USA > New York > Rensselaer County > East Greenbush > History of the Reformed church, at East Greenbush, Rensselaer County, New York > Part 10
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As I recall the blessings which God has showered down upon me through this church and her faithful pastors, my heart overflows with gratitude; and I thank the great Head of the Church that I am per- mitted to be present at your centennial jubilee, and personally present to my aged spiritual mother my filial salutations. May grace, mercy and peace be
EDWARD LODEWICK.
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multiplied unto this church from the Triune God, Father, Son and Holy Ghost.
I have been requested by your corresponding secretary to say a few words in reference to "The Reformed Church in its relation to other churches."
I.
In reference to our relation with other churches, it seems to me that the Reformed Church intends to maintain her identity. We as a church are proud of our history. We love our distinctive doctrines, we are strongly attached to our liturgi- cal forms, and to our catechism and our confessions of faith. All these are heirlooms which have come down to us, through many generations, from the fathers and confessors and martyrs of our church. As a church, we consider these things far too precious to be cast away for nought. Hence, when the subject of organic union with the Presbyterian Church was considered at the last meeting of our General Synod, the voice of our church was heard saying, " We have nothing against the Presbyterian Church; she is a grand, good and noble church, our most honored and beloved sister. But the lines are fallen unto us in pleasant places ; we will keep the goodly heritage which God has given us ; we have an honored name in God's Zion, with which we do not wish to part; we have a noble
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work before us which we must do; we will preserve our identity and our individuality."
II.
While the Reformed Church evidently intends to maintain her identity, her relation to other evangeli- cal churches is one of christian fellowship. Chris- tian fellowship includes three things :
(a) Christian love or friendship. We believe the entire Church of Christ to be but one family. Paul speaks of the Church as one family, a part of which is in heaven and a part on earth-"Jesus Christ, of whom the whole family in heaven and earth is named." It is called the Family of God, the Brotherhood of Christ, the Household of Faith. All christians are children of the one Heavenly Father. As members of one family, we love one another. We are "knit together in love."
History shows that the Reformed Church mani- fests this christian love in her friendly relations with other churches. She has been the refuge of many persecuted christians-the Hugenots, Wald- enses and Covenanters. She has extended to them her helping hand, her sympathy and her love.
(b) This fellowship includes communion with. We believe in "the communion of saints." All true christians of every name are members of the one family of God. All are partakers of the same
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spiritual blessings ; all eat of the same spiritual bread and drink at the same spiritual fountain ; all are washed in the same cleansing blood; all have the same love, faith and hope. We are all looking forward to the same eternal home and glory; all are joint heirs with Jesus Christ.
The Reformed Church holds towards other evangelical churches the relation of christian com- munion. They are children of the same Father with us, and with us receive the same blessings.
(c) Fellowship includes friendly and intimate association with. Our Reformed Church has been, and is, in friendly and intimate relations with other evangelical churches. Our Synod sends her frater- nal greetings to sister churches, and in return receives their salutations. Ministers are frequently called from other denominations to minister in our churches, and from our churches to labor in other portions of God's vineyard. Our pastors exchange pulpits with the pastors of other evangelical churches. We dismiss members to other evangeli- cal churches, "affectionately commending them to their christian fellowship and confidence." We also receive members into the communion of our churches, on presenting certificates of membership from sister churches. Every time the Lord's Sup- per is administered in our houses of worship, we invite those present from sister evangelical churches
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to come with us to the table of the Lord. We are in intimate relation with other evangelical churches. We say to our sister churches, " That ye also may have fellowship with us; and truly our fellowship is with the Father, and with his Son Jesus Christ."
III.
The relation of the Reformed Church to other churches is one of christian unity. We believe in the Holy Catholic Church. There is but one true church ; one vine but many branches; one body of Christ but many members, still one church. "There is one body and one spirit, one Lord, one faith, one baptism, one God and Father of all, who is above all, and through all, and in you all." This unity includes unity of doctrine, unity of work, and unity of worship. The Reformed Church is one with other churches in her belief in the fundamental doctrines of the Word of God. With our sister churches, we believe all those doctrines embraced in "The Apostles' Creed." This unity of doctrine, however, leaves room for difference of opinion in reference to the non-fundamental doctrines. We find this difference of opinion existing among our own ministers and our own people. So we may differ in many non-essential things from our sister churches, yet we are one with them in our belief in the great fundamental doctrines of the Word.
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We are one with them in work and worship. Formerly our foreign missionary work was carried on by organizations not connected with our church. At first by the "New York Missionary Society," and afterwards by the "American Board." We have engaged with other churches in " the work of home evangelization." We frequently unite with other churches in worship, lifting our hearts and voices with them in prayer, and putting forth united efforts for the conversion of souls, and for the advancement of the Kingdom of Christ. We are as another has said, " catholic and at the same time loyal, liberal to others and just to ourselves." The relation of the Reformed Church to other churches may be summed up in Christian Fellow- ship and Christian Unity.
The Church Militant is a mighty army, divided into many companies, but each company has its place in the ranks of the Lord's hosts. All are engaged in the same spiritual conflict with the powers of darkness; all are fighting with the same spiritual weapon-the Word of God, which is the sword of the Spirit; all are marching under the same standard-the blood-stained cross of the Re- deemer; all are shouting the same battle-cry- Christ and victory; all are under the guidance of the same mighty Captain-Jesus Christ, the King of kings, and the Lord of hosts; all shall be
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brought safely to the one Church, triumphant in glory.
NOTE .- Edward Lodewick was born in this par- ish in 1846, graduated from our institutions at New Brunswick, N. J., and was licensed to preach by the Classis of Rensselaer in 1872. He has minis- tered to only two congregations-St. Johnsville, N. Y., from 1872 to 1875, and Park Ridge, N. J., since 1875 .- (P. T. P.)
Rev. P. Theo. Pockman spoke on " The Reformed Church and Education " as follows :
DEAR FRIENDS :- It gives me great pleasure to be here and to speak upon the historical position of the Reformed Church on so important a subject as Education.
My being here is a gratification, for here it was my eyes first saw the light of day ; here it was my mind first learned how to reason and judge ; here it was my soul first caught a glimpse of the Saviour, Jesus Christ. There is no other place on earth like this to me. I love these hills; I love the old school house ; I love this church.
There is also a fitness in my being here to repre- sent the educational interests of our beloved church, coming as I do from New Brunswick, N. J., where, in the providence of God I have been called to labor, for there our educational institutions are
P. THEO. POCKMAN.
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mainly located. In that city is situated the chief source of religious instruction for the denomina- tion. That city is the Mecca of the Dutch Church, to which pilgrims go every year to renew their de- votion, and kindle a new zeal for spiritual work.
It does not require much understanding to believe in Jesus Christ to the salvation of the soul, for the Scripture is so plain that even wayfaring men need not err in finding the way of holiness ; but it does require a trained mind to give a faithful interpretation of all parts of the Word of God, and a knowledge of the Truth (which is distinct from inspiration) must one have to unfold revelation to the eternal glory of men. To this end our church has always demanded an educated ministry.
The policy of the Reformed Church in America has been to copy after her old mother in Holland, and place the church and school side by side-aye, more, to place the school under the charge of the church. This idea is well illustrated right here. The school house in the rear of this church stands upon the church property, and the room over the school room is the old Consistory room, and the pastors in earlier years always had a supervisory control over the school.
So eager was the mother church across the water to have her policy adopted in the New World, that she attempted at first to control matters over here,
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and insisted that students for the ministry should receive their education in Holland. Her senti- ments in favor of an educated ministry were heartily endorsed, but her determination to have our young men cross the Atlantic, and, at the ex- pense of time and great means, secure their ordi- nation abroad, was strongly resisted. Only twelve of them underwent the ordeal in one hundred and twelve years (from 1658 to 1770).
The desire to educate our ministers in this coun- try led to strife, and finally to an open rupture with the church in Holland. When King's College (now Columbia) was established, it was understood that the Dutch Church should have a chair of divinity in that institution, but for some reason it never did.
Overtures were received from New Haven to have a chair there, but these were not accepted. There was also a decided effort made to have a chair at Princeton, but prejudices were too strong against it.
It was, however, in connection with this move- ment that Dr. Livingston, our first professor of theology, expressed the wish that all churches of the Reformed faith might be united in one Grand National Body. He believed it practicable, and that it would ultimately be accomplished.
Queens College was founded in 1766 at New Brunswick, N. J. In 1776 the building was burned
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by the British. In 1790 it was rebuilt, and I pre- sume it is this same edifice that still stands in Schureman street, used as a store-house for furniture.
April 27th, 1809, the corner-stone of the present main college building was laid by Rev. Ira Condict D.D., pastor of the First Reformed Church. In 1825 the name was changed to Rutgers College. At least two thousand students have been under her instruction from time to time, and about fifteen hundred have graduated, some of whom have become very distinguished men.
The college is thoroughly equipped in every de- partment, with a high standard of scholarship and an earnest corps of christian professors. Her library contains twenty thousand volumes, and her grammar school is in a very flourishing condition. Three hundred and fifty of her graduates have entered the ministry of the Reformed Church, and seventy-five have become pastors of other churches.
Our Dutch ancestors-members of the Reformed Church-were chiefly instrumental also in founding Union College, at Schenectady, N. Y., in 1795. One hundred and fifty of her graduates have occu- pied the pulpits of our church.
In 1863 the church, realizing the necessity of giving educational facilities to those who were rap- idly peopling the West, established Hope College,
[12]
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with a partially endowed theological department, at Holland, Mich., and at least forty of her graduates have gone into the ministry.
These three colleges, and particularly Rutgers, have acted as feeders to our Theological Seminary, which has now entered upon its one hundred and fourth year of service for the Kingdom of Christ.
Ours is the oldest theological seminary in America, having already celebrated her centennial in 1884. At first there was quite a difference of opinion as to the location of the seminary. Those representing the northern section of the church wanted it at Schenectady, N. Y. Those of the middle and southern sections vascillated between New York City, Hackensack and New Brunswick, N. J. Finally the last-mentioned carried the day, and the meager department which at first required very little room, and for a long time struggled for ex- istence, at last leaped forth a strong and powerful Institution, shedding her benediction upon thous- ands. From her as a fountain-head of purity a stream has gone forth in no way tainted with skepticism or infidelity ; it is not a muddy stream, but clear as the living truth itself as it issued from lips which spake as they were moved by the Holy Ghost. Everywhere her sons teach a pure Gospel, and insist upon the faith once for all delivered unto the saints.
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Eight hundred and seventy-five men, strong in faith and prayer, have gone out from her halls into every part of the globe to bless the homes and soothe the hearts of the children of men. Five hundred and forty of these are still living. There is no seminary in the country better qualified to train young men for the ministry. Her five pro- fessors, halls, and Sage library of forty thousand volumes, furnish everything necessary to make students full, ready, and exact preachers of the Word. She is worthy of your prayers, your gifts, your sons. You may judge her by her fruits. Is the Bible to be revised ? Her professors are repre- sented on the work. Is Arabic to be studied in connection with the Hebrew ? Her youngest pro- fessor prepares the manual. Do you want a man to gather the largest flock of any under-shepherd living? T. DeWitt Talmage, a brother of one of the pastors of this church and a graduate from our school of the prophets, is the man. Does the Con- gregational Church want a professor ? She selects
our Dr. Hartranft. Do the blue Presbyterians want a gospel of white, shining love ? They take our Holmes, and Berry, and Raymond, and Taylor, and Salisbury. Everywhere her students are sought after. There has been no "short cut" into the ministry. A long course of study has been de- manded, and in so far as this has been understood
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by other churches, the fact of one being licensed to preach by our church, has been a guarantee of pro- ficiency and acceptability. So determined is the church in this matter that we cannot think of giving permission even to natives of foreign lands to teach their ignorant and debased fellow-men of the new and living way without a special training. Because of our sturdy adherence to this principle, Dr. Chamberlain, our veteran missionary, is now on his way to India with over $50,000, to endow the first Theological Seminary in all that vast country. In this we rejoice not unwisely. The sons of the East must conquer their own land for Christ.
We all rejoice that the great timbers that were first used a hundred years ago to build the barracks on yonder hill (Greenbush Heights) to shield the soldier, were afterwards used, fifty years ago, to build the Academy across the street, to shield the student. So let us glory also in the fact that in other places where ignorance was once intrenched and men learned war, there a premium is now being put upon education and the sons of men are study- ing peace.
The sword of steel falls useless from a paralyzed hand when the sword of the Spirit is raised aloft ; and to teach our students for the ministry how to wield this latter sword with unrivalled power, has always been the aim of the Reformed Church.
WM. FRED'K ANDERSON.
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REV. W. F. ANDERSON'S ADDRESS.
P. Theo. Pockman was educated for the min- istry at New Brunswick, N. J., graduating from the Theological Seminary in 1878. He has served three congregations-Fairfield, N. J., from 1878 to 1880; Greenville, Jersey City, from 1881 to 1886 ; and the First Reformed Church of New Brunswick, N. J., since January 1st, 1887.
Rev. W. F. Anderson spoke on "The Reformed Church and Missions " somewhat as follows :
The Church founded by Christ is an army for conquest, a vine whose fruit is to hang over the wall, a tree springing from the least of seeds to overshadow and protect the earth. Little by little into the heart of the church comes the love of the Master, which was the love that loved the world. Here and there first went out individual sons into the heathen wildernesses. This border warfare with outlying heathendom is full of divine and startling incident. The biographies of the pioneers of the church are the inspirational chapters of her history. Joshua before Canaan, Paul before Europe. The man called of God, leading the church into some new province of the unconquered Canaan, makes the Gospel still apostolic and still adventurous and missionary. The day for these valiant knights has past ; all the grand feudal king- doms have swung open their gates to the trumpet
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notes of the kingdom. This work has immortalized such names as Talmage and Scudder and Verbeck. Among the tribes of denominationalism our own little church has planted her forces in three east- ern nations. Arcot, India; Amoy, China; Yoko- hama, Japan, are centers of our foreign missionary history. We began early and have maintained every field upon the territory of the enemy.
What every confessor of christianity needs to realize is his partaking of a world-conquering faith ; that he belongs to an army of the living God, which must subdue all Philistine forces until it makes a land of Canaan, a chosen land of the whole world.
By the end of the first century the Church had marched to Rome; in the fourth she had conquered the civilization that then was. After a thousand years of union with the uncivilized, medieval tribes, awakened and justified with the Word of God and by the Spirit, she arose in the fifteenth century for her advanced work. To-day she is upbuilding everywhere. The missionary spirit is strong upon her.
In the train wagon westward, in the ship east- ward she goes, building her schools by the temples, and even yet mingling the blood of her sons in the mob violence of idolatry and hate. But by the power of the flags of christian nations, she is
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carrying the greater and mightier standards of the cross, which will hold back not only the ferocity of superstition, but give freedom from sin and the liberty of the children of God to the people sitting in darkness.
The day is not far distant when the earth shall have outgrown savagedom, when neither wild beast nor uncivilized man can be found. Heathenism will have become a past era-a dead empire, because the knowledge of God shall cover the earth as the waters the sea.
What unselfish living, what cheerful joy, what cosmopolitan spiritedness and awakened and love- tempered zeal this advance of the Church upon the masses in city and country and nations requires of 11s. How we should consecrate ourselves for a life of extending His kingdom, by recalling to-day what has been done for us.
Brethren, up from the past come the names and faces of those who have carried on this local church ; there is here spread out before you a rec- ord of pastors and people, more sacred and more interesting than Israel's Book of Chronicles, and to-day the church, which taught us of Christ, re- ceived us in confession and accepted of our ser- vices, seems to us as only a factor of God raised up, born for our training and advantage in all good- ness and truth. We can say of this church, she
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was our mother, and here as children she taught us of God.
Standing to-day, with all the memories tender and fresh which she holds coming back upon us, we once again hear the laughter and shout of our play days and see the beaming faces of boyhood and girlhood. Once again we are banded in that early life of work and of play, of confession, educa-
tion and worship. There comes over us the tragic sweetness of the past goodness of God. "I will be a God to thee and to thy seed after thee."
The true godly spirit and christian fellowship of this local church is felt and acknowledged by all of us who were permitted to be joined to her. By all she has wrought for us, by all she has taught us, we will not but be true to her mission in us, pass- ing down to others that which we have received from her. Fellow church members, fellow class- mates and school mates, let us see to it that we possess the spirit of our common Master, who said, " After ye are converted, strengthen the brethren." "Go ye into all the world and preach the Gospel to every creature." Fast gathers the night upon ns, in which no man can work. Speak, act, live the message of the Son of God, and when the still hour comes to us, we shall be carried to the high battlements, out from which even now are gazing the cloud of witnesses watching Christ's Church conquering the world.
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GREETINGS.
NOTE .- W. Frederick Anderson, the son of Rev. William Anderson, graduated from Rutgers College in 1875, then taught one year in the Albany High School, after which he entered the Presbyterian Theological Seminary at Princeton, N. J., and finished his course in 1879. His first charge was in the Presbyterian Church at Chatham, N. J. When his father's health failed so that it was im- possible for him to discharge his full duties, Fred- erick was called to be his father's associate in the pastorate at Fordham, where he continues his work, as sole pastor since his father's death, with ever- increasing efficiency and success .- (P. T. P.)
Greetings from neighboring ministers and friends succeeded these addresses.
LETTER FROM REV. IRA VAN ALLEN, OF WYNANTSKILL.
WYNANTSKILL, N. Y., Nov. 15, 1887.
To the Reformed Church at East Greenbush :
The grace of our Lord Jesus Christ be with you. The Re- formed Protestant Dutch Church of Wynantskill sends greet- ings to her elder sister on the occasion of her centennial birthday, joining you in praising Almighty God for the bless- ings of the past, and praying for your continued and increased prosperity.
We are bound together by nearly twenty years of union under the same pastoral care.
I need not refer to the changes the passing years have wrought, nor recall names sacred to memory. In less than another decade we will stand where you do to-day, with one 1
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hundred years of history recorded, and the great untried future before us.
One by one the laborers are called to their reward and others take their places.
Long on earth will men have place, Not much longer, I.
Those who now stand in our churches, in pulpit and in pew, "holding forth the word of life," must soon pass away, but thank God his church shall live while time shall be. Receive this our greeting in the name of Jesus Christ, who is " head over all things to the church, which is His body, the fullness of Him that filleth all in all."
IRA VAN ALLEN,
Pastor of the Reformed Protestant Dutch Church of Wynants- kill.
LETTER FROM REV. D. K. VAN DOREN, OF MIDDLEBURGH, N. Y.
MIDDLEBURGH, N. Y., Nov. 16, 1887. Mr. J. P. Van Ness :
DEAR SIR :- Permit me as an individual and as stated clerk of this Classis to extend my own greeting, and also that of the brethren of the Classis of Schoharie, to your venerable and strong church. But few of our country churches that have been established as long as that of East Greenbush have the numerical strength that it has. In this Classis we have several organizations that have been long established, but with the excep- tion of two, they are in a very weak condition. Schoharie and Middleburgh churches, that are now over one hundred and fifty years of age, are by no means strong, yet these are the only ones of any vigor. Churches of other denominations have, since the organization of our churches, been built, and these have their share of attendants.
I trust East Greenbush will have a happy and successful cen-
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tennial, at which she will be inspired with greater zeal and cour- age for future work. May she ever remain a shining light that shineth more and more, dispelling the moral darkness around her, and may new members flock unto the gates and fill her sacred courts on the holy Sabbath.
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