North Carolina Newspapers

CHARLOTTE, N, C> THUMB B%lgMAY 21, 1931 VOL. MIL MAM NO. 20. t PRESBYTERY AND THE SYNOD Of EAST TENNESSEE BrfkW The Evangelistic Convention: of the Synod of Eapt Tennes see which was held in the Shi loh Presbyterian church, Knox ville, May 1 and 2, was a means of spiritual revival to all who attended it, and we hope to all who shall come under the. influ ence of those who were feftu nate in being present. The con vention was formally opened Friday morning by Dr. Wm. F. Klein, Director of the Divis ion of Evangelism, Board of National Missions, New York City. Devotions were led by Dr. Samuel A Downer, of East Vine Avenue church. Rev. A. H. George, of the Shiloh church, extended welcome to the delegates in behalf of the church. Dr. Klein stated the objects Of this convention were: 1. To be with Christ ourselves. 2. To Win others for Him. He said that in the Presbytery of Le Vere there were only 11 Christians who brought another to Christ during the year. This left -689 who either had nothing to share with others, or had lost theirr influence. The membership of the Presbytery is actually 13 per cent smaller than it Was 5 years ago. If we keep the pace we have set in the last five years it won’t be long before Le Vere Presbytery will go out of existence. The pertinent question is: "Did you bring anyone into the kingdom dur ing the last- 365 days; if not, what did you. do.? Dr. Harvey Klaer, associate director, had charge of the courses in Personal Work. There were three lectures on Person al Work and one on Prayer and Revival. These were "definitely outlined with illustrations from the Bible and from his own rich experience. The courses were compiled by wr. iviaer, and showed what a wonderful grasp he has on the Scriptures. He used a period for Bible stu dy and during that period many references were read by the delegates to show authority for his writings. Over and back of it all was his deep spiritual power which flowed from him to us all and made us feel that truly this man Kvais fpossbsed with God. Dr. Charles E. Tucker, Pres ident of Swift Memorial Col lege, led the devotions in the afternoon. He brought a vital message as did Dr. Downer in the forenoon. Dr. Klein held a very interesting course on the Sunday School and Young Peo ple’s Work. There were fifty questions gathered here and there in similar conventions. These were headed : “Someone Wanted to Know.” The session was conducted in the fortim style, each giving an answer which he thought best fbr a particular problem. In this way it was possible to form a com posite thought of the group. On Friday evening devotions were conducted, by Dr. J. Kelly Giffen, President of Knoxville College. ' His message on “Christ Above All” was grip ping. Dr, Klein delivered a most masterful address on “The Whole Task of the Pres byterian Church.” In a very striking way:he brought to us the variegated activities of the Boards and Divisions of our Church. The whole message was shot through with a challenge to all of us togoback to our fields and carry on in a bigger way than before. The choir of the Shiloh church fur nished music for the evening hour. Dr. Robert £. Gamon, Stated Clerk of Union Presby tery and National Missions Ex ecutive for setioati Presbyte ries in East Tennessee, offered Saturday morning's theme Was: “Stewardship of Life.” Rev. A. H. George led devo tions. The forum method was again used in the discussion of ‘‘Women of the Church,” and ‘>Men of* the" Church,” and “Men's Organisations.” There irere fifty questions on each subject which had been gath ered from over a wide section of the 'country . These questions caused some real soul search ing 'on the part of workers. It safe to say that every Cfoirtit wotfid he greatly bene fifted If it WOiild take all four toestionnaires and discuss them 1th a 'view of carrying the questions into action. At each session every person in the audience filled out a card ivfth a KSt of names of individ uals for whom special prayers were1 offered. Tne cards were laid on the communion table, 4 rid the petition Was . sent up by Dr. Klein. More than three hundred names were placed on the table. All of ub'pledged to bray daily for these unsaved Souls until thtey WeTe brought to Christ Or. Klein closed the meeting Witfi a passionate appeal to the ministers to fight. In his appeal to the mert of the Synod he Said: “Why dpn’t you fight, minister, why don’t you fight !” fh*. C. E. Tucker offered the Closing ptayer. Weildft that meeting feeling liFiL ed than caine in at the front floor. We are going to get them arid hdia them by giving them Something worthwhile to hold on to. Tire vicious custom of dropping members in order to escape paying for them is not going to be tolerated. We are going to be honest with our selves. The spirit of apathy and indifference that has deadeneci us has been thrown off and we are being gripped by a strong and vigorous spirit, with a fixed and persistent purpose to fight and to fight! WOULD REVISE BOOK of DISCIPLINE Dr, Lewis Seymour Mudge, Stated Clerk* of Philadelphia, Pa., announces in the official Blue Book that lie will suggest to the Presbyterian General Assembly at Pittsburgh, Pa„ May 28-hine 8, that he be 'au thorised to submit to the Pres byteries for their careful stu dy a proposed hew draft of the Book Of Discipline and that they file with the Stated Clerk not later than March 1, 1932, the results of their study or tne draft, so that the proposed re vision 'may be presented to the General Assembly in 1932. The 'Book of Discipline has not been changed in its fundamental principles sinoe the organiza tion of the Assembly in 1789. It underwent an important re vision in 1884. “Almost fifty years have now elapsed," says Dr. Mudgie, “since the important revision of 1884. During this time the growth of the Church - in size, influence -and power has neces sitated many alterations land additions to the various sec tions of the Book of Discipline. The result of such changes at intervals over a tong period of time has inevitably meant a lack of unity, clearness and logical consistency to many parts ofthe ‘Book. While As sembly deliverances from time to time have done* much to ex piain some of these fliiriifcations, nevertheless it has become in creasingly clear that certain 1 -ftJinj r 1 'p"wif-1,!j ~r * (Continued on page 8) HOOVER URGES BET TER HOMES FOR NEGROES Washington -CNS)- Presi dent Hoover directed Friday to the Committee on Negro Hous ing headed by Miss Nannie H. Burroughs, President of the Rational Training School for Women and Girls, a message Encouraging t&em to seek high er living standards among the colored people of the Nation. The Chief Executive later re ceived the Committee Of seven teen prominent Negroes at the White House. ; The President’s message, read by Robert P. .Lamont, Sec retary of Commerce, as the Committee opened its organiza tion meeting in the Commerce department Building, urged he need of improving the de sign, construction and condi tions of ownership of Negro housing. It appealed for a pro gram of self-help and govern ment co-operation looking to jiigher standards of sanitation, Convenience and wholesome ness. r I The President said: I “Prompted by a fine spirit of public service, you have assem bled here today to consider what program may be devised to improve conditions of hous ing for our colored citizens. This committee is one of many Special committees, each of tvbieh is charged with some im portant phase of the broad problem of home building and home ownership. Since the health and welfare of all citi kens, and particularly of chil vityHy affected by life, your committee has un selfishly undertaken to give tareful consideration to urgent questions which affect directly the welfare of more than 10,000,000 persons. “Your studies will lead you into the consideration of prob lems of the design, construc tion and financing of houses, of Conditions of ownership and tenancy, of remodelling, equip ping and furnishing of homes in city and country. Thought ful consideration is needed in order to determine what can be accomplished by the Negroes themselves in the improvement iof conditions of housing and home life and* of what can be done by public au thorities or other agencies to aid them in bringing housing conditions to higher standards of sanitation and wnoiesome ness. Wherever conditions are found to be below a reasonable standard the problem is one of determining what next steps can be best taken in improving the conditions and how infor mation and service can be ^mo bilized to prevent future re currence of conditions of hous ing that may impair health or character. ""“Many of you will doubtless be asked to help in the work of other committees, but I feel that a judicious consideration of the special problems as signed to this committee may lead to a service of unusual value to your country. Self-help is a primary principle of pro gress, but self-help involves 'vise stimulation and thought ful leadership. It is my hope that you, who are among the acknowledged leaders of your race, may find in the work of this committee an opportunity to Carry the study of this sub ject farther than it has been carried before, and that your recommendations may help to co-ordinate and direct the forc es which will lead to a more rapid solution of the important problems of housing with which you are concerned.” The committee is one of about thirty committees of the Pres ident’s Conference on Home Building and Home Ownership, Secretary Lamont said in ad •g the group. Each com Afi charged with making of some part of the problem in order to a report to the general ence next fall, he added, ithout a committee such as youts there is the obvious possibility that some significant phases of the problems of Ne gro housing might fall to re ceive the attention they de servOpMtr Lamont said. ( The committee members lat er organized to consider in de tail,urban and rural housing <md ,4ther factors in the situa tion of Negro communities. HOW unemployment AFFECTS NEGROES Extracts from Bulletin Pub lished % Hie National Urban !' ' k I i League “...I....In every instance where figures, are available, the per centage of Negroes among the inGRjipye jftpulfition lyed is higher than their rant4< sometimes running as highlts four times the propor tionate amount, and in some instances, five and six times as high-—” “Needless to say that wages have been cut-races compet ing with each other in order to gain favor with employers. Thorp are casek of whites un derbidding Negroes, as well as egrbes under-bidding whites, are instances of one doing the work of two tvhitfs at the wage of one..” " __Replies from these soprees (State government offi cials) and from others who are in ^ position to influence the emfilpyment of workers on pub lic instruction, Indicate that limited degree Ne -usedin public, work created for the purpose of making jobs for unemployed people.” “The condition of astounding unemployment disclosed in the various city reports—seven per cent, of the population consti tuting 25 per cent of the unem ployed, 9 per cent of the pop ulation constituting 66 per cent of the unemployed; or 4 per cent of the population constitut ing 25 per cent of the relief cases, or 18 per cent of the pop ulation constituting 92 per cent of the relief cases—'is an eco nomic problem that far trans cends racial significance. It is usually assumed that economic systems make no deference to race. Academically this as sumption holds, but practical cognizance should be taken of a situation which is degrading and pauperizing so large a part of the nation’s population-. The factor of race presents an economic question which must find place in programs of reg ularization and relief.- No pro gram to prevent or limit unem ployment yet announced has recognized the problem pre sented by hordes of unemployed Negroes whose low standards of living should be the concern of business as well as of social workers.” The' bulletin reaches the fol lowing conclusions: “That measures for relief are confined almost entirely to charity; “That Negroes get more re lief but fewer jobs than others from agencies established to aid the unemployed; “That Negroes continue, and unless provision is made to the contrary, will continue to con tribute more than their share of ^the burden of relief agen cies;^ “That the ecenomic structure of the entire Negro race is in an alarming state of disrepair, with dire effect upon business and professional interests de pendent upon the patronage of Negro wage-earners; and ‘That restlessness is evident from one end of the country to the other; for unquestionably Negroes have lost jobs to which they wrill not return even when normal times come again.” h - , -—. -ij.' n r ... i WHITE RIVER PRESBYTE RY, ARKANSAS The White River Presbytery met with Harris chapel at Brinkley, Ark., on Wednesday, April g, 1931, 7:30 P. M., and was opened with a sermon by the Moderator, Rev. ' C. N. Shropshire; after which the Presbytery was constituted with prayer by Rev. G. E. Cae sar. Then the roll was called and a quorum being present, the Presbytery proceeded in the election of officers. Rev. R. J. Christmas, of Forrest City, Ark., was elected Moderator, and RevB. T. C. Boyd and C. N. Shropshire, of Pine Bluff and Texarkana, respectively, were elected Temporary and Assist ant Temporary Clerks. The docket of the Presbytery was read and approved. Also, the minutes of the Presbytery of 1929 were read by the Stat ed Clerk, Rev. ,C. S, Mebane, Hot Springs, Anc. ..0. The Rev. N. ' B. ; Bynum, Brinkley, Ark., chairman of the Local Committee on Arrange ments. made a report on behalf of the committee. The Moderator then an nounced that Elder A. B. Knight would conduct the devotional service on Thursday at 9 A. M._ The Presbytery adjourned to meet at 9:00 A. M., Thursday, and was closed with prayer by the Moderator. Thursday* April 0, at 9 :00 A. M«, the Pre&bytery met and the first half hour was devoted to prayer service. Then the Pres bytery was opened with prayer by Rev T. B. Hargrave!. The minutes of the last night’s session were read and approved. Then the roll was called; after which the Modera tor -announced the Standing The reports from the church es were called for. The reports were made by thd delegates for the various churches, and were discussed at length by the other members of the Presby tery. The reports showed gains in most of the churches. A call from Camden Second, Camden, Ark., was presented to the Presbytery, asking for the pastoral service ot Rev. W. &. Houston, D. D., Springfield, Mo. The call was approved sand arrangements were made for his installation. At this juncture, the Rev. T. B. Hargrave, Synodical. Evan gelist, preached a soul-stirring sermon to the Presbytery and visitors A similar sermon was preached by him each day at 11:30 while the Presbytery was in session, which was very timely and edifying. The Presbytery adjourned after the sermon, with prayer and benediction, to meet at 2 P. M. Thursday, April 9, 2 P. M. The Presbytery met and was constituted with prayer. The reports of the chairmen of the committees on . the different Boards were called for. The re ports were made by the said chairmen and were discussed generally. ,?i The reports of the commis sioners to the last. General As sembly were called for. Rev* S. J. Grier being-the .commission er to the last General Assem bly, made a very elaborate re port, which showed that he was on the alert at the Assembly. A vote of thanks was extended him for such an instructive re port. Elder J. H. Thompson, lay commissioner, was not pres ent. to make his report because of sickness. Most of the afternoon was occupied in hearing the reports of chairmen on the Boards. The discussions were interest ing* after which the Presbyte ry adjourned with prayer. Popular Meeting Thursday Night.; The popular meeting was held on the above; date and is held annually at the meeting of the Presbytery. ’ At this meeting some important sub ..- ‘v. ... 1 ' " I'l.ll I jects pertaining to the Presby terian Church are discussed by members of the Presytery who may be appointed by the Mod erator. Hence, the following Subjects were discussed: The Board of National Missions— Rev, W. E. Houston; Christian Education—Rev. G. E. Caesar; Evangelism—Rev. S. J. Grier. The speakers endeavored to Show the importance of these Subjects from many different angles. The meeting was held in the Baptist church, and a large and appreciative audi ence was present. The choir rendered inspiring music to the delight of an who were pres ent. We were pleased to have the white minister and a law yer of the Presbyterian Church, U. S., with us. They expressed themselves in glow ing terms respecting the pro gram and the subjects which Were discussed, and extended a hearty welcome to the Presby tery on behalf of the citizens bf the town. Friday, April 10, 0 A. M, j The Presbytery met and de voted, the first half hour to de votional , service, conducted by Rev. C. N. Shropshire; after Which, the .Presbytery was galled to order by the Modera tor, and was constituted with praye^. Then the regular order f)f tiie docket was announced, i The. report on Vacancies and jSupply, was called for and made Jby the chairman, Rev. T. C. Boyd. , Rev. G, E. Caesar was elect fed Stated Clerk of the Presby tery, succeeding the Rev. C. S. Mebane, D D., who had been Stated, Clerk many years, and is “Stated Clerk Emeritus.” The Presbytery adjourned with prayer. „ M i Friday, April 10, 2 P.M. The Presbytery met on the iwith; prayer. The election of commission ers to the General Assembly, which will meet in Pittsburgh, Pa., May 28, 1931, was called for. Rev. R. J. Christmas and Rev. H. M. Stinson, D. D, were elected principal and alternate commissioners, respectively. Elders Israel Harrison ana a. B. Knight were elected princi pal and alternate lay commis sioners, respectively; after which the Presbytery completed the docket. The Presbyterial Missionary Society made its report. All the officers of last year we^e re elected. The Presbytery ad adjourned with prayer. Friday, April 10, 7:30 P. M. The Presbyterial Missionary Society rendered the annual^ program, which always adds * spice to the occasion. Mrs B. Williams, Cotton Plant, presid ed, assisted by Mrs. A. C. Alex ander, Little Rock. The pro gram measured up to the stand ard of the former programs and the women were congratulated for the zeal with which thev carried it out, and for the suc cess they fachieveft, Rev. and Mrs. N. B. Bynum are good mixers on the field and have the co-operation of all denominations. They enter tained the Presbytery royally, beyond expectation. May the Lord continue to bless them and the good people of Brink ley. Rev. T. B. Hargrave made an eloquent address, which was a part of the program and which added Imuch inspiration. As the women’s night is always the “banner night,” the audi ence was larger Friday night than the night before—Thurs day night. After the > program Resolu tions of Thanks were read. Then the Presbytery adjourned with prayer to meet with West ihinster church, Cotton Plant, Ark., the second Wednesday of April, 1932. Refreshments were served wh|» f$ade the guests feel that it, was good to be pres ent. G. E. CAESAR. Stated Clerk.