THE SOUTHWESTERN CONGREGATIONAL ASSOCIATION.
BY REV. W. S. ALEXANDER, D.D.
The time and place (June 1, New Orleans) proved propitious. They gave the ministers and delegates an opportunity, by anticipating the meeting, to be present at the anniversary exercises of the University. I think a fire has been kindled which will not be quenched when our brethren reach their homes, and we shall find, when the new school year opens, that new connecting lines have been established between Straight University and the interior towns.
The Association last met in this city, in the spring of 1877. In 1878 and 1879 we met in New Iberia, and in 1880 and 1881 in Terrebonne; so this is our sixth annual meeting without a break, and we are able to report not only continuity of life, but real progress. A little advance in the church work of this Association means more than a far greater advance in our older religious bodies. Here the fight has been, first upon the question, “Have we, as Congregationalists, a right to live in Lousiana?” The denominationalism among the colored people has been, and still is, intense. As the Baptist and Methodist Church once covered this entire Southern field, the Congregationalist is looked upon as a traitor to a holy cause, who has enlisted under a strange and piratical banner. “Who are you, anyhow?” “Where do you come from?” “What strange faith have you picked up now?” are questions which salute our brethren constantly, and which are designed to cover them with confusion and discomfiture. But this battle has been bravely and patiently fought, and the right to exist “established.”
There were 31 pastors and delegates present. The reports from the various fields were cheering and hopeful. It has not been a harvest year, though some churches have been refreshed by the gracious visitation of the Holy Spirit, and all have, we hope, felt the quickening of a new life. A revival of wonderful preciousness and power was reported from Central Church, New Orleans, beginning with the “Week of Prayer,” and continuing five weeks, during which time nearly 100 souls were awakened.
Brother Clay’s church in Terrebonne has been blessed and strengthened. There have been many hindrances in the year. The floods have caused great suffering among the poor. Cabins have been washed away, crops destroyed, and the plans of labor disarranged. When the laboring class of the colored people suffer, the churches suffer in their resources.
Let me summarize the result of our annual meeting.
I. From the reports of the churches we find that there have been numerical losses, which, though seemingly serious, are really gains, so far as the purity and vigorous life of the Association is concerned. The Association has not yet laid down the pruning knife, and it may be that more dead branches will be clipped off in the year, without which the tree will be more beautiful and fruitful.
II. A higher stand was taken for an educated ministry. One of the brethren, on his own volition, presented a resolution to this effect: “That from this day we, as an Association, will neither license nor ordain any man to preach in our churches who is not fitted by education to perform all the sacred duties of his office.” The brethren in the discussion preceding the vote said that while there was formerly an excuse for an ignorant ministry, we now have our colleges and theological seminaries, and with a little self-denial, all who wish may fit themselves to guide intelligently the minds and hearts of the people.
III. The necessity was deeply felt and freely expressed, of taking a clearer and stronger denominational position, with all charity and fellowship for all who love our Lord Jesus Christ in sincerity. We, as Congregationalists, should know the ground on which we stand, and be able to give a reason for the hope within us. It was voted that a Manual be prepared, answering more fully than any yet issued, the local needs of our Louisiana churches. This Manual will be prepared during the summer, and submitted in manuscript to the Association at its next meeting.
We were fortunate in having the presence and cordial aid of Rev. O. D. Crawford, of Mobile. He gave an address, Wednesday night, on the subject: “Why am I a Congregationalist?” It was scholarly, judicious and effective.
The Moderator, yielding to the kind and earnest desire of the brethren, occupied the evening session of Thursday in an account of his visit to Europe, with especial reference to the Jubilee Meeting of the Congregational Union of England and Wales, held at Manchester in October last.
After prayer and song, and with deep gratitude to God for His blessing upon our annual meeting, the Association adjourned, to meet in New Iberia the first Wednesday in April, 1883.
I desire, in concluding this statement, to say that if our Northern friends wish to see a vigorous Congregational Association in Louisiana, the helping hand must be extended, with the “God bless you” from the lips. Weak points along the lines need to be strengthened, the faint and weary to be encouraged and the streams of benevolence to be directed into the barren wastes, where men of God have only their lives to offer.