1 / " ' ^ ^ \ ^ ^ .§ •^^ • t:^ ^ to •*-* ^ ^ ^ o © u \ % -1 §■ ■> 1 ^ g Ph ■^ ^ ^l 1 ■'Si '^ :: S: ^ ^^ ^^^^^ •o A ' I THE CONSTITUTION llfformtiy df-larcfj in l^mnica, ( KNOWN FOR A TIME AS THE " REKOKMED DUTCH CHURCH," AND ALSO DESIGNATED IN THE ACT OF INCORPORATION, PASSED BY THE LEGISLATURE OF NEW YORK, APRIL 7TH, 1819, AS "the REFORMED PROTESTANT DUTCH CHURCH,") EMDRACIKG THE CATECHISM, THE COMPENDIUM, THE CONFESSION OF FAITH, THE CANONS OF THE SYNOD OF DORDRECHT, AND THE LITURGY. WITH AN APPENDIX CONTAINING I.— FORMULAS FOR THE USE OF CHURCHES, II.— RULES FOR RECEPTION OF MINISTERS. III.— RULES OF ORDER. NEW YORK: BOARD OF PUBLICATION OF THB REFORMED CHURCH IN AMERICA^ 34 Vesey, Corner of Church St. 1876. PKEFATOKY E'OTE. In the year 1867, the Reformed Dutch Church, which ia named in the following pa^es, dropped from its ecclesiastical name the word "Dutch," which was first formally assumed therein in the year 1793, and added the words " in America," 60 that the said Church might thenceforth be known as " The Reformed Church in America." (See below, Chap. II., Art. 5, Sec. 1.) Yet, in order that the absolute identity of " The Reformed Church in America " with " The Reformed Dutch Church " might be subject to no possible doubt or dispute, it was also ordained, that the epithet "Dutch" should be re- tained in all those places in this Constitution in which it had previously been used ; but should be inclosed In brackets, to indicate the purpose of the Church to discoui'age the ecclesi- astical and popular use of the word as part of its name. co:^rTEi^TS. ARTICLE I. Of the Offices in the Church. Sic. 1. What the offices in the Church are. ARTICLE n. Of Ministers of the Word. Sec. 1. Who is allowed to officiate. 2. Students for the ministry. 3. Examinations or licensure. 4. Formula of subscription for same. 5. Certificate of same. 6. Dispensations from the foregoing requirements may b« granted. 7. Candidates are not to administer the sacraments, nor be- long to Church courts. 8. Are under control of the Claesis. 9. Examination for ordination. 10. Formula for same. 11. i5anner of ordination, and certificate of same. 12. Duties of ministerial office. 13. Forbids ordination sine titulo. 14. A minister may be declared emeritus. 15. How a dismission is to be obtained. 16. Equality of all ministers. 17. Whom vacant churches may invite to officiate. 18. What licentiates or ministers may be received by the Classes. 19. Examination of licentiates and ministers from other churches. C5) b CONTENTS. ARTICLE in. 4 Of Teachers in Theology. Sbc. 1. By whom and how they are to be appointed, 3. Terms of the office. 3. Formula of subscription for such. 4. Cannot be pastors or members of any ecclesiastical assembly. 5. Mode of resi^ninf? the office. 6. Ecclesiastical relations of such. ARTICLE IV. V Of the Offices of Elders and Deacons. Sec. 1. Duties of the Elders. 2. Duties of the Deacons. '^ 3. Who are eligible to these offices. 4. Mode of election in forming new churches. 5. Modes of election in churches already organized. 6. Term of office limited. 7. One-half of the number to be elected annually. ARTICLE V. Of Ecclesiastical Assemblies in General. Sec. 1. Specifies three kinds. 2. What business may be done. 3. Must begin and conclude with prayer. 4. Members must have credentials signed by those who send them. 5. The officers and their duties. 6. The jurisdiction of each kind of assembly. 7. Protests forbidden. ARTICLE VI. Of Consistories. Sbc. 1. Who form a Consistory. 2. The joint and the respective powers of Elders and Deacons. 3. Not to be constituted without advice of Classis. 4. What constitutes a quorum. CONTENTS. I 5. Duties of Ministers and Bidets— censura morum. 6. Terms of admission to full communion. 7. Eegistries to be kept and reports made. 8. Minutes to be kept and laid before Classis. 9. Members removing must obtain a certificate of dismission. 10. Consistories have the right to call ministers. IX, Steps to be taken in making a call. 12. Form of a call. 13. fleidelbergh Catechism to be explained. 14. Ipso facto dismissions. 15. Of Consistories united in calling a minister. 16. Great Consistory and its powers. ARTICLE VII. Of the Classis. Sec. 1. What constitutes a Classis. 2. Pov?er8 of a Classis. 3. Its examination of students and candidates. 4. Subscriptions to the formulas to be recorded. 5. Special meetings. 6. Ordinary meetings. 7. Yearly inquiries to be made of each minister and elder, and answer recorded. ARTICLE Vm. Of the, Particular Synod. Skc. 1. Its Constitution— Quorum. 2. Its powers. 3. Correspondence with other Synods. 4. Deputatus or Commissioner of Synod. 5. To inspect Classical minutes, and report to General Synod. 6. Stated and special meetings. ARTICLE IX. Of the General Synod. Sec. 1. Its Constitution. 2. Condition of membership. CONTENTS. 3. Its quorum. 4. Its powers. 5. May graut dispensations to Classes in foreif,'n mission fieldf. 6. How a special meeting may be called. ARTICLE X. Of Customs and Usages. Sec. 1. How baptism is to be administered. 2. How tbe Lord's Supper is to be administered. 3. How ol'ten tbe Lord's Supper is to be administered. 4. The order of worship prescribed. 5. What Psalmody may be used. ARTICLE XI. Of Discipline in General. Sec. 1. Nature and object of discipline. 2. Founded only upon Scripture. 3. Who are amenable to the Church. ARTICLE Xn. Of Offences. Sec. 1. "What are private oflences. 2. Preliminary proceedings required. 3. Penalty for neglect of these. 4. Public offences defined. 5. In these, no previous steps required. 6. What is fama clamosa. 7. Principal offences for which the punishment is suspension, or removal from office. a Rule in 1 Tim. v. 19, to be observed. 9. Duty of fonsistories in case the minister has committed public gross sin. 10. Duty of Consistories in case an elder or deacon is thus guilty. 11. Conviction of crime by a civil court works suspension ipso facto. CONTENTS. ARTICLE Xm. Of Process and Trial. 8kc. 1. Waye in which process may begin. 8. Charges must be accurately defined and specifled. 3. Caution to be used in receiving accusations. 4. How citations are to be issued. 5. Eights of the accused. 6. Nature of a second citation when the first is disregarded. 7. Witnesses to be sworn or aflirmed. 8. How many required— their evidence to be recorded. 9. Statute of limitation. 10. What counsel may be employed. 11. When suspension or excommunication may be imposed. 12. The various steps in excommunication. 13. The way of restoring a penitent excommunicated person. ARTICLE XIV. Appeals and Complaints. Sec. 1. Individuals or judicatories may appeal. 2. Notice of intention to appeal must be given. 3. The appeal and reasons of appeal must be sent to the pres- ident of the body appealed to. 4. An appeal may lie over till another meeting. 5. Judicatories trying appeals must record the reasons for their decisions. 6. Judicatories whose decision is appealed from must transmit a certified copy of their action to the next higher court. 7. Judicatories may send commissioners to explain their action. 8. In certain cases. Particular Synods are courts of final appeal. 9. Objections to incidental decisions must be noted. 10. Voters in a lower court not to vote in the higher in an appellate case. 11. Complaints allowed from others than the parties. 12. Such complaints bring up the whole case. 13. Notice of complaint must be given. 10 CONTENTS. ARTICLE XV. Of Rules and Amendments. Sec. 1. General Synod authorized to do what is needful to carry the Constitution into effect. 8. How alterations may be made. INTEODUCTIO]!T, For the maintenance of good order in the Church of Christ, it is necessary there should be certain Offices and AssemUies, and a strict attention to Doctrines^ Sacraments, Usages and Christian Discipline; of all which the following ecclesiastical ordinances particu larly treat. ARTICLE I. Of the Offices in the Church. Sec. 1. The Offices in the Church are fourfold, viz : 1. The Office of Ministers of the Word. 2. The Office of Teachers of Theology. 3. The Office of Elders. 4. The Office of Deacons: ABTICLE II. Of Ministers of the Word. Sec. 1. No person shall be allowed to exercise the of- fice of a Minister, without being thereinto regularly in- ducted, according to the Word of God, and the order es- tablished by the Church. Sec. 2. Every person contemplating the work of the ministry, before he commences his course of Theological studies, shall famish satisfactory evidence of his being a member, in full communion and in good standing, of a Reformed Protectant Church ; of his piety, abilities and (11) 12 CONSTITUTION. literary attainments ; and thereupon shall be admitted into one of the Theoloprical Schools ; and, during the prosecution of his studies there, shall be subject to the rules and regulations thereof; and, when he shall have completed the prescribed course and term of Theological studies, shall be admitted to an examination according to the regulations of the schools, as established by the General Synod ; and, if found qualified, shall receive a professorial certificate to that effect, which shall entitle him to an examination for licensure before the Claesis to which he belongs. Sec. 3. In the examination, strict attention shall be paid to the attainments of the student, not only in the original languages of the Sacred Scriptures, in Biblical literature, in composition, and his method of sermonizing, but he shall be especially examined respecting his know- ledge in Theology, his orthodoxy, his piety, and his views in desiring to become a preacher of the Gospel. Sec. 4. Whoever, upon examination, shall be approved by the Classis, must, before he is licensed, attest his ad- herence to the doctrines of the Gospel, by subscribing the following formula, viz : " We, the underwritten, testify, that the Heidelberg Catechism, and the Confession of the Netherland churches, as also the Canons of the National Synod of Dordrecht, held in the years 1618 and 1619, are fully comformable to the Word of God. We promise, moreover, that, as far as we are able, we will, with all faithfulness, teach and de- fend, both in public and private, the doctrines established in the standards aforesaid. And, should ever any part of these doctrines appear to us dubious, we will not divulge the same to the people, nor disturb the peace of the Church, or of any community ; but will communicate our sentiments to the ecclesiastical judicatories under which MINISTERS. 13 we stand, and subject ourselves to the counsel and sen- tence of the same." Sec 5. After subscribing the aforesaid formula, the candidate shall be entitled to a certificate, or testimonial, signed by the President of the Classis before which the examination is held, containing a license to preach the Gospel ; which license may, for cause, be revoked by the Classis. Sec. 6. Any person of whose gifts, piety and promise of usefulness the Classis is satisfied, may be recommended by the same to the General Synod for a dispensation from any of the above requirements as to study. Such recom- mendation shall always be accompanied by a full state- ment of the reasons for the same. And no dispensation shall in any case be granted except by the General Synod, and on the recommendation of the Classis. Sec. 7. A candidate for the ministry may not, under any pretence whatever, administer the sacraments ; nor can he be a delegate to represent a church in any ecclesiastical assembly. Sec. 8. Every candidate for the ministry is to consider himself under the immediate direction of the Classis which examined him, and is to visit such congregations, and preach in those places to which the Classis shall send him ; but, if no particular directions are given, he may preach at his own discretion in any congregation that eh all invite him. Sec. 9. A candidate who has accepted a call, must be examined for his becoming a minister. In this final ex- amination, besides a repetition of his previous trials in composition and sermonizing, the original languages of the Sacred Scriptures, Biblical literature, and his know- ledge of Theology, as well Didactic as Polemic, he shall be interrogated respecting the nature and administration of 14 CONSTITUTION. the Sacraments, the duties of the ministry, and his know- ledge of Ecclesiastical History, and of Church Government. Sec. 10. Upon giving satisfaction in this examination, the candidate shall subscribe the following formula, viz : " We, the underwritten, in becoming Ministers of the Word of God, within the bounds of the Classis of N. N., do hereby sincerely, and in good conscience bei^H-e the Lord, declare, by this our subscription, that we heartily believe, and are persuaded, that all the articles and points of doc- trine contained in the Confession and Catechism of the Reformed (Dutch) Church, together with the explanation of some points of the aforasaid doctrine made in the Na- tional Synod, held at Dordrecht, in the year 1619, do fully agree with the Word of God. We promise, therefore, diligently to teach, and faithfully to defend, the aforesaid doctrine, without either directly or indirectly contradicting the same by our public preaching or writings. We de- clare, moreover, that we not only reject all errors that militate against this doctrine, and particularly those which are condemned in the above-mentioned Synod, but that we are disposed to refute and contradict them, and to exert ourselves in keeping the Church pure from such errors. And, if hereafter, any difficulties or different sentiments respecting the aforesaid doctrine should arise in our minds, we promise that we will neither publicly nor privately propose, teach or defend the same, either by preaching or writing, until we have first revealed such sentiment to the Classis, that the same may be there examined ; being ready always cheerfully to submit to the judgment of the Classis, under the penalty, in case of refusal, to he ipso facto suspended from our office. And, if at any time the Consistory, or Classis, upon sufficient grounds of suspicion, and to preserve the uniformity and purity of doctrine, may deem it proper to require of us an MmiSTEES, 15 explanation of our sentiments respecting any particular article of the Confession of Faith, the Catechism, or the explanation of the National Synod, we do hereby promise to be alwcys willing and ready to comply with such re- quisition, under the penalty above mentioned, reserving, however, to ourselves, the right of an appeal, whenever we shall conceive ourselves aggrieved by the action of the Consistory or Classis ; and, until a decision is made upon such appeal, we will acquiesce in the determination and judgment already passed." Sec. 11. The Classis before whicli the examination of a candidate is held shall fix a day for his ordination, which ordination shall be conducted by the Classis with proper solemnity ; a sermon suited to the occasion shall be preached, and the promises, directions, explanations of duty, with a laying on of hands, shall be agreeable to the form for that end expressly made and adopted ; after which a certificate of his ordination, signed by the Presi- dent, shall be given. Sec. 12. The oflBce of a Minister is to persevere in prayer and the ministry of the Word ; to dispense the Sacra- ments ; to watch over his brethren, the Elders and Dea- cons, as well as over the whole congregation ; and lastly, in conjunction with the Elders, to exercise Christian dis- cipline, and to be careful that all things be done decently and in good order. Every Minister must consider him- self as wholly devoted to the Lord Jesus Christ in the ser- vices of the Church, and shall faithfully fulfill the obliga- tions of his call, in preaching, catechizing, and visiting his flock ; and be instant in season and out of season ; and, by word and example, always promote the spiritual 'wel- fare of liis people. Sec. 13. No person shall be ordained to the ministry of the Word, without settling in some congregation, except 16 CONSTITUTION. for missionary work under the direction of the Classis, or in foreign lands ; and no person, when ordained, shall be at liberty to relinquish his calling as a Minister for any secu- lar avocation, except for important reasons, concerning which the Classis shall inquire and determine. Skc. 14. Ministers who, by reason of old age, or hab- itual sickness and infirmities, either of mind or body, are not capable of fulfilling the duties of the ministry, may, upon application, and sufiBcient proof of such incapacity being made to the Classis, be declared emeriti, and be excused from all further services in the Church during such infirmity ; reserving, however, to them the title, rank, and character which, before such declaration, they enjoyed. In all such cases, before the Classis declares any Minister emeritus, they may require a stipulation in writ- ing from the Consistory to which he belongs, under their common seal, and signed by their President, to pay such Minister annually, in half yearly payments, during his exemption from pastoral service, for his support, such sum as the Classis shall deem reasonable, having due regard to the stated salary of such Minister, and the situation and ability of the congregation. This stipula- tion shall at any time be subject to modification or dis- continuance by the Classis. Sbc. 15. For the regular application for dismission of a Minister from his charge, it is required that a neighbor- ing Minister of the same Classis to which the congrega- tion belongs, be invited to be present, and superintend the application for said dismission of the Minister from his congregation, countersign it, and deliver it, with a report upon the subject, to the Classis, which report and document shall serve as a basis upon which the final dis- mission and certificate of the Classis shall be founded. But it is provided, that whenever either Minister or Con- MINISTERS. 17 sietory shall not join in the application, that fact shall be plainly stated in the report above described, in which case no dismission shall be made by the Classis except after a hearing- of both Minister and Consistory in open Classis, of which hearing ten days' notice shall have first been given to both parties by the President of the Classis, whose warrant for such notice, and call of Classis, shall be the report as above described. JS^or shall any dismis- sion be effected under circumstances now specified, ex- cept by a vote of two-thirds of the members of the Classis present. Sec. 16. All Ministers of the Gospel are equal in rank and authority ; all are Bishops or overseers in the Church; nnd all are equal Stewards of the mysteries of God. No superiority shall, therefore, be ever claimed or acknow- ledged by one Minister over another ; nor shall there be any lords over God's heritage in the Reformed (Dutch) Churches. Sec. 17. Consistories of vacant congregations shall not invite or permit Ministers of other denominations, whose characters and standing are not known, to preach within their bounds, unless they exhibit satisfactory evidence in writing, of a recent date, of their regular authority for that purpose, and their good standing ; and, in all doubt- ful cases, such Consistories shall consult a Standing Com- mittee of Classis, to be appointed for that purpose. Sec. 18. The Classis shall receive no Licentiates or Ministers imder their care from any body of professing Christians who maintain doctrines different from those of the Reformed (Dutch) Church, without an open and ex- plicit declaration, on their part, that they have renounced such doctrines, as contrary to the Holy Scriptures, and the standards of our Church. Sec. 19. If any application be made for the admission 18 CONSTITUTION. of a Licentiate or Minister from other churches, it shall be the duty of the Classis to subject him to such examind- tion as shall enable them to proceed with freedom in his case. ARTICLE in. Of Teachers of Tlieology. Sec. 1. As it is of the greatest importance that Profes- sors of Theology should be sound in the faith, possess abilities to teach, and have the confidence of the churches, they shall always, for the greater security, be chosen and appointed by a vote of three-fourths of the members present in the General Synod. To prevent, as far as pos- sible, the unhappy consequences of partiality, haste, or undue influence in obtaining an office of such consequence to the Church, a nomination of one or more candidates shall be previously made, upon which the Synod shall fix a day when they will proceed to an election ; provided that no appointment of a Professor of Theology shall ever be made on the same day on which he is nominated ; and provided also that no one nominated shall be set aside, except by the regular process of balloting for an election. An instrument, certifying the appointment, and specifying the general duties of the office, shall be signed in the presence of the General Synod, by the President thereof, and by him be given, in the name of the Church, to the person elected. Sec. 2. No person shall be appointed to the office of a Professor who is not a Minister in good standing ; and every Professor of Theology shall continue in his office during life, unless in case of such misbehavior as shall be deemed a violation of the obligations entered into at his appointment ; or unless he voluntarily deserts or resigns his profession, or from age or infirmities becomes incapable PROFES80E8. 19 of fulfilling the duties thereof; of all which the General Synod alone shall judge; and to that Synod a Professor of Theology shall always be amenable for his doctrine, mode of teaching, and moral conduct. Sec. 3. No Professor of Theology shall be permitted to officiate until he shall have subscribed the following formula, viz : " We, the underwritten, in becoming Pro- fessors of Sacred Theology in the Reformed (Duich) Church, by this our subscription, uprightly, and in good conscience before God, declare that we heartily believe, and are per- suaded, that all the articles, and points of doctrine, con- tained in the Confession and Catechism of the Reformed (Dutch) Church, together with the explanation of some points of the said doctrine, made in the National Synod, held at Dordrecht, in the year 1619, do fully agree with the Word of God. We promise, therefore, that we will diligently teach, and faithfully defend, the aforesaid doc- trine; and that we will not inculcate or write, either publicly or privately, directly or indirectly, anything againat the same. As, also, that we reject not only all the errors which militate against this doctrine, and par- ticularly those which are condemned in the above-men- tioned Synod, but that we are disposed to refute the same, openly lo oppose them, and to exert ourselves in keeping the Church pure from such errors. Should it nevertheless hereafter happen that any objections against the doctrine might arise in our minds, or we entertain different senti- ments, we promise that we will not, either publicly or privately, propose, teach, or defend, the same, by preach- ing or writing, until we have fir^t fully revealed such sentiments to the General Synod, to whom we are respon- sible ; that our opinions may, in the said General Synod, receive a thorough examination, being ready always cheer- fully to submit to the judgment of the General Synod, / 20 CONSTITUTION. under th^ penalty, in case of refusal, to be censured by the said Synod. And whenever the General Synod, upon suiBcient grounds of suspicion, and to preserve the uni- formity and purity of doctrines, may deem it proper to demand from ua a more particular explanation of our sentiments respecting any article of the aforesaid Confes- sion, Catechism, or Explanation of the National Synod, we promise hereby to be always willing and ready to comply with such demand, under the penalty before mentioned ; reserving to ourselves the right of rehearing, or a new trial, if we shall conceive ourselves aggrieved in the sen- tence of the General Synod; during the dependence of such new trial, we promise to acquiesce in the judgment already passed, as well as finally to submit, without dis- turbing the peace of the churches, to the ultimate decision of the said General Synod." Sec. 4. No Professor, while in office, shall have the pastoral charge of any congregation, or sit as a member of any ecclesiastical assembly or judicatory ; but as a Min- ister of the Gospel, may preach, and administer, or assist in administering the Sacraments in any congregation, with the consent of the Minister or Consistory. Sec. 5. A Professor shall not be at liberty to resign his office without the consent of the General Synod, except upon giving three months' previous notice to the President of that body, of his intention so to do. Sec. 6. A Professor of Theology, being amenable only to the General Synod, shall, when entering on the dis charge of his duties, take a dismissal from the judicatory with which ho is connected ; and on retiring from office shall be dismissed to such ecclesiastical judicatory as he may elect. ELDERS AND DEACONS. 21 ARTICLE IV. Of the Offices of Elders and Deacons. Sec. 1 The office of Elders is, in conjunction with the Ministers of the Word, to exercise Christian discipline, and to be careful that all things be done decently and in order ; to take heed that the Ministers, together with their fellow Elders and Deacons, faithfully discharge their respective duties ; and also, especially before or after the Lord's Supper, as time and circumstances permit, and as shall be most for the edification of the congregation, to assist in performing visitations, in order particularly to instruct and comfort the members in full communion, as well as to exhort others to the regular profession of the Christian religion. Sec. 2. The office peculiar to the Deacons is diligently to collect the alms and other moneys appropriated for the use of the poor, and, with the advice of the Consistory, cheerfully and faithfully to distribute the same to strangers, as well as to those of their own household, according to the measure of their respective necessities; to visit and comfort the distressed, and to be careful that the alms be not misused ; of the distribution of which they shall render an account in Consistory, at such time as the said Consistory shall determine, and in the presence of so many of the congregation as may choose to attend. Should more be collected than the necessities of the poor may require, such surplus may, with the consent of the Consistory, be devoted to other purposes, connected with the wants of the Church. Sec. 3. In all cases the Elders and Deacons shall be chosen from the male members of the Church, in full communion. Sec. 4. In forming new churches, the Elders and Dea- 22 CONSTITUTION. cons shall be chosen by the male communicants, and a neighboring Minister of the Reformed Church shall pre? side, and notice of the time and place of such election shall be published, at least two Sabbaths, in the. church, or usual place of worship, previous to the election. Sec. 5. In churches already organized, the manner of choosing Elders and Deacons shall be as follows : — A double number may be nominated by the Consistory, out of which the members of the Church in full communion may choose those who shall serve ; — or, all the said members may unite in nominating and choosing the whole number without a previous nomination by the Consistory; — or, the Consistory for the time being, as representing all the members, may choose the whole. The result of such choice shall be published in the church, or usual place of worship of the congregation, three successive Sabbaths previous to their ordination, to the end that all lawful objections to such ordination may be offered to, and duly adjudicated by, the Consistory. But where either of these modes has for many years been followed in any church, there shall be no variation or change but by previous ap- plication of the Consistory to the Classis, and express leave first obtained for altering such custom. Sec. G. The Elders and Deacons shall be chosen to serve two years, except in cases of vacancy occasioned by death, removal out of the congregation, resignation, or dismission from office by a judicial sentence of the Con- sistory ; in either of which cases, the person or persons chosen shall serve for the residue of the term only. Sec. 7. In order to avoid the inconvenience of an entire change at one time, the first Elders and Deacons of new congregations shall, at the first meeting of the Consistory after their ordination, determine, by lot, who of their num- ber shall serve one year, and who shall serve two years ; ASSEMBLIES. 35d 80 that one laalf of the whole mimber of both Elders and Deacons may thereafter be elected annually. The same course shall be pursued in ealarpfing Consistories, so far as relates to the additional members. Elders And Deacons may be re-elected, but in such case need not be xe- orduined. ARTICLE V. Of Ecclesiastical Assemblies in Oeneral. Sec. 1. The Ecclesiastical Assemblies which sltall be naaintained are : 1. Consistorial. 3. Classical. 3. Synodical. Sec. 2. In these assemblies, ecclesiastical matters only shall be transacted, and that in an ecclesiastical manner. A greater assembly shall take cognizance of those things alone which could not be determined in a less, or that ap- pertain to the churches or congi-egations in general, which compo'se such an assembly. Sec. 3. The transactions of all Ecclesiastical Assemblies shall begin and conclude with prayer. Sec. 4. Those who are delegated to attend the assem- blies shall be admitted on credentials, signed by those who send them ; and such only shall be entitled to a vote. Sec. 5. In all assemblies there shall be a President and Clerk. The duty of the President shall be to state and explain the business which is to be transacted, to preserve order, and, in general, to maintain that decorum and dig- nity becoming a judicatory of the Church of Christ. The duly of the Clerk shall be to keep a faithful record of all the proceedings. Sec. 6. A Classis has the same jurisdicti* n over a Con- 24 CONSTITUTION. sistory, which a Particular Synod has over a Classis, and the General Synod over a Particular. Sec. 7. No member of an Ecclesiastical Assembly shall be allowed to protest against any of its acts ; any member who dissents from any such acts shall have a right to re- quire the names of all the members present who vote for or against the same, to be entered in the minutes, and pub- lished therewith for the information of all concerned. ARTICLE VI. Of Consistories. Sec. 1. The Elders and Deacons, together with the Min- ister or Ministers, if any, shall form a Consistory, and the Minister shall preside at all consistorial meetings ; but, in the absence of a Minister, the Consistory may appoint one of the Elders to be their President pro. tern., and it shall be competeni for the sevenal Consistories to prescribe the mode and time of calling their meetings. If there be a plurality of ministers, they shall preside in rotation. Sec. 2. When joined together in one Board, the Elders and Deacons have an equal voice in whatever relates to the temporalities of the Church, to the calling or dismis- sion of a Minister, or the choice of thsir own successors; in all which they are considered as the general and joint representatives of the people. But in admitting members to full communion, and in dismissing them to other churches ; in exercising discipline upon those who have erred from the faith, or offended in morals ; and in choos- ing delegates to attend the Classis, the Elders, with the Ministers, have alone a voice. Sec. 3. No Consistory shall be constituted in any place without the previous advice and concurrence of Classis. Sec. 4. A majority of the Consistory, regularly con- CONSISTORIES. 25 vened, shall be a quorum for the transaction of business ; and, in like manner, a majority of Ministers and Elders alone, oi* of Deacons alone, so convened, shall be a quorum respectively. It shall be the duty of the Consistory, when an election shall have been omitted at the usual time, to appoint another time for that purpose, on an early day, giving the like notice as herein above prescribed ; and, in like manner, to provide for filling vacancies. Sec. 5. As the spiritual government of the congregation is committed to the Ministers and Elders, it is their duty at all times to be vigilant, to preserve discipline, and to promote the peace and spiritual interest of the congrega- tion. Particularly before the celebration of the Lord's Supper, a faithful and solemn inquiry is to be made by the President, whether, to the knowledge of those present, any member in full communion has departed from the faith, or in walk or conversation has behaved unworthy the Chiistian profession ; that such as are guilty may be properly rebuked, admonished, or suspended from the priv. ilege of approaching the Lord's Table, and all oflfences may be removed out of the Church of Christ. Sec. 6. None can be rec' ived as members in full com- munion, unless they first shall have made a confession of their faith before the Minister (if any) and the Elders, or have produced a certificate of their being members in full communion of some Evangelical Church ; all such shall be published to the congregation, and be registered as reg- ular members in the Church. Sec. 7. In every congregation, a distinct and fair reg's- ter shall be preserved by the Minister of every baptism and marriage there celebrated, and of all who are received as members in full communion. It shall be the duty of the several Consistories to make a statistical report to the Classis at their meeting immediately preceding the annual 26 CJONSTITUTION. meetings of the Particular and the General Synod, accord- ing to such formula as the General Synod shall prescribe, and accompany the fame with, such remarks on the spir- itual state of the congregation as they may deem proper. Sec. 8. Every Consistory shall keep regular minutes of its meetings and proceedings, and shall lay such minutes, so far as the same relate to ecclesiastical proceedings, at least once a year, before the Classis with which it is con- nected, for their information. Sec. 9. It shall be incumbent upon members of the Church, in removing from the bounds of one church to another, to obtain from the Consistory a certificate of mem- bership and dismission. Sec. 10. Consistories possess the riglit of calling Minis- ters for their own congregations, except where otherwise provided for by charter. Bui, in exercising this right, they are bound to use their utmost endeavors, either by consult- ing with the Great Consistory or with the congregation at large, to know what person would be most acceptable to the people. Sec. 11. A Minister of the Classis must be invited to su- perintend the proceedings, whenever a Consistory is desir- ous of making a call. The instrument is to be si/rned by the members of the Consistory, or by the President in the name of the Consistory; and if the Church be incorpo- rated, it is proper to afl|x the seal of the corporation. When the call is completed, it must be laid by the Consis- tory before the Classis, and be approved by the same, before it can be presented to the person called ; and if the call be accepted, the name of such Minist* r shall be published in the church three Sabbaths successively, that opportu- nity may be given for stating lawful objections, if any there be. When any circumstances shall, in the judg- ment of the Consistory, make the presiding of their own C50NSIST0EIES. 27 Minister at its sessions undesirable, they may, on the re- quest of their pastor, invite a Minister of their own Clae- sis to preside on the occasion. Sec. 12. For the purpose of uniformity, the form of a call shall be as follows : " To N. N. " Grace, Mercy and Peace, from God our Father, and Jesus Christ our Lord. " Whereas, the Church of Jesus Christ at , is at present destitute of the stated preaching of the Word, and the regular administration of the ordinances, and is desir- ous of obtaining the means of grace, which God hath ap- pointed for the salvation of sinners, through Jesus Christ his Son : And whereas, the said Church is well satisfied of the piety, gifts, and ministerifil qualifications of you, N. N., and hath good hope that your labors in the Gosp>el will be attended with a blessing : Therefore, we {the style and title of the said Church) have resolved to call, and we hereby solemnly, and in the fear of the Lord, do call you, the said X. N., to be our pastor and teacher, to preach the Word in truth and faithfulness, to administer the holy Sacraments agreeably to the institution of Christ, to main- tain Christian discipline, to edify the congregation, and es- pecially the youth, by catechetical instructions ; and, as a faithful servant of Jesus Christ, to fulfill the whole work of the Gospel ministry, agreeably to the Word of God, and the excellent Rules and Constitution of our Reformed (Dutch) Church, and to which you, upon accepting the call, must with us remain subordinate. " In fulfilling the ordinary duties of your ministry, it is expressly stipulated, that, besides preaching upon such texts of Scripture as you may judge proper to select for our instruction, you also explain a portion of the Heidel- 28 CONSTITUTION. berg Catechism on tlie Lord's Day?., agreeably to the es- tablished order of the Reformed (Dutch) Church ; and that you farther conform in rendering all that public service which is usual, and has been in constant practice in our congregation. The particular service which will be re- quired of you is {here insert a detail of such particulars, if any there he, which the situation of the congregation map render necessary ; especially in case of combinations, uhen the service required in the respective congregaiians must be ascertained; or when the D-utch and English languages are hotli requisite, the proportion of each may he mentioned or left discretionary, as may he judged proper). " To encourage you in the di^charge of the duties of your important office, we promise you, in the name of this Church, all proper attention, love, and obedience in the Lord ; and to free you from worldly cares and avocations, •while you are dispensing spiritual blessings to us, we {the Elders and Deacons, etc., the style and title of the Church) do promise and oblige ourselves to pay to you the sum of , in payments, yearly, and every year as long as you continue the Minister of this Church, together with {su^h particulars as may refer to a parsonage or other emoluments). For the performance of all which, we here- by bind ourselves, and our successors, firmly, by these presents. The Lord incline your heart to a cheerful ac- ceptance of this call, and send you to us in the fullness of the blessing of the Gospel of peace. " Done in Consistory, and subscribed with our names, this day of , in the year of ." Attested hy N. N., Moderator of the cull. Sec. 13. Since it is deemed of the highest importance that there should be regular instruction on the great arti- cles of the Christian faith, in order to preserve the truth, CONSISTORIES. )ffd and to promote the prosperity of the Church, every Minis- ter shall, in the ordinary morning or afternoon service on the Lord's Day, explain the system of the Christian doc- trine comprehended in the Heidelberg Catechism adopted by the Reformed Churches, so that, if practicable, the ex- planation may be annually completed, but shall never be extended beyond the term of four years. The several Classes shall, at their stated meetings, preceding the annual meeting of General Synod, make strict inquiry whether the preceding part of this section has been fully complied with by every Minister, and if any Minister ghall be found deficient, without sufficient reason, the Classis shall inflict such censure as they in their wisdom may judge the omission to merit ; and the several Classes shall make a full and faithful report of the result of their in- quiries and doings on this behalf to the Particular Synod. Sec. 14. When any Minister shall be duly convicted of any offence which affects the purity of his clerical charac- ter, he shall, in consequence of such conviction, be sus- pended from his office ; and if the conviction and suspen- sion shall be sustained on a final appeal, his pastoral con- nection with the congregation in which he was settled shall be, ipso facto, dissolved. Sec. 15. Consistories which have hitherto combined Willi one or more neighboring Consistories, in making calls, and having a Minister to serve in common, may not at pleasure break such combination ; but whenever their situation and circumstances render them capable of sev- erally calling a Minister, a representation thereof must be made to the Classis, and leave be first requested and ob- tained, before their former connections can be dissolved. Sec. 16. As in calling a Minister, Consistories are bound to consult with the Great Consistory, or with the congre- gation at large, so when other matters of peculiar import- 30 CONSTITUTION. ance occur, relating to tlie peace and welfare of the whole congregation, they are strongly recommended to seek such advice. All who have ever served as Elders or Dea- cons, constitute, when assembled, what is called the Great Consistory ; but being out of office, and not actually mem- bers of the Board of Corporation, they have only an ad- visory voice. ARTICLE VII. Of the Classis. Sec. 1. A Classis consists of all the Ministers, and an Elder delegated by each Consistory within the bounds prescribed by Particular Synod. Collegiate Churches shall be entitled to an Elder for each ordinary worshiping assembly. To constitute a Classis, at least three Ministers and three Elders are required. Sec. 2. Classis shall have the power of approving or disapproving calls ; constituting and dissolving the pas- toral relation ; ordaining, installing, suspending, depos- ing, and dismissing ministers. They shall have the power of forming and disbanding congregations, of ap- proving and dissolving combinations of two or more con- gregations ; and of exercising a gener^^l superintendence over the spiritual interests and concerns of the .=everal churches, and an appellate supervising power over the acts, proceedings, and decisions of the Consistories relat- ing to Christian discipline. Sec. 3. The peculiar prerogative of Classes, that of ex- amining students of Theology for their becoming candi- dates for the ministi-y, and of candidates for their becom- ing Ministers, is very important, and must always be attended to with great prudence, zeal, and fidelity. Every student of Theology, when he shall have become prepared for examination for licensure, shall present himself for CLASSES. 31 Bucli examination to the Classis within whose bounds he resided when he entered upon his preparatory studies, and a candidate who has leceived a call, must be exam- ined by the Classis under whose jurisdiction the Church that has made the call is placed. Sec. 4. Every Classis shall keep a book, in which the forms of subscriptions for candidates and Ministers of the Gospel are fairly written, which those who are examined and approved shall respectively subscribe in the presence of the Classis. It shall also be the duty of every Classis, annually, to report to the Synod all persons who have been examined and licensed, as well as those who have been ordained ; and also, all removals of Ministers from one place to another, or by death, which may have hap- pened within the jurisdiction of such Classis, since the last session of Synod. Sec. 5. Whenever the examination of a candidate for the ministry, the approbation of a call, or any other special business, shall render an extraordinary meeting of the Classis necessary, it shall be the duty of the President of the Classis, upon application being made to him for that purpose, to call, by circular letters, the members together. And, whenever two Ministers and two Elders belonging to the Classis shall, upon any occasion, request in writing, under their hands, an extraordinary meeting, the Presi- dent of the Classis may not refuse calling the same ; pro- vided that the expenses attending all extraordinary meet- ings of the Classis shall be paid by the person or congre- gation at whose request, or for whose benefit, such session is held. Sec. 6. The meetings ofthe Classes shall be semi-annual, at such times as they may respectively determine ; and at every ordinary session there shall be a sermon, or other devotional services, or both. 32 CONSTITtJTION. Sec. 7. The Classes shall, at their meeting next preced- ing that of the Particular Synod, appoint delegates to attend the said Synod, and nominate delegates to the General Synod ; and, at the same meeting, shall put to the Ministers and Elders, respectively, the following in- quiries, and enter in detail the several answers given by each Minister and Elder, on the minutes, for the informa- tion of the higher judicatories : 1st. Are the doctrines of the Gospel preached in your congregation in their purity, agreeably to the Word of God, the Confession of Faith, and the Catechisms of our Church ? 2d. Is the Heidelberg Catechism regularly explained agreeably to the Constitution of the Reformed (Dutch) Church ? 3d. Are the catechising of the children and the instruc- tion of the youth faithfully attended to ? 4th. Is family visitation faithfully performed ? 5th. Is the 5th Sec, 6th Art., in the Constitution of our Church, relating to the conduct of church members, care- fully obeyed, previous to each communion ? 6th. Is the temporal contract between Ministers and people fulfilled in your congregation ? 7th. Is a contribution made annually by your congrega- tion to each of the Benevolent Boards and Funds of the Church ? ARTICLE VIII. Of the Particular Synod. Sec. 1. Every Particular Synod shall comprehend a certain number of Classes to be designated by the General Synod, and shall consist of four Ministers and four Elders from every Classis within its bounds; and nine Ministers and nine Elders, when regularly convened, shall constitute PARTICULAR SYNOD. 33 a quorum for the transaction of business ; excepting those Synods which consist of not more than five Classes, in which case six Ministers and six Elders may form a quorum. Sec. 2. To the Particular Synod belongs the power to form new Classes, to transfer a congregation from one Classis to another, to exercise a general superintendence over the spiritual interests and concerns of the several Classes within its bounds, and an appellate supervising power over their acts, proceedings, and decisions relating to Christian discipline. Sec. 3. Every Synod shall be at liberty to solicit and hold correspondence with its neighboring Synod or Synods, in such manner as shall be judged most couducive to general edification. Sec. 4. A copy of the minutes of every session of the several Classes held since the last session of Synod, shall, at the opening of the Synod, be produced and laid on the table for the inspection of the members. The Particular Synod, from the several reports of the Classes, on the state of religion, shall prepare a Synodical Report, to be presented to the General Synod, accompanied with the statistical tables of said Classes. Sec. 5. The Particular Synod shall meet annually, at such time and place as they may determine ; and special meetings may be held for the transaction of any extraor- dinary business, upon the written request of four Ministers and four Elders to the President of the Synod ; and, in such case, it shall be the duty of such President to give notice to the members of ISynod of such meeting three weeks previous thereto, stating the particular object for which the Synod is to be convened. 34: • CONSTITUTION. ARTICLE IX. Of the General Synod. Sec. 1. The General Synod shall consist of three Minis- ters and three Elders from each of the Classes, composed of fifteen or less than fifteen churches ; and an additional representation of one Minister and one Elder shall be allowed for each additional five churches. These persons shall be nominated by the Classes to the Particular Synod to which they belonj^, who shall have power to appoint them delegates to the General Synod ; but, for good cause, it may appoint other persons than those so nominated ; or, in case no nomination is made, may appoint the delegates for the Classis or Classes who shall have omitted to nominate. The body thus constituted shall be called " The General Synod of the Reformed Church in Amer- ica." Sec. 2. The removal of any delegate, during the period for which he was appointed, from the Classis which he was commissioned to represent, shall vacate his seat in the General Synod. 4 Sec. 3. The General Synod shall meet annually, at such time and place as they may determine ; and twelv^e Min- isters and twelve Elders, when regularly convened, shall be a quorum for the transaction of business. Sec. 4. The General Synod shall have original cog- nizance of all matters relating to the Theological Schools, the appointment of Professors, and their course of instruc- tion ; the appointment of Superintendents of said schools, and the regulations thereof; and shall possess the power of regulating and maintaining a friendly correspondence with the highest judicatories or assemblies of other re- ligious denominations, for the purpose of promoting union and concert in general measures which may be CUSTOMS AND USAGES. ' 35 calculated to maintain sound doctrine, prevent conflicting regulations relative to persons under church censure, by the judicatories of either denominations, and to produce concert and harmony in their respective proceedings to promote the cause of religion and piety. To the General Synod belongs the power to constitute Particular Synods, and to make any changes in the same ; to exercise a general superintendence over the spiritual interests and concerns of the whole Church, and an ap- pellate supervising power over the acts, proceedings, and decisions of the lower assemblies, relating to Christian discipline. Sec. 5. When, in the circumstances of missionary fields, it shall be impracticable for a Classis to comply with all the requirements of the Constitution, the General Synod shall have full power to grant such dispensation as the wants of the case may demand. Sec. 6. If circumstances should require a meeting of the General Synod previous to the next ordinary meeting, the President shall, on a joint application of six Ministers and six Elders requesting the same, call an extraordinary meeting at the place where the next ordinary meeting is appointed to be held, notice of which meeting shall be given to members of Synod at least three weeks previous to the time of such meeting, stating the particular busi- ness for which it is called, not, however, excluding the transaction of such other business as the Synod may deem proper. ARTICLE X. Of Customs and Usages. Sec. 1. The Sacrament of Baptism shall, if possible, be administered in the church, or some other place of public worship, at the time of public worship ; and the form for 36 CONSTITUTION. Baptism shall in every case be retained. But it is recom- mended that no private baptism shall be administered •v%ithout the presence of at least one Elder, who shall ac- company the Minister for that purpose. Sec. 2. Every church shall observe such a mode in the administration of the Lord's Supper as shall be judged most conducive to edification ; provided that the Form for the administration of the Lord's Supper shall be read, and a prayer suited to the occasion shall be oflfered, before the members participate in the ordinance. Sec. 3. The Sacrament of the Lord's Supper shall be administered at least twice a year, and it is recommended that the same be administered once every two or three months. Sec. 4. For the purpose of uniformity in the order of worship, the following is to be observed by all the Churches : 1st. Livocation. 2d. Salutation. 3d. Eeading the Ten Commandments, or some other portions of Scripture, or both. 4th. Singing. 5th. Prayer. 6th. Singing. 7th. Sermon. 8th. Prayer. 9th. Collection of Alms. 10th. Singing. 11th. Benediction. The order of the afternoon and evening services shall be the same as the morning, except- ing the reading of the Ten Commandments. The last ser- vice on the Lord's Day shall conclude with the Christian Doxology. Sec. 5. No Psalms or Hymns may be publicly sung in DISCIPLINE.— OFFENCES. 37 the Reformed (Dutch) Churches, but such as are approved and recommended by the General Synod. ARTICLE XL Of Discipline in General. Sec. 1. Discipline is the exercise of the authority which the Lord Jesus Christ has given to His Church. Its ob- jects are the vindication of the honor of Christ, the promo- tion of the purity and general edification of the Church, and the benefit of the oflFender. Skc. 2. Nothing cihall be admitted as matter of accusa- tion, or considered an offence, which cannot be shown to be such from Scripture, or the laws and regulations of the Church. Sec. 3. All baptized persons are members of the Church, are under its care, and subject to its government and discipline. ARTICLE XII. Of Offences. Sec. 1. Private offences are those that are known to an individual only, or at most to a very few. Sec. 2. Such offences are not immediately to be pre- sented before a Church Judicatory, but the offender shall be dealt with according to the mode pointed out by our Lord in Matt, xviii. The same course shall be adopted in cases of personal or private injuries ; but if, on due for- bearance, these tender and Christian proceedings are un- availing, the whole matter shall be represented to the Ju- dicatory, to which the offender is amenable. Sec. 3. Informers who have not taken these previous steps shall be considered as guilty of an offence against the peace and order of the Church, and be censured accord- ingly. 38 CONSTITUTION. Sec. 4. Public offfences are those that reqiiire the cog- nizance of a Church Judicatory ; being so notorious and scandalous that no private measures would obviate their injurious effects. Sec. 5. When any person is charged with an offence, not by an individual, but by general rumor, the previous steps prescribed by our Lord in case of private offences are not necessary, but the proper judicatory is bound to take im- mediate cognizance of the matter. Sec. 6. To constitute a general rumor, or fama damosa, It is necessary — 1st. That it specify some particular sin or sins. 2d. That it should have obtained general circulation. 8d. That it be not transient. 4th. That it shall be accompanied with strong presump- tion of its truth. Sec. 7. The following are to be considered as the princi- pal offences that deserve the punishment of suspension or removal from office, viz : Heresy, Public Schisms, open Blas- phemy, Simony, faithless Desertion of OflBce or intruding upon that of another, Slander, Lying, Perjury, Adultery, Fornication, Theft, Forgery, Acts of Violence, Drunken- ness, scandalous TraflBc ; in short, all such sins and gross offences as render the perpetrators infamous before the world, and which, in a private member of the Church, would be considered as deserving excommunication. Sec. 8. In admitting accusations against a Minister or Elder, the rule prescribed in 1 Tim. v. 19, shall always be observed, and accusers must come forward openly to sup- port the charge. Sec. 9. If Miciisters of the Word have committed any public, gross sin, which would render their appearance in the pulpit under such circumstances highly offensive, it shall be the duty of the Consistory, in order to prevent PROCESS AND TRIAL. 39 scandal, to close the pulpit against such criminal, and re- fer him to be tried by the Classis as soon as possible. The proceedings of the Consistory in such cases are at their peril, and are not to be considered as a trial, but only a prudent interference, and binding over the person accused to the judgment of his peers. Sec. 10. In case of like offences by an Elder or Deacon, the Consistory shall immediately proceed to his trial, and, upon conviction, he shall be forthwith suspended from his office, and excluded from the privileges of the Church. Sec. 11. If any member of the Church shall be duly convicted of an infamous crime by any civil court, he shall, ipso facto, be suspended from any ecclesiastical office with which he may be invested, and excluded from the privileges of the church, until he shall have established his innocence, or manifested his repentance to the ecclesi- astical judicatory to which he is amenable. ARTICLE XIII. Of Process and Trial, Sec. 1. Offences may be brought before a Judicatory by individual accusation or common fame. In the former case, the process must be in the name of the accuser or accusers. In the latter, no person need be named as the accuser. •Sec. 2. In exhibiting charges, the time, place, and cir- cumstances shall be accurately stated in writing, that the accused may be enabled the better to defend himself Sec. 3. Great caution is to be exercised in receiving ac- cusations where there is good reason to believe that they are preferred through passion or improper and unchristian motive ; or where the accuser is under censure, or not of (rood character, or has the prospect of temporal advantage. 40 CONSTITUTION, Sec. 4. All citations sliall be issued and sipfned by the President or Clerk, who shall also furnish citations for sach witnesses as may be required on either side. Sec. 5. A copy of the accusation shall be furnished to the accused at the time when the citation is served ; which citation shall designate the time when, and place where, the accused shall put in his answer. Not less than ten days shall be allowed to intervene between the time when the citation is served and the answer received ; and no shorter period shall be allowed between receiving the an- swer of the accused and the trial of the case, unless by consent of all the parties interested. Sec. 6. When the accused refuses to obey the citation, he shall be cited a second time, which second citation shall always be accompanied by a notice, that, if he still re- fuses to appear at the time and place appointed, he shall not only be liable to censure for contumacy, but that the Judicatory will proceed to the trial and decision of his case as if he were present. Sec. 7. In cases where it is demanded by either party, a commission of the Judicatory may be appointed by it to take testimony at a distance ; of which commission, and of the time and place of their meeting, due notice shall be given to all the parties. Sec. 8. To establish an accusation against any member of the Church, the testimony of more than one witness is required. The witnesses, after being sworn or duly af- firmed, shall be examined in the presence of the accused, and he shall be permitted to cross-examine them. Yet, if two or more witnesses bear testimony each to different acts of the same general nature, this, if not disproved, shall be considered sufficient to establish the accusation^ The evidence shall be faithfully minuted and subscribed by the witness, and in this final form, with the sentence oi PROCESS AND TRIAL. M decision, be entered on the records ; and the parties shall be allowed copies of the same, at their own expense, if de- sired. Sec. 9. No accusation shall be admitted unless brought forward by the accuser within the space of two years af- ter the crime shall be alleged to have been committed ; excepting when it shall appear that unavoidable impedi- ments prevented the bringing an accusation sooner, and at the trial the accuser shall not sit in judgment upon the case. Sec, 10. No professional counsel shall be permitted to appear and plead in cases of process in any of the eccle- siastical courts ; but, in the trial of any case before a Con- sistory, a member of the Classis may be employed to pre- pare and conduct the case on either side. And, in the higher courts, if any accused person feel unable to repre- sent and plead his own case to advantage, he may request, or the President may appoint, any Minister or Elder be- longing to the judicatory before which he appears to pre- pare and conduct his case as he may judge proper. But the Minister or Elder so engaged shall not be allowed, after pleading the case of the accused, to sit in judgment as a member of the judicatory. Sec. 11. Such as obstinately reject the admonitions of the Consistory, or have been found guilty of the commis- sion of an otherwise gross offence, shall be suspended from the Lord's Supper, which act of suspension may be pub- lished at the discretion of the Consistory ; and, being sus- pended and repeatedly admonished without discovering marks of repentance, the Church shall then proceed to the last remedy, namely, Excommunication ; agreeably to the adopted form, and conformably to the Word of God. But no person shall be excommunicated without the previous approval of the Classis. 42 constitution- Sec. 12. Before the Churcli proceeds to excommunica- tion, the obstinacy of the offender shall be publicly noti- fied to the congregation, declaring his offences, together with the particular care and attention bestowed on him, by admonition, suspension from the Lord's table, and by re- peated remonstrances. This procedure shall be comprised in three several steps. In the first instance, the name of the offender shall not be mentioned, that he may in some measure be spared. In the second, with the advice of Classis, his name shall be expressed. In the third, the congregation shall be informed, that, unless he repenteth, he will be excluded from the communion of the Church ; so that, if he remain obstinate, his excommunication may take place with their tacit approbation. The interval be- tween these notifications shall be at the discretion of the CJonsistory. Sec. 13u When an excommunicated person becomes penitent, and is desiro-us of being again reconciled to the Church, such desire shall be publicly declared to the con- gregation, either before the administration of the Lord's Supper, or at some other seasonable opportunity; that, if no objections are offered, he may, on declaring his repentance, be publicly re-admitted to a participation of the Lord's Supper, agreeably to the form appointed for that purpose. ARTICLE XIV. Of AppeaU and Complaints. Sec. 1. Any member of the Church, conceiving himself to be personally aggrieved or injured by the decision of a Judicatory, may appeal therefrom to the next higher Judicatory. Also, a Consistory or Classis considering it- self aggrieved by the judgment or censure of a higher Judicatory, enjoys the tame right of appeal. Sec. 2. Any one intending to appeal from an act or do- APPEALS Al^TD COMPLAINTS. 43 cision of a Judicatory, must at the time of the action, or within ten days thereafter, give notice of such intention to the President of the body from whose action he intends to appeal. Within ten days after such notice he shall send to said President in writing the appeal, with the reasons thereof. On default of this, the appeal falls. Sec. 3. An appeal made by a Judicatory must be made by it as such regalarly convened, and the appeal, with the reasons thereof, must be sent in writing to the President of the body appealed from, within twenty days of the action from which the appeal is taken. On default of this, the appeal falls. Sec. 4. If an appellant give notice and satisfactory rea- sons to the President of the Judicatory to which the ap- peal is made, that he cannot attend at the next stated meeting of that body, his appeal shall lie over to the next following stated meeting. But if he fail to appear, and prosecute his appeal without such notice and reasons, it is to be considered as relinquished. Sec. 5. It shall be the duty of every Judicatory that has tried a case originally or by appeal, in recording its decision, to set forth at length the reasons thereof, that the record may exhibit, as far as practicable, everything that had an influence on its judgment. Sec. 6. It shall be the duty of any Judicatory from whose act or decision an appeal is made, to transmit a certified copy of the action appealed from, signed by the President, and countersigned by the Clerk, together with the appeal and reasons accompanying the same, to the Judicatory appealed to, at the next regular meeting there- of, and the papers thus transmitted shall be considered the documents in the case. Sec. 7. An inferior Judicatory shall be permitted to send a commissioner to the one appealed to, for the pur- 44 CONSTITUTION. pose of making explanations relative to the case ; it being expressly understood, that the original parties in the case ahall have the same right of being heard in every stage of the trial, from one court to another. Sec. 8. For all cases that have originated in the Con- sistory, the Particular Synod shall be the Final Court of Appeal, except when as many members of the Particular Synod, as there are Classes connected with the Synod shall, within ten days of its adjournment, declare in writ- ing to the President that the case adjudicated is a proper one for appeal to the General Synod. In such case an ap peal, if constitutionally made, shall be entertained by the General Synod. Sec. 9. In order to prevent vexation and delay in the judicial proceedings of any ecclesiastical assembly by means of successive appeals in the progress of any trial or investigation, the party who may consider himself ag- grieved by any decision, upon any incidental question which may arise before a final sentence is pronounced, may state his objections to such decision, and require to have the same noted in the minutes of the proceedings, to the end that he may avail himself thereof on an appeal from the final sentence, without arresting the progress of such investigation or trial. And in such cases every de- cision objected to, as well as the objections, shall be distinctly stated in the minutes of such assembly, and sent up with the appeal to the appellate Judicatory for review. Sec. 10. Individuals who have voted in a lower court upon a case which is carried up by a]>peal, or who have prepared and conducted such case, shall not be at liberty to vote upon the trial of the appeal in the higher courts. Sec. 11. If a minority or any member of a minority of any inferior Church Judicatory shall consider any sub- RULES AND AMENDMENTS. 45 ordinate decision or any part of the formal proceedinga to have been so erroneous, as injuriously to affect the inter- ests of truth or of vital godliness, they may present the same by way of complaint to the next higher Judicatory for its examination and decision. Sec. 12. This complaint, if entertained, brings the whole record of the case under the review of the superior Judicatory. Sec. 13. No such complaint shall be entertained except After notice given to the President of the body complained of, and the sending of the complaint, and reasons for it, as prescribed in cases of appeal. ARTICLE XV. „jj Of Hules and Amendments. Se& 1. The General Synod shall have power to make 11 such rules and regvdations as may be necessary for arrying the foregoing articles into execution, except »/here provisioi^is thereby made for that purpose. Sec. 2. No alteration shall ever be made to the fore- going articles, but by previous recommendation from the d^eneral Synod to the respective Classes, and the consent of a majority of the same to such proposed alteration, together with the final declarative resolution of the Gfeneral Synod for the time being ; and the articles as thus determined and declared shall be and are the authori- tative and only Constitution of the Reformed Church in America. APPENDIX I. — FORMULARIES. No. 1. Farm of a Professorial Appointment. To the Rev. , The General Synod of the Reformed Church in America, reposing confidence in your piety, learning and talents, have elected you a Professor in their Theological College at . The branches in which you are to in- Btruct the youth committed to your charge are, , with such modifications as the Synod may here- after direct. To free you from wordly cares and avocations, while discharging the duties of your oflBce, we promise and oblige ourselves to pay to you the sum of , in payments, yearly and every year, as long as you continue Professor in our Seminary as aforesaid. For the assumption of tlie powers, and the execution of the duties of your oflBce in the Theological Department of the Col- lege, this is your commission, and may the Head of the Church render your labors useful and pleasant. Signed by order of ihe Synod, , President. Done in General Synod, this day of , 18 — . (46) FORMULAS. 47 No. 2. Form of License. To all whom it may concern, In the name of the Lord Jesus Christ, the great Head of the Church, we send greeting : Be it known, that , having presented to the Classis of testimonials of his literary and theo- logical acquirements from the Professors of the Theologi- cal Seminary at , was admitted to an examination in the Hebrew and Greek languages, and the different branches of Theology as prescribed in the Constitution of the Reformed Church in America, and that the Classis being well satisfied of his gifts, piety, and qualifications to preach the Gospel, did, in the name of the Lord Jesus Christ, the King and Head of the Church, resolve that the said be, and hereby is, allowed and authorized as a candidate for the sacred min- istry within their bounds, and wherever the Providence of God may call him, to preach the Gospel of our blessed Lord and Saviour. And the said Classis recommend him to the esteem and attention of all those to whom these presents may come, as well qualified to preach a crucified Saviour. The Classis do fervently pray, that the great Head of the Church may further qualify him for the work of the ministry, and make him eminently useful in that part of His vineyard where he may be called. Done in Classis, in the , on this day of , 18 — . , President. , Clerk. 48 C0NSTITTJTI0]5r. No. 3. Form of Testimonial of Ordination. In the name of the Lord Jesus Christ, the great Head of the Church, to all whom it may concern, we send greeting : Be it known that was admitted by the Classis of to an examination on the different branches of Theology, as prescribed in the Constitution of the Reformed Church in America, preparatory to ordina- tion, and the Classis being well satisfied with his gifts, piety and qualifications to preach the Gospel and admin- ister the Sacraments, did, in the name of the Lord Jesua Christ, the King and Head of the Church, resolve that the said be ordained to the Gospel ministry, and in conformity to said resolution did, on the day of , set him apart solemnly to the woi k of the sacred ministry, according to the rites and forms of the Reformed Church, and receive him into ministerial communion. And the said Classis do recommend him to the esteem and attention of all those to whom these pres- ents shall come, as qualified to pre?.ch the Gospel, and to administer the Sacraments of our Lord Jesus Christ. The Classis do fervently pray that the great Head of the Church may abundantly qualify him for the work of the ministry, and make him eminently useful in that part of the vineyard where he may be called to labor. Done in Classis, at , on this day of 18 — . President. Clerk. FORMULAS. 40 No. 4. Farm of a Certificate of the Diamision of a Minister from his Congregation. This certifies that the undersigned, by request, was present at a meeting of the Consistory of the Church of , on the day of , A.D., , and superintended the proceedings thereof, when it was resolv- ed that an application be made to the Classis of for a dissolution of the pastoral connection between the Rev. and said Church ; and that the Rev. declared his concurrence in such application No. 5. Form of Certificate of Dismission of Church Members. This certifies, that is a member in full com- munion of the Reformed Church of , in good and regular standing ; as such is at own request, dismissed, for the purpose of connecting with the Church of , to whose Christian fellowship and confidence is hereby affectionately commended ; and when received by them, pecu- liar relation to this Church shall cease. By order of Consistory. , President. Given at , , 18 — . fW This Certificate is valid only for one year from its date, except where there has been no opportunity of presenting it. 50 CONSTITUTION, No. 6. Form of the Register of Baptisms. DATE or BAPTISM. NAMES OF THE BAPTIZED. NAMES or THE PARENTS. TIME OF BIRTH. KEMARKB. NJB.— In recording the name of the Mother, ^ve her family or maiden name. No. 7. Form of Certificate of Marriage, To all whom it may concern : This certifies that the Bonds of Marriage between and were by me confinued, according to the usages of the Reformed Church in America, on the day of , in the year of our Lord one thousand eight hundred and . Given af , this day of , AD,, 18-. 'Minister of the Reformed Church in , FORMULAS. No. 8 , Form of Conmtorial Report. 1 Census Number op Families. i-t jOn Confession. 1 On Certificate. 1 Dismissed. 1 Suspended. Died. - Total now in Com- munion. r Infants. > Adults. Number of Catechu- mens. p ■:} Number of Sabbath Schools. Total Number of Schol'rs. 05 > i Religious and Be- nevolent Purposes. i ^. Concregational Purposes. i 52 CONSTITUTION. No. 9. Form of a ClassiccU Report. •Bsaippv aoroo 'oagod •BJBioqag JO jaqoitiu [B^oj, •fHOoqog mBqqBg JO jaqran^ •eaaoi ■nqoaiBo JO jaquin^ •siinpv •e^oBjai a^uioo m Moa ibjox •paia •papaadsng •passiraeja •a^Bogpjao ao •noiseajuoo uq •Banira^^ JO aaqran^i snsuoo •eaoisYj •b'SHoanuo F0EMULA8. 53 No. 10. Foi^m of the Citation of a Person accused. By order of the ,* you, Mr. A. B. ,f are hereby summoned % to appear before said , and answer to the charge herewith presented, at , on the day of , at o'clock . (Signed) , Pres. , Clerk. Done in , at , this d^y of , 18—. No. 11. Form of the Citation of Witnesses. By order of the , § you, Mr. A. B. , \ are hereby summoned ** to appear before the said , at , ou the day of , and at o'clock in the , to give your testimony in the case of C. D., presently under process for censure by said . (Signed) , Pres. , Clerk. * Consistory of the Reformed Church at , or the Classis of . t Member of, or Elder, or Deacon in said Congregation ; or Minister at , under the inspection of said Classis. X If the process be raised at the instance of a party complaining, K-dd, after " summoned," at the instance of C. D. § Consistory of the Reformed Church at , or the Classis of . i Member of, or Elder, or Deacon in said Congregation ; or Minister at , under the inspection of said Classis, and if the witness be- longs to a different judicatory, the blank is to be filled up accordingly. ** If the process be raised at the instance of a party complaining, add, after the word " summoned," at the instance of C. D. IL— THE RECEPTION OF MINISTERS. 1. No licentiate nor ordained minister, from any other ecclesiastical body, shall be received into any Classis until, either by documentary evidence or examination, they shall have become satisfied of his competent literary qualifica- tions ; nor until, upon examination, they shall also become fully satisfied of his competent theological attain- ments, his piety, soundness in the faith and ability to teach, and shall have received his entire assent to the standards of our Church, as to doctrine and discipline. 2. That if any candidate or minister, applying for ad- mission into any Classis, shall, in the judgment of Classis, have sought and obtained licensure or ordination from any ecclesiastical organization for the sake of an easier admission into our Church than upon the strict terms en- joined upon our own students at New Brunswick, it shall be considered a disqualification, to be removed only by a dispensation from the General Synod. 3. No licentiate shall be received as a candidate under the care of Classis, or be privileged to minister in, or re- ceive a call from our Churches, unless he shall have spent the same amount of time in actual attendance on theologi- cal instruction that is required from our own students ; and any deficiency in this respect shall be made up by study in our own Seminary. 4. It is enjoined on the Standing Committee on Doc- trine in the several Classes, when a vacancy occurs, to send to such vacant church, immediately, a list of the licentiates of our own Seminary, and to use their endeav- ors to procure for them an early hearing ; and it is rec- ommended to the consistories of our Churches, in all «yu9ea, promptly to endeavor to obtain their services. (54) RECEPTION OF MINISTERS. 55 5. Whenever a Church becomes vacant, it shall be the duty of the Classis to exercise guardianship over it, and when requested by the consistory, to supply it as far as practicable by their personal services — -thus preventing the disorganizing influence of casual and indiscriminate ministrations ; and to maintain such a supervision over it, and minister such aid as is necessary to carry out these rules, and such as a destitute Church is entitled to claim from its very relations. (). No foreign minister shall be received on mere pri- vate letters of introduction or recommendation ; but, in all cases, full ecclesiastical certificates shall be required. 7. No foreign minister shall be received by any Classis, unless he shall have undergone a probation of one year under the care of a Classis, and shall then present the same testimonials, and undergo the examination required by the first of these rules. 8. These rules shall be inserted in some conspicuous place in the minute-books of the le^pective Classes. III.— RULES OF ORDER. 1. At every stated meeting of the Synod, a sermon shall be preached by the last President, either before his open- ing* the session with prayer, or at some time afterward, which the Synod shall deem most convenient. If the last President and the Adsessor be absent, the oldest minister present shall take his place and perform the above duties. 2. The President and Adsessor shall be elected by bal- lot, by a majority of all the members present; and if after the first vote there is no election, the choice shall be made from the two who have the highest number of votes. The clerks shall be elected by plurality. ..a 3. The duties of the President shall be : s (1.) To take the chair at the hour to which the Synod stands adjourned. (3.) To open and conclude with prayer. (3.) To direct the Clerk, immediately after a quorum has appeared, to call the roll. (4.) To censure absentees when their absence shall be judged not to have been necessary. (5.) To propound the subjects for deliberation. (6.) To confine speakers to the point, and to save them from unnecessary interruption. (7.) To state and put the question, when the members are prepared to vote. (8.) To prevent members from leaving the Synod with- out permission. (9.) To decide questions of order, subj ect, however, to an appeal to the house by any two members. (10.) To give the casting vote in all equal divisions. (11.) And, in general, to maintain the order and dignity becoming the judicatory of the Church of Christ. 4. After calling the roll, the minutes of the last sit- (56) RULES OF ORDER. 57 ting shall be read, and considered as open to correction. The business on the minutes of the last meeting or sit- ting, shall, without powerful reasons, be taken up and concluded first, in the order in which it stands, before any new business be introduced, 5. A motion made must be seconded, and afterwards repeated, or read aloud from the Chair, before it is de- bated ; and every motion except a motion for adjourn- ment, shall be reduced to writing if any member require it. 6. An amendment may be made to any motion, and it shall be decided before the original motion. It may be, in its turn, suspended by an amendment to itself, which must first be considered and decided. But no additional amendment to an original motion can be received until the previous one has been disposed of. 7. When a question is under debate, no motion shall be received except to adjourn, to lay on the table, to postpone indefinitely, to postpone to a certain time, to commit to a standing committee, to a select one, or to the committee of the whole, to amend, or for the previous question ; which motions shall have precedence in the order stated. 8. When the previous question is moved and seconded, it shall be in this form : " Shall the main question be now put ?" and until it be decided all amendments and debate shall be inadmissible. If the vote be in the affirmative, the original motion shall be immediately put, without further amendment or debate. Bnt if there be an amendment or amendments pending at the time, the question shall first be taken on such amendment or amendments in their proper order, without debate. If the vote be in the negative, the debate shall continue as before. 9. A question shall not be ca'led up or reconsidered at ,58 coNSirnjTioN. the same sessioii: of the Synod at which it was decided. unless by consent of two-thirds of the members present. 10. No member shall be allowed to protest against aoy of the acts of the Synod ; but any member who dissents from any such acts shall have a right to require the names of all the members present, who vote for or against the same, to be entered in the minutes, and published there- with for the information of all concerned. In other cases, the yeas and nays shall not be recorded unless on the de- mand of one-fifth of the members present. 11. The mover and seconder of a motion may withdraw a before debate has commenced on it, but not afterwards, unless by leave of Sjnodv 12. In filling blanks, when various motions are made, the vote shall always be first on the highest number and longest time. 13. Every member shall rise and address himself to the President only, closely attending to the subject in debate, avoiding all personal reflections ; and no member, without the special permission of the Synod, shall speak more than twice on the same subject. When two or more members rise to speak at the same time, the President shall deter- mine who of them shall be heard first. 14. After the President has begun to take the vote, or the Clerk to call the roll on a division of the house, no debate nor remark shall be allowed. 15. A motion to adjourn or to lay on the table, and all motions in relation to priority of business, shall be decided without debate. The motion to po-*tpone or to commit fhall preclude all debate of the main question. 16. When an appeal is taken from a decision of the Chair on a point of order, the President shall have the right to explain the grounds of his decision, but the ap- peal shall be decided by the house without debate. RULES OF ORDER. 59 17. No member shall leave the Synod to return home or for other business without their consent ; nor shall mem- bers, without express permission, engage in private con- versation, go from or change their seats during the trans- action of business ; interrupt another when he is speaking, except he be out of order, or to correct mistakes and mis- representations ; and if any member act indecently or disorderly, contrary to these rules, the President sliall re- prove or otherwise censure him, as the Synod shall judge proper ; the member still having th-e privilege, if he think himself denied any right or unjustly blamed by the President, of respectfully and modestly requiring the decision of the house in the case, 18. All the sittings of General Synod shall be concluded by regular adjournment and prayer, 19. At the close of every session of General Synod th-e roll shall be called, and the names of those who are absent without permission shall be recorded. 20. Standing Committees : (1.) Professorate. (2.) Overtures. (3.) Synodical Minutes. (4.) Domestic Missions. (5 ) Foreign Missions. (6.) State of Religion, (7.) Education. (8.) Judicial Business, d (9.) Widows' and Disabled Ministers' Funds. (10.) Publication. (11.) Nominations. (12.) Correspondence. (13.) Accounts. (14.) Leave of Absence. (15.) Board of Direction, 60 CONSTITUTION. 21. All distinctive titles or appendages to the names of members of Synod shall be omitted in recording the min- utes of this Synod : such distinctive title being prefixed or appended to the name of the member in the list of members constituting the Synod. 22. Primarii and Secundi : (1.) When a Primarias shall find it impracticable to at- tend the judicatory to which he is delegated, it shall be his duty as soon as may be, to notify a Secundus, and when he shall take his seat it shall not be vacated to give place to the Primarius. (2.) At the commencement of the session, the members delegated, whether Primarii or Secundi, shall be recog nized and recorded, bat when the Primarius shall appear at any subsequent period of the session, then the Prima- rius shall take the seat of the Secundus, and the Secundus shall not be considered a member again, unless by request of the Primarius, and express permission obtained by the Synod. 23. Judicial Business : (1.) Any appeal, complaint, or other judicial business, which shall be presented or reported to the Synod, shall be first referred, with all the papers and documents apper- taining thereto, to the Committee on Judicial Business, who shall inquire whether the same has been regularly brought before the Synod, and whether all the constitu- tional steps in the case liaire been taken, and, if the same shall be found in order, they shall digest and arrange all the papers and documents connected therewith, that the subsequent proceedings in the case before the Synod may be regular and systematic ; provided, nevertheless, that the said committee shall be required to report upon every matter that may be referred to them. (2.) Whenever any case thus reported shall be taken RULES OF ORDER. 61 up for trial, the President shall solemnly announce from the Chair that the Synod is about to proceed to the con- sideration of judicial business, and enjoin on the members to recollect and regard their character as judges of the highest court of Jesus Christ on earth, known to the Con- stitution of the Reformed [Dutch] Church ; after which it shall not be in order, during the pending of such trial, to transact any legislative business bearing on the case. (3.) In recording their decision, it shall be the duty of the court who have tried any judicial business in the original case, or by appeal, to set forth at length the reasons thereof, that the record may exhibit, as far as practicable, everything that had an influence on their judgment ; a certified copy of which, with the act of pro- ceeding appeal from, shall be sent up by them to the court to whom the appeal may be taken. Such inferior court shall also be permitted to send a commissioner to the Synod, for the purpose of making any explanations relative to said case, it being expressly understood that in every case the original parties be not lost sight of in any stage of trial. (4.) In taking up an appeal, after having ascertained that the appellant has conducted it regularly, the follow- ing shall be the order of trial : [1.] The sentence appealed from shall be read. [2.] The appeal and reasons of appeal shall be read. [3.] All the documents in the case shall be read, in the order prescribed by the Committee on Judicial Business. [4.] The original parties shall be heard, commencing with the appellant. [5.] The commissioner of the inferior judicatory which has tried the appeal may be heard in explanation of the grounds of their decision, and of the manner of their pro- ceeding in the case. 62 CONSTITUTION. [6.] The appellant may be heard in reply. (5.) After all the parties shall have been fully heard, and all the information gained by the Synod which shall be deemed necessary, the parties shall withdraw, when the roll shall be called, that every member may have an opportunity to express his opinion on the case, after which the final vote may be taken. (6.) The decision may be either to confirm or reverse, in whole or in part, the judgment of the inferior judicatory, or to remit the cause, with instructions or for a new trial. (7.) In the trial of all judicial business brought before the Synod by complaint or reference, the same order of proceeding shall be observed, as far as practicable, as in cases of appeal, but no complaint shall be entertained unless notice of the same shall have been given before the rising of the judicatory whose act is complained of, or within ten days thereafter. 24. Religious Exercises : (1.) The afternoon of the first day shall be devoted to exercises of prayer and praise. (2.) The first half-hour of each subsequent morning ses- sion shall be so spent after the reading of the minutes. (3.) The Lord's Supper shall be observed on the after- noon of the second day. (4.) A sermon in behalf of the benevolent operations of the Church shall be preached on the evening of the sixth day of the session. 25. The morning of the third day of the session shall be devoted to the purpose of hearing from the secretaries of our various Boards such oral statements as they shall see fit to make ; after which, an opportunity shall be afibrded for a free interchange of opinion and feeling among the members of the Synod in regard to the benevolent opera- tions of the Church. RULES OF ORDER. 63 26. A rule of order may be suspended for the time by unanimous consent. 27. These rules (except 23. 23, 24. and 35) shall be read at the opening of each General Synod. INDEX TO THE CONSTITUTION. PAOK Amendments to the Constitution 45 Appeals 42-45 Assemblies, ecclesiastical 23 what kind of business to do 23 their officers 23 must open and close with prayer 28 members must have signed credentials 23 Baptism, who may administer 13,15 in what place 35,86 must be recorded 25 Baptized persons, members of the Church 37 Call of a minister, who may make it 24, 26 must be approved by Classis 26 its form 27,28 Candidate for the ministiy, qualifications 11, 13 cannot administer sacraments 13 is under care of Classis 13 how to act upon calls 13, 14 form of his license 47 Canons of Dort to be assented to 12, 14, 19 Catechizing of youth required 15, 27, 32 C'enmra Morum required 25, 32 Certificate, professorial 12 of licensure 13, 47 of ordination 15, 48 of dismission of a minister 49 of dismission of church members 26, 49 Citation, of accused persons 40, 63 of witnesses 40,53 (65) Q6 INDEX. Classis, by whom formed 30, 33 what it consists of 30 its powers 30 is to examine students 30 must meet semi-annually. 31 wpecial meetings, liow called 31 must send minutes to Particular Synod 33 keep book of formula 31 require statistics 26 put yearly inquiries 32 to report annually to the Synod licensures, ordinations and removals of ministers 81 to appoint delegates to Particular Synod 32 to nominate delegates to General Synod 82 may form new Consistories 24 separate combined 29, 30 authorize excommunication 41, 43 must have a standing committee on vacant congregations 17 Collegiate Churches, their representation in Classis 30 Complaints, when allowed 42 their effect 43,44 Consistories, how constituted 24, 25 how chosen 21, 22 quorum 25 the minister to preside at their meetings 24 have the right to call ministers 26 yet must consult Great Consistory or congregation at large. . 29 must keep minutes and report to Classis 25, 26 observe Censura Morum 25 Consistory, Great 20, yQ Correspondence of Synods 38 of General Synod with other bodies 34 Counsel, professional, not allowed 41 Credentials of delegates to be signed 23 Deacons, their office 21 quorum 25 rights in Consistory 24 how chosen 21, 22 term of office 22 joint powers with ciders 24 Discipline, its objects 37 nature 37 INDEX. 67 Discipline, its eubjects 37 Dismission of a member 26,49 of a minister 16, 80, 49 Dispensations from study, when and by whom granted 13 Ecclesiastical assemblies to open and close with prayer 23 Elders, office of 21 have spiritual government 24, 26 how chosen 21, 22 quorum of 25 joint powers with deacons 24 Emeritus, who and when declared 16 Examination, of students 12 of candidates 13, 14 must be careful 30 by whom made 30, 31 of licentiates or ministers of other churches 17, 18, 54 of foreigners 55 Excommunication, when allowed 41 only by advice of Classis 41 how conducted 42 how reversed 42 Fama Clamosa, what constitutes it 38 Family Visitation, required 15, 32 Foreign Ministers, rule concerning 17, 55 Foreign Missionary Fields, Synods allowed to grant dispensations there 35 Great Consistory, its nature and function 29, 30 General Synod, its constitution 34 to meet annually 34 quorum of 34 delegate's seat, when vacated 34, 60 criginal cognizance 34 appellate jurisdiction 35 special meetings 35 Heidelberg Catechism, to be assented ,to 12, 14, 20 to be regularly explained 27, 28, 32 Informers, liability of 37 Ipso facto dismissions, of ministers 30 of members 39 Jurisdiction of a Classis over a Consistory defined 80 Lord's Supper, by whom administered -. 13, 15 how often 36 68 INDEX. Lord's Supper, in what way administered 36 suspension from 41 Limitation of time for accusations 41 Marriages, to be recorded 25 form of certificate of 50 Members, how received 25 how dismissed 26 form of dismission 49 Ministers of the Word, office of 15 must be regularly ordained 11 are all equal 17 from other bodies to be examined before received 17, 18, 54 to preside at all Consistorial meetings 24 when suspended 29 are for life 16 may become emeritus 16 Ministers without charge, limitation of 16 Minutes, must be kept 26 sent to Classis 26 to Particular Synod 33 to General Synod 33 Ordination, how conducted 15 Offences, private, nature of 37 how to be dealt with 87 public, nature of 38 principal ones 38 limitation of time in bringing forward — 41 Particular Synods, by whom constituted 35 of whom composed 32 their powers 33 their quorum 32 meet annually 33 annual report to the General Synod 33 special meeiings — 3S Private Baptism, when allowed 36 conditions of 36 I*rocess and Trial 39 Professors of Theology, how chosen 18 duties of 19, 46 must sign formula 19 cannot be pastors or members of church judicatories 20 are amenable to General Synod 19 INDEX. 69 Profeseors of Theology, resiguation of office 20 Protests not allowed 24 substitute for 24 Psalms and Hymns, what allowed 36 Quorum of a Consistory 25 of a Classis 30 of Particular Synod 32 of General Synod 84 Registers required 25 Sacraments 35, 36 who may administer 13, 15 Students in Theology, credentials required of 12 examination of 12 Synods, see Particular and General. Temporal Contract, form of 28 inquiry into 32 Vacant Churches, control of their pulpits 17, 55 Witnesses, to he sworn or affirmed 40 how cited 40 form of citation 53 to he more than one 40 their evidence to be recorded 40 Worship, Order of 3fi DIGEST Jiiirs of the #ctteal|'mi0tl "^EEFORMED OHUECH IN AMEEIOA, SESSION IN JUNE 18G9, INCLUSIVE. Prepared by a Committee appointed for the purpose. PUBLISHED BY OEDER OF SYNOD. NEW YORK: BOAED OF PUBLICATION Synod's Rooms, 150 William Stkekt. 1869. OONTEi^Tfe. Chap. I. Name of the Church. " II. Constitution of the Church. " III. Consistoi-ies. " IV. Classes. V. Synods, " A. General. B. Particular. VI. Boards of the Church, " " A. Direction. B. Domestic Missions. *' " C. For. Missions. D. Education. E. Publication. " VII. Educational Institutions of the Church, " " A. Theological Seminary at New Brunswick. B. " " Holland. " " C. Itutger's College. " " E. Hope College. *' VIII. Funds of the Church, A. Widow's Fund. " " B. Disabled Minister's Fund. " " C. Church Building Fund. " IX. Church Government. " X. Doctrines and Morals. " XI. Customs and Usages. " XII. Correspondence with other Churches. •' XIII. Religious Newspaper. " XIV. Particularia. For pages and fuller statements of sections see the index at the close of the volume. DIGEST. CHAPTER I. NAME OF THE CHURCH. Jhe Reformed Church in America The incorporation of tlie General Synod granted by the Legislature of the State of New York, April 7th 1819, was under the designation of " The Keformed Protestant Dutch Church." At the session of Synod in June, 1866, a Committee was appointed to consider the propriety of a change in the name of the Church. The Committee reported in June, 1867. Their Report is printed as an Appendix to the Minutes of Synod of that year. The action of Synod accepting the change proposed, and referring it to the Classes, is contained in the same Minutes (June, 1867), pp., 239-343. The Classes reported, twenty-five affirm- atively and six negatively, to Synod in an extra session Nov. 1867. See Minutes of the session, Vol. XI., pp. 331-335. A Committee was appointed to secure the necessary legislative enactments. A' memorial to the Legislature of the State of New York was adopted in June, 1838, Minutes, Vol. XL. pp. 4G4-166. At the ses- sion of Synod in June, 1859, information was received of the passing of the following act by the Legislature : 6 DIGEST. Gh. I " The People of the State of New York, represented in Senate and AssemUy, do enact as follows : The ecclesiastical body hitherto incorporated and known by the corporate title of the General Synod of the Reformed Protestant Dutch Church, shall hereafter be designated and known by the corporate title of the General Synod of the Reformed Church in America, and as such exercise and enjoy all the rights and powers it has hitherto possessed. This act shall take effect immediately." Vol. XI., p. 625. CHAPTER II. CONSTITUTION OF THE CHURCH. The Constitution of the Reformed Church includes, 1. The Revised Rules of Church Government. 2. Her Doctrinal Standards, consisting of the Confession of Faith, the Heidelberg Catechism and Compendium, and the Canons af the Synod of Dort. 3. The Liturgy, Vol. IV., pp. 425, 426. CHAPTER HI. CONSISTORIES. Sec. I. To obey Sec. 20, Art. 1, Chap. 1, of Constitu- tion. The General Synod enjoins upon the Consistories of the several churches strictly to adhere to the article of the Constitution in relation to thc^ Standing Committee of Classis in relation to vacant congregations. Vol. V., p. 58. Sec. II. Synodical Minutes are to he examined. It is recommended to all the Consistories under the Sec. 3 CONSISTORIES. 7 supervision of this Synod, to appoint a committee annu- ally, as near the 1st of June as possible, to be called the Committee of Synodical Minutes, whose duty it shall be, as soon after the authenticated copies of the Minutes have been received as possible, to examine the Minutes of Particular and General Synods, and report to their several Consistories the subjects that require their action. Vol. V., p. 162. Sec. III. To seek aid from the Board of Missions, through Glassis. It is recommended to every church now receiving aid from the Board of Missions, or hereafter to receive aid from the same, first to make application to the Classis within whose bounds it is situated, and that such Clas- sis be requested to consider the case, and if, in their opinion, possessing a fair claim to the measure of aid which said church specifies, recommend it to the Board to allow them the said appropriation. Vol. V., p. 290. Sec. IV. To endencor to support Beneficiaries recom- mended by themselves. When any church recommends a beneficiary to the funds of the Education Board, or any other funds at the disposal of this Synod for classical or theological educa- tion, said church or consistory shall first make an effort to sustain such young man, and report to the Classis with which such church is connected, to what extent they shall be able to assist. Vol. VI., p. 231. Sec. V. To rewke a recommendation when thought ex- pedient. Special care shall be exercised by Consistories and Classes in recommending young men to the Education 8 DIGEST. Ch. Ill Fund : and that if at any time a Consistory or Classis shall become convinced of the unfitness of any person recommended by them, said Consistory or Classis are expected to revoke their recommendation as soon as possible. Vol. V., p. 232 ; Vol. VI., p. 232. Sec. VI. Have power to decide on the validity of Rom- ish baptisin. Whereas, the right of receiving members into the church belongs constitutionally to the consistories therefore Resolved, That the question of the validity of Roman Catholic baptism be left to the different consistories. Vol. IV., p. 403. Sec. VII. Enjoined to present to Classes annual written and particular reports on the state of religion icithin their hounds. Resolved, That it be enjoined through the medium of the Particular Synods and the several Classes, upon the several Consistories, to present annually to;_their re- spective Classes a statistical account of their congrega- tions, and also an account of vital religion throughout their sccieties. Vol. I., 1809, p. 23 ; 1814, p. 74 ; Vol. III., p. 45. Sec. VIII. Duty in regard to Sabbath schools. It is recommended to the several ministers and consistories in our Church, where it is not already the case, to take the school or schools formed of teachers and scholars belonging to their churches and congrega- tions under their oversight and care. Vol. III., p. 278. &EC. IX. To defray the expenses of their ministers and elders _ attending the judicatories of the Church. Resolved, That it be recommended to the consistories Sec. 10. CONSISTORIES. 9' that they defray the expenses of their ministers and elders, who attend from time to time the several judi- catories of the Church. Vol. I., 1797, p. 14 ; 1814, p. 34 ; 1815, p. 74. Sec. X. To endeavor to obtain an interest in the Wid- otcs' fund for their ministers. Synod, desirous that all their ministers may, if prac- 1 cable, become interested in the Widows' Fund, do Resolve, that in cases in which ministers may find it in- convenient themselves to become subscribers to this Fund, it be recommended to the consistories to secure for their pastors an interest therein, by subscribing on their behalf. Vol. V., pp. 191, 297 ; Vol. VI., p. 142. Sec. XI. To sustatn the benevolent operations of the Church. Resolved, That in the judgment of this Synod all pas- tors and consistories are under solemn obligation to the Church, and those looking to her for aid, to carry out faithfully, and in the most efl&cient way practicable, the arrangement for meeting the calls of our benevolent operations. Resolved, That this Synod highly approve and com- mend to the churches, as one of the most efficient means of collecting the charities of the Church, the plan of di- viding each congregation into sections, and appointing persons (both males and females) to call upon every member in each section, periodically, for contributions to benevolent objects. Vol. VI., pp. 29, 30. Sec. XII. To render full reports of membership and contributions. Resolved, That it be enjoined on the consistories to 10 DIGEST. Oh. IV render full reports of membership and contributions. Vol. IX., p. 57. Sec. XIII. To procure all 2^uhlicaUons of the Board of PiiblicaUoii for Pastors' libraries. Resoldcd, That this Synod recommend to each con- sistory of our Church to procure all the publications of our Board of Publication * * * to be placed in the pastor's library of each church, and to remain there as the property of the church. Vol. IX,, p. 240. Sec. XIV. When there is no settled Pastor, the condst- ory is to have collections ordered hy Synod taken up ill the church. Resolved, That it is the duty of * * * every con- sistory where there is no settled pastor, to see to it that the collections ordered by Synod are regularly taken up in the churches under their care. Vol. XI., p. 504. CHAPTER IV. GLASSES. Sec. I. To hold a free conversation on the State of Re- ligion. Each Classis is requested to hold, at its stated meet- ings, immediately preceding the annual meeting of the General Synod, a free conversation on the state of relig- ion in their congregations ; and that on some day of such meeting, each Classis, as such, spend one hour in special prayer, in behalf of the interests of vital religion within our bounds. June, 1820, p. 58. Sec. 2. CLASSES. 11 Sec. II. Their Committees on Gonmtorial Minutes may report on any matters demanding Classical action. According to the Constitution, it is the duty of the Committee on Minutes of Consistories to report for cor- rection, adjudication, or advice, all matters which may demand the action of Classis. Vol, V., p. 506. Sec. III. On the reception of Ministers. 1. No licentiate nor ordained minister, from any othr er ecclesiastical body, shall be received into any Classia until, either by documentary evidence or examination, they shall have become satisfied of his competent liter- ary qualifications ; nor until upon examination, in the presence of a deputatus, they shall also become fully sat- isfied of his competent theological attainments, his pie- ty, soundness in the faith and ability to teach, and shall have received his entire assent to the standards of our Church, as to doctrine and discipline. 3. That if any candidate or minister, applying for ad» mission into any Classis, shall, in the judgment of Clas- sis, have sought and obtained licensure or ordination from any ecclesiastical organization for the sake of an easier admission into our Church than upon the strict terms enjoined upon our own students at New Bruns- wick, it shall be considered a disqualification, to be re- moved only by a dispensation from the General Synod. 3. No licentiate shall be received as a candidate un- der the care of Classis, or be privileged to minister in, or receive a call from our churches, unless he shall have spent the same amount of time in actual attendance on theological instruction that is required from our own students ; and any deficiency in this respect shall be made up by study in our own Seminary. 13 DIGEST. Gh. IV 4. It is enjoined on tlie Standing Committee (on doc- trine) in the several Classes, Avlien a vacancy occurs, to send to sucL. vacant churcli, immediately, a list of the licentiates of our own Seminary, and to use their en- deavors to procure for them an earl}- hearing ; and it is recommended to the consistories of our churches, in all cases, promptly to endeavor to obtain their services. 5. Whenever a church becomes vacant, it shall be the duty of the Classis to exercise guardianship over it^ and, when requested by the consistory, to supply it as far as practicable by their personal services — thus pre- venting the disorganizing influence of casual and indis- criminate ministrations ; and to maintain such a super- vision over it, and minister such aid as is necessary to carry out these rules, and such as a destitute church is entitled to claim from its very relations. 6. No foreign minister shall be received on mere private letters of introduction or recommendation ; but, in all cases, full ecclesiastical certificates shall be re- quired. 7. No foreign minister shall be received by any Clas- sis, unless he shall have undergone a probation of one year under the care of a Classis, and shall then present the same testimonials, and undergo the examination, required by the first of these rules. 8. These rules shall be inserted in some conspicuous place in the minute-books of the respective Classes. Vol v., p. 387. Sec. IV. To ajypoiut Committees to guard against the introduction of unsound doctrines. Vol. I., 1815, p. 38 ; Vol. II., 1824, p. 47 ; Vol. IV., p. 293. Resolved, That in conformity to the design of Sec. 20, Art. 1. Chap. 1. of the Constitution, it is the duty of Sec. 5. CLASSES. 13 every Classis to a]^point a Standing Committee, for the purpose contemplated in that section. Vol. IV., p 293. Sec. V. To require reports from ministers witJiout charge. It is enjoined upon the several Classes to require of the ministers under their care without charges to ren- der an account annually, at the ordinary session next preceding the meeting of General Synod, of the manner in which they have been employed the preceding year, in order that their doings may more immediately come under the review of Classis. Vol. V., p. 256. Sec. VI. To take measures to liave the ordinances ad- ministered in vacant churches tcithin their hounds. Vol. I., 1817, p. 37. Sec. VII. Allowed to nominate members of the Board of Superintendents. Resolved, That instead of a Committee of Nomination, usually appointed by Synod previous to the election of the Board of Superintendents, to designate a double number from each Classis oiit of which the election shall be made, the respective Classes themselves shall have the right to nominate to General Synod the repre- sentatives to which they are entitled in the Board, for confirmation and appointment by Synod. Vol. IV., p. 302. Sec. VIII. TIow their nominations of members of the Board of Superintendents are to be transmitted to Resolved, That the nominations of memliers of the 14 DIGEST. Ch. IV Board of Superintendents by tlie several Classes, be transmitted to tlie General Synod by letter from tbe Stated Clerks of tlie respective Classes to the Stated Clerk of the General Synod. Vol. IV., p. 422. Sec. IX. On Statistical Reports. Whereas, it is important that the statistical reports from our churches should be regularly made to Synod ; and, whereas, some Classes have made no returns at all, and many churches have been habitually negligent in making full returns ; therefore, 1. Resolved, That this subject be earnestly recom- mended to the attention of all our Classes and church- es. 2. That whenever any of the churches shall be delin- quent in making their statistical reports, the Classes be advised to supply such neglect, by inserting the last report from said churches, and add a note of explanation of this fact. 3. That the Stated Clerks of the several Classes be directed to send annually, a copy of their statistical re- ports to the Stated Clerk of General Synod. Vol. III., p. 183. Sec. X. Have jjoicer to decide on the validity of Romish ordination. Whereas, the right of ordaining the ministry of the gospel belongs to the Classes of the Church ; therefore, Resolved, That the question of the validity of Roman Catholic ordination be left to the diflferent Clas- ses. Vol. IV., p. 403. Sec. XI. Not entitled to rej^resentatioii t?2 General Sy- nod, until regularly organized. No Classis shall be considered as entitled to a re^e- Ssc. 12. CLASSES. 15 sentation in General Synod, until the same shall have been ref^ularly organized according to the usual order, and the evidence of its organization shall have been re- corded on the minutes of the Particular Synod. Vol. IV., p. 332. Sec. XII. JVot to dissolve the j)(i>ctionately call the attention of our Classes to the small proportion of benevolent contributions given to our own Boards, as compared with the gross amount reported, and request them to use their influence as may seem to them best adapted to secure a change in this respect. Vol. XI., p. 505. Sec. XXXV. To sjiefid one hour at every regular meet- ing in prayer and conference on benevolence. Resolved, That this Synod aflf'ectionately and earnest- ly request each Classis at every regular meeting to give at least one hour to fraternal conference and prayer with reference to the benevolent operations of the Church, that they may provoke one another to good works. Vol. XI., p. 505. CHAPTER V. SYNODS. A. GENERAL SYXODS. Sec. I. Rules of Order 1. At every stated meeting of the Synod, a sermon shall be preached by the last President, either before his opening the session with prayer, or at some time af- terward, which the Synod shall deem most convenient. 23 DIGEST. Gh. V If the last President and the Adsessor be absent, the oldest minister present shall take his place and perform the above duties. 2. The President and Adsessor shall be elected by "ballot, by a majority of the members present ; and if after the first vote there is no election, the choice shall be made from the two who have the highest number of votes. Tlie clerks shall be elected by plurality. 3. The duties of the President shall be to take the chair at the hour to which the Synod stands adjourned ; to open and conclude Avith prayer ; to direct the Clerk immediately after a quorum has appeared to call the roll ; to censure absentees when their absence shall be judged not to have been necessary ; to propound the subjects for deliberation ; to confine speakers to the point, and to save them from unnecessary interruption ; to st&te and put the question, when the members are prepared to vote ; to prevent members from leaving the Synod without permission ; to decide questions of order, subject, however, to an appeal to the house by any two members ; to give the casting vote in all equal divis- ions ; and, in general, to maintain the order and dignity becoming the judicatory of the Church of Christ. 4. After calling the roll, the minutes of the last sit- ting shall be read, and considered as open to correction. The business on the minutes of the last meeting or sit- ting, shall, without powerful reasons, be taken up and concluded first, in the order in which it stands, before any new business be introduced. 5. A motion made must be seconded, and aftewards repeated, or read aloud from the Chair, before it is de- bated ; and every motion, except a motion for adjourn- ment, shall be reduced to Nvriting if any member require it. Sec. 1. SYNODS. 23 6. An amendment may be made on any motion, and it sliall be decided before the original motion. It may be, in its turn, suspended by an amendment to itself", wliicli must first be considered and decided. But no ad- ditional amendment to an original motion can be re- ceived until the previous one lias been disposed of. 7. When a question is under debate, no motion shall be received except to adjourn, to lay on the table, to postpone indefinitely, to postpone to a certain time, to commit to a standing committee, to a select one, or to the committee of the whole ; to amend, or for the pre- vious question, which motions shall have precedence in the order stated. 8. When the previous question is moved and second- ed, it sJiall be in this form : " Sliall the main question be now put V" and until it be decided all amendments and debate shall be inadmissible. If the vote be in the affirmative, the original motion shall be immediately put without further amendment or debate. But if there be an amendment or amendments pending at the time, the question shall first be taken on such amend- ment or amendments in their proper order without de- bate. If the vote be in the negative the debate shall continue as before. 9. A question shall not be called up or reconsidered at the same session of the Synod at which it was de- cided, unless by consent of two-thirds of the members present. 10. No member shall be allowed to protest against any of the acts of the Synod ; but any member who dissents from any such acts shall have a right to require the names of all the members present, who vote for or against the same, to be entered in the minutes, and published therewith for the information of all concern- 24 DIGEST. Ch. V ed. In other cases, the yeas and nays shall not be re- corded unless on the demand of one-fifth of the members present. 11. The mover and seconder of a motion may with- draw it before debate has commenced on it, but not afterwards, unless by leave of Synod. 13. In filling blanks, when various motions are made, the vote shall always be first on the highest number and longest time. 13. Every member shall rise and address himself to the President only, closely attending to the subject in debate, avoiding all personal reflections ; and no mem- ber, without the special permission of the Synod, shall speak more than twice on the same subject. When two or more members rise to speak at the same time, the President shall determine who of them shall be heard first. 14. After the President has begun to take the vote, or the Clerk to call the roll on a division of the house, no debate nor remark shall be allowed. 15. A motion to adjourn or to lay on the table, and all motions in relation to priority of business, shall be decided without debate. The motion to postpone or to commit shall preclude all debate of the main question. 16. When an appcd is taken from a decision of the Chair on a point of order, the President shall have the right to explain the grounds of his decision, but the ap- peal shall be decided by the house without debate. 17. No member shall leave the Synod to return home or for other business without their consent ; nor shall members, without express permission, engage in private conversation, go from or change their seats dur- ing the transaction of business ; interrupt another when he is speaking, except he be out of order, or to correct Sec. I. SYNODS. 25 mistakes and misrepresentations ; and if any member act indecently or disorderly, contrary to these rules, the President shall reprove or otherwise censure him, as the Synod shall judge proper ; the member still having the privilege, if he think himself denied of any right or unjustly blamed by the President, of respectfully and modestly requiring the decision of the house in the case. 18. All the sittings of General Synod shall be con- cluded by regular adjournment and prayer. 19. At the close of every session of General Synod the roll shall be called, and the names of those who are ab- sent without permission shall be recorded. 20. Standing Committees : (1.) Professorate. (2.) Overtures. (3.) Synodical Minutes. (4.) Domestic Missions. (5.) Foreign Missions. (6.) State of Religion. (7.) Education. (8.) Judicial Business. (9.) Widows' and Disabled Ministers' Funds. (10.) Publication. (11.) Nominations. (12.) Correspondence. (18.) Accounts. (14.) Leave of Absence. 21. All distinctive titles or appendages to the names of members of Synod shall be omitted in recording the minutes of this Synod ; said distinctive titles being pre- fixed or appended to the name of the member in the list of members constituting the Synod. 26 DIGEST. Ch.V 22. Primarii and Secundi : (t.) When a Primarius shall find it impracticable to attend the judicatory to which he is delegated, that then it shall be his duty as soon as may be, to notify a Secundus, and that when he shall take his seat, it shall not be vacated to give place to the Primarius, (2.) At the commencement of the session, the mem- bers delegated, whether Primarii or Secundi, shall be recognized and recorded, but when the Primarius shall appear at any subsequent period of the session, then the Primarius shall take the seat of the Secundus, and the Secundus shall not be considered a member again, un- less by the request of the Primarius, and express per- mission obtained by the Synod. 23. Judicial Business : (1.) Any appeal, complaint, or other judicial business, which shall be presented or reported to the Synod, shall be first referred, with all the papers and documents ap- pertaining thereto, to the Committee on Judicial Busi ness, who shall inquire whether the same has been reg- ularly brought before the Synod, and whether all the constitutional steps in the case have been taken, and, if the same shall be found in order, they shall digest and arrange all the papers and documents connected there- with, that the subsequent proceedings in the case be- fore the Synod may be regular and systematic ; pro- vided, nevertheless, that the said committee shall be re- quired to report upon every matter that may be refer- red to them, (2 ) Whenever any case thus reported shall be taken up for trial, the President shall solemnly announce from the Chair that the Synod is about to proceed to the con- sideration of judicial business, and enjoin on the mem- bers to recollect and regard their character as judges of Sec. 1. SYNODS. 37 the highest court of Jesus Christ on earth, known to the Conslitution of tlie iiefonned Church ; after which it shall not be in order, during the pending of such trial, to transact any legislative business bearing on the case. (3.) In recording their decision, it shall be the duty of the court who have tried any j udicial business in the original case, or by appeal, to set forth at length the reasons thereof, that the record may exhibit, as far as practicable, every thing that had an influence on their judgment ; a certified copy of which, with the act of proceeding appealed from, shall be sent up by them to the court to whom the appeal may be taken. Such in- ferior court shall also be permitted to send a commis- sioner to the Synod, for the purpose of making any ex- planation relative to said case, it being expressly under- stood that in every case the original parties be not lost sight of in any stage of trial. (4.) In taking up an appeal, after having ascertained that the appellant has conducted it regularly, the fol- lowing shall be the order of trial : [1.] The sentence appealed from shall be read. [2.] The appeal and reasons of appeal sliall be read. [3.] All the documents in the case shall be read, in the order prescribed by the Committee on Judicial Bus- iness. [4.] The original parties shall be heard, commencing with the appellant. [5.] The commissioner of the inferior j udicatory which has tried the appeal may be heard in explanation of the grounds of their decision, and of the manner of their proceeding in the case. [G.] The appellant may be heard in reply. {5.) After all ])arties shall have been fully heard, and 28 DIGEST. Ch. V all the information gained by the Synod which shall be deemed necessary, the parties shall withdraw, when the roll shall be called, that every member may have an opportunity to express his opinion on the case, after which the final vote may be taken. (6.) The decision may be either to confirm or reverse, in whole or in part, the judgment of the inferior judi- catory, or to remit the cause with instructions or for Or new trial. (7.) In the trial of all judicial business brought before the Synod, by complaint or reference, the same order of proceeding shall be observed, as far as practicable, as in cases of appeal, but no complaint shall be entertained unless notice of the same shall have been given before the rising of the judicatory whose act is complained of, or within ten days thereafter. 24. Religious Exercises : (1.) The afternoon of the first day shall be devoted to exercises of prayer and praise. (2.) The first half hour of each subsequent morning session shall be so spent after the reading of the min- utes. (3.) The Lord's Supper shall be observed on the after- noon of the second day. (4.) A sermon in behalf of the benevolent operations of the Church shall be preached on the evening of the sixth day of the session. 25. The morning of the third day of the session shall be devoted to the purpose of hearing from the Secre- taries of our various Boards such oral statements as they shall see fit to make ; after which, an opportunity shall be afforded for a free interchange of opinion and feel- ing among the members of the Synod in regard to the benevolent operations of the Church. Sec. 2. SYNODS. 29 26. A rule of order may be suspended for tlie time by unanimous consent. 27. These rules (except 22, 23, 24, and 25) shall be read at the opening of each General Synod. Sec. II. Its powers at a special meeting. The General Synod of the Reformed Church, when convened in special session by the call of the President, has full power and authority to transact generally any business within the ordinary limits of its constitutional power, whether specified in the call or not. Vol. IV., p. 9. The same point was decided in the same way in 1804. (p. 5.) Sec. III. Mcpe7ises of Delegates to Synod to he paid. In order to avoid disappointments originating from pecuniary considerations, it is recommended to the Par- ticular Synods to enjoin it on their respective Classes, to make suitable provision for defraying the expenses of their delegates. Vol. I., 1809, p. 17. But see 1815, p. 74. Sec. IV. Credentials of Delegates. Resolved, That the Stated Clerks of the several Par- ticular Synods be and are hereby instructed to send the credentials of delegates to the General Synod to the said delegates, immediately upon their election, and also to the Stated Clerk of the General Synod. Vol. XI., p. 499. Sec. V. Directions with reference to Minutes of Synod. Resolved, That the Annual Reports of the several Clas ses be this year and hereafter arranged in alphabetical 30 DIGEST. Oh. V order, with a view to greater facility of reference ; and that the initials of the Particular Synods to which they respectively belong be annexed. Resolved, That there be published in the minutes of this Synod, this year and hereafter, the following : 1. The order of the Lemmata, to each of which shall be annexed a reference to the page of the minutes on which it may be found. 2. A list of the names of all who from the first shall have occupied the office of President of this Synod, and likewise a list of all who shall have occupied the office of Stated Clerk ; and that the names of all, respectively, be preceded by the year of their election, and followed by the name of the State in which they reside, and of the place in which the meeting was held. .3. An alphabetical list of all our ministers, with their respective places of residence, or post office addresses, an nexed, together with a reference to the page of the Min- utes of Synod upon which each name may be found in the Classical Report. Vol. X.. p. 208. Sec. VI. Stated clerks to have charge of accounts for the minutes. Besolved, That the accounts for the Minutes of the General Synod be transferred from the Treasurer to the Stated Clerk, and that he furnish the usual item on that subject for the "Annual Digest." Sec. VII. Salary of Treasurer. Mesolved, That the salary of the Treasurer of General Synod shall be $1,000. In view of the fact that the management of the Wid- ows' Fund involves a much larger amount of labor than any other of the funds of Synod ; Sec. 8. SYNODS. 31 Resolved, That of the salary of the Treasurer, $250 shall be paid from the Widows' Fund, and the remain- der apportioned among the other funds. Sec. VIII. Permanent Clerk app&inted. Resolved, That the office of Permanent Clerk be re- stored, and that the division of labor be arranged be- tween this officer and the Stated Olerk. Resolved, That the Permanent Clerk be allowed a salary of fifty dollars per annum, and that his necessary expenses while attending the meetings of General Synod be paid. Vol. XL, p. GG3. B. PARTICULAR SYNODS. (See also Appendix.) Sec. I. To administer Lord's Supper at their meetings. Resolved, That it be recommended to the Particular Synods to connect with their services the administration of the Lord's Supper. Vol. VIIL, p. 420. Sec. II. Anniversaries to he connected with them. Resolved, That it be recommended to the several bodies of our Church, so to arrange their anniversary celebrations as to hold them during and in connection with the regular meetings of one or more of the Partic- ular Synods of our Church. Sec. hi. To send transcripts of aaswei's to second and third constitutional questions. Resolved, That the Particular Synod be directed to send up to General Synod a transcript of the Classical records in regard to the answers to the second and third constitutional questions proposed at the spring session of each Classis. Vol. VIIL, p. 420. 32 DIGEST. Gh.V Sec. IV. To embody in reports on State of Religion ex- tracts from the minutes of Classis. Besolved, That it be recommended to the Particular Synods, in preparing their reports on the State of relig- ion, to embody in them, as far as possible, an extract from the minutes of each Classis, embracing a compara- tive statement of the state of religion in their bounds, as materials out of which the General Synod may form a more accurate estimate of the condition of the whole Church. Vol. VIII., p. 542. Sec. V. Particular Synod of Chicago organized. Ordered by General Synod and Committee appointed June, 1856. Committee reported the organization ef- fected September 3, 1856. Their report was accepted and adopted June, 1857. Vol. IX., pp. 91 and 133. Sec. VI. To furnish Classes icith blank forms for sta- tistical reports. Vol. IX., p. 154. Sec. VII. To insert in their Minutes a tabular summary of statistics.^ Resolved, That the Stated Clerks of the Particular Synods be requested to prepare, and insert in their printed Minutes, a tabular summary of the statistical tables of their respective Synods. Vol. IX., p. 298. Sec. VIII. Eastern Synods to visit the Western by dele- gates. Resolved, That the visitation of the Particular Synod of the West by delegates from the Particular Synods of the East meets with the decided approval of this body, Vol. X., p. 348. Sec. 9. BOARDS OF THE CHURCH. 33 Sec. IX. Recommended to extend the time of their meet- ings and make some other changes. Besolved, That it be earnestly recommended to the Particular Synods that they extend the time of their meetings ; that they cease to refer to General Synod matters which could be as well, and perhaps, on some accounts, better dealt with by themselves ; that they abound more in devotional exercises, and that they en- deavor to inaugurate measures which, through the bles- sing of God, may increase the spirituality and useful- ness of pastors, elders, and church members. Vol. XL, p. 83. Sec. X. To send annually at least ten copies of Minutes to General Synod. Vol. HI., p. 77. Sec. XI. Particular Synod of New Brunswick — Com- mittee appointed to organize. Vol. XI., p. 631. CHAPTER VI. BOARDS OF THE CHURCH. A. BOARD OF DIRECTION. Sec. I. The A ct of Incorporation. Be it enacted, by the People of the State of New York, represented in the Senate and Assembly, That the Gen- eral Synod of the Reformed Protestant Dutch Church shall be and hereby is declared to be a body corporate and politic, by the name and style of " The General Sy- nod of the Reformed Protestant Dutch Church," with full power to sue and be sued, defend and be defended by that name, in all courts of law and equity ; and to have a common seal, and to alter the same at pleasure ; 34 DIGEST. Gh. VI and also to take, purchase and hold real and personal estate, and to sell and convey the same, provided the yearly value of the same shall not exceed the sum of ten thousand dollars, and that the same shall not be appropriated to any other than religious and charitable uses and purposes. And be it farther enacted. That it shall be lawful for the reg-ular members of the said General Synod, at their stated annual meetings, to appoint a President, three Directors and a Treasurer of said corporation ; and to make and ordain by-laws and regulations relating to the management and disposition of their real and personal estate, the duties of the said President, Directors and Treasurer, and the duration of their respective offices : Provided always, That such by-laws and regulations shall not be inconsistent with the Constitution and Laws of this State, or of the United States. A7id he it further enacted, That it shall at all times be lawful for the Legislature to repeal or amend this act. Vol. II., 1819, p. 4G. (b.) Change made by Legislature of Wew York, 1869. The People of the State of New York, represented in Senate and Assembly, do enact as follows : Sec. 1. It shall be lawful for the General Synod of the Reformed Protestant Dutch Church, to take and hold by gift, grant, devise or other^^ise hereafter made and by purchase heresifter made, to hold and convey any estate, real or personal, provided that the clear annual value or income of such estate shall not exceed the sum of fifteen thousand dollars, exclusive of such Professor- ships and Scholarships for the purposes of theological education as may be from time to time endowed ; but the right herein granted to take and hold real and per- Sec. 2. BOARDS OP THE CHURCH. 35 sonal estate by bequest or devise sball be subject to all provisions of law in relation to clevises and bequests by last \vill and testament. Nothing herein contained is to be construed to apply to any question, matter, thing involved or at issue in any action now pending in any court in which said Synod is a party, or to any action or proceeding which may hereafter be commenced against or by, or on behalf of said Synod, or in which said Synod shall be a party, and which shall not relate to property granted, bequeathed, or devised to or acquired by said Synod subsequent to the passage of this act. Sec. 2. This act shall take effect immediately. Passed, April 14th, 1869. Vol. XL, p. 555 Sec. II. By-Laws.'^ 1. The Board shall hold a stated meeting once in every month. 2. Special meetings shall be called by the President whenever he shall deem it necessary, or by any two of the Directors. 3. A majority of the Board shall be a quorum to tran sact business, and in the absence of the President they shall have the power to elect a President, pro tern. 4. The Board is authorized to demand and receive all moneys belonging to the General Synod of the Re- formed Church ; to draw upon the Treasurer from time to time" for such money in his hands as may be necessary to answer the appropriations made by the Synod, and to apply to their specific objects the benefactions of societies, congregations, and indi- viduals. They shall, in the most advantageous man- ner, invest all moneys that shall come into their hands for any particular /uud, and which have not been ap« propriatec\ * See Appandix. 36 DIGEST. Gh. VI They shall appoint a Secretary, whose duty it shall be to keep their minutes, to correspond with the agents appointed by this Synod for the collecting of moneys for the use of Synod, and mth agents which have been or may be appointed by other judicatories of the Church. 5. The Treasurer shall keep a regular and accurate account of all moneys by him received and disbursed, designating the specific purposes for which they have been received or expended, and shall lay before the Board such account quarterly or as often as they shall require. 6. The Board shall report annually to the General Synod a statement of the funds, with such remarks as they may think necessary. 7. The President, Directors, and Treasurer shall Jiold their offices for one year, or until others are appointed, except in cases of malconduct, for which the Treasurer, or any member of the Board, may be suspended and re- ported to the General Synod at their next meeting. 8. All drafts on the Treasurer, or orders of the Board, shall be signed by the President, who shall affix the seal of the corporation, in the presence of the Board, to such instruments of writing as may require it. Vol. II., 1819. pp. 48. 49, Sec. III. En joined to collect certain fi( nds. The General Synod enjoin it on the Board of Cori)ora tion to collect all moneys due from persons who have received or may receive aid from the Theological Funds, and who have connected or may connect themselves with other denominations, within the time specified in the order of the Synod. 1820, p. GO ; repeated Vol. V.. p. 76. Sec. 4. BOARDS OF THE CHURCH. 37 Sec. IV. Have power to Jill vacancies in their own body. Resolved, That the Board of Corporation have power to fill any vacancies that may occur in the Board by death or otherwise, during the recess of General Synod. 1824, p. 55 ; Vol. V., p. 76. Vol. X., p. 627. Sec. V. Have power to manage all the property of Synod. Resolved, That the Board of Corporation be and here- by is empowered to take care of and manage all the property, real and personal, of General Synod, so as to preserve it from loss and injury, and increase its pro ductiveness during the pleasure of Synod. 1825, p. 40. Sec. VI. To use the name " Board of Direction of the Corporation." Vol. III., p. 69. Sec. VII. Have charge of the Widows' Fund. The fund for the relief of disabled ministers, and the widows and children of ministers, shall be administered by the Board of Corporation, during the pleasure and under the control of General Synod. The moneys belonging to tliis fimd shall be kept sep- arate and distinct from all other fimds belonging to General Synod. The officers of the Board of Corporation shall be offi cers of the trust. The Treasurer's duty shall be to col- lect the income and to make all payments. He shall report minutely and fully to General Synod at each of its annual meetings. Vol. V., p. 111. Sec. VIII. To prepare the annual Digest. The duty of preparing an annual Digest of the pecu- niary concerns of the Synod was transferred from the B 38 DIGEST. Ch. VI Treasurer and Stated Clerk of General Synod to the Board of Corporation in 1819. Vol. II., 1819, p. 79. Sec. IX. Power to hold real estate in New Jersey. Application was made to the Legislature of the State of New Jersey for an act authorizing them to hold real property in that State, which was granted. Vol. II., 1826, p. 15. Sec. X. Authorized to receim the funds constituting the Scliolarshix>s. Resolved, That the Board of Corporation be author- ized to receive from the Treasurer of the Board of Edu- cation the funds constituting the scholarships, and that the proceeds of the same, together with those of the Heyer scholarship, be applied under the direction of the Board of Education. Vol. IV., p. 320. Sec. XI. Authonzed to receive deeds for Rutgers Col- lege. 1823, p, 53 ; 1824, p. 54 ; 1825, p. 9 ; 1826, p. 15; 1827, p. 19. Sec. XII. Authorized to execute certain leases to Rut- gers College. Vol. IV., p. 509 ; Vol. V., p. 486 ; Vol. VI., p. 9. Sec. XIII. To require a list of the securities for loans made from the Van Benschoten Fund. Resolved, That in future the Board of Direction re- quire from the Board of Trustee -^ of Rutgers College a list of the securities for the loans made of moneys be- longing to the Van Benschoten and Knox Fimds, to be transmitted to Synod. Vol. VI., p. 243. Sec. XIV. To pay expenses of President to open Synod. Resolved, That the Treasurer of General Synod be au- Sec. 15. BOARDS OF THE CHURCH. 39 thorized to pay tlie necessary travelling expenses of the President of the former Synod when he attends to open the Synod, and is not a delegate to Synod. Vol. VIH., p. 376. Sec. XV. To borrow money ichen necessary to pay salaries. Resolved, That the Board of Direction be authorized to borrow on the credit of the General Synod, from time to time, such sum or sums of money as may be neces- sary to pay the salaries of the Professors, and of the em- ployees of the General Synod, as the same shall become due. Vol. XL, p. 189. Sec. XVI. To liold property in Michigan. Application was made to the Legislature of Michigan for an act authorizing them to hold property in that State, which was granted. Vol. X., p. 253. B. BOAPtD OF DOMESTIC MISSIONS. Sec. I. Plan adopted by General Synod. 1. That the Board of Domestic Missions hereafter con- sist of twenty-four members, one-half of whom shall re- side in the cities of New York, Brooklyn, and Jersey City, the residue to be appointed from other parts of the Church — one third of the number to be elected annually by General Synod. 2. That the Board shall meet on the second Tuesday after the adjournment of General Synod — on the Tues- day after the meeting of the Executive Committee in November, and on the Tuesday after the meeting of the said committee in April. 3. That the first meeting of this Board shall be held on the second Tuesday of November next, at the Con- 40 DIGEST. Ch. VI sistoiy Room in Fulton street, New York, at 10 o'clock, A. M.; and that at such meeting, in addition to the or- ganization of the Board, they shall divide themselves into three classes ; and that their subsequent meetings be held at such hour as they may themselves decide, and that the old Board continue to act in the mean- time. 4. That at these meetings of the Board all the actions of the Executive Committee shall be revised and passed upon ; and that at each meeting the Treasurer shall make a report of the state of the funds. 5. That said Board shall annually elect an Executive Committee, consisting of nine members, to manage the Missionary and Church Extension concerns, of which the Corresponding Secretary and Treasurer shall be ex-of- ficio members ; of the remaining seven, three shall be laymen and four ministers ; that Jive members of said Committee shall form a quorum for the transaction of business, and that they meet monthly. 6. That the churches be earnestly recommended to make annual collections for the purpose of aiding feeble churches in erecting houses of worship, and that the several Classes be directed to see that this recommend- ation be attended to in the best manner to accomplish the object. 7. That authority to act upon the principle of Church extension, in aiding feeble congregations to erect houses of worship, be added to the existing powers of the Board of Domestic Missions ; and that all moneys collected un- der the authority of Synod for such purpose be commit- ted to the said Board for distribution under the distinct inj unction that the exercise of the charity be restricted to cases of urgency, where due economy and modesty shall hav^e marked the plan of structure and rate of ex- Sec. 1 BOAEDS OF THE CHURCH. 41 penditure ; where tlie congregation applying for help, pledge themselves for the speedy completion of the building wdthout leaving debt, and where legal obliga- tions be entered into that the smn granted shall be re- turned to the Reformed Church, in case of the enter- prise failing, or the alienation of the property from a sacred use or the authority of our denomination. 8. That except when otherwise ordered by the donors or testators, all moneys collected for Church Extension shall be distributed freely, as cases of need occur, that the liberality of the Church be promptly as well as wisely applied. 9. That the Board of Domestic Missions be requested to devise and endeavor to establish an efficient system for the collection of funds, by which, so far as possible, burdens may be equalized, attention to the charities of the Church kept up, and regularity and increase of con- tribution secured ; that the action of the Board may be more confident, because more assured of funds, and the great advantages of general, systematic liberality gain- ed and maintained, 10. That all other enactments touching the powers and other matters that relate to the Constitution of the Board, shall remain in full force. Sec. II. ]!^ot to make appropriations in certain cases. The Board of Missions is instructed not to make ap- propriations in behalf of any person laboring in any va- cancy vrithin our bounds, unless he shall have been regularly licensed to preach the gospel, and only then, when the established rules of the Board shall have been complied with. Vol. V., p. 59. Sec. III. To organize vacant Chwxhes through Classis. The Board of Missions shall direct their missionaries , 42 DIGEST. Ch. VI whenever a churcli is to be organized as the result of their labors, that application be made to the next con- tiguous Classis for their action upon the case, that the organization may be effected in strict accordance with the Constitution. Vol. V., p. 294. Sec. IV. 2^ot to aid a Church unless it he recommended hy the Classis to which it belongs. Resolved, That the Board of Domestic Missions should make no appropriation to any church asking aid in the settlement of a pastor, unless they have before them a recommendation of the application of such church from the Classis within whose bounds it is located. Vol. VII., 1846, p. 89. Sec. V. Have power to appoint Commissioners. Resolved, That the power of the Board of Domestic Missions to appoint commissioners from time to time, as they may deem necessary for the furtherance of the work committed to their trust, be, and hereby is, recog- nized on the part of the Synod. Vol. VII., 1846, p. 88. Sec. VI. Are authorized to fund legacies. Resolved, That the Board of Domestic Missions are authorized to fund any moneys accruing from bequests, and expend only the proceeds of the same, as their cir- cumstances may from time to require. Vol. VII., 1846, p. 89. Sec. VII. Not to interfere with ecclesiastical judica- tories. Resolved, That this Synod cannot approve of any in- terference of their Missionary Boards with their eccle- siastical judicatories, and that the respective Boards of Sec. 8. BOARDS OF THE CHURCH. 43 Missions be enjoined to refrain from any such inter- ference. Vol. III., p. 298. Sec. Vni. Who may be honorary members, and their privileges. Any person contributing $30 at one time may be an honorary member, but without any privilege of deliber- ating or voting. Vol. IV., p. 234. This sum was sub- sequently increased to $50. Vol. V., p. 85. Sec. IX. Candidates or ministers of other denomina- tions not to he employed as missionaries- Whereas, it appears from the minutes of the Com- mittee on Missions, that an engagement had been en- tered into with a licentiate not belonging to our com- munion, employing him as a missionary ; it is hereby Resolved, As the sense of General Synod, that the Committee of Missions consider themselves to be here- after restricted in their choice of missionaries to the ministers and candidates of the Eeformed Church. 1812, p. 32. Sec. X. To apply to the Stated Clerks of Classes for in- formation. Resolved, That hereafter, in every case where the Board deem it necessary to have additional information of the state and abilities of the churches appl}ing for aid, the Board shall apply to the Stated Clerks of the respective Classes, whose duty it shall be to furnish de- tailed facts and information to the Board. Vol. VII., p. 195. Sec. XI. Method of estaUishing missions advised. Whereas, it is desirable that the operations of our Chiu'ch, in extending its growth at the West, be con- 44 DIGEST. Ch. VI ducted in tlie most earnest and efficient manner, espe- cially at the present opportunity ; tlierefore, Resolved, That this Synod respectfully suggest to the Board of Domestic Missions the follo\\dng method, as, in our view, best calculated to promote the end : Let the Board at once select and appoint at least four or five missionaries, partly from those who have already had some experience in the ministry, to be sent out in company to neighboring places in some portion of the West, as yet unoccupied by our Church, but adjoining the present Classes, the distinct duty of such mission- aries being to establish a new Classis as soon as three churches may have been organized. Vol. X., p. 493. Sec. XII. Corresponding Secretary to visit the West an- nually. Resolved, That in our judgment an annual official visit to the West, by the Corresponding Secretary, would be so beneficial to all the interests involved as fully to jus- tify the needful time and expenditure. Vol. X., p. 493. Sec. XIII. To secure $50,000 for a Church Building Fund. Resolved, That the Board be authorized to take such measures as it may deem expedient to secure at as early a day as practicable an endowment of the Churcli Build" ing Fund to an amount of not less than $50,000. Vol. X., p. G40. Sec. XIV. 'To endeavor to enlist in its service prominent and able men. Resolved, That the Board endeavor to enlist promi- nent and able men for tliis service, and send them forth to the work as soon as practicable. Vol. X., p. 639. Sec. 15 BOARDS OF THE CHURCH. 45 Sec. XV. Not to encroach on ground occupied by tJie PrediyteHan GhiircJi. Resolved, That we enjoin upon our Board of Domes- tic Missions to avoid encroacliing upon the ground oc- cupied by the congregations of the Presbyterian Church. Vol. XL, p. 43. C. BOABD OF FOREIGN MISSIONS. Sec. I. Plan adopted by General Synod. CONSTITUTION. Art. 1. The management and control of the Foreign Missions of the Reformed Church, as well as the insti- tution of new Missions, and the appointment of Missiona- ries, shall be committed to the Board of Foreign Missions, subject to the revision and instruction of the General Synod. Art. 2. This Board shall not be restricted in the send- ing of Missionaries to any part of the world, or to any class of persons who are without a pure Gospel, when Divine Providence opens the way to them, and the men and means are furnished. Art. 3. The Board of Foreign Missions shall consist of twenty -four members, (of whom one-third shall be chosen at each annual meeting of the General Synod), with the Corresponding Secretary and Treasurer, who shall be ex-offiicio members. Art. 4. The Board of Foreign Missions shall hold its first meeting each year, as soon as practicable after the meeting of the General Synod, at which the oflBcers for the year shall be chosen. Art. 5. The Board of Foreign Missions shall have au- thority to employ ordained Ministers, and Licentiates, 46 DIGEST. Cn. VI the wife of eacli of whom shall be regarded as an As- fiistant Missionary; Physicians, Colporteurs, Printers, unmarried Female Teachers, all to be at the time of ap- pointment members in communion with the Reformed Church, or, having taken the measures necessary to be- come such — and all proper agencies for raising means in our Churches for the support of the Missions, and the use of the Press, both at home and abroad. Art. 6. Any person by the contribution of Fifty Dol- lars at one time, may become a member for life of the Board of Foreign Missions, and shall have the privilege of meeting with the Board, and participating in its de- liberations, without being entitled to vote. Art. 7. The Board of Foreign Missions shall submit to the General Synod, at each annual meeting, a faith- ful report of its acts, with the annual account of the Treasurer, properly audited, and submit for approval such plans and measures as may require the specific at tention of the General ^Synod. The Corresponding Sec- retary shall be present at each meeting of Synod, to make such explanations as may be called for. Art. 8. It shall be the steady aim of the Board of Foreign Missions to secure as early as may be wise, the organization by the Missionaries of Chmches, Classes, and other Church Courts, according to the order of the Reformed Church. Art. 9. The Board of Foreign Missions shall meet at least quarterly, at such hour and place as it may itself agree on, and when convened, seven members shall con- stitute a quorum. Art. 10. The Board shall have power to fill vacancies, which may occur in the progress of the year — the per- sons chosen to hold such place until the next meeting of the General Synod. Sec. 2. BOARDS OF THE CHURCH. 47 Art. 11. Extra meetings of the Board may be called on tlie vote of the Executive Committee, or the written request of any three members. Resolved, That the Synod hereby approve and sanc- tion * * * the Constitution * * * as of late adopted by the Board of Foreign Missions. Vol. IX., p. 263. Sec. II. Corresponding Secretary to present the claims of the foreign field to students. Eesolmd, That the Corresponding Secretary of our Board be requested to present the claims of the foreign field to the students of our Seminary as often during each year as he may find it convenient. Vol. IX., p. 225. Sec. III. Authorized to apply for an act of incorpora- tion. Resolved, That the Board of Foreign Missions * * be and hereby is authorized to apply to the Legislature of this (New York) State for an act of incorporation. Vol. IX., p. 458. Sec. IV. Authorized to open a credit of £8,000 sterling for operations abroad. Resolved, That the General Synod approve of the opening of a credit by their Board of Foreign Missiona to the amount of £8,000 sterling, for the purpose of car- rying on their Missionary operations abroad. Vol. IX., p. 635. D. BOARD OF EDUCATION. Sec. I. Plan adopted by General Synod. The Board of Education shall consist of 24 members. 48 DIGEST. Ch. VI to be elected for three years, of whom nine shall consti- tute a quorum for the transaction of business. They shall be divided into three classes, one of which shall be elected annually. They shall have power to choose their own officers, and shall have the immediate care of all the beneficiaries and education interests of General Synod, including such beneficiaries as shall receive sup. port or assistance from the Van Benschoten and Knox Funds in the hands of the Trustees of Rutgers College, and shall have power to make such By-Laws as they may deem necessary, and as shall not contravene the rules established by General Synod, and shall annually report all their proceedings to the General Synod. MODE OF KECEPTION. 1. Every person applying to be received as a bene- ficiary, must be a member in regular and good standing in the Reformed Church, and must also have been a member of some Protestant Church for at least one year previous to his making such application. 3. If any one wishes to avail himself of the aid of the Church, he shall make known his desire to his Pastor, or some member of the Classis with which his church is connected, who, if he approves of it, shall make applica- tion to the Classis for his examination. 3. The examination shall be on his personal piety, on his motives for seeking the holy office of the Ministry, on his general habits, on his studies, his talents, his ability for public speaking, his health, his freedom from debt, and the necessity of his receiving aid. 4. If this examination be sustained, and Classis decide to recommend him to the Board, it shall be done in the following form : Sec. 1. BOARDS OF THE CHURCH. 49 At a meeting of the Classis of , held at , on the day of , 18 , the person whose name is given in the following report, having been examined in conformity with the Plan of Education adopted by General Synod, is hereby recom mended to receive aid from the Educational Funds of the Church : No. Name .ge 1 Residence j With what Church connected ^^tate of Education Place of Study Lowest amount required When received When his connection ceased General Remarks 5. When the beneficiary thus recommended shal ceived by the Board of Education, his name shall b a book kept by the Secretary, and ruled in the folk •2^ i t 1 I St,ite of [Education Lowest amount required 1 have been re- e entered upon )wing manner : i Health ; Debts 1 6. This power of examining candidates shall be vest- ed in the Board of Education also, and they shall be em- 50 DIGEST. Ch. VI powered to make sucli examination wlienever in their judgment they may deem it necessary or desirable, 7. Every beneficiary shall have finished a complete and regular course of Collegiate study before he shall be allowed to enter the Theological Seminary, unless a dispensation shall have been obtained from General Synod. 8. If at any time there shall have been discovered in any student such defect in capacity, diligence, prudence or piety, as would render liis introduction into the ^Min- istry a doubtful measure, it shall be considered the sa- cred duty of the Board to withdraw their appropria- tions. Students shall also cease to receive the assistance of the Board when their health shall have become such as to unfit them for study, and for the work of the minis- try ; when they are manifestly improvident, and con- tract debts without reasonable prospects of payment : when they marry, and when the}' receive the assistance of any other Educational Board or Society. 9. If any student fail to continue in his preparations for the work of the ministry, unless in the judgment of the Board he be providentially prevented, or if he cease to be in connection with the Reformed Church, or if the withdrawal of his support shall have been ren- dered necessary by wilful neglect of duty or mal-con- duct, he shall be required, at the discretion of the Exe- cutive Committee of the Board, to refund all the money which he may have received from the Board. 10. When any student shall have found it necessary to relinquish study for a time, to teach or otherwise in- crease the means of support, he shall first obtain the consent of the Executive Committee, and it shall be left to their decision whether his appropriation, under the Sec. 2. BOARDS OF THE CHURCH. 51 circumstances, shall be continued, or continued only in part. 11. All the insti'uctors of the youngf men under the care of this Board shall be furnished with forms of a re- port, and shall be requested to fill up and for^yard the same to the Secretary of the Board, at the close of each current term of study. 13. All the students shall be considered to be under the Pastoral care of the Secretary, who shall endeavor to cultivate a friendly intercourse ^vith them, and, if he deem it advisable, occasionally to address them individ- ually or together. 13. All previous action of General Synod which is in conflict with the Plan of the Board of Education now adopted, is hereby repealed. Vol. IX., pp. 198, 300. Sec. n. T(y bestow $B0 o?i each leneficiary on completing his Theological course. Resolved, That the Board of Education bestow the sum of thirty dollars, * * * on each l)eneficiary, if asked for, at the completion of his i]-"( (logical course. Vol. VHL, p. 457. Sec. III. To accept two years' Domestic Missionary ser- vice in lieu of repayment. Resolved, That the Board of Education be directed to accept from all beneficiaries, after their licensure, two years' service under the care of the Board of Domestic Missions, as a full satisfaction for all aid afforded them by the Board of Education. Vol. VIII., p. 457. Sec. IV. Empowered to appoint a Corresponding Secre- tary. Resolved, That the Board of Education, be and they 52 DIGEST. Cli. VI are hereby empowered to appoint a Correspondino: Sec- retary * * *, who shall be devoted to the advance- ment of the educational interests of our Church. Vol. VIIL. p. 4G1 ; Vol. IX, page 17. Sec. V. Appropriations raised to $150 j?^?' annum. Resolved, That the Board of Education be instructed to add thirty dollars per annum to the sum of $120 heretofore granted to the beneficiaries * * in our Institutions at New Brunswick. Vol. VIII., p. 464. Sec. VI. To fix amount of Secretary's salary. Resolved, That the General Synod remove the limit of the amount which the Board may pay to the Secre- tary, leaving the amount of his salary to be determined by the Board. Vol. IX., p. 197. Sec. VII. To record terms of bequests in a suitable book. Resolved, That the Board of Education cause to be procured, and recorded in a book provided for the pur- pose, a transcript of the bequests or grants made, that the specific terms of each may be sacredly observed in all particulars expressed therein. Vol. VIII., p. 467. Sec. VIII. To fill vacancies occurring between meetings of Synod Resolved, That the Board of Education be authorized to fill any vacancies that may occur in their number be- tween the sessions of General Synod ; and that the persons so chosen shall serve till the expiration of the time of those whose places they take. Vol, IX., p. 197. Sec. IX. Classis or Ghvrch in recommending a benefi- ciary to make efforts to sustain him. It is recommended to any Classis which may desire Sec. 10. BOARDS OF THE CHURCH. 5B to aid a young man in liis education for the gos})el min- istry, to assume tlie responsibility of liis support, wlien it is at all practicable to do so. When any church recommends a beneficiary to the funds of the Education Board, or any other funds at the disposal of this Synod for classical or theological education, such church or consistory shall first make an effort to sustain such young man, and report to the Classis with which such church is connected to what extent they shall be able to assist. Vol, VI., p. 231. Sec. X. The Board to seek repayment in certain cases. The Board shall observe all such younp; men as may abandon the prosecution of their preparation for the ministry, or may retire to some other denomination, and demand from them the repa^Tnent of what they have received, and that in case of their failing to do so without satisfactory reasons, their names be published by the Board. Vol. V., p. 393. Sec. XI. Beneficiaries must he poor. In order to prevent application for aid on the part of those whose parents are able to support them, the Board of Superintendents is directed to appropriate no moneys to any student who has not a certificate from the consistory of the church to which he belongs, that his parents are unable or unwilling to support him, or that he has not sufficient means of support. Vol. II., 1819, p. 40. Sec. XII. Great care to be exercised in receiving benefi- ciaries. Resolved, That the several Classes be and hereby are solemnly and urgently urged to exercise great care in 54 DIGEST. CJi. VI their proposed examination of beneficiaries ; and that they be and hereby are enjoined to require clear evi- dence, not only of piety and prudence, but of a high and suitable order of talent. Resolved, That when applicants are thus recommend- ed to the Board of Education, the Board shall also grt^'^ct them to a still further examination, and shall keep a careful minute of the result, and no applicant shall be received as a beneficiary until both examina- tions shall have been satisfactorily sustained. Vol. VII., 1846, p. 72. Sec, XIII. Bights and duties of Glasses, &c., in rela- tion to heneficiaries of. Besolved, That all the beneficiaries supported by a Classis, a Consistory, or an Association, be put under the care of the Board of Education. Besolved, That the Board of Education be authorized to recognize the right of Classes an(^ Consistories and Associations to nominate beneficiaries, when accompa- nied with a promise to provide the means of support. Vol. IV., p. 298. Sec. XIV. Their heneficiaries not to he confined to any 2)articidar literary institution. Besolved, That the Board of Education have discre- tionary power in appropriating moneys in aid of our young men pursuing preparatory literary studies, in any literary institution which such Board may approve. Vol. IV., p. 516. Sec. XV. Names of heneficiaries not to he 2nihlished. Besolved, That hereafter the names of beneficiaries shall not be published on the Minutes of the Particular or General Synods, and that the Stated Clerks of the respective Classes, whenever young men are recom- Sec. 16. BOARDS OF THE CHURCH. 55 mended for aid, send a properly certified copy of such action directly to tlie Stated Clerk of General Synod. Vbi. vn., p. 74. Sec. XVI. Enlargement of its powers to assist in es- tablishment of Academies. Besolved, That this General Synod empower the Board of Education so to enlarge its sphere of action as to be able to cooperate efficiently and in such man- ner and to such extent, as in its judgment shall be wisest and best, mth the various Classes in the estab- lishment of academies and classical schools within the bounds of said Classes. Vol. X., p. G22. E. BOARD OF PUBLICATION. Sec. I. PuUicotion Committee and Lemma ordered. Resolmd, That another committee be added to the Standing Committees to be called the " Committee on Publication," and also another lemma to be called " Board of Publication." Vol. VHI., p, 495. Sec. n. Plan adopted ly Synod. CONSTITUTION. Art. 1. The General Synod shall superintend and conduct, by its own authority, the publication and cir- culation of all the religious works which are designed for general diffusion among the churches under its care. The immediate care and superintendence of this work shall be entrusted to a Board appointed for that pur- pose, to be called the Board of Publication of the Re- formed Church. Said Board to be directly amenable to the General Synod. 56 DIGEST. Ch. VI Ai't. 2, § 1. The General Synod shall, at its present session, elect twelve ministers and twelve laymen, as members of the Board of Publication ; one third part of whom shall be elected annually by General Synod. These twelve ministers and twelve laymen, so appoint- ed, shall constitute a Board, to whom shall be entrusted with such directions as may, from time to time, be given by General Synod, the superintendence of all the pub- lications of the Reformed Church, and the circulation of such works pertaining to the History, Government, Doctrines, and Eeligious Literature of said Church, and of other evangelical denominations, as shall be properly approved. § 2. The Board shall annually report to the General Synod their proceedings, and submit, for its approval, such plans and measures as shall be deemed useful and necessary. Art. Ill, § 1. The Board thus constituted, shall hold its first meeting in the Consistory lloom of the North Dutch Church, in Fulton street. New York, on the last Monday of June, at 2 o'clock, P. M. At this meeting they shall divide themselves into three classes ; the ^rs^ class shall serve for one year, the second fortv^o years, and the tliird for three years. They shall also elect a President, Vice President, Corresponding Sec- retary, a Treasurer, and Executive Committee to serve for the ensuing year. § 2. It shall belong to the Board to re\aew and de- cide upon all the proceedings of the Executive Commit- tee ; to receive and dispose of their Annual Report, and present any statement of their proceedings to the Gen- eral Synod which they may deem necessary. Sec. 2. BOARDS OF THE CHURCH. 57 § 3, Seven members sliall constitute a quorum for the transaction of business. Art. IV., § 1. Tlie Executive Committee shall con- sist of nine members, of which the Corresponding Sec- retary and Treasurer shall be ex-officio members 5 of the remaining seven, three shall be ministers and four lay- men. § 2. The duty of the Executive Committee shall be to select and prepare suitable tracts and books for pub- lication ; to superintend and direct their distribution ; to receive the reports of the Corresponding Secretary^ and give him needful directions in reference to matters of business and correspondence entrusted to him ; to authorize all appropriations of moneys ; and to take particular direction and management of the whole sub- ject of publication — subject, however, to the control and direction of the Board of Managers. § 3. The Committee shall have power to fill their own vacancies, if any occur during the recess of the Board. Art. V. For the more permanent and efficient man- agement of the publishing and fiscal affairs of the Board, the necessary steps shall be taken by the Board to secure an act of incorporation, imder the style and title of "The Board of Publication of the Reformed Church in America.'' Art. VI. The seat of operations of the Board shall be in the City of New York ; but the Board shall have the power to locate Branch Depositories at any other place which they may deem expedient. Art. VII. The financial operations of the Board shall in all cases, be conducted on the cash principle. 58 DIGEST. Ch. VI Art. VIII. Tiie General Synod sliall alone liave power to alter, amend, or repeal any of the Articles of this Constitution. Vol. VIII., pp. 489-90. Sec. III. Ghiirch Schools to iise their hooks. \ Resohed, That all the schools of the Church Paro- chial and Sabbath, be earnestly recommended to adopt this series {i. e. the Christian School Books) as a part of their course of instruction. Vol. IX., p. 334. Sec. IV. Issuing the Psalmody committed to them. Resolved, That the future issuing of our Psalmody be committed to the Board of Publication. Resolved, That the particular attention of the Board be called to the execution of this important work, espe- cially so far as the paper, type and binding are con- cerned. Resolved, That the Board be directed to furnish our Psalm and Hymn Book to the public at cost, or as near it as possible. Resolved, That no edition be issued unaccompanied by the doctrinal standards and liturgy of the Church. Vol. IX.. p. 360. Sec. V. Authorized to print the Liturgy in German. Resolved, That the petition for the printing of the Liturgy * * * in German, for the benefit of the German brethren in our churches, be referred to the Board of Publication, with authority to so publish, if it appears best. Vol. X., p. 647. F. VARIOUS MATTERS CONCERNING THE BOARDS. Sec. 1. Recommendations of Synod not intended to impose imperative obligations. Resolved, That this Synod, in the formation of its Sec. 2. BOARDS OF THE CHURCH. 59 Boards, and its recommendation of various charities to ttie several cliurclies under its care, has never claimed to impose upon the churches, and the Classes in wliich they are embraced, an imperative obligation to contri- bute to such causes. Vol. IX., p. 38. Sec. II. Corresponding Secretary and Treasurer of each Board are ex-ojftcio members of said Boards. Vol. IX., p. 244. Sec. III. Names of officers and members of Boards to he published in Minutes of Synod. Vol. IX., p. 465. Sec. IV. Financial year to end April 30. Resolved, That the financial year of the Board of Di- rection, and of the several other Boards under the charge of the Synod, terminate with the 30th of April of each year, and that the Treasurers make up their yearly accounts accordingly. Vol. IX., p. 465. Sec. V. Places of members absent continuously, one year, to be considered vacant, and -filled. Besolved, That in all cases where a member of any one of our benevolent Boards shall fail to attend the stated meetings of such Board for a twelvemonth, con- tinuously, such failure shall be deemed a resignation of his office, and the Board shall have liberty to fill his place by a new apjDointment for the unexpired term. Vol. IX., p. 582. Sec. VI. Reports to be printed by the opening of Synod. Resolved, That the various Boards of our Church be requested, if practicable, to have their reports printed and ready for distribution at the opening of the meet- ings of Synod. Vol IX., p. 582. 60 DIGEST. Ch. VI Sec. VII. Reports to he done up loitli the Minutes of Synod. Besolved, That tlie Reports of each of our Boards, when printed, be done up with the Minutes of Synod, and thus distributed through the churches. Vol. X., p. 345. Sec. VIII. Pastors and Consistories to try to raise the standard of beneficence. Besolved, That it be enjoined upon pastors and con- sistories of churches to give increased attention to this grace, in which they ought to abound ; that all proper efforts should be promptly, systematically and perse- veringly made to raise the actual beneficence of all the churches to the scriptural standard. Vol IX., p. 572. Sec. IX. Tabular statement of receipts to be put in Minutes of Synod. ResoUed, That the Stated Clerk of the Synod, with the aid of the Treasurers of the Boards, be requested to prepare, annually, a tabular statement of the contri- butions made by the several churches to the Boards, and Funds recommended by Synod ; that each amount so credited shall embrace in one sum all that may have been contributed to such object, from whatever source, and that such statement be reported annually to Synod and published in the proceedings of Synod under the head of article 22d. Vol. X., p. 212. Sec. X. Disposition of moneys collected for Sabbath School purposes. Resolved, That it be recommended that of the moneys collected for Sabbath schools, those designed for their establishment and maintenance, be placed in the hands Sec. 11. EDUCATIONAL INSTITUTIONS. 61 of the Treasurer of the Domestic Board, and those col- lected for libraries and books to be used by the schools, be placed in the hands of the Treasurer of the Board of Publication. Vol. X., p. 316. Sec. XI. Pulpit sliould teach and youth he trained to systematic benevolence. Resolved, That the practice of systematic benevolence is an important part of the early training of youth, and should be especially inculcated from the pulpit as one of the best exponents of Christian character. Vol. X., p. 636. Sec. XII, Secretanes to report Churches and pastors neglecting to aid their Boards. Resolved, That the Secretaries of the benevolent Boards of this Church be directed to report to General Synod, each year, the names of all churches, with the names of the pastors, that have not contributed to the funds of their respective Boards for two years consec- utively. Vol. XI., p. 501. CHAPTER VII. EDUCATIONAL INSTITUTIONS. A. THEOLOGICAL SEMINARY AT NEW BRUNSWICK. Sec. I. Plan of the School. Art. I. Of General Synod. 1. All the authority of the Reformed Church is vested in the General Synod, as the last resort. This Synod shall have paramount authority over the Theological School, its officers, laws and instructions. 62 DIGEST. Ch. VII 2. The General Synod shall appoint a Board of Su- perintendents, consisting of one member from each Classis, and the respective Classes themselves shall have the right to nominate to General Synod the rep- resentatives to which they are entitled in the Board, for the confirmation and appointment by Synod. The . members shall serve for three years. Those now chosen shall arrange themselves by lot into three classes ; the first to serve for one year, the second for two years, the third for three years ; and the Board shall report annu- ally what seats become vacant each year. Vol. IV., p. 302 ; Vol. v., p. 518. 3. All the Professors of this Theological School shall be chosen by the General Synod, but in the recess of Synod the Board of Superintendents may temporarily employ a person or persons to perform the duties of a Professor. Akt. II. Of the Superintendents. 1. The Board of Superintendents shall meet annually in the Professoral Hall on the Tuesday preceding the third Tuesday in May, of which meeting the Stated ,Clerk of the Board shall give notice, through the Chris- tian Intelligencer, each year ; and any six members, when regularly convened, shall be a quorum for the transaction of business. 3. The Board shall open and close all their meetings with prayer. 3. The Board shall choose a President and Secretary, keep minutes of all their transactions, and lay them, with a summary account of the state of the School, before General Synod, at every stated meeting. The Stated Clerk of the Board shall be a permanent oflBcer, i. e., shall continue from year to year until he shall re* JSec. 1. EDUCATIONAL INSTITUTIONS. 63 •sign, or any Board, for sufficient cause, shall elect a successor. Vol. V., p. 518. 4. The power of admiiting students into the Theo- logical School, and of granting full dismissions from the same, is vested in the Board of Superintendents ; and they are directed to appoint a committee in the neighborhood of New Brunswick to act on these sub- jects during the recess of the Board. 5. The Board shall superintend an annual examina- tion of all the students under the care of the Profes- sors, to ascertain their talents and proficieacy. 6. The Board shall be competent to reprimand or re- move immoral or incompetent students, to inspect the doctrines taught by Professors and the general course of study, and to recommend to Synod such measures or changes as they may think advantageous to the School and the general interests of the Church. 7. The President is authorized to call a special meet- ing of the Board at the request of a Professor or Pro- fessors, or of any two members, at any time, provided four weeks' previous notice be given. Akt. III. Of the Professors. 1. The number of the Professors in the School shall be determined by General Synod, and their duties shall be prescribed by Synod, or by the person or persons who may endow a professorship, under the immediate direction of the Superintendents : Provided, always, that the School be not considered as completely organ- ized without three Professors, and that all of them be ordained ministers of the Reformed Church. 2. The salaries of all the Professors hereafter ap- pointed shall be fixed by a vote of General Synod. 64 DIGEST. Ch. VII 3. The Professors shall attend three lectures or reci- tations every week, aiid accompany them with prayer. 4. Every Professor intending to resign, shall give six months' notice to the Board of Superintendents. 5. They shall attend morning and evening prayers with their pupils, either separately or in conjunction with the Facility and students of Rutgers College, and supply them with the preaching of the gospel, and the administration of the sacraments by themselves or by some church in lUsew Bruns^vick. 6. The Professors shall have the power of reprimand- ing or suspending from the School, disrespectful, im- moral or incompetent students, during the recess of the Board of Superintendents, subject to the revision of the Board. 7. In respect to absences caused by sickness or pecu- niary considerations, it is left to the Faculty to deter- mine how long and for what cause a student may be absent, and vet resimie his place in his class, subject to the re^dsion of the Board. Vol. VL, p. 291. 8. The Synod wiU. always feel gratified by enjoying the attendance of the Professors in the Theological Seminary at the sessions of Synod, whenever their pro- fessional duties will admit. 1824, p. 55 ; Vol. V., p. 78 9. The Professors shall be organized into a Faculty for the exercise of the powers vested in them by this plan, and they are directed to hold monthly meetings, and more frequently if they deem it necessary. The Professors shall preside qiiarterly in rotation, begin- ning with the senior Professor. Vol. V., ])p. 424, 425 Art. IV. Of Students. 1. Every student before his admission to the Theo- logical School, shall produce a certificate of his mem- Ssc. 1. EDUCATIONAL INSTITUTIONS. 65 bei^liip in some regular Protestant church, and a di- ploma from some literary college, or testimonials of such literary attainments as would entitle him to such diploma. He shall moreover submit to an examination by the Board, or such committee as they may appoint, of his piety, talents and such other qualifications as would give reasonalle ground to hope that he is called of God to preach the gospel. 2. Every student in the Reformed Church shall, pre- vious to his commencing the study of theology, make himself known as such to the Board of Superintend- ents, and shall be considered under the care of said Board. And every student of divinity, under whomso- ever he may have studied, shall, previous to his exam- ination by the Professor, apply for the said purpose to the Board of Superintendents, before he is examined and licensed, 3. The students shall exhibit to the Professors week- ly, in rotation, one lecture or sermon on such subjects as the Professors shall appoint, and each one annually to the Superintendents, and write upon such subjects as the Professors may prescribe. 4. Strict morality, piety, diligence in studies and at- tendance upon lectures, recitations and prayers are re- quired, under pain of reproof or expulsion. 5. Every student shall spend a portion of his time, morning and evening, in private devotion, and every Lord's day in public, social and private worship, with a particular reference to personal religion and growth in grace, 6. Those students who are not able to defray the ex- penses of their education, shall be assisted as far as practicable from the funds devoted to that purpose. 66 DIGEST. Ch. VII Akt. 5. Of the Time and Course of Study y 1. The time and course of study in this School shall not be less than three years. 2. The whole course of instruction shall consist of Natural, Didactic, Polemic and Practical Theology ; Biblical Literature, including Critica Sacra, Herme- neutica Sacra, Biblical Antiquities, Sacred Geography, and the Original Languages ; Ecclesiastical History, including Chronology, Church Government and Pas- toral Theology. The studies of the first year, or Junior Class, shall be Critica Sacra, Biblical Antiquities, Sacred Geogra- phy, Composition, the Original Languages, the His- tory of the Old Testament, and so much of Pastoral Theology as relates to the composition and delivery of sermons. The studies of the second year shall be Didactic and Polemic Theology, Hermeneutica Sacra, Ecclesi astical History, and the Original Languages contin- ued. The studies of the third year shall be Didactic and Polemic Theology, Pastoral Theology, Ecclesiastical History, Church Government, Hermeneutica Sacra, and the Original Languages. A general revision of the former studies shall be required at the close of each year ; and there shall be anniversary exercises, in which each member of the Senior Class shall bear a part, under the direction of the Professors. 3. Students, at the expiration of three years of reg- ular study, shall be admitted to an examination, to be conducted by the Professors before the Board of- Superintendents, and, as the case may require, be con- Sec. 1. EDUCATIONAL INSTITUTIONS. 67 tinned longer in the School or furnished with a certifi- cate signed by the Professor, which shall admit them to an examination for licensure before their respective Art. VI. Course in the Didactic Department. 1. While the present text-book (Mark's Medulla) shall be put into the hands of the students, and they shall be required habitually to refer to it on the sub- jects of the course, as they occur, it shall be chiefly used by the Professor as his guide in the order of his instruction. But the students shall not be required either to commit to memory or to recite the same in the lecture-room. A general syllabus, however, of the whole subject, in as condensed a form as its complete- ness will allow, embracing definitions and the Classis argumejitoricm, drawn from the text-book by the Pro- fessor, should be in the hands of every student and committed to memory carefully by the Junior Class, to be reviewed from time to time by all the Classes. 2. The Professor shall deliver original, full, connect- ed, continuous and well-digested written lectures upon the branches of Theological Science, in the order pre- scribed in the present text-book used in the Institu- tion, and embracing a special reference to the canons and the other standards of the Church, and all the modern controversies in theology. 3. It shall be the duty of the Didactic Professor to institute and prosecute a course of elementary instruc- tion upon the subjects of theology with the first or Jun- ior Class, regulated by the standards of the Church, in such way as shall prepare them to enter upon the full study of the system of Didactic Theology in the second year of their course, during which year his 68 DIGEST. Ch. VII lectures on Didactic Theology shall be delivered. And when the students shall arrive at the third or Senior year, the Professor shall meet them daily, and they shall receive, in addition to such other instruction as he may give them, his system of lectures on Polemic Theology, and shall be exercised by him in the writ- ing of theses in divinity, as he shall from time to time assign them : Provided, always, that the Professor shall be careful to examine the students in such way as he shall judge most advisable, upon the substance of every lecture delivered by him. 4. It shall be the duty of the Professor to direct the attention of the students to the reading of such works, on the several subjects, as they occur in his lectures, as he may think calculated to give them full and cor- rect information in relation to all the grand doctrines embraced in the system of theology, and he shall, from time to time, satisfy himself that these works are consulted by them. 5. It shall be the duty of the Professor to prepare a full and copious system of questions upon all the sub- jects of Didactic and Polemic Theology, which the students shall be obliged to answer in writing at their rooms, and at their leisure, and which shall form the basis of their examination before the Board of Super- intendents. Vol. VI., p. 18. Sec. II. Recommendations to students, Besohed, That it be recommended to the students of our Seminary to study the claims of the destitute parts of our own country, as well as of the world at large ; to consider the question of personal duty in regard to them ; to acquire due conceptions of the amount and forms of labor requisite in given fields ; to spend a por- Sec. 3. EDUCATIONAL INSTITUTIONS. 69 tion of their vacations in colporteur labors ; and while oherishing a sturdy spirit of endurance, that they cul- tivate those habits of study, and modes of address, which will facilitate their entrance among them. Vol. VII., p. 427. Sec. III. Theological Professors guardians of young men aided hy tJie funds of the Church. Resolved, That the Theological Professors be request- ed to consider themselves guardians of all young men beneficiaries of the Church, watch carefully over their conduct and life, and whenever they discover censurable expenditure, remissness in study, lack of mental or re- ligious qualification, they make, as soon as practicable, a report to the Board of Education. Vol. VIII., p. 582. Sec. IV. Be-arrangement of Seminary year. Resolved, That the term of the Theological Seminary commence on the twentieth day of September, to con- tinue until the third Tuesday of May, with an interval of eight or ten days at the Christmas Holidays. Resolved, That the annual meeting of the Board of Superintendents be held on the third Tuesday of May. Vol. IX., p. 20. Sec. V. Memhers 'must he actuaMy connected icith the Glasses which they represent. Resolved, That no person can be entitled to a seat in the Board of Superintendents who is not at the time be- ing a member of the Classis for which he was elected. Vol. IX., p. 214. Sec. VI. A yearly detailed report of every student to be made. Resolved, That the Board of Superintendents be re- 70 DIGEST. Gh. VII quested to adopt some plan by which the Professors of the Theological Seminary will make a yearly detailed report to the Board of Superintendents of every student in the Seminary ; and that they be authorized to have blank reports prepared and printed for this purpose. Vol. IX., p. 333. Sec. VII. Expenses of memhers of the Board to be paid by their Classes. Resolved, That ****** the expenses of the Board of Superintendents be paid by their respective Classes. Vol. IX., p. 342. Sec. VIII. Rules icith reference to students' preaching. Resolved, That no student of Theology in our Semi- nary be allowed to preach or lecture in any of our churches and congregations, except that the students of the Senior class be allowed to deliver their own dis- courses, under the direction of one of the Professors of Theology, with the understanding that this direction is to extend to the time when, the place where, and the discourse to be delivered ; and except further, that stu- dents of the Senior Class be allowed the same privileges in the churches of which they are members, under the direction of their own pastors, the direction to extend as in the case before mentioned. Resolved, That the Board of Superintendents, at their annual meeting, inquire of each member of the different Classes whether he has conformed to the above resolu- tion, and embody in their report to this Synod the re- sult of their inquiries, with the names of any that have exceeded the rule. Resolved, That the Professors of Theology be re- quested to discourage all preaching of students of The- ology previous to their licensure. Sec. i. EDUCATIONAL INSTITUTIONS. 71 Besolved, That the above resolutions are not intended to abridge the liberty or interfere with the duties of the students as private members of the Church and follow- ers of the Lord Jesus, Vol, IX,, pp. 345, 346. A. {a.) HERTZOG HALL, Sec. I. Standing Committee appointed. Resolved, That a Standing Committee on the Peter Hertzog Theological Hal] be appointed. (See Sec. III., 1 below.) Besolved, That this Committee shall have the general charge of this property, to keep it in repair, and at- tend to such business matters as may be necessary for its proper preservation ; and that this Committee shall report fully at each stated session of the General Synod. Besolved, That this Committee are hereby authorized and requested to secure such additional funds as may be needed to accomplish the objects of the Institution. Besolved, That the expenditures of the Peter Hertzog Theological Hall, by the Committee of this Synod hav- ing the same in charge, shall not in any case exceed the amount of funds actually collected. Vol. IX., p. 215. Sec. II. Mnpowered to make rules for the regulation of the Hall. In case of difficidty references is to he had to the Board of Superintendents. Vol. IX., p. 448. Sec! III. Continued with additional regulations. Besolved, That the Standing Committee on the Peter Hertzog Theological Hall, appointed in 1857, and then authorized and directed to secure such additional funds as may be needed to accomplish the objects of the The- ological Institution, shall be and hereby is continued under the following additional regulations : 72 DIGEST. Ch, VII 1. The Standing Committee on the Peter Hertzog Theological Hall shall consist of six* members, one of whom shall be appointed by the Theological Faculty from their own number each year, and five of whom shall be laymen, to be elected by General Synod, to be divided into three classes, to hold office respectively one, two, and three years. 2. This Committee shall be and hereby is empowered whenever in their judgment it becomes necessary, to appoint a financial agent or agents for the collection of funds for the endowment and support of the Seminary, and the general advocacy of the interests of the Theo- ogical Seminary. 3. This Committee shall pay over the funds collected by them to the Board of Direction, except so much as is necessary for repairs upon the buildings and appur- tenances from year to year. 4. This Committee shall hold quarterly, or, if neces- sary, more frequent meetings at New Brunswick, dur- ing the term time, on such regular and fixed days as it may select. 5. This Committee shall be the Executive Committee of the Board of Superintendents as now constituted, shall report annually to said Board at its annual meet- ing for the examination of students, and shall be under the general direction of said Board. 6. This Committee sliall hold a joint session together with the Board of Superintendents, at the annual meet, ing at New Brunswick, for the full consideration of the temporal interests of the Theological school. 7. The Board of Superintendents shall report to the General Synod, at its annual sessions, the result of the * Number as changed by Synod in 1S68. Vol. XI p. 645. Ssc. 1. EDUCATIONAL INSTITUTIONS. 73 action of the above Oommittee, under tlie above regula- tions. Vol. XI., p. 478. B. THEOLOGICAL SEMINARY AT HOLLAND. Sec. I. PreUmiiiary arrangements. At the meeting of General Synod in June, 1866, there was presented " A memorial from the members of the Senior Class of Hope College, respectfully petitioning the General Synod to take such measures as may enable them to pur- sue their theological studies at their present institu- tion." On this application Synod Besolved, That the subject be referred to the Board of Education and the Council of Hope College, with in- struction that leave be granted to pursue their theolog- ical studies at Hope College, provided no measures shall be instituted by which additional expense shall be thrown upon Synod or the Board of Education at this time ; and provided further, that Synod reserves the right to withdraw this permission at any time that it may deem expedient. Vol. XL, pp. 96, 97. Sec. IL Council of Mope College to act as Board of Su^ perintendenis. Besolved, That the Council of Hope College be and the same is hereby constituted and appointed the Board of Superintendents of the Theological School in Hope College, with duties and prerogatives like those of the Board of Supeiinteiideuts ©f ihe Theological School at New Brunswick. Vol. XI., p. 647. 74 DIGEST. Oh. VII C. RUTGERS COLLEGE. Sec. I. Artidesof Agreement between Synod and Trus- tees modified. Vol. VII., p. 418. Sec. II. Board of Direction empoicered to convey title to College property at New Brunsmckto Trustees- Vol. X., p. 471. Sec. III. Synod relinquishes the nomination and a/p- pointment of Professor of Theology, provided it does not interfere with contract in relation to moneys made up for salary. Vol. X., p. 638. Sec. IV. Synod informed that Board of Trustees ac- cedes to above. Vol. XI., p. 265. D. hope college. Sec. I. Holland Academy taken under the care of the Synod. Vol. VIII., p. 363. Sec. II. Title of property confirmed to Synod. No. 64. (House ) ) State op Michigan, 1863. ) " The People of tlie State of Michigan enact that the General Synod of the Reformed Protestant Dutch Church, a body corporate under the laws of the State of New York, is hereby authorized and shall have the ca- pacity to have, receive, hold, and enjoy by gift, grant purchase, devise, or other legal or equitable form of conveyance, the real estate and premises in the County of Ottawa and State of Michigan, known as the Holland Academy, and the grounds connected therewith, for the purposes of said Academy, and their appurtenances ; and the sale of said property heretofore made to said Sec. 3. EDUCATIONAL INSTITUTIONS. 75 Churcli is confirmed. And, also, any other real estate that may he conveyed to said corporation for education- al purposes. Provided, that said corporation shall not continue to hold any real estate in this State, not actually occupied by it in the exercise of its franchises, for a longer period than ten years." Vol. X., p. 253. Sec. III. Plcm of support and superusion. TITLE OF THE PROPERTY. This is now confirmed by an act of the Legislature of Michigan, as invested in the General Synod for educa. tional purposes. Hence arises the obligation of the Sy- nod to provide means to meet all such expenditure as may become needful in the preservation and manage- ment of the property. THE FUTURE SUPPORT OF THE ACADEIMT Must claim the care of General Synod, and until it can be sustained by more permanent endowments, must be supported by such adequate though temporary expe- dients as Synod may devise. It is proposed that for the present and until, by en- dowment or otherwise, the academy may become self- sustaining, that the salary of the Principal, Professors and teachers be provided for through or by the Board of Education. That, so long as this arrangemeat or dependence may continue, the Board of Education shall have the ap- pointment^of the Principal, Professors and teachers. PLAN OF SUPERINTENDENCE IN A BOARD OF SUPER- INTENDENTS. In order to a more eflficient supervision of the Acad- 76 DIGEST. . Ch.VII emy and the increase of its usefulness and influence, the Particular Synod of Chicago shall nominate and the General Synod shall appoint a Board of Superin- tendents, composed of at least tioo ministers and one elder from each of the Classes of the Particular Synod of Chicago. Of this Board, the Secretary of the Board of Education, and the Principal of the Academy, shall be ex-officio members. THE OFFICERS OF THE BOARD Shall be a President, Secretary, Treasurer, who shall be annually chosen by ballot. TERM OF SERVICE. At the first meeting of the Board the requisite steps shall be taken to divide the members into three classes to serve one, two, and three years respectively. EXTENT OF CONTROL. The supervision of this Board shall be to attend the annual examination, and make a report concerning it ; to examine the Academy accounts, and have a general care of the interests of the institution ; and, so soon as the dependence of the Academy upon the Board of Ed- ucation shall cease, such supervision shall extend to all matters pertaining to the Academy ; such as the ap- pointment of teachers, regulating their salaries, and causing them to be paid, the course of instruction, ex- aminations, repairs, alterations, and improvements of the buildings used for educational purposes, the use and cultivation of the grounds. REPORT TO SYNOD. The Board of Superintendents shall annually report Sec. 4. EDUCATIONAL INSTITUTIONS. 77 to General Synod their proceedings during tlie year, and append to tlie same the account of the Treasurer of the Academy, duly audited, and the names of the members whose term of oflBice is about to expire, QUORUM. A quorum, for the transaction of business, shall con- sist of five members. SPECIAL MEETINGS Of the Board of Superintendents may be called by the President, or he shall call the same on the written ap- plication of two of its members. WAYS AND MEANS. That the Academy may be placed on a permanent basis, the Board of Superintendents are requested im- mediately to initiate measures for its endowment in the sum of $30,000. The fimds which may be raised for the endowment, shall be paid over to the Board of Di- rection of General Synod, and by it, safely invested for the exclusive benefit of the Institution, The interest accruing from the endowment fund shall be used for the payment of the salaries of the professors or teach- ers, and for contingent expenses. The tuition fees and incidental expenses shall be fixed by the Board of Su- perintendents, and the proceeds shall be used by them for the benefit of the Institution, Vol, X., pp, 320-321- Sec, IV, Endowment as a College directed. Resolved, That, as speedily as possible, Holland Acad- emy should be endowed as a first-class College in the West. Vol, X„ p. 466. 78 DIGEST. Ch. VII Sec. V. Arrangement for securing a College Charter. Besolved, That in order to enable tlie Board of Su- perintendents of the Holland Academy to obtain a Col- lege Charter, under the law of the State of Michigan, when they shall have obtained subscriptions in good faith to the amount of $30,000, with twenty per cent, thereon paid in to the Board of Direction, they shall '; receive from the Board of Direction a proper instrument, ' donating to them the said subscribed amount of thirty thousand dollars. And, that by this act of General Synod, the Board of Direction is instructed and empow- ered to prepare and deliver such instrument. Pro- vided, however, that the said instrument shall contain such covenants and conditions between the Board of Superintendents of the Holland Academy and the Gen- eral Synod, that all the rights and interests of the Gen- eral Synod, as acknowledged in the existing relations between them, shall be and remain undisturbed. Vol. X., p. 484. Sec. VI. Ya^ancies during intervals of Synod. ResoUed, That the Board of Superintendents of our Western College have power to fill vacancies occurring in its numbers during the intervals of Synod. Vol. X., p. 623. Sec. VII. President to make a swpplenfientary report to Synod. Resolved, Inasmuch as the Board of Superintendents of our Western College meets after the yearly session of General Synod, and thus its report presents a state- ment nearly a year old, that the President of said Col- lege be requested to supplement the above-named re- Sec. 8. EDUCATION A.L INSTITUTIONS. 79 port with sucli additional information as shall furnish to the General Synod a statement of the condition of said College for th? current year. Vol. X., p. 623. Sec. VIII. Articles of Incor^poration. Articles of Association for tlie Incorporation of Hope College at Holland, in Ottawa County, in the State of Michigan. We, the undersigned, associate together to become a Corporation for the purpose of founding and establish- ing a College under the laws of the State of Michigan, entitled " An Act to provide for the Incorporation of Institutions of Learning," approved February 9th, 1855, and of the acts amended thereto. The name of the Institution is Hope College. The Trustees and their successors are to be a body corporate, and their corporate name is " The Coimcil of Hope Col- lege." The location of the College and the Corporation is at Holland, in Ottawa County, in the State of Michigan. The character and object of the College and of the Corporation are to provide the usual literary and scien- tific course of study, in connection with sound evangeli- cal religious instruction, according to the standard of the Reformed Church, as based on the Holy Scriptures. Although the College is denominational in its charac- ter, yet students shall be admitted to all its advantages without reference to their ecclesiastical connections, subject only to the general rules and regulations of the Institution, The Trustees or Council may, at their option, conduct a Theological Department for the training of Mission- aries and Ministers of the Gospel, and also a Normal 80 DIGEST. Ch. VII Department for the training of teachers. The Gram- mar School, composed of the preparatory classes, shall remain a permanent part of the College, under the su- pervision of the Council of the College. The amount of funds on capital stock donated or given to the Trustees or Council for the said College, is as follows : The General Synod of the Reformed Church in Amer- ica, a body corporate under the laws of New York, and authorized to hold property for educational purposes in the State of Michigan, has in good faith and in due form donated or given to the said Trustees or Council for the purpose of endowing this College, the sum of thirty thousand dollars, of which sum six thousand dollars has been already paid to the Associates or Trus- tees for the use of this College. In addition to this the said General Synod has set apart for the use and pur- poses of this College and Incorporation, the real estate and premises in the County of Ottawa and State of Michigan, known as the Holland Academy. And more- over, the said General Synod, as a body corporate, holds in express trust for this Corporation and College (inde- pendent of the aforesaid thirty-thousand dollars, already donated and heretofore set forth), in subscriptions, prom- issory notes, and cash, twenty thousand dollars, and which sum is from time to time becoming increased by donations. The following are the names and places of residence of the Trustees, and the length of time of their continu- ance in oflBce : Philip Phelps, Jr., Holland, Ottawa County, Michi- gan, exofficio member as President of the College, while President, but not to exceed 30 years. John L. See, New Brunswick, New Jersey, ex officio Sec. 8. EDUCATIONAL INSTITUTIONS. 81 member as Corresponding Secretary of the Board of Education, R. C. A., while such Secretary, but not to exceed 30 years. John Mason Ferris, Flatbush, Long Island, New York, until September 1st, 186G. Solomon Cummings, Centreville, Michigan, until Sep- tember Ist, 1867. Samuel James Rogers, Geneva, N. Y., until Septem- ber 1st, 1868. Schuyler Colfax, South Bend, Indiana, until Septem- ber 1st, 1869. John S. Joralmon, Fairview, 111., until September Ist, 1865. John N. Rogers, Davenport, Iowa, imtil September 1st, 1867. Cyrus G. Van Der Veer, Davenport, Iowa, until Sep- tember 1st, 1868. Edward P. Livingston, Bushnell, 111., until Septem- ber 1st., 1869. Seine Bolks, Zeeland, Michigan, until September 1st, 1866. Hessel O. Yntema, Vriesland, Michigan, until Sep- tember 1st, 1867. Peter J, Oggel, Holland, Michigan, until September 1st, 1868. Arie Cz Kuyper, Pella, Iowa, until September 1st., 1869. N. D. Williamson, , until September 1st, 1866. Jacob Van Zanten, Low Prairie, 111., until September 1st, 1867. John Van Der Meulen, Milwaukee, Wia., until Sep- tember Ist, 1868. 83 DIGEST. Ch. VII Roelof Pieters, Alto, Wisconsin, until September 1st, 1869. Tlie manner in whicli the succession of Trustees sliall be secured, and the successers of the present Trustees elected, is as follows : The person appointed as President of the College, while he continues to hold such office as President, shall be eos-officio one of the Trustees or Council of the Col- lege. The person who holds the situation of Corres- ponding Secretary of the Board of Education of the Re- formed Church, while he continues to hold such office, shall be ex-officio one of such Trustees or Council. The Particular Synod of Chicago (hereinafter de- scribed), shall appoint one permanent member of said Board of Trustees or Council, who shall hold his office for thirty years, provided his ecclesiastical relations to said Synod shall so long continue. But if those rela- tions close, his office shall be vacated, and the Synod may appoint a successor to him on the like terms and conditions. The other members of the Board of Trustees or Coun- cil (not exceeding in the aggregate, with the above designated President and Secretary and permanent membeis. the number of thirty-five), shall be chosen by appointment and confirmation of the General Synod of the Reformed Church, on nomination of the Particular Synod of Chicago, the latter being an ecclesiastical body constituted under the Constitution and Laws of the said Reformed Church, It is composed of representatives of several Classes, .being an inferior ecclesiastical organization of said Church. The Council of Hope College is to be constituted from four members of each of the Classes belonging to said Sec. 8. EDUCATIONAL INSTITUTIONS. 83 Particular Synod. So long as the number of said Clas- ses shall not exceed eight, the Council is to be consti tuted of four members from each of them, the full term of office of each member being four years. They are to be divided into four parties or sets, so that one fourth of the whole number may go out of office each year. Vacancies occurring in the intervals of the meetings of the Synod, so that they cannot be filled by nomination and appointment as herein pro- vided, may be filled by the Council. And the acting members of the Council shall continue to be Trustees imtil the appointment shall be made as herein pro- vided. In case the number of Classes shall be increased, so that the selection of four members from each of them shall in the aggregate exceed the number of thirty-two, then said Particular Synod may apportion the members among the several Classes in their discretion, so as to reach and not exceed the number of thirty-two. Under the foregoing Articles, we, the undersigned, do hereby associate for the purpose of forming a corpo- ration under the name and for the objects aforesaid. Philip Phelps. Jr., John L. See, A. C. Van Raalte, Schuyler Colfax, P. J. Oggel, John Mason Ferris, S. Bolks, A. C. Kuyper, Hessel 0. Yntema, J. S. Joralmon, C. G. Van Der Veer, N. D. Williamson, E. P. Livingston, Solomon Cummings. R. Pieters, Samuel. J. Rogers, J. Van Zanten. State of New York, { ^^ . City and County of New York, \ Albertus C. Van Raalte, Philip Phelps, Jr., and John 84 DIGEST. Gh. VII Mason Ferris, three of tlie subscribers to the above ar- ticles of association, do eacli for ourselves swear that tlie amount of stock, thirty thousand dollars, mentioned in the foregoing articles of association, has been in good faith subscribed for such College, and that twenty per cent., namely six thousand dollars, thereof has been paid in, in cash. A. C. VAN RAALTE, PHILir PHELPS, Jr., JOHN MASON FERRIS. Sworn to this 36th day of April, 1866, before me, JULIUS M. POMEROY, [L.L.] Commissioner of Michigan in New York. State of Michigan, } Office of the Secretary of State, \ **• '* I, George H. Hanse, Deputy Secretary of the State of Michigan, do hereby certify that I have com- pared the annexed copy of the Articles of Association of the " Hope College " with the original, filed in this office May 14th, 1866, and that it is a correct transcript therefrom, and of the whole of such original. In testimony whereof, I have hereunto set my hand and affixed the Great Seal of the Great Seal of gtate of Michigan, at Lansing, Michigan ^^^^ fourteenth day of May, in the (1835). y^sar of our Lord one thousand eight hundred and sixty-six. GEORGE H HANSE, Deputy Secreta/ry of State stamp) 5ctB. C Sec. 9. FUNDS OF THE CHURCH. 85 Sec. IX. Changes in arrangement of Council agreed to. Vol. XI., p. 90. CHAPTER VIII. FUNDS OP THE CHURCH. Treasurer's Digest is annually published in the Min- utes of General Synod. Sec. I. Means of meeting Deficiency. Resolved, Tliat the amount necessary to be raised in order to meet such deficiency as there may be in the revenues of Synod, be hereafter assessed directly by the General Synod upon the Classes, and that the Trea- surer transmit to the General ^>ynod an estimate of the amount necessary to be raised, whith document shall be placed in the hands of the Committee on the Board of Direction, who shall make the apportionment, and present the same to the Synod for adoption, which Sy- nodical assessment shall be transmitted by the Stated Clerk to the several Classes. Vol. XL, p. 414. A. widows' fund. Sec. I. Plan of the Fund as amended. 1. The Fund shall be called " The Fund for the Relief of Disabled Ministers, and the Widows and Chil- dren of Ministers of the Reformed Cliurch," and shall be administered by the Board of Corporation of the General Synod of said Church, during the pleas- ure and under the control of the General Synod. 2. Every minister of the Reformed Church may se- cure a full interest in the Fund, by the payment of $20 C* 86 DIGEST. Ch. VIII annually. Payments of ten dollars, or five dollars, an- nually, shall entitle subscribers to a proportionate bene- fit from the Fund. Neglect of payment for one year to be a forfeiture of privilege. Interest, however, shall at all times be required after six months. Payments at one time, of a sum, the interest of which, at four per cent, per annum, shall amount to twenty dollars, or to ten dollars, or five dollars per annum, shall give a claim upon the Fund in the same manner as if those amounts were paid annually ; and, in this case, the amount of the original payment may, at the death or disability of the minister, be withdrawn, without im- pairing the right of benefit from the Fund. Ministers interested in the Fund, by the payment of an annual subscription, shall be at liberty to relinquish such interest by ceasing to make such annual payment ; and they, as well as those who have heretofore ceased to make such payments, shall be entitled to receive seventy five per cent, of the amount paid by them, without interest, by giving notice to the Treasurer nine months prior to the thirtieth day of April in each year, provided the amounts so to be paid shall not, in the aggregate, exceed one-half of the income of the cur- rent year ; in which case one-half of such income shall be distributed pro rata among the applicants, and the balance due them shall be included among the applica- tions for payments to be made at the close of the next fiscal year. Ministers who have made a payment of a principal sum, as above provided, may withdraw the amount of money actually paid by them, without inter- est, by giving nine months notice to the Treasurer prior to the thirtieth day of April in any year, and shall be entitled then to receive the same from the principal of the ^^'und. Ministers leaving our Church Sec. 1 FUNDS OF THE CHURCH. 87 shall be subjected to tlie same rule in the withdrawal of their subscriptions. 3. One-half of the annual payments by Ministers, and donations, when so specially directed by the donor, shall be considered income ; the other half of the an- nual pajnnents by Ministers, all other donations, and the collections in the Churches shall be considered prin- cipal, and the interest only used as income. There shall also be added to the principal, at the close of each fiscal year, out of the income, a sum equal to three per cent, of the principal sums standing to the credit of individual Ministers, in consequence of payments made by them under the provisions of paragraph two. Con- sistories or individuals may, at their pleasure, direct their contributions, collections and donations, to apply in whole or in part to the credit of any minister they may designate ; but in such cases the same shall be considered as principal, and not thereafter withdrawn, unless otherwise directed at the time of payment. 4. No money belonging to this Fund shall bo loaned (except on temporary loan with collateral security) un- less secured by bond and mortgage on real estate. The moneys belonging to this Fund shall be kept separate and distinct from all other funds of Synod. 5. The ofi&cers of the Board of Cori)oration shall be the oflBcers of the trust — the Treasurer's duty shall be to collect the income and make all payments. He shall report minutely and fully to General Synod at eaeh of its annual meetings ; his accounts to be audited by a committee of the Board of Corporation. 6. The maximum amount to be paid to parties inter- ested in the Fund shall he — to a minister disabled by sickness or age, two hundred dollars per annum ; to the •widow of a deceased minister, two hundred dollars per- 88 DIGEST. Ch. VIII annum ; to children of clergymen, botli whose parents havp deceased, seventy-five dollars per annum, each, until they attain the age of sixteen years. Should the income, upon due experiment, be found to admit it, this maximum may hereafter be increased. When but one payment bas been made, the maximum of the annuity allowed sball be seventy-five dollars. When two an- nual payments have been made, tbe maximmn annuity allowed sball be one hundred dollars. When three an- nual payments bave been made, ihe maximum annuity shall be one hundred and fifty dollars. When four an- nual payments bave been made, the maximum annuity shall be one hundred and seventy-five dollars ; and where payments have been made for five years and up- wards, the maximum annuity shall be, as above stated, two hundred dollars — the widows and children of such to receive respectively according to this graduation. As long as the income is suflBcient to pay each claim- ant the maximum annuity, the maximum shall be al- lowed ; but should the income not be suflacient, then the whole income shall be divided among the claimants in proportion to their claims. It is expressly understood that in all the above cases, to entitle the applicants to their annuities, the pay- ments of subscriptions must be continued regularly until they cease by the operation of the principles herein contained. 7. A widow of a minister contracting marriage, for- feits her claim to the annuity — but in such case the children under sixteen years of age shall be entitled to their annuities, as though both parents had deceased. 8. In disbursing the income of the Fund, where a minister id the applicant, he shall be required to pro- duce a certificate from his Classis, or other satisfactory Sec. 2. FUNDS OF THE CHURCH. 89 evidence, declaring that by reason of sickness, old age, or other providential cause, he is incapable of service. Where a widow is an applicant, like satisfactory evi- dence of the decease of her husband, and the date there- of, shall be required. When children, both whose parents have deceased, are concerned, like evidence of the death of their par- ents, and of their own age, shall be required. 9. The pajTiients to annuitants shall be made half yearly ; to ministers, commencing with the date of their incapacity for service ; to widows, from the death of their husbano-ate) and that General Synod recip- rocate the lV;iTtM'!iol pjilutations of the Canada Presby- tcrian Churcli. Vol. XI.. p. oS*'. CIIAPTKi: XI il. ' I'.KLIGIorS NJ^VvSl'AIMCUS. Sec. I. Jt'iard af PuUlca.tion to is.-tue a, Moni/dy^ Remhed, That this Synod a[)i)rove tlie proposition made by the Board of Publication, to issue a monthly paper for ecclesiastical purposes. Vol. VIII., p. (514. Sec. II. The Boards of the Church to use it and bear a just 'proportion of the expense. ' Resolved, That the several Boards of our Church be recommended to employ the columns of * " IVie Sower " in communicating to the Churches knowledge of their respective operations, and that it be further recom- mended that each Board bear so great a proportion of the expenses of that paper as may seem to it to be just. Vol. IX., p 118. ♦The monthly referred to in Sec. 1. 112 DIGP:ST. Gh. XIII Sec. III. Pastors and Consistories to endeavor to secure its introduction into every family. Resolved, That eacli Pastor and Consistory of onr de- nomination are requested by General Synod to make an especial effort to secare the introduction of " TJie Sower" into every family of their respective Churches. Vol. X.^ p. 645. Sec. IV. A Weekly paper essential. Resolved, That the General Synod consider a weekly newspaper to be essential to the interests of the Church. Vol. VIII., p. 285. Sec. V. An incorporated company to he formed for publishing one. Resolved, That it is desirable to have among us a re ligious newspaper of such a character and so ably con- ducted that it shall find entrance into every family of our Church, and secure also a fair outside support. Resolved, That in order to secure farther this intended circulation, all the members of our church should have an opportunity of becoming interested in its support, in- stead of its being conducted for the profit of any indi- vidual or company. Resolved, That we recommend the formation of an in- •corporated company under the general laws of New York, with a capital stock of not less than twenty thou- sand dollars, ($20,000,) of which any member of any of our congregations shall have liberty to take $100 and over, which corporation shall establish and conduct such Paper. Resolved, That General Synod recommend such a Paper to the support of the (Jhurch, on condition that Sec. 1. PAIITICULARIA. 113 the certificate of corporation of such com[)any shall pro vide that all the profits realized therefrom exceeding ten per cent, per annum upon the capital stock shall be paid over at the expiration of each year as follows, viz.; One-half thereof to the Disabled Ministers' Fund, the interest of which, and so much of the princijml as may be required, shall be annually appropriated under the established regulations of the Fund, and one-half there- of to the Board of Domestic Missions, to be added to the C hurch Building Fund, and on this further condition that every certificate of any share or shares issued for stock in said company shall contain a provision that no sale or transfer thereof shall be made until an offer of sale of the same at par value shall be made to the Board of Direction. Resolved, That a Special Committee of five Elders, consisting of James Myers, John Lyon, James A. Wil- liamson, Lewis Applegate, and S. R. W. Heath, be ap- pointed to carry out these views of Synod as speedily as possible. CHAPTER XIV. PAETICULARIA. Sec. I. Union of Church and State. Resolved, That that part of the 36th article of the Confession of Faith, as now printed, which declares that it belongs to the office of the civil magistrate "to protect the holy Church service, and to prevent and extirpate all idolatry and false worship ; to destroy the kingdom of Antichrist ; to promote the kingdom of Jesus Christ, and to take care that the word of the Gospel be preach- ed everywhere, that God may be honored and worshiped 114 DIGEST. Ch. XIV by every one as He commands in His Word," is suf- ficiently explained in tlie preface of the Constitution and 35th explanatory article. Resolved, That the Reformed Church deprecates any union between Church and State as alike de. trimental to the interests of vital piety, and dangerous to that liberty of conscience which is now enjoyed by the citizens of our happy Republic. Resolved, That the results of experience in this country abundantly prove that the Church needs no other support than the piety of its members and the grace of Christ. Vol. IV., pp. 438-439. Sec. II. Funeral Service. A form for this service having been introduced to the attention of Synod, " after mature deliberation the mo- tion passed in the negative, as far it respects the limita- tion to any prescribed form ; but the Synod approve of speaking a word in season, either at the grave or in the house, or the church, and to close the solemnity with a prayer and benediction. 1812, p. 34. Sec. III. Days of special Humiliation and Prayer. Resolved, That whenever, in any of our churches, religion is in a low and declining state, it is recom- mended as a very important duty, and under the di- vine blessing made the means for the revival of reli- gion, to observe the season usually set apart prepara- tory to the administration of the Lord's Supper for the purposes of special himiiliation and prayer. 1826, p. 36. Sec. IV. Psalm-book not to be a source of profit. Resolved, That this Synod regards the general diffu- sion of our book of Psalms and Hymns, as an ob- Sec. 5. PARTICULARIA. 115 ject much more desirable than any pecuniary profits that may be derived from the publication or sale of the book, to whatever object these profits may be devoted. Resolved, That the Board of Corporation be requested to eflfect the reduction of the price of our Psalm-book as soon as practicable. Vol. IV., p. 439. See also Vol. VII., p. 9G. Sec. V. Sacred Music. Resolved, That it be recommended to our several Classes to pursue such measures as they in their wis- dom shall judge best for exciting attention to sacred music, in order to elevate its standard in their respect- ive churches. Resolved, also, That the introduction of music in our distiict schools be recommended. Vol. V., p. 421. See also Vol. IV., p. 533, and Vol. V.. pp. 89-92. Sec. VI. The Act of the New York Legislature in re- gard to religious incor2')orations. Resolved, 1. That this General Synod consider the Act of the Legislature as opposed to the practice, inju- rious to the interests, and subversive of the Constitu- tion and rules of government of the Reformed Church. 2. That all our churches be, and they are hereby enjoined against adopting the provisions of said Act, and that the churches which have already adopted them be directed to dispense with them and adhere to the Constitution and orders of the Church. 3. That the Elders, P. D. Vroom, Stephen Van Rens- selaer, John D. Keese and Abraham Van Nest, and the Rev. Andrew Yates, D, D.. be appointed a committee to confer with the church at whose request it was passed, and those churches which may have adopted its pro- 116 DIGEST. Ch. XIV visions, as to the expediency of requesting its repeal. Vol. IV., 1835, p. 437-438. This committee reported the next year (1836) that they had met ■with a committee of the consistory of the church referred to, and had had a full and free confer- ence with them in relation to the Act and the expedien- cy of procuring its repeal, but had not been able to come to any specific agreement or understanding : Whereupon, it was Resolved, That this General Synod do still entertain the opinion expressed at their last meeting, as to the effect of the law upon the Con- stitution of our Church and its permanent welfare. And they do most earnestly and affectionately advise and recommend to the congregations and consistories that have availed themselves of its provisions, to adopt such measures in relation to it as will best tend to remove existing embarrassments, promote the harmony and order of our Zion, and preserve the purity of its princi- ples and faith. Vol. IV., p. 533. Sec. VII. Report on the State of Religion to he read from the pulpit. Resolved, That it be recommended to the different ministers to read from their pulpits the Report of the Committee on the State of Religion ; and also such parts of the Report of the Committee on the Profes- sorate as they shall consider important to be known by all the churches, upon the first Sabbath after the printed Minutes shall be received, or as soon thereafter as practicable. Vol. III., p. 210. Sec. VIII. Titles to be omitted in recording names in Minutes. Resolved, That all distinctive titles or appendages to the names of members of Svnod be omitted in record" Sec. 9. PARTICULAR! A. 117 ing the Minutes of this Synod ; such distinctive title being prefixed or appended to tlic name of the member in the 'list of members constituting the Synod. Vol. VII. p. 507. Sec. IX. Column for Contributions in the Statistical Tables. Resolved, That the present column for contributions embrace only those that are strictly benevolent ; and that a column for congregational purposes be added, which shall include all moneys raised for salaries, debts, church expenses, etc., and that, if necessary, the column headed " Total of the Congregation " be dropped. Vol. IX., p. 56. Sec. X. Stated Clerk to distnhute Minutes to Insti- tutions. Resolved, That the Stated Clerk of Synod have twen- ty-five copies of the Minutes of Synod at his disposal, to be distributed among literary and theological insti- tutions. Vol. IX., p. 244. Sec. XI. Expenses of Delegates from Western Classes, Resolved, That we return to the arrangement of 1857, viz : to divide the sum appropriated between not more than three delegates from each Classis ; and if there be less than three delegates in attendance, then each dele- gate shall receive but one-third of the sum thus appro- priated. Vol. IX., p. 467. Sec. III. Minutes of Synod to be published and circulated as soon as practicable. Vol. XL, p. 83. Sec. XIII. Article XIII of Minutes altered to " Church Colleges." Vol. XL, p. 91. 118 DIGEST. Gh. XIV Sec. XIV. "[Theological School " in Constitution cimnged to " Schools." Vol. XL, p. 340. Sec. XV. " Hymns of the Church " approved and re- commended. Besohed, That General Synod approve and author- ize the book entitled " Hymns of the Church," includ- ing the ninety-five additional hymns, for which ap- proval is asked, and recommend it to all churches, fam- ilies and individuals within their communion. Besolved, That the action of General Synod in 1848, prohibiting the issue of any edition of the Psalms and Hymns of our church without the Confession of Faith and Lituroy, be re affirmed in relation to the " Hymns of the Church" approved by this Synod. Resolved, That the Committee having this matter in charge be instructed to procure a suflBcient number of -copies of said book for use in our Churches, which shall contain our Doctrinal Standards and Liturgy, as now published, and that General Synod recommend such only to be introduced into our Churches. Eesolved, That all such copies shall bear upon their title page the name of our Church " Reformed Church in America." Vol. XI„ p. 641. Sec. XVI. lieports of Delegates to corresponding churches not to he printed in Minutes. Vol. XL, p. 419. Sec. XVII. New Hymns apjjroved and publication authorized. Vol. XL, p. 468. Sec. XVIII. Class-is of Holland pennitted to translate and puUish the Constitution in the Hollandish lan- guage. Vol. XL, p. 497. APPENDIX. 11« APPEl^DIX. PARTICULAll SYNODS. In view of the entirely remodeling effect of the action of General Synod at the meetinor in 18G9, since it is not all actual law until part of it has received the sanction of the Classes, and the Synod so enact it, yet is so soon in all probability to become law, it is deemed best for the x^resent edition simply to place the resolutions adopt- ed by Synod in an appendix. Parties interested in the matter will be in no danger of mistake. Whatever its not affected by this new action still abides. Whatever is so affected is of course modified or superseded by this later action. A mere pencil mark in each one's copy, after the action of the Classes is made known, will se- cure all needed correctness. The action of Synod is a* follows : 1. Resolved, That this Synod deems it desirable to organize a new Particular Synod, and that the Classed of Bergen, South Bergen, Monmouth, New Brunswick. Paramus, Passaic, Philadelphia, and Raritan, be and hereby are dismissed from the Particular Synod of New York, to constitute a new Particular Synod. 2. Resolved, That the Classes of Bergen, South Ber- gen, Monmouth, New Brunswick, Paramus, Passaic, Philadelphia, and Raritan be and hereby are instructed to appoint delegates at their next fall sessions, in con- formity with the provisions of the Constitution, to meet in the First Reformed Church of New Brunswick, N. J,, on the first Monday of November next, at 10 o'clock, A. M., and proceed to organize a new Particular Synod, to be called the Particular Synod of New Brunswick. 130 DIGEST. 3. Resolved, That the Eevs. Goyn Talmage, J. Elmen- dorf, and Gabriel Ludlow, be a Committee on the part of this Synod, to attend the above mentioned meeting, and assist in the organization of the contemplated Par- ticular Synod. 4. Resolved, That the Classes of Kingston and Orange be and hereby are transferred from the Particular Synod of Albany, to the Particular Synod of New York. 5. Resolved, (If a majority of the Classes concur), That every Particular Synod shall hereafter consist of a delegation of four Ministers and four Elders from each of the Classes within its bounds. 6. Resolved, That it be enjoined upon the Particular Synods to transact their business with due deliberation, and to hold such devotional services during their sessions as may conduce to the spiritual improvement of their members, and the several Churches in which they assem- ble ; and that to compass this desirable result, it is earn- estly recommended by this Synod,that the Particular Sy- nods hereafter convene at three o'clock, P. M., of the day designated for their regular session ; that after their or- ganization is effected, the first hour be spent in devo- tional services ; that the Synodical sermon be preached the same evening ; that the first hour of the next morn- ing session be spent in devotional exercises, in connec- tion with which the Chairman of the Committee on the State of Religion shall read such extracts from the an- nual reports of the Classes as he may elect ; that in the afternoon of the second day of the session, the Lord's Supper be administered under the auspices of the Sy- nod ; that in the evening of the same day a sermon be preached before Synod ; the Preacher and his theme, together with an alternate, to be chosen at the preced- ing annual session, and that the first half hour of each appj:ndix. 121 subsequent daj'- of the Syuvod be spent in devotional ser- vices. 7. Resolved, (If a majority of the Classes concur), That the Particular Synods be, hereafter, Courts of final appeal for all causes that liave, in accordance with the provisions of the Constitution, been tried originally in the Consistory, unless as many members of the Partic- lar Synod as there are Classes composing said Synod shall, within ten days after the adjournment of the same, file with the President of the Particular Synod a certificate to the effect that in their judgment, any cause originating in the Consistory which has been reviewed by the Particular Synod, is a proper case for the action of the General Synod, in which case an appeal may be taken to the higher j udicatory. 8. Resolved, That two committees be hereafter ap- pointed by each of the Particular Synods, to be called respectively the Committee on Church Visitation, and the Committee on Church Extension ; that each of these Committees be composed of nine members, viz : Six Ministers and three Elders ; that at the next regular session of each of the Particular Synods, these Commit- tees be appointed by ballot — one-third of their number, viz : Two Ministers and one Elder being chosen to serve for one, two, and three years respectively, and that at each succeeding annual session, two Ministers and one Elder be elected for three years. 9. Resolved, That the Committee on Church Visita- tion be charged with the promotion of spiritual religion and Christian beneficence among the Churches within the bounds of the Particular Synod ; and that at some suitable period of each year, it arrange to hold a Con- vention of Churches within the limits of each Classis, at which some of its members shall be present, to urge 122 DIGEST. these important interests upon the minds and hearts of the people. 10. Resolved, That the -Committee on Church Exten- sion be charged with the general supervision of our de- nominational growth within the bounds of the Particu. lar Synod ; that it search out opportunities for the es- tablishment of new organizations, and that it afford all possible encouragement and assistance to feeble enter- prises — it being understood that this Committee is de- signed to supplement rather than supersede the efforts of the Classis, and the Board of Domestic Missions, and that nothing in this resolution shall be construed in such a manner as to infringe the prerogatives of either. 11. Resolved, That the Secretaries of the several Boards of the ('hurch be requested, so far as they may be able, to attend, alternately, the sessions of the Par- ticular Synods, and address the members upon the claims of the respective Boards, and upon the general subject of Christian beneficence. The plan, thus suggested by your Committee, in- volves the necessity of amending two sections of the Constitution. They recommend, therefore, the adoption of the following supplemental resolutions, viz : Resolved, That the General Synod approve and pro- pose to the Classes the amendment of Chapter II., Arti- cle IV., Section I., of the Constitution of the Reformed Church, in such a manner as that it shall read as fol- lows, viz : " Every Particular Synod shall comprehend a certain number of Classes to be designated by the General Synod, and shall consist of a delegation of four Ministers and four Elders from every Classis within its bounds, and nine Ministers and nine Elders, when reg- ularly convened, shall constitute a quorum for the tran- saction of business, excepting those Synods which maj APPENDIX. 123 consist of not more than five Classes, in which cases bIz Ministers and dix Elders may form a quorum." Resolved, That the General Synod approve and pro- pose to the Classes the amendment of Chapter II., Arti- cle I., Section 7, of the Constitution of the Reformed Church, by inserting after the phrase " enjoys the same privilege " the language " except that the Particular Synod shall be a Court of final appeal for all causes that have, in accordance with the provisions of the Consti- tution, been tried originally in the Tonsistory," unless as many members of the Particular Synod as there are Classes composing said Synod shall, within ten days af- ter the adjournment of the same, file with the President of the Particular Synod a certificate to the effect that in their judgment any cause originating in the Consistory which has been reviewed by the Particular Synod, is a proper case for the action of the General Synod, in which case an appeal may be taken to the higher judi- catory. BY-];AWS OF THE BOARD OF DIRECTIOX. The By-Laws of this Board as printed on pages 35 and 36, were transferred from the Digest of 1848. That they were superseded by a new enactment as early as 1827, escaped notice until it was too late to correct the error in the body of the work. The only remedy was to insert them in the Appendix. The General Synod in pursuance of the authority vested in them by their act of Incorporation, have made and ordained the following By Laws, to regulate the conduct of the President, Directors, and Treasurer of the Corporation. 124 DIGEST. I. The Board shall hold stated meetings at least once in every month, and the President may call special meet- ings whenever he deems it necessary, and shall call such meetings when thereto requested hy any two of the Directors. II. A majority of the Board shall constitute a quorum to transact business, and in the absence of the President the attending Directors may appoint a President pro. tern, to preside at their meetings. III. The Board of Directors are empowered to direct the collection of all moneys which may be due to the Gen- eral Synod or subject to their control and outstanding,, whenever the Board shall consider it necessary or ex- pedient ; and also to require new or additional security for outstanding debts, as a condition of extending the time of payment of any such debts which may not be deemed perfectly secure ; and all securities for moneys belonging to or under the control of Synod shall be made payable to the Corporation in its corporate name and its assigns, either on demand, or at a day certain, not beyond a year from their date, with interest paya- ble yearly. IV. The Board of Directors shall appoint two of their number, who with the Treasurer shall form a Finance Committee, whose duty it shall be to invest or loan the moneys whichs may come into the Treasury over and above the sums required to satisfy any existing claims APPENDIX. 125 or appropriations made, as they shall deem safe and most productive, and the Treasurer shall, whenever the amount received into the Treasury exceeds $500 over said existing claims and appropriations, immediately report such excess to the Finance Committee. V. The money as they become due shall be receivable by the Treasurer, whose duty it shall be to deposit the same forthwith in the Bank of New York, or in such other Bank as the Board of Directors shall from time to time determine, and all such deposits shall be entered in a book to the credit of the Treasurer of " The Gener- al Synod of the Keformed Protestant Dutch Church," who shall have the custody of said book, and all moneys shall be drawn out of the Bank by written or printed checks signed by the Treasurer in his official capacity. The Treasurer shall keep regular books of accounts, in which he shall enter all moneys received or paid out by him under appropriate heads, designating the partic ular fund to which the same belong, when and from whom received, and when and to whom paid ; and also to keep in said books a particular statement of all moneys loaned, to whom, when, and upon what securi- ties loaned, and all moneys otherwise invested, and when and how ; and shall state separately under the head of Donations, all sums of money which have been or may be placed at the disposal of Synod, designating the donors' names, the amount of their several dona- tions, and the particular ])urposes for which made ; and shall exhibit his books of account, including his bank- book, to the Board of Directors for their inspection at every stated meeting, and oftener if requested. And it ig made the duty of the Board to examine such booki 126 DIGEST. when so exhibited, and to make a brief entry of the general result of the examination in their minutes. VI. The Board of Directors are authorized to appoint a Secretary, whose dutj^ shall be to attend their stated meetings and keep regular minutes of their proceed- ings, and to correspond with such persons as the Board shall direct relative to their business. VII. The Board shall report to Synod at their annual meetings, a particular statement of the situation of the funds belonging to or under the control of Synod, how secured or invested, together with such suggestions and information as the Board may deem necessary, the better to secure the said funds, or to render the same more productive ; and shall accompany such report with a general abstract of the Treasurer's accounts of receipts, and payments for the past year. VIII. The Board is authorized to aflBx the common seal of the Corporation, and cause their President to give his official signature to any letter of attorney for the col- lection of debts, or any other purpose, in order to the due fulfilment of any of their aforesaid duties. IX. The appointments of the President, Directors and Treasurer shall not endure longer than one year, or until others are appointed, but no new appointments may be made within the year, and the Board of Direct- ors are authorized to suspend the Treasurer from office for misconduct ; in which case, or in case of his resig- APPENDIX. 127 nation, death or inalnlity to perform the duties of hie oflSce, and also in case of his dcclinino: to accept his oflBce, (when thereunto appointed by General Synod, and after their adjournment) the Board of Directors may appoint a Treasurer ^jro. tern, to hold his office until the next meeting of General Synod, and until another Treasurer is appointed. X. The Board of Directors are authorized to detennine the amount of salary to he paid to the Treasurer and Secretary for their services, (if it shall be deemed by them expedient to grant any salary,) but under this ex- press limitation, that the salary of the Treasurer shall not exceed the sum of §250 per annum, nor shall the salary of the Secretary exceed the sum of $100 per an- num, exclusive of necessary disbursements made by them in the execution of their respective duties, to be audited by the Board of Directors ; w^hicli said salaries shall be paid quarterly yearly if required. And the Board of Direction shall also, from time to time, deter- mine the amount of security to be given by the Treasu- rer (if any is deemed necessary) for the faithful perform- ance of the duties of his office. And shall also be the judges to determine the sufficiency of the securities of- fered by him ; which bond when executed, is to be left in the custody of the President for safe-keeping. N. B. This section modified by Synod. See on " Salary of Treasurer," page 30. XI. All By-Laws fonnerly enacted are hereby re])ealed. Vol. III., pp. 32, 35. 128 DIGEST. Note. — This edition of the Digest is intended prima- rily as a manual of the legislation of General Synod re- maining in force to the present time (1869). The Com- mittee has left out such legislation as has been repeal- ed, or superseded, or has expired by limitation of the •ubjects concerning which laws were passed. To ex- tend its usefulness, there have been embodied, under their appropriate headings, such permanent historical documents pertaining to the Church as have come into existence since the publication of the last Digest in 1848. Those documents of this character which were embodied in the former Digest, such as histories of the formation of Synods, Boards, &c., are not repeated here, except in one or two instances, on subjects of especial interest. Any who need to consult these will find them in the Digest published in the Minutes of Synod for 1848. INDEX. 129 TIS^DEX CHAPTER I. PAGE- NAME OF THE ClI[TUCn. 5 CHAPTER II. C0K8TITUTI0N OF THE CnUKCH. 6 CHAPTER III. CONSISTOKIES. 1. To obey Sec. 20, Art. I., Chap. I., of the Constitution .... 6 2. To examine Synodlcal Minutes 6 3. To seek aid from the Board of Missions, through Classis 7 4. To endeavor to support beneficiaries recommended by themselves 7 5. To revolce a recommendation when thought expedient . . 7 6. Have power to decide on the validity of Romish baptism. 8 7. To present to Classis annual written and particular re- ports on the state of religion 8 8. Duty in regard to Sabbath-Schools . . 8 9.~ To defray expenses of their ministers and elders attend- ing Church judicatories 8 10. To endeavor to obtain an interest in the "Widows' Fund for their ministers 9 11. To sustain the benevolent operations of the Church 9 12. To render full reports of membenship and contributions. 9 13. To obtain all publications of the Board of Publication for Pastors' libraries 10 14. Where there is no settled pastor, to have collections or- dered by Synod taken up 10 CHAPTER IV. CLASSES. 1 . To hold a free conversation on the state of religion 10 130 DIGEST. 2. Their Committees on Consistorial Minutes to report mat- ters demanding Classical action 11 8. Bules for their receiving ministers or licentiates from other denominations 11 4. To guard against the introduction of unsound doctrines. . IS 6. To require reports from ministers without charge 18 6. To take measures to have the ordinances administered In their vacant churches 18 7. To nominate members of the Board of Superintendents. . 18 "6. How to transiiiit to Synod nominations of members of Board of Superintendents 18 9. On their Statistical Eeports 14 10. To decide on the validity of Romish ordination 14 11. Cannot be represented in Synod until regularly organ- ized 14 12. Not to dissolve the pastoral relation on the ground of ex- pediency 15 18. May dismiss a member to a body not in connection with the Eeformed Church 15 14. To keep a lemma entitled " Education." 15 15. To keep a lemma entitled " Benevolent Institutions."... 16 16. To make special inquiry in relation to beneficiaries recom- mended by them 16 17. To inquire in relation to indigent young men desirous of entering the ministry 16 18. To comply with the Constitution in relation to the pres- ence of Deputati at examinations 17 19. To give special attantion to the catechetical instruction of the young 17 20. To endeavor to support beneficiaries recommended by them 17 21. Classis of Arcot may be represented by letter 17 22. May express to Synod their views on acts of Synod 18 23. Not to examine students during the week of the meeting of the Board of Superintendents. 18 24. Reports on the state of religion to contain a synopsis of statements of Consistories 18 25. To furnish Consistories blank forms for statistical re- ports 18 26. To arrange for p-iyment of apportionment of contingent expenses of Synod 18 27. To report P. O. addresses of ministers without charge. .. 19 INDEX. 131 28. To take steps to have tho claims of all the Boards pre- sented to their churches 19 29. To report names of ministers without charge, with cer- tain notes 19 80. May receive churches which use tho Scottish version of the Psalms 20 31. To use care in recommending churches to the Board of Domestic Missions 20 82. To have the Van Benschoten Bequest read in full 20 33. To provide at fall session for payment of Minutes of Sy- nod 20 84. To endeavor to secure a due share of church contribu- tions for our own Boards 21 85. To spend one hour at every regular session in prayer and conference on benevolence 21 CHAPTER V. SYNODS. A. GENERAL SYNOD. Sec. 1. Eules of Order i 21 2. Its powers at a special meeting 29 3. Expenses of delegates to be paid 29 4. Credentials of delegates 29 5. Arrangement of Minutes 29 6. Stated Clerk to have charge of accounts for Minutes. ... 80 7. Salary of Treasurer ... 80 8. Permanent Clerk and his salary. 81 B. PAETICULAR SYNODS. Sec. 1. To administer Lord's Supper 81 2. Anniversaries connected with them 81 3. To send to General Synod answers given to second and third constitutional questions 81 4. To embody extracts from minutes of Classes on state of religion 82 6. Particular Synod of Chicago organized 32 6. To furnish Classes with blank forms for statistical re- ports 82 7. To insert in their Minutes a tabular summary of statis- tics 32 8. Eastern Synods to visit Western by delegates 82 132 DIGEST. 9. To extend time of their meetings, &c 83 10. To send at least ten copies of tlieir Minutes annually to General Synod 33 11. Arrangements to organize Particular Synod of New Brunswick 33 CHAPTER VI. BOARDS OF THE CUL'RCH. A. BOAKD OF DIRECTION. Sec. 1. Act of Incorporation 33 (b) Change by Legislature of New York 84 2. By-Laws 35 3. To collect certain funds ... 86 4. To fill vacancies in their number 87 5. To manage all Synod's property 37 6. To use name " Board of Direction of the Corporation.".. 37 7. To manage Widows' Fund . 37 8. To prepare the annual Digest 37 9. May hold real estate in New Jersey 38 10. To hold filnds for scholarships 38 11. To receive deeds for Rutgers College 38 12. To execute certain leases 38 13. To obtain list of securities of the "Van Benschoten Fund. . 38 14. To pay expenses of President to open Synod 38 15. To borrow money to pay salaries 89 16. May hold property in Michigan 89 B. BOARD OF DOMESTIC MISSIONS. Sec. 1. Plan adopted by General Synod 39 2. "When not to make appropriations 41 8. To organize churches through Chassis 41 4. To require Classical reconunendation 42 5. May appoint Commissioners 42 6. May fund legacies. i 42 7. Not to interfere with ecclesiastical judicatories 42 8. Terms of honorary membership. 43 9. Not to employ ministers of other denominations as mis- sionaries 43 10. To obtain information from Stated Clerks 48 11. Method of establishing missions 43 12. Corresponding Secretary to visit the "West annually 44 INDEX. 133 13. To secure $50,000 for a Church Building Fund 44 14. To enlist prominent and able men for service., 44 15. Not to encroach on ground already occupied by Presby- terian Church 46 C. BOABD OF FORBIGIT MIBSIONB. 1. Plan adopted by General Synod 45 2. Corresponding Secretary to present claims of the foreign field to students 45 3. Authorized to apply for act of incorporation 45 4. To open a credit of £8,000 for operations abroad 45 D. BOARD OF EDUCATION. 1. Plan adopted by General Synod 47 2. To donate $30 to each beneficiary on completing his The- ologic.ll course 61 8. To accept two years missionary service as repayment — 51 4. Authorized to appoint a Corresponding Secretary 61 5. Appropriations to be $150 per annum 52 6. To determine amount of Secretary's salary 52 7. To record terms of bequests 52 8. Power to fill vacancies 52 9. Church or Classis to make efforts to sustain a beneficiary recommended 52 10. To seek repayment in certain cases 58 11. Beneficiaries must need the aid 68 12. To use care in receiving beneficiaries 58 18. Rights and duf.es of Classes, &c., in relation to benefic- iaries 64 14. Board to have discretionary power in regard to place of literary study 64 15. Names of beneficiaries not to be published 54 16. Powers enlarged to aid Academies 55 E. BOARD OF PUBLICATION. 1. Publication Committee and lemma ordered 56 2. Plan adopted by Synod 56 8. Church Schools to use their books 58 4. To issue the Psalmody of the Church 68 6. To print the Liturgy in German 68 134 DIGEST. F. VABIOUB HATTERS COXCERNINQ THE BOABDS. Bee. 1. Kecommendatlons of Synod not imperative obligations.. S8 2. Corresponding Secretary and Treasurer of each Board are ex-offlcio members 09 8. Names of officers and members to be published in Min- utes of Synod 69 4. Financial year to end April 30 69 6. Places of members absent one year continuously to be filled 59 6. Eeports to be printed before meeting of Synod 59 7. Eeports to be done up with Minutes of Synod 60 8. Pastors and Consistories to try to raise the standard of beneficence 60 9. Tabular statements to be inserted in Minutes of Synod. . 60 10. Use of moneys collected for Sabbath-School purposes 60 11. Youth to be trained to systematic beneficence 61 12. Secretaries to report pastors and churches not contribut- ing for two years 61 CHAPTER VII. EDUCATIONAL INSTITUTIONS. A. THEOLOGICAL SEMINARY AT NEW^ BRUNSWICK. Bee. 1. Plan of the School 61 Art. 1. Oversight by General Synod 62 2. " by Board of Superintendents 62 8. " by Professors 63 4 Qualifications and duties of students 64 5. Time and course of study 66 6. Didactic Department 67 Sec. 2. Recommendations to students 68 8. Theological Professors, guardians of beneficiary students 69 4. Re-arrangement of Seminary year 69 6. Members of Board of Superintendents must belong to the Classes which they represent. 69 6. A yearly detailed report of every student to be made. . . 69 7. Expenses of members of the Board to be paid by their Classes 70 A. (a). HERTZOQ HALL. Bee. 1, Standing Committee appointed 71 INDEX. 135 2. Committee to make rules 71 3. Modification of Committee. Difficulties referred to Board of Superintendents 71 B. THEOLOGIOAL SEMINARY AT HOLLAND. Sec. 1. Preliminary arranjrements 78 2. Council of Hope College to act as Board of Superintend- ents 78 C. RUTGERS COLLEGE. Sec. 1. Articles of Agreement between Synod and Trustees modified 74 2. Board of Direction to convey title to College property to Trustees 74 8. SjTiod relinquishes appointment of Professor of Theology in 74 4. Synod informed of Trustees' consent 74 D. HOPE COLLEGE. Sec. 1. Holland Academy taken under care of SjTiod 74 2. Title of property confirmed to Synod 74 8. Plan of support and supervision 75 4. Endowment directed 77 5. x\.rrangements to secure College charter 78 6. Vacancies in Board to be filled 78 7. President to report to Synod 78 8. Articles of Incorporation 79 9. Changes in Council 85 CHAPTEPw VIII. FUNDS OF THE CHURCH. Sec. 1. Means of meeting deficiency 86 A. widows' fund. 85 Sec. 1. Plan of the Fund 85 2. Classes to induce churches to secure an interest for their pastors ... 89 3. Classis to appoint a member to solicit subscriptions 90 4. Classes to carry out the plan of agencies for 90 B. DISABLED ministers' FTND. Sec, 1. Plan Oi the Fund 90 136 DIGEST. C. CHURCH BUILDING FUND. Bee. 1. Plan of the Fund 81 2, Moneys solicited for churches, etc., to be secured to the denomination 93 CHAPTER IX. CHURCH GOVERNMENT. Bee. 1. Order of Judicial Business 93 2. Lower judicatories must act under the laws 93 3. Dissolution of a church relation 94 4. Synod will not legislate on abstract questions 94 6. Ministers and members, on removing:, to transfer relation Avithin one year 94 6. Deputati Synodi 96 7. Subjects of Baptism 95 8. Ministers without charge , 9€ 9. Candidates 97 10. Professor of Theology .97 11. Rights of collegiate ministers 98 12. Transfer of baptized children 98 13. Provision for payment of assessment for contingent ex- penses 98 14. Stated Clerks of Classes to fill the column of "Total in Communion" 9^ 15. Directions for Consistorial Reports 99 16. Ministers and Consistories to have collections ordered by Synod taken up lOO CHAPTER X. DOCTRINES AND M0EAL8. Sec 1. Marriage of deceased wife's sister." lOO 2. Dancing 100 8. Catechetical instruction 101 4. Intemperance 101 6 Sabbath observance 102 6. " Mercersberg Theology" disapproved 108 7. Betting and games of chance 108 INDEX. 187 CHAPTER XI. OIJ8TOM8 AND USAGES. See. 1. Essential and non-essential customs 104 2. " Forms " of the Church. 106 8. Revision of Sacramental Forms not adopted 108 4. In co-operation with others, our standards to be guard- ed 106 6. Catechetical instruction and preaching . . 107 CHAPTER XII. COBRB8PONDENCE WITH OTHSB CHUBCHE8. Bbc. 1. The subject in general 107 2. Correspondence with the Presbjrterian Church 108 8. Privileges of Delegates 110 4. With R. D. C. of S. Africa and the Waldenses 110 6. "With the Free Church of Scotland 110 6. With the German Reformed Church 110 7. With the Reformed and United Presbyterian Churches .. Ill 8. With the Canada Presbyterian Church Ill CHAPTER XIII. BELIGI0C8 NEWSPAPERS. B«c. 1. Board of Publication to issue a monthly Ill 2. The Boards of the Church to use it HI 8. Pastors and Consistories to endeavor to secure its intro- duction into every family 112 4. A weekly paper essential 112 5. Company to be incorporated to publish one. 112 CHAPTER XIV. PARTICULARIA. B»o. 1. Union of Church and State 118 2. Funeral Service 114 8. Days of Humiliation and Prayer 114 4. Psalm book not to be a source of profit. 114 6. Sacred Music 116 188 DIGEST. 6. Act of New York Legislature with reference to religious incorporations 115 7. Eeport on the State of Eeligion to be read from the pul- pit 116 8. Titles to be omitted in recording names in Minutes 116 9. Column for contributions in the Statistical Tables 117 10. Stated Clerk to distribute Minutes to institutions 117 11. Expenses of Western Delegates 117 12. Minutes of Synod to be published as soon as practicable 117 13. Article XIII. of Minutes changed to " Church Colleges" 117 14. "Theological School" in Constiiution. changed to " Schools " 118 15. " Hymns of the Church " approved and recommended. . . 118 16. Eeports of Delegates not to be printed in the Minutes. .118 17. New Hymns approved 118 18. Classis of Holland to translate the Constitution into HoUandish 118 APPENDIX. Particular Synods 119 Amended By-Laws of Board of Direction 123 rinceton Theological Seminary-Speer Library 1 1012 01131 0192 p^ c