the rules of the Presbyterian Church.
In the fourth article of the Plan of Union, provision is made for the organization of a church, composed partly of Presbyterians and partly of Congregationalists, and for its connexion with a Presbytery. It is presumed, that, should a member of an old school Presbyterian church remove into New England where no Presbyterian church existed, the General Assembly would not consider it improper for him to connect himself with an orthodox Congregational church ; or that it would be a breach of the Con- stitution, for the General Assembly to advise him, under the cir- cumstances, so to connect himself and enjoy the ordinances of Christ's house. We do not then see how it was a violation of the Constitution, for the General Assembly to unite with the Associa- tion of Connecticut, in advising Presbyterians and Congregation- alists, under peculiar circumstances, to unite in the same church organization, in such a manner that each might enjoy the privileges which he felt to be important to his Christian liberty ; nor do we discover anything in the Constitution prohibiting a Presbytery, Synod, or the General Assembly, from hearing and issuing an ap- peal from the sentence of a standing committee in such a church, provided the parties at issue are agreed in the measure. The only item in the Plan of Union on which the charge of unconstitutionality can be at all sustained, is contained in the last sentence of the fourth article, in the words, " And provided the said standing com- mittee of any church shall depute one of themselves to attend the Presbytery, he may have the same right to sit and act in the Presbytery as a ruling elder of the Presbyterian Church." By this clause the union of a church not strictly Presbyterian is tolerated, and a committee-man is received as a ruling elder, circumstances concerning which nothing is said in the Constitution of the Presby- terian Church. In the Form of Government of the Presbyterian Church, Chapter x. Section ii., it is said, " A Presbytery consists of all the ministers, and one ruling elder from each congregation within a certain district." From this it is pleaded that none but minis- ters and ruling elders can be admitted to a seat in the Presbytery. The admission of a committee-man or delegate from a Congrega- tional church which acknowledges the jurisdiction of the Presby- tery, seems to be perfectly analogous to the general course of treatment of Congregationalists, ever since the existence of a Presbyterian church in America. The first Presbytery in America was formed by a union of Presbyterians and Congregationalists on a liberal plan, as it respects the mode of church government. On the same liberal plan, the Presbyterian church practised previous
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to the formation of a General Assembly in 1789, and down to the time of the exscinding act in 1837, the same liberal course was pursued by the General Assembly, with the general approbation of the church.
The form of Government, chap. xii. sec. ii., says, "The General Assembly shall consist of an equal delegation of bishops and elders from each Presbytery," &c., recognising none but clerical and lay commissioners, elected by the Presbyteries under the care of the General Assembly, as being capable of holding a seat in that body. Yet, in 1792, a plan of union and correspondence between the General Assembly and the General Association of Connecticut, by which three members, appointed by the General Association, were to have a seat in the General Assembly, with power to deliberate on such matters as should come before the body, was adopted. In 1794, an alteration in the articles of this union was made, by which the delegates from the General Association were empowered to vote as well as deliberate on all questions coming before the Assem- bly. In 1803, a similar agreement was made with the Convention of the State of Vermont, by which one or two delegates from that body were received as members of the Assembly, to deliberate, act, and vote in all cases as other members; in 1810, two delegates from the General Association of New Hampshire were received with the same privilege of deliberating and voting ; and in 1811, by a similar agreement, two delegates from the General Association of Massachusetts. At subsequent periods, a similar correspondence with other ecclesiastical bodies has been established, except that the right of voting has, by agreement, been abolished. Now, if the letter of the Constitution forbids the admission of a committee-man to a seat in the Presbytery, it equally forbids the admission of a commissioner not chosen by a Presbytery to a seat in General Assembly ; and, if the General Assembly have no constitutional right to receive a delegate from a foreign body to vote in the Gene- ral Assembly, they have no constitutional right to receive him to deliberate and influence the votes of others. If, then, the Plan of Union, which had been acted upon thirty-six years with the general consent of the Presbyterian Church, was unconstitutional, by reason of its authorizing a committee-man to have a seat in the Presbytery, so that it became the duty of the General Assembly to declare it null and void from the beginning ; then it was equally their duty to declare all the acts of the previous Assemblies, by which delegates from Congregational and other foreign ecclesiastical bodies were admitted to seats in the General Assembly, to be from the beginning null and void ; and consistency required that, when the members belonging to the exscinded Synods were ejected from their seats, the delegates from foreign bodies should have been also ejected. It may be said, that the Constitution gives to the General Assembly the power "of corresponding with foreign churches, on such terms 1
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