Speech of the Rev. Samuel G. Winchester, in Defense of the Act of the Synod of Philadelphia

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Excerpt from Speech of the Rev. Samuel G. Winchester, in Defense of the Act of the Synod of Philadelphia: In the Case of the Assembly's Second Presbytery of Philadelphia Moderator, - Before entering fully into the merits of this case, permit me to notice a remark made by the last speaker, in relation to the act of the Presbytery of Philadelphia, by which, but one ministerial and one lay delegate are commissioned to this Assembly. It was said that by the act of Synod appealed from, that Presbytery was entitled to a larger delegation on this floor, but by sending up their present number, that Presbytery has declared its own belief in the unconstitutionality of the Synodical act. But, Sir, by a reference to the minute of Presbytery appended to the commission of their delegates, it will appear that the right to an increased number, is expressly claimed, but the exercise of it waived from motives of prudence and peace. The Presbytery were unwilling that so grave and important a subject as that now before you, should be decided on a preliminary question. Sir, had the Presbytery insisted on the exercise of their right, this weighty subject, with all its difficulties, would have met you on the threshold, and your proceedings would have commenced in the midst of agitation and excitement. It was with a view to peace and order, Sir, that the Presbytery adopted the course which is now attempted to be construed to its disadvantage. The question before the court is brought up by appeal and complaint. The question before the court is brought up by appeal and complaint, and as thus brought up, I enter a solemn plea. Not that I would now have the question decided on this issue, but as the merits of the case have been gone into a large by the complainants, I would urge this plea as an argument for dismissing the appeal and complaint. The act of Synod complained of, consists of three parts. 1. The reception of the so called Second Presbytery of Philadelphia, as a constituent member of Synod, agreeably to the order of the Assembly of 1832, by which that Presbytery is attached to the Synod of Philadelphia. 2. The Union of that Presbytery with the Presbytery of Philadelphia, in virtue of the power of Synods to unite and divide Presbyteries. 3. The division of the Presbytery thus constituted by the union, in virtue of the same Synodical prerogative. The act of Synod, though consisting of these three distinct parts, is nevertheless one, and is so regarded in the appeal and complaint. Against such an act no appeal nor complaint can constitutionally lie. Our ecclesiastical judicatories are of a complex character, like the Senate of the United States. At one time, and for specified purposes, they are legislative bodies, at other times, and for other purposes, they are judicial bodies. This distinction is recognised throughout the Constitution of our Church. And no where does that Constitution sanction the interference of one character with the other. About the Publisher Forgotten Books publishes hundreds of thousands of rare and classic books. Find more at www.forgottenbooks.com This book is a reproduction of an important historical work. Forgotten Books uses state-of-the-art technology to digitally reconstruct the work, preserving the original format whilst repairing imperfections present in the aged copy. In rare cases, an imperfection in the original, such as a blemish or missing page, may be replicated in our edition. We do, however, repair the vast majority of imperfections successfully, any imperfections that remain are intentionally left to preserve the state of such historical works.