Presbyterian brotherhood. Report of the first convention held at Indianapolis, November thirteenth to fifteenth, nineteen-six

Contents

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I. Introduction. John Clark Hill, D.D. ... 5 II. Opening Exercises. Henry S. Osborne, pre-

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Introduction

BY JOHN CLARK HILL, D.D.

This book needs no introduction except some historical notes. It is a book of practical things. It will appeal to Christian men of all denominations, but, of course, particularly to Presbyterians. It is not a book of cast-iron models, or hard and fast rules. It is exactly in line with the policy that has directed the Brotherhood movement from the beginning.

The controlling aim has been to enlist men in " works of Christian usefulness," by helping them to recognize the things they have left undone ! The movement is designed to rehabilitate the neglected things, to magnify the insignificant, to glorify the commonplace in Christian service. It is confidently believed that the Brotherhood will actually accomplish much towards this end.

The first definite action looking to the organization of the Brotherhood was taken in the

Presbytery of Mahoning. The Kev. Kobert E. Bigger, Ph. D., pastor of the Presbyterian Church of Massillon, Ohio, drafted an overture which was adopted by the presbytery at the fall meeting, 1894, and sent to the synod, with a request that it be adopted and transmitted to the General Assembly, in the following terms : —

"The Synod of Ohio respectfully overtures the One Hundred and Seventeenth General Assembly of the Presbyterian Church in the United States of America to appoint a special committee, which shall make full investigation of the question of men's societies, and report to the One Hundred and Eighteenth General Assembly, with the view to the formation of a men's order, or Brotherhood, within the Presbyterian Church, which shall be distinctively Presbyterian in name and purpose, and providing for presbyterial, synodical, and national conventions, for the purpose of bringing Presbyterian men together in the interests of the Presbyterian Church, and in the interest of winning men to Christ."

A committee of five was appointed and instructed "to report as desired," and the Stated Clerk was "instructed to place at its disposal such information as comes to his office in the regular reports of the presbyteries."

The following were appointed as the committee : The Eev. John Clark Hill, D.D., Springfield, Ohio; the Eev. John Balcom Shaw, D.D.,

Chicago; the Rev. S. Edward Young, D.D., Pittsburg, Pa. ; Mr. William T. Ellis, Wyncote, Pa.; Mr. Andrew Stevenson, Chicago.

The report presented by this committee to the Assembly of 1906, gave a brief historical sketch of the movements among the churches aiming at the organization of men for Christian service, from which the following data are taken : —

The present movement for the organization of men's societies for Christian work in connection with the local churches began about fifteen years ago. It was made the subject of a notable paper read at the Congress of Religions that was held auxiliary to the World's Fair in Chicago in 1893. This gave great impetus to the movement in nearly all evangelical denominations. Many of our pastors welcomed this impetus, organized men's clubs or leagues, most of which aimed specially at increasing the effectiveness of the Sunday evening services. The existence of these organizations was brought to the attention of the Assembly by the Narrative on the State of Religion in 1895 in the following terms: "The call is made for the organization of men. The men of our church, as a class, are falling to the rear of the great host of God in both service and benevolence. This occurs largely because they are not organized into associations as the women are. To evangelize men, to pray and labor for their salvation, is the need of the hour, second to no other call in the sphere of Christian work." This was a notable utterance, but the Assembly did nothing definite to promote the needed organization.

Six years later, in 1901, the Narrative said: "The reports of the efforts in organizing the men of the church into action present no great encouragement. In quite a large number of cases the experiment is tried, but whatever it may accomplish in outward appearances for the local church, it has accomplished very little for the Boards of the church. A great problem is to get very generally from men, for the kingdom of Christ, the plan, push, perseverance, enterprise, and energy which business monopolizes. If the men in the churches were as are the women, the kingdom would come in leaps and bounds."

In 1902 the Narrative states that "a few men's societies have their bond in the love of missions, and some support their own missionaries in home and foreign lands. Your committee thinks that herein is a splendid opportunity for our church, and through the General Assembly would call on the men of the church for organized work along distinctly spiritual and missionary lines."

In 1903 the Narrative declares that "the societies organized for men are comparatively few, and for the most part of a social nature. A few societies are reported which are distinctly spiritual, such as the Brotherhood of

INDIANAPOLIS CONVENTION V

Andrew and Philip. It is a question of earnest consideration of each pastor whether or not this matter is receiving the attention which it deserves, and whether or not onr young men are finding the spiritual culture essential to their growth, and are being marshaled and trained for Christian service as they should be. Here is a field that, in too many instances, is proving but fallow ground. ' '

In 1904 the statement is made: "Very few societies exist for our men, but where they have been organized and faithfully maintained, such encouraging results have attended their work that your committee is hopeful that ensuing years may see a general movement toward such organization throughout our church and especially in the cities. ' '

The Questionaire. — In order to get at more definite detail as to the character and success of the existing societies, the committee sent out a Questionaire containing the following questions :

1. Is there now, or has there been, a men's society of any kind connected with your church ?

2. Of what nature? What objects?

3. Success or failure?

4. Causes: a. Success.

b. Failure.

5. Do you feel the need of organized work among your men?

6. On what lines?

7. What do you believe to be the attitude of the men of your congregation towards such an organization as is outlined in the overture to the General Assembly?

8. What do you think is the attitude of ministers and laymen in other congregations?

9. What is your personal attitude towards the proposed Brotherhood?

10. What name would you propose for it?

11. What suggestions have you to make to the committee as to a plan of organization?

The replies demonstrated the fact that there was virtual unanimity on the part of pastors, elders, and laymen as to the need of organizing in accord with the Ohio Overture.

Types of Societies. — The investigation of the committee covered the purposes and activities of the existing societies. These may be grouped under two general divisions:

1. Those that make prominent a definitely spiritual purpose, and employ direct religious agencies.

2. Those that make good fellowship prominent as an indirect means of promoting the interests of the local church.

Brotherhoods and Bible Classes. — 1. In the first division we find organizations such as the following :

(a) Chapters of the Brotherhood of Andrew and Philip. The Brotherhood was started among churches of the Reformed Church in the U. S., but not as a strictly denominational organization or under denominational control.

Churches in other denominations organized chapters. Our own Assembly in 1899 endorsed this organization, and commended it to the favorable consideration of the sessions of our churches.

The object of the Brotherhood of Andrew and Philip is the spread of Christ's kingdom among men, especially young men.

The rules of the Brotherhood are two: The Rule of Prayer, and the Eule of Service. The Rule of Prayer is to pray daily for the spread of Christ's kingdom among young men, and for God's blessing upon the labors of the Brotherhood. The Rule of Service is, to make an earnest effort each week to bring at least one young man within hearing of the gospel of Jesus Christ, as set forth in the services of the church, young people's prayer meetings and young men's Bible classes.

There are now several hundred active chapters of this Brotherhood in our denomination.*

(b) The Organized Men's Bible Class. — This type of work for men has had great and constantly increasing success. The Baraca Union of America has a large number of men's Bible classes under its care, with some in our churches, and, as a rule, doing effective service for Christ and the church.

The Cook County (Illinois) Sunday-school

*Churches desiring information regarding the formation of chapters should communicate with the Rev. W. H. Pheley, Sec, 1308 Arch St., Philadelphia, Pa.

Association, through a special department, has done much to make men's Bible classes popular throughout the whole country.

The most notable development of this type of work is seen in the Young Men's Presbyterian Union of Chicago. This paragraph is from its constitution :

"The object of the Union shall be to establish fraternal relations between all Bible classes, clubs, and kindred organizations devoted to work for young men, in the churches holding the Eeformed faith, within the limits of Chicago Presbytery; to foster religious education, spiritual development, denominational fealty, and broad Christian citizenship; and to strengthen fellowship among all young men in such churches."

The Bible class is made the dominant feature, but auxiliary means are employed for reaching men. This work is accomplished through distinct departments, such as Devotion, Fealty, Education, Citizenship, Organization, Fellowship, Missions, Evangelistics, and Athletics.

The work of this Union has created such enthusiasm that nearly all our churches in Chicago have organized their men on this basis. Quite a number of the clubs and leagues that had been organized for purely social or literary purposes, and had become weak or extinct, have been reorganized on the Bible class plan, with a decided increase of spiritual efficiency. The Union is spiritual at its core, and has become a vital, aggressive, and permanent force in unifying the Presbyterian men of Chicago, and has awakened a degree of denominational loyalty and evangelistic zeal never before known among them.

Clubs and Leagues. — 2. The second class of societies are of what may be regarded the social type. These have employed all kinds of methods with the ultimate aim of strengthening the local church. Where the methods employed have, in a measure, kept the church and its spiritual objects largely in the background, and the chief means employed were suppers and socials, the investigation shows that such societies last only a few short years. It has been almost demonstrated by the Questionable that in order to permanency and efficiency there must be some clearly avowed spiritual purpose.

The most successful societies that have employed indirect means have followed many of the methods of the Young Men's Christian Association. This agency has given the churches an illustration of what men "can accomplish in practical Christian activities when they give themselves seriously to the task." Many of these methods have been employed by churches that are popularly called "Institutional Churches," which really means nothing more than that the church has organized agencies to do works of practical Christian usefulness in addition to the work of providing for worship, devotion, and Scripture study.

It is generally recognized that the men of the average church do little or nothing, unless "officers in the church," in the way of service that would be a direct help to the church in increasing its influence in a community. It ought to be far easier for the men of any congregation to organize a thoroughly successful work than it is for the Y. M. C. A. to do so. In a congregation we have a definite constituency to appeal to and a church building as a centre for operations. There would seem to be a definite obligation to prosecute some such work in almost every congregation, duly adjusted to its equipment, environment, and constituency.

The Questionaire revealed the fact that most failures were attributed to "lack of a definite purpose"; "lack of proper organization"; ' ' lack of cooperation with other similar organizations"; "ignorance as to best methods to employ"; "too much of the social element," and "not enough religion."

Success has been constant where there was a well-defined purpose constantly kept in view, and where the pastor was able to secure the cooperation of earnest, enthusiastic helpers.

The methods employed by the successful organizations of this type have been such as these :

1. Plans to increase the efficiency of the Sunday evening service, by publicity, by looking after strangers, and providing for the general social intercourse of the men of the congregation.

2. The organizing of Ushers' Associations.

3. The organizing of classes for the study of missions.

4. The promotion of intelligence regarding the Boards of the Church.

5. The establishment of bath-rooms and gymnasiums; reading rooms and libraries; employment and boarding-house bureaus ; sick and relief funds; savings banks; classes for physical culture; athletics; educational classes of various kinds.

6. The promotion of civic reform.

7. The creation and promotion of temperance sentiment.

8. Work for boys.

The Action of the General Assembly. After the consideration of the report at the meeting at Des Moines, May, 1906, the following action was adopted unanimously:

1. That this General Assembly authorizes the formation of a Brotherhood within the Presbyterian Church in the United States of America, to include all men's organizations now existing or hereafter to be formed in connection with local congregations.

2. It is further recommended :

(a) That all existing organizations of men in our congregations which declare their adoption of Article 2 of the Provisional Plan, hereinafter given, be hereby recognized as charter organizations of the Brotherhood.

(b) That in all our congregations, where there is at present no such organization, steps be taken, wherever possible, to secure some organization of men.

(c) That all presbyteries and synods appoint a Standing Committee on the Brotherhood, for the purpose of fostering in whatever ways may be expedient organized work for men in the churches, and that these committees arrange for presbyterial and synodical conventions of the laymen within their bounds.

(d) That the General Assembly appoint each year a Standing Committee on the Brotherhood.

(e) That the Assembly appoint a Committee on Men's Societies, consisting of five ministers and five elders, for the purpose of perfecting and promoting this movement on the lines set forth in the Provisional Plan. This committee shall arrange for the first convention, which shall be held without expense to the General Assembly.

(/) That a convention of the laymen of the church be held, under the authorization and approval of the General Assembly, as soon as practical.

3. That this Assembly approves and adopts the following Provisional Plan for the organization of the Brotherhood:

(1) The name of this organization shall be "The Presbyterian Brotherhood."

(2) The object of the Brotherhood shall be to secure the organization of the men of our congregations, with a view to spiritual development, fraternal relations, denominational fealty, the strengthening of fellowship, and the engagement in works of Christian usefulness.

(3) Conventions shall be held from time to time for mutual counsel and inspiration. Each organization shall be entitled to at least one representative in such conventions, and one representative for each additional one hundred members or fraction thereof not less than twenty-five. Each convention shall plan for the meeting of the convention following, and shall appoint such committees and officers as may be necessary.

(4) The powers of the annual convention shall be advisory and declarative only, and no action taken by the convention shall be binding on any local organization unless adopted by regular action according to its constitution.

(5) The Brotherhood shall report to the General Assembly annually, and shall employ such means as may be necessary to secure, in cooperation with the Stated Clerk of the General Assembly, detailed annual reports from all local organizations.

(6) It is distinctly declared that the purpose of this plan is, to bring all existing organizations in our churches into a close working union, without in any way imposing on them a definite form of organization, and leaving them absolutely free to prosecute any form or method of Christian activity that may be adapted to the local organization; provided, however, that the constitution of the local organization shall declare that it is to be governed by the principles set forth in Chapter XXIII of the Form of Government of the Presbyterian Church in the XL S. A., and therefore "be under the immediate direction, control, and authority of the session of such church. ' '

The Committee appointed under this action consisted of those already named, with the addition of the Rev. Alfred H. Barr, Detroit; Michigan; the Eev. DeWitt M. Benham, Ph.D., Baltimore, Md. ; Mr. Charles T. Thompson, Minneapolis, Minn. ; and Mr. James M. Patterson, St. Louis, Mo.

Under the direction of the committee, the convention was held with the able assistance of the pastors and elders of the churches of Indianapolis.

Sample Constitutions. The numerous requests that have been made for suggestions for constitutions are met, in a measure, at least, by what will be found in the Appendix.

II Opening Exeecises

HENRY S. OSBORNE, PRESIDING

Brothers of the convention: Our elder Brother, the unseen One is here with us, and the Holy Spirit is here with us in power. The power of this convention, the power of this movement depends not upon man, but upon him. It depends upon what we shall do while we are here, and whether we ourselves shall get out of sight and sink the human element and let the Master take possession of us and do as he will. At the beginning of this devotional, shall it not be a time of special consecration for every one of us? As we begin, let us take hold of Christ and let him do as he will, whether he will make much of this convention or little. Our only concern is whether or not we shall be absolutely subject to him. In this spirit let us begin this hour of prayer, which will be lead by the Rev. John E. Bushnell, D J)., pastor of the Westminster Church, Minneapolis, Minnesota.

Dr. Bushnell said. — Beloved Brethren :

How we open this first hour may make all the difference in the world as to how we shall spend all of the rest of the hours of the convention. I have come before you at the request of this committee to occupy the time at this hour, but I realize that there are eloquent listeners in this body, that there are longing hearts here, and that the burden is not laid upon me as first I thought it was when the appointment came to me. But we are here to look into the deep things of God. The nearest and safest approach of the Brotherhood of Man is by the great white throne. It is very important that we should lose sight of self, forget the names connected with this convention, be absolutely devoid of self consciousness, which would stand between us and the greatest success. So I simply want to open the Book this morning to give to you the message which God has given to my heart.

While other bodies may pay attention to many things in organization, we still persist in believing in the great inspiration of our church, that it was created through the vision that man had of the glory of God. I believe the one great ruling thought in connection with our Presbyterian Brotherhood is such a text as that found in the book of Bevelation, "Holy, holy, holy, is the Lord God, the Almighty, who was and who is and who is to come." To the extent this morning that you and I can understand the mortality of all human agencies, to that extent shall we accomplish something. In the first epistle of Paul to Timothy, in the first chapter, there is a wonderful doxology into which the apostle enters, out of a long and magnificent course of reasoning. Life has its keynote; even material things have their keynote; every bridge that spans a river has its keynote ; every building that is made of stone and mortar has its keynote ; the doctrines of men have their keynotes; the lives of men have their keynote; prayer has its keynote. This is true in all of the affairs of human life, and the world's too.

The first element of Paul's doxology, which also went a long way toward the making of it, you will find in the eleventh verse. You do not reach the doxology until you come to the seventeenth verse. Here is the first step toward it. Here he touches the orchestra of the soul ; he is getting into tune. See what it says. "According to the gospel of the glory of the blessed God, which was committed to my trust. "

Stop there for a moment, and lose all other thought in the contemplation of the meaning of this. Our gospel is "the gospel of the glory of the blessed God." That means One whose heart is so kind, so tender, so watchful over all of his works that we can wound it, we can give him a heartache just as we can bring sorrow and grief to our earthly parents. So solicitous is he for us that everything that concerns our happiness is such that it is a message of the gospel of God. Is not the God of our fathers the blessed God? The gospel that we preach is the gospel of our blessed God ; One whose love never fails toward them that seek him; One whose pity is deeper than the sea, and higher than the heavens. Is the gospel of the blessed God in our hearts this morning? What we need in this convention is to take a new conception of the duties of life, and of the beauty and power of the gospel that brings to us the loving-kindness of the Father, that we may look into his face.

Is not this Fatherhood above all fatherhoods ? Is it upon the portals of our sanctuary, over our altars, in our homes, written in our hearts? This word "Fatherhood" is a blessed word. Are we ready this morning to enter into all of the length and breadth and depth and height of this expression, — "the gospel of the glory of the blessed God," who is holy because he is blessed ; because he is kind ; because he is longing, waiting, and working to see the furthering of his purpose, the redemption of those for whom Jesus Christ has shed his most precious blood?

That is a sweet story that is going the rounds just now concerning Mr. S — — . When he saw that the windmills of the country bore the words, "God is love," he asked the peasant why that was put on the windmills. Was is because they thought his love changed with every passing breeze? The peasant replied, "No, that is all right; it means that no matter from which way the wind blows, God is still the God of love." That is the one great inspiration that gives us hope for the work which we have before us this morning.

Some time since, I was a stranger passing an idle hour in a great city, in one of its lovely parks. It was a beautiful June morning. The grass was never greener nor the sky bluer. The birds were singing their sweetest songs, and all nature seemed to be making a jubilee over this thought of the glory of God, the loving God that made all things. As I wandered along with my eyes lifted up in contemplation of the glory of God, I almost stumbled upon the prostrate form of a poor wretch who had not yet slept away his night's intoxication. And as I thought of the comparison of this beautiful world with this sad sight; of the glory of God in the beautiful morning; and this poor fellow whom God loved more than he loved all of the loveliness of the outer nature; this man drunk with the fumes of alcohol whose soul might have been intoxicated with heavenly harmonies ; whose heart might have been thrilled with Christian music ; I could not but be sad.

What is the second note in the preparation of this wonderful doxology? The first is Fatherhood. Look at the fifteenth verse, ■ ' Christ Jesus came into the world to save sinners ; of whom I am chief." Bear in mind that God has come down from the throne of glory;

that he is within human reach. The Lamb of God taketh away the sins of the world; his precious blood was spilled for mankind. Jesus Christ was the Saviour of mankind. They built their pantheon in ancient Greece, and into this the people came to appease the wrath of their gods, and buy their favor. They invited the Christians to erect a statue there of Christ that he might belong to this congregation of deities. It was a foolish idea; we can forgive them ; little knew they of the sacredness of the cross of Christ. He could no more be compared with their deities, than the great solar system could be classified with the lamps and lights that man has constructed with his hands. We are invited to join a pantheon in this land, the pantheon of literature. Where do they place Christ? They say great things of his beauty and culture; that it is above all culture codes; and we know that no man ever wrote with his pen anything to correspond to the beauty and richness of the Beatitudes. There is a pantheon in Philadelphia which says that Jesus Christ was a mighty sage, and that he had great wisdom, and they will erect his statue with others. We answer back that if Christ is only another name added to the roll of philosophers, our hosanna is robbed of its sweetest note. This would erase the doxology from our pages, and the hosanna from our hearts. Jesus came into the world to save sinners. How do we feel down in our hearts ? Even after I have preached the gospel a number of years, sometimes down in my heart, where the world cannot see, I wish that some one would come along and put his hand on my shoulder, some one who did not know who I was, and ask me to come to Jesus. I wish that some one would meet me in the street some day and in a loving way say, "Will you not come to Jesus?" That is what we need this morning. If we have come to him once for pardon of sins, that is all right, but we should come to him again and again. We still need him. This is a strange question to ask a gathering like this, but I must ask it. Are you saved! I know this seems rather out of place in a Brotherhood meeting like this, but you need to go back to the rudiments of your faith. Are you saved unto all glory? Are you close to Jesus! Are you saved by a great, unconquerable faith? Are you saved unto all the light of gladness that comes by feeling that every day you are walking with him? Then your life is no longer simply work, but every deed, every heart throb, every honor, and every tear are parts of the doxology.

I beg you to take the third step that Paul took before he passed into that marvelous doxology. Look at the sixteenth verse. ' ' Howbeit for this cause I obtained mercy, that in me as chief might Jesus Christ show forth all his long suffering, for an ensample of them that should thereafter believe on him unto eternal life." What does that mean? What is the third note of the apostle's wonderful doxology? It is the word that is ringing over Indianapolis to-day, this word Brotherhood. This is a great crowning thought. Then after all, a man's place in this world is first in the depth of his nature to realize something of the glory of the blessed God, that he shall pass through that blessed reviving experience, which is promised unto the saints of God. But he must not stop there. What does it mean, this sixteenth verse? It means, as I understand it, that God simply saved man as a specimen. God saved me that he might hold me up and show the world what he could do with me. That is my only purpose in life, — that I might drink a little at the fountain of life, and God might say, "See what I have done for that poor miserable man. ' ' I am God's specimen, God's example for other men, and they will say, "If God could save that man, help him, and make him happy and content, then he can do the same for me." That is the end of all of our striving, brothers, that God may so take hold of us and waken the music in our souls that the heavenly choirs sometimes listening to our palpitating, throbbing life, may catch a sweet message from the harps of gold, and see not human, but divine workmanship, which has dropped a little spark of the holy life in our human veins out of which it creeps in loving tongues and accents. Now this world is being drawn by golden cords to Jesus' feet. These are the testimonies of the consecrated energies of those who have learned for themselves the unspeakable depth of life as it comes from the hand of Christ. Is there anything in life to be compared to this great promise that we may gather to ourselves eternal life, and see heavenly ideals of conduct, and incorporate them into our lives?