AND YE SHALL KNOW THE TRUTH. AND THE TRUTH SHALL,
====ssse=
>BER 6, 1932.
VOL. LIIL
THE AFRO' AMERICAN PRESBYTERIAN
COUNCIL
CONVENED IN ITS 38TH ANNUAL SESSION WITH THE
JETHRO MEMORIAL CHURCH, ATLANTIC CITY,
N. J„ OCTOBER 6-9, INCLUSIVE
Rev. Thomas J. B. Harris, D. D., Executive Secretary
Stormy weather ushered in
the opening of the 38th annual
session of the Afro-American
Presbyterian Council. Fortu
nately for the ministers and del
egates, clear, pleasant condi
tions prevailed after the first
day. The general opinion of all
present was that Atlantic City
deserves the medal for the very
fine way Jethro entertained us.
There being no pastor in charge
for a period of one year, and
the church having had many
setbacks and discouragements,
it verged on to the miraculous
the way they marshalled their
resources and met the condi
tion, willingly and successfully
The church was happy in its
choice of persons to act as lead
ers and chairmen of the various
committees when it picked
Mrs. M. A. Ridley, proprietor
of the Hotel Ridley, as chairla
dy of the Dining Room Com
mittee; Mrs. Mary 0. Griggs,
Housing; Charles T.. GailDard,
Reception; and 0, B. Burney,
Finance. The entire force was
directed by Rev. C. M. Cain,
Executive Secretary of the Y.
M. C. A. Too much praise can
not be given to the entire com
mittee and members of the
church for this fine piece of
work.
The Council was called to or
der at 3:30 P. M. after a thirty
minute period of devotions, led
by the Rev. Edward Robinson,
pastor of Brooks Chapel, Hil
bum, N. T. The organization of
the Council resulted in the fol
lowing persons being chosen as
officers: Rev. C. B. Allen, D. D.,
Pittsburgh, Pa., Pijesident;
Rev. George C. Ashton, Prince
ton, N. J., Vice-President; Mrs.
Gabrielle B. Drake, Temporary
Secretary; Revs. Wm. Lloyd
Imes, D. D., and John T. Colbert
D. D., and Mrs. Florence E. Je
rome were chosen members of
the Executive Committee.
These officers were inducted
into their tasks at the hands
of the (retiring President, the
Rev. Richmond A. Fairley. The
roll of the churches was called
and twenty-four responded
through their ministers or del
egates. The business of organ
ization being finished, Council
adjourned for dinner.
me evening session «aa as
principal features the sermon
of the retiring President, Rev.
Richmond A. Fairley, and the
welcome addresses. Rev. Fair
ley spoke from the subject,
“The Knowledge of the Lord
Jesus.” The sermon was
thoughtful, forceful and help
ful. Addresses of welcome
were made by the following:
for the church, Elders Alonzo
Ridley and Oscar J. Burney;
for the city, Mr. Richard Allen,
representing the mayor; for
the Presbytery, Rev. H. G.
Gaunt, D. D., pastor of Olivet
Presbyterian churphy Atlantic
City, N. J. Response for the
Council was made by Rev. Au
gustus E. Bennett, Rochester,
N. Y.
Friday morning after a sea
son of devotion led by the Rev.
Geo. C. Ashton, Council divid
ed itself into groups for study.
There were four divisions for
study, viz: Christian Educa
tion, Social Service, Men’s Work
and Stewardship. Other leaders
being absent, Dr. Imes and Rev.
Bennett led the entire assembly
in two groups. The study was
most helpful and many timely
suggestions and ~ new ideas
were brought forth.
Dr. John W. Lee, pastor of
Faith church, Germar/tdwn,
Pa., next presented his report
on Church Extension. Dr. Lee
was authorized to co-operate
with the local church in helping
it to clear away its difficulties
and secure a permanent pastor.
Dr. L. B. Ellerson and Rev. J.
Vance Mciver with Dr. Lee were
made a special committee for
this purpose. Council at this
point adjourned for lunch.
The afternoon session was
given over during the first pe
riod to the work of the wom
en. Mrs. Florence E. Mabry, of
Jersey City, was chairlady. The
first part of their meeting was
given to devotions, led by Mrs.
Nellie G. Marshall, of New
York City. The reports from
the churches then followed.
These reports showed that the
churches while suffering im
measurably from the stress of
the times, nevertheless are car
rying on.
The Committee on the State
cf the Country, Dr. L. B. El
lerson, Chairman, next fol
lowed with its report. Dr.
Ellerson drafted into ser
vice other members of the
Council. The other members be
ing absent, the Rev. Richmond
A. Fairley spoke on the Eco
nomic Outlook of the Country.
Dr. Wm. Lloyd Imes, in his us
ual informative and pleasing
way, spoke on the Spiritual
Outlook of the Country. Dr. El
lerson summed up the whole
matter and thus concluded his
report.
Council had a real treat when
the ministers and delegates as-,
seinbJed fdFtk! eVenffifr meet
ing. When Dr. John T. Colbert
finished his report on statistics,
the Rev. W. Irvin Underhill, Jr.,
Missionary to Cameroun, West
Africa, brought us a soul-thrill
ing message from his field of
labor. He made us feel the true
worth of Christian missions in
’ foreign lands. Brother Under
hill has wrought well in his
large field in a short time and
deserves the support of every
church in his work.
While we were still upon this
mount of inspiration the Rev.
Lewis S. Mudge, D. D., LL. D.,
Stated Clerk of the General As
sembly, spoke on “Goodness,
Beauty and Love as Vital Ele
ments in Christian Living.”
The annual banquet which
followed in the beautifully dec
rated dining hall downstairs
was an enjoyable affair. The
Rev. Thomas H. Amos, D. D.,
pastor of Calvary church, As
bury Park, N. J., presided,
holding mirth in one hand and
dignity in the other. Impromp
tu speeches were made by many
in the assembly. The hour of
twelve had struck when we
scattered for our several lodg
ing places with smiles on our
faces because of some of the
witticisms, fun and jokes in
dulged in by some of the speak
ers.
When Council' assembled on
Saturday morning thirty min
utes were spent seeking God’s
blessing and strength for the
day. We were led in this by the
Rev. Leslie A. Taylor, pastor of
Bethel Chapel, Plainfield, N. J.
The principal work of the
morning concerned itself with
the reports of the various com
mittees.
The afternoon was given to
sight-seeing, when the dele
gates went to the beautiful
cottage of Mrs. Wright in
Pleasantville, N. J., and enjoyed
tea.
Sunday at 11 o’clock a ser
vice of worship was held. The
speaker of the morning was the
President of the Council, Rev.
C. B. Allen, D. D., of Pitts
burgh, Pa. The minister used
as a subject, “The Everlasting
Word.” Dr. Allen was assisted
in this service by Rev. Henry
W.Campbell and Rev. J. Vance
Mclver.
In the afternoon the com
mittee on Women’s Work, Mrs.
F. E. Mabry, ch&irlady, pre
sented a pageant, “The Black
Man a Pioneer.”
Sunday evening at 8 o’clock
saw the final session. The report
on Necrology was read by the
Executive Secretary, Dr. Har
ris. Dr. Charles S. Freeman
made the . memorial address.
Rev. Mclver offered the memo
rial prayer. The Rev. Wm. F.
Kennedy, of Toledo, Ohio, and
the Rev. Beverly M. Ward, D.
D., of Germantown, Pa., depart
ed this life since oiur last meet
ing.
The service of communion fol
lowed the report. Rev. E. A.
Mitchell, pastor of the First Af
rican church, of Philadephia,
Pa., presided, and was assisted
by the Rev. Mclver and Rev.
Geo. C. Ashton. The elements
were distributed by Elders Ma
bry, of Jersey City, N. J., Ste
vens, of Rochester, N. Y., Haw
kins, of West Chester, Pa., and
Foote, of Philadelphia.
Council adjourned to meet
with the Bidwell Street church,
Pittsburgh, Pa., October, 1933.
Visitors at the Council ses
sion were Dr. Herman C. We
ber, director of the Every
Member Canvass; the Rev. J. D.
Pettigrew, of the Congrega
tional church; Rev. Jackson,
pastor of St. James A. M. E.
church; Rev. Spaulding of the
A. M. E. Zion church; Lawyer
Hargroves of Jersey City; Rev.
Thomas B. Hargrave, Evange
list, of Little Rock, Ark.; and
Rev. S. H. Giles, of Baltimore.
The music for the Council wa*S
furnished by the Jethro choir,
under the direction of Mrs. M.
A. Cyrus. The pianist for the
who was chosen by the body
during its organization.
We had begun to think that
the _ Rev. and Mrs. Milton
Thompson, of St. Louis, Mo.,
would not make this meeting.
It proved to be only an exercise
of the imagination, for “Verily
I say unto you,” while we were
at dinner on Friday they ar
rived, having made severfel
stops along the way, the last
one to pick up an old friend
named Henry W. Campbell. We
were exceedingly glad to see
them. St. Louis agrees with
them
WILSON CHAPEL CHURCH,
FLORAL COLLEGE, N. C.
By Mary C. Johnson
Sunday morning, October 2,
we had a glorious day. Our
pastor, Rev. R. C. Scriven,
preached a very impressive ser
mon from John 14:3. The words
of the text were interesting to
each one of the congregation.
Sabbath school was conduct
ed at 10:30 A. M. Our new su
perintendent, Mr. Colon Mc
Neill, is certainly on the job.
The Sabbath school has been
rallying for a month. The class
raising the most money by the
end of the month will receive a
prize. The Senior class has
raised the most so far.
At 4 P. M. we were favored
with a sermon by the pastor of
Island Grove Baptist church,
Rev. C. D. Lipscomb. This ser
mon was much enjoyed by all.
Island Grove choir rendered the
music. This was rally day at
Wilson Chapel and our efforts
were successful.
Our Bible class and prayer
meeting on Tuesday nights, un
der the direction of our pastor,
are doing fine. The interest in
the meeting and the attendance
are unusual.
The young people of Wilson
Chapel are deeply interested in
their various organizations and
we have reasons for believing
that great good may be expect
ed from them.
ANECDOTES OF DR*
FRANCIS L. PATTON
are
Dr.
patriarch
ism, old
the
sembly,
of
ing in
year
Hill,
Princeton
periences
dent/
a perm
of some
es ip
him. As
collection
Brooks,
Virginia,
byterian
calls the
One of
Princetoi
Patton’s
cient Nej
barrow"
sold vi
a they
brary
recitati
in Pri:
been boi
had es
to Pri
captu
of bei;
of the
him f:
enjoy
(in 1932),
the
Landy Patton,
world Presbyterian
" ~g Moderator of
General As
former President
University, is liv
nt in his 90th
at Carberry
ick, Bermuda,
ni, recalling ex
der him as Presi
king to collect for
record anecdotes
choice experienc
student life with
nucleus for such a
Dr. William E.
Morganton, West
member of the Pres
neral Council, re*
'oHowing:
the institutions of
in the days of Dr.
residency was an an*
who, using a wheel
his headquarters,
us edibles to the boys
ssed through the Li
h on their way to
It was a tradition
ton that Jimmy had
a slave in the South,
and made his way
ton, where he had been
and was on the point
returned when some
iys bought him and set
For many years he
the sole privilege of
havingla stand on the campus,
a privi ige which perished with
his ppj sing. One day his stock
in trac > would be peanuts, the
next dt y apples, and so on.
On t e day in question it was
peanut i ami as the crowd went
to P|ptonis class in ethics
eyer^Mie provided himself with
a^gpfl'he lecture was a bit
dry, as usual, and more atten
tion was being paid to the pea
nuts than to the propositions
advanced, when the voice of
the lecturer suddenly ceased.
Then he was speaking again:
“Young gentlemen, I had
hoped before I reached this
point in the lecture that the
visible supply of peanuts would
be exhausted. I realize that
these lectures to which you are
compelled to listen put a great
strain upon you, and I have no
desire to interfere with your
natural right to seek that re
freshment which will enable
you to bear up under that
strain. But I am a somewhat
nervous man, and I must admit
that the constant popping of
peanuts is somewhat disturb
ing to me. I wish that in the
future you would be willing to
substitute some less audible
means of refreshment, say
spongecake.”
ur. jrattuii uscu tu iciotc who
story about himself:
In the days of the famous
controversy that raged about
the licensing of the Princeton
Inn, when The New York
Voice, then the organ of the
Prohibition party, was attack
ing every one in Princeton as
being thoroughly wet, he went
up to a Scotch community in
central New. York to preach.
At the end of the sermon the
elders came up to him, among
them one who greeted him in
broader Scotch than the others
with: “Dr. Patton, I’m hearing
you’re having trouble down in
the college.”
“Now,” said Dr. Patton, “you
must not pay too much atten
tion to those stories that The
Voice is publishing. There is
not nearly so much drinking in
Princeton as they would have
you believe.”
“Drinking, is it,” answered
the Scotchman; “it’s not drink
ing that’s worrying me. But,
man, Fm hearing that some of
your men are reading their
prayers!” .
When Princeton Theological
Seminary celebrated its Cen
tennial, Patton was at his best.
There were three dayB of it,
with distinguished * visitors 1
from every institution of Pro- ;
testaat Theology in the West
ern world. And there were i
many great speeches made,
most of which have been for
gotten. Patton opened up the
celebration with a sermon that ,
surveyed the whole field of the
ological thought and left the|
stenographers who sought to
report it so far behind that no '
adequate report is in existence
today. But his most brilliant
effort was the speech with
which the dinner, the last
event of the celebration, ended.
There had been some clever
speeches made by theologians
who differed widely from the
Princeton theology and who
suggested over and over that
that theology was dead or dy
ing.
Then came Patton’s turn, and
that dry, crisp voice was never
drier, never crisper, than when
he began to speak. With some
felicitous remarks on the de
light that all felt at what they
had heard, he swiftly delivered
the blow that filled the room
with wilder laughter than is
customary on theological occa
sions:
“riin* tirliA Viqua PAmn
here to share in our fellowship
have suggested in kindly fash
ion that the Princeton theology
is dead; or, if not dead, dying.
I do not think it is dead. I do
not think it is even moribund.
But if, at some future time, it
should die—should pass the
way of all earthly things, and
centuries would pass, and aeons
roll, and some paleontologist
would come along and disinter
its bones—I think that at least
he would agree with me that it
was vertebrate!"
The Presbyterian Advance Re
calls that Dr. Francis L. Pat
ton once sent the following let
ter to a Princeton Theological
Seminary class then celebrat
ing the Quarter Century Anni
versary of its graduation:
“I send you my affectionate
greetings on the twenty-fifth
anniversary of your graduation.
A fine fleet you were whep you
then set sail on the great voy
age of life. You have had your
share.I dare say, of fine weath
er and foul; storms and calms;
head winds and following seas.
Some of your number have al
ready dropped anchor in their
last port, and, as you well
know, I have sad interest in
this feature of your re-union. I
shall think of you when you
meet in June and shall meet
with you if I can; but, lest that
should not be possible, bear
with me if once more, as an old
friend, I venture to offer some
n^TTIAA
“Do not try to steer by the
phosphorlescent light in the
wake of the ship; past experi
ence is not a sufficient guide to
future action. Use the light in
the binnacle, feeble though it
be, to read the compass, and
steer by the compass.
“With a chronometer in your
cabin it is foolish to go by dead
reckoning; lean not to your
own understanding. Do not un
dertake to rate your chronom
eter by the watch you carry in
your pocket. That is what they
are doing who try to make us
believe that the Bible means
what they think it ought to
say.
“Do not always be looking for
*A wet sheet and a flowing sea,
and a wind that follows fast.’
That is the way with those who
are carried about by every wind
of doctrine, and, having no
fixed purpose or opinion, are
everything by turns and noth
ing long. There are times when
we must sail close-hauled and
beat to windward as best we
can. In other words, be not gov
erned by circumstances, but
rather use them to further your
best endeavors. Weather per
mitting, take a daily observa
tion. You may be drifting or
making more leeway than you
think, ufcless you regularly
==========SSSH=S5K-HMB
tnow the ship’s position by the
urn.
“When in shallow water take
soundings. The lead will serve
you better than the stars. Ideals
lave their place, but the buai
less of life is very practical,
and it is well sometimes to
snow as you go along how
much water you have under
reur keel. Remember that a
searchlight is of no use in a
fog. In such circumstances
faith is the only rational anti
iote to fear. Do not despise it,
lut be thankful that, when the
great crisis comes, the only
thing you can do is all that you
ire asked to da”
“Sailing directions have been
given us, but no timetable. The
voyage may end at any mo
ment; and the only difference
between the young and the old
in this respect is that those
who, like myself, have been a
long time at sea, know that the
land lies not many leagues
away. There are times when
the chart will be of more use to
you than the sextant. Keep in
the channel, and you will avoid
the rocks.
“As you approach the shore
and the harbor lights appear,
let Another take the wheel
Ypu will need Him as never be
fore.
“And above all, let us hope, as
sang the great laureate in his
cwn nunc dimittis, that we
shall see our Pilot face to face
when we have crossed the bar.”
NEW SECRETARY OF THE
PRESBYTERIAN HISTORI
CAL SOCIETY
Rev. Thomas Clinton Fears,
Jr., pastor of the Waverly Pres
byterian church, Pittsburgh,
Pennsylvania, has been official
ly appointed by the Stated
Clerk of the Presbyterian Gen
eral Assembly as Manager of
the Department of History of
the Office of the General As
sembly and was unanimously
elected Secretary of the Pres
byterian Historical Society.
As such he will have charge of
the Library and Museum of the
Presbyterian Church in the
Witherspoon Building which is
the largest and most valuable
collection of church memorabil
ia in the world relating to a
single great communion, and
also of the varied efforts direct
ed by the General Assembly to
collect, arrange and publish the
rich historical materials relat
ing to the Presbyterian Church
which may from time to time
be found available. Mr. Pears
succeeds Rev. Wm. P. Finney,
D. D., who has administered
the affairs of the Department
of History with painstaking
| scholarship, great fidelity and
marked success, and who, un
der the rules of the denomina
tion, has reached the retire
ment noro
Mr. Pears comes to the office
after an exceptionally brilliant
an 1 useful career as a minister
of the Presbyterian Church. He
%v{,s a Chaplain and First Lieu
tenant in the World War, and
-aw service in the Aisne-Mame.
St. Mihiel and Meuse-Argonne
offensives. Later he was Acting
Senior Chaplain and Acting Di
vision School Officer, of the 4th
Division, American Army of
Occupation.
For four years he was assist
ant to Dr. William L. McEwan,
of the Third Presbyterian
church, Pittsburgh. In addition
he has been the successful pas
tor of the First Presbyterian
church, Follansbee, West Vir
ginia (June 1#10 - January
1917); of the Calvary Presby-^
terian church, Braddock Pi.,
(February 1917 - April 1918,
resigning to enter the army);
and of the Waverly Presbyteri
an church, Pittsburgh* (Octo
ber 1923 to the present) where
he has led in the building of a
splendid new stone church
costing $270,000. __
(Continued on page 3)