THE DUNEDIN YOUNG MEN'S CHRISTIAN ASSOCIATION.

Evening Star, Issue 4262, 24 October 1876, Page 2

THE DUNEDIN YOUNG MEN'S CHRISTIAN ASSOCIATION.

Laßt evening about 120 members of the Yeung Men's Christian Association met in the Schoolroom of the First Church to consider the blackballing of the Rev. A. R. Fitchett, minister of the Wesleyan Trinity Church, by the Board of Management. The president, Mr Thomas Dick, was chairman. The Rev. Lorenzo Moore, |of Port Chalmers, commenced the proceedings with prayer. The Chairman explained the object of the meeting. He considered the words " blackballing the Rev. A R. Fitchett" rather a strong way of putting it. He felt sure that all the members were anxious to vote according to their consciences, that there would be no bitterness or wrath or unkindness of feeling, and he had no doubt the Board would get credit for acting conscientiously in this matter. (Applause.) He thought they would see that it would be expedient, in order to save the time of the meeting, that the ordinary rules in force at all public meetings be observed, and that the speakers would confine themselves to the subject for which they were called together. The meeting was confined to members of the Association, but he saw that the Press was present. The Board took that matter into consideration, and thought that on the whole it would be better to let the Press remain—(applause)— so that a fair and correct report of the meeting might be given. Any others who were not members would consider themselves absent, or in fact retire.—(Applause.) It was resolved, on tne motion of Mr Scouxlar, seconded by Mr Fraskb, that no speaker' be allowed more than ten minutes. I)r Borrows wished he could say he rose with pleasure to move a resolution, but although painful, he felt it a duty which circumstances had. devolved upsa him lest he should be unfaithful to an old friend and to his duty as a member of this association. The resolution which he felt it his duty to move was :—" That this meeting of the members of the Dunedin Young Men's Christian Association desireß to express its disapprobation of the black-balling of the Rev. A. R. Fitchett "—(Applause.) That was the resolution he wished to submit to the meeting. The first reason was that when he joined the Association he thought he was joining something like an Evangelical Association—a society of Christians meeting upon a broad, basis, standing upon a broad platform, and co-operatiug with each other in a common Christian cause.- (Applause.) He looked at the constitution of tne association, and saw that it was one which would embrace every Christian's faith—every sect acknowledging Jesus as their Saviour and the inspiration of the Holy Scriptures.—(Applause.) On that account he gloried in his membership. He was a member of the Wesleyan Church. Mr f-it-chett was an old friend, and his pastor. The congregation eould not fail to be sadly sorry and aggrieved that the Dunedin Young Men's Christian Association should have thrown this slight upon their pastor. It was so utterly foreign from what they had a right to expect from such an association.— (Applause.) And it was with pain and surprise that the black-balling had been received- that by the aotiou of the Board o!

Management there was no room for the Rev. I A. R. Fitchstt to .stand with them—that he w«s not worthy of a place in an Evangelical association. Their hopes ran high that Mr Fitchett, as an old friend, would be useful, not only to themselves but to the association. It was then, with bitter disappointment, that they learned that the minister of whom they were justly so proud, had been black-balled. He had another reason. He thought the Board of Management, in acting as they did, had done wrong, and gone beyond their powers. ■ All the constitution required in candidates for membership was simply a reception of the one Saviour, belief in the Incarnation of God and the Inspiration of the Bible—including, of course r theX)ld and. New Testa ments. That Mr Fitchett had ample right to expect he would get credit for.—(Dr Roseby: Hear, hear.) No one there could deny that he was a. Christian. And it would be affectation to deny that they hachnot assurance from himself, both directly ard indirectly, that he received and fully believed in the inspiration of the Bible. He submitted that the Board had no right to go beyond, those two steps. It wouloTbe affectation to plead ignorance of the reason why the Board had rejected Mr Fitchett;. but he submitted that the Board had no right to.take up that' question at all. It was utterly beyond them, and he wonld ask the meeting if they had chosen the Board to sit in judgment upon the theological opinions of anyone applying for admission to this association. At least, they had not chosen those men to sit in judgment upon a minister, a trained theologian, a man who had the respect of a large congregation in Dunedin—who had the seal of the Wesleyan Methodist Conference to preach the gospel. Why had they done that ? Why are they allowed to sit in judgment, and either approve or censure the views of such a man ? He submitted it was very foolish in the interests of this association to have acted in such a way. The Chairman : I have to announce that the ten minutes have passed. It was resolved on the motion of the Rev. J. U. Davis, seconded byjMr W. Incjlis, That Dr Borrows be allowed extra time. Dr Borrows : He thought they did wrong, in view of the interests of the association itself. It professed to gather in everyone as agents for the various Churches. He did not see why they should expect each Christian to hold a particular view of the first chapters of Genesis, nor why we should not receive and enrol an enlightened Roman Catholic in the Association—(cries of " No") —so long as he acknowledged the Sovereignty of Christ and the inspiration of the Holy Scriptures, even if he called the Virgin Mary the Queeen of Heaven and said his prayers before an image, provided he acknowledged her Son to be the King of Glory.—((lies of "No," and prolonged hisses.) Well, he did think some of them require a little more Evolution—his ancestors gave up that language ages ago. He pressed this motion as the most honest and straightforward expression of the views of many members of the Association. Its terms, if harsh, Were not more severe than the sentence passed by the Board upon the Rev. A. R. Fitchett. They had, by passing such a resolution, inflicted a sting and placed a stigma upon Mr Fitchettt; and it would be something, at all events, to set him right before the public of this City. The action of the Board was uncalled for. It was not required for the protection of the Association from the spread of any peculiar opinions. There-'were doctrines held by some members of the Association with which others did not agree, and he was surprised that any member of the Board of Management should have taken exception to the opinions of such a man as Mr Fitchett.— (Applause.) Mr Keith seconded the motion, and disclaimed all sympathy with anything which had appeared in the newspapers, especially the blasphemous article of the * Times.' He quoted rule 4, which says :—" Any person shall be eligible as a member of the association who professes his personal acceptance of Jesus Christ as his only Saviour, and who acknowledges the Divine inspiration of the Holy Scriptures. "In excluding Mr Fitchett th« Boaid of Management had actually said, "We deny that you are a Christian, man." He was about to quote from Mr Fitehett's pamphlet entitled " The Ethics of Evolution," when'

The Chairman stopped him. After discussion, in .which the Revs. Dr Copland, Dr Roseby, and Mr Mackie took Eart, it was determined "that every memer discussing the motion was entitled to declare his views as to Mr Fitchett's fitness, based upon his public utterances, to become a member of this association." Mr Reith contended that the association should accept Mr Fitchett's formal declaration when he consented to become a candidate for admission as a member 'of the association. Parsonage. Trinity Church, _ _ Duuedin, October 23,1876. Dear Dr Borrows,—l wish to put you in possession of the foUowing.facts : When some three months ago X was solicited to allow myself to be proposed asamembei of the Dunedin Young Men's Christian Association, I consented, very much aB a matter of course. I understood that the association was unsectaxian. I observed that other city ministers, as well as many persons from my own congregation, belonged to it, and I was assured that my membership would be generally acceptable. Soon afterwards I learned that the Board was likely to refuse me admission, and it was suggested to me that for this reason I ought to withdraw my name, but I did not feel that I was at liberty to do that. As the minister of a church, and the head in this Province of a denominatiou, I was scarcely free to take a course which, perhaps, as a private individual, I might have preferred. To ha;e withdrawn my name would have seemed an admission that there was just ground of objecting to it, and out of regard for the Church and denomination which I represent I was bound to require the Board to proceed to a decision. In the discussion which has gone on in the public prints since the Board's decision became known, I have of course taken no part, directly or indirectly, and the tone of.some of it is, I think, much to be regretted. What lam chiefly anxious should be understood is that the present contention is not between me and the Association, but between certain members and certain other members. In my own behalf, I would not lift a finger to disturb the decision arrived at by the Board.—l am, &c„ (Signed) A. E. Fuchett. The Rev Mr Moore felt in rather a difficult position, and also in a very delicate one, as a minister of the Lord Jesus Christ, for he had to make statements directly opposed to the statements which had been made in regard to a brother minister. In regard to the Rev. A. R. Fitchett, he believed him to be of exemplary Christian character, and a thoroughly conscientious man. At the same time, in speaking of his published opinions, he must say that they directly contravened some of the statements made in his favor.— (Applause.) There was a considerable amount of matter in his lecture of interest, but some of the statements cut down to the root of the Scriptures. So that anyone who read the pamphlet could see they went to impugn God's word. (Applause.) The author of the pamphlet spoke of the fall by Adam's transgression; but instead of the fall being regarded as a sin against God, told that ft was not a fall but a rise. Now any man'who denied the fall must also, along with it, deny the need of a Saviour. Then, if we do not need a Saviour, where were they as Christian men ? He had not studied the subject of Evolution—(hear, did not want to go into it, but according to it, it was implied that there was no direct creation of man, and that when God made man it was not from the dust of the earth, but from the oyster. He took his stand upon God's Word, and under the teaching of God, the Holy Spirit, he was convinced they would get rid.pf every difficulty.

Mr J. A. Cornell mov§4 the foßtitifSg . amendment:—"That thU^eetm&' regretting very sincerely thijrebent black- °j& balling of the Re*. A. R. Fitchett dbetaot Vf see any reason to interfere, either directr/or, indirectly, with the reeent deciflion of the; Board of Management." WhiM she had great respect for'ihs WesleyanV3»dy, the Association did not intend to casta slur on Mr Fitchett. He recognised Mr Fitchett at a thoroughly Christiau man, and believed him to Se a faithful minister of Christ. But yet he'considered that ie slffitilSiiot he admitted to the his published Tiews on Evolution were calculated to sttb* vert Christianity. One speaker had referred •to the broad platform of the Association, bat this Association would never receive a Roman-Catholic as a member. He could only attrioute this unfortunate palSplet C&T"*"™ Mr Fitehett's to the fact of his being an intellectual man. They could not admit into that Association anyone who attempted to reconcile Evolution with the doctrmea of « Christianity. ~ s - Mr Charles Wilson had much pleasure in seconding the amendment'. ■■•■-- The Rev. Dr Rosbby supported the motion of Dr Borrows. It appeared to hiiii that the Association had reached a very critical point v. in its history. He was convinced that it i would be right and wise for the members of the Association to express, dissent from the recent decision of the »' Board in the case of Mr Fitchett The Association by its constitution should ;\: admit members of every branch of the Church, and the Board of Management had' no authority whatever to judge in cases of scientific controversy. It was not a question of purely theological character. Scores of divines, whose standard of orthodoxy was unquestioned, had endorsed the doctrine of Evolution, and- many'others were only waiting for further proof before accepting. Professor Salmond remarked at a recent meeting of the Otago Institute that the theological difference between himself and Captain Hutton, his chief antagonist, , had proved so sin-11 that it was not worth . arguing about. The decision of the question against Mr Fitchett might have the effect, of leading members of the Board to discuss the orthodoxy of some who were already members, and who might express sympathy, 'more or less, with the views adopted ay Mr Fitchett.

The Rev. Dr Copland moved the following further amendment:—" That this assotion considers that the directors have acted '■' in perfect conformity with the existing rules in connection with the application of the Rev. Mr Fitchett, and sees 119 ground for interfering with their decision." He regretted the position in which the association was placed He would not have interfered with the resolution of the Board had it decided to admit Mr Fitchett. He did npt hold, with Dr Roseby, that the matter . should be regarded from a scientific aspect; It appeared to him that there were sufficient ' grounds for coming to a decision in limiting it purely to the religious and moral aspects connected with the statements which had been publiahjed by the applicant. He did not call in question Mr Fitehett's declaration, that he received and believed in the authority and inspiration of the Holy Scriptures, as there were many very different views in which the authority and inspiration of the Scriptures were held. But they had to consider whether there was, in Mr Fitehett's published addresses, anything inconsistent with what they regarded as the sound ' principles of religion and morality. He held that there were.—(Applause.) He believed that God made man in his own image, and that if man was not responsible before the Fall, the blame of that wrong must lie upon God himself. He contended that a person holding Mr Fitehett's views was not qualified to be received as a member of that Association.—(Applause.) Mr Connell withdrew his amendment, in favor of that of the Rev. Dr. Copland, ' which was seconded by the Rev. A. Blake, who maintained that Mr Fitehett's published views were < not in accordance with Scripture, which was given by inspiration with God.

The Rev, J. U. Davis pointed out that the Ministers' Association hod not blackballed Mr Fitchett, and thought that as the Wesleyan Conference had not decided to call him before the Church court, he should be accepted as a member of the Young Men's Association. The Rev. Lindsay Mackie moved the following further amendment:—"That this meeting declares its entire confidence in its Board of Management, and asserts that it acted legally in its rejecting Mr Fitchett from its membership ; at the same time, it expresses its belief that Mi Fitchett is a fitting person to be a member of this association.* He was a strong Churchman, and did not believe in the published views of Mr Fitchett, but he, however, recognised him as a legally-qualified and lawfully-ordained minister. Dr Borrows agreed to withdraw his , motion in favor of Mr Mackie's. * Mr ,Frank Graham thought that the. members Bhould support the decision of the Board. The Rev. Lindsay Mackie's amendment was negatived by 60 against 38 votes. The Rev. Dr Copland's amendment as ai substantive motion was carried by 50 to 31. Dr Roseby interpreted this judgment aB meaning that those who accepted the theory of Evolution had no loan standi in the association, and it is well, therefore, for them to withdraw from it.—(No, no; hear, hear). In doing so, he desired to part company on the best of terms with the respected Christian friends connected with the association.' He respected the. integrity and honesty with which they had come to the conclusion, but the effect of the motion appeared to so alter the character of the association that it could no longer find room for him. Mr Keith could not accept the judgment of the association which had just been given, and begged to hand in a protest against the decision of the meeting for reasous to be given, and requested that such protest and the reasons also be entered upon the minutes of the association. ' .

Mr Cohnell disclaimed any idea of excluding any man from the association because of his scientific acceptance of the doc*. trine of Evolution. The grounds of his objections to Mr Fitchett were that he had gone beyond the domain of science, and introduced the question of Evolution into the moral and religious field. The Rev. Mr Davis was exceedingly pleased at the. generous and courteous way in which the amendment had been treated. Had it not been for the sympathy of feeling which existed among the members ef the association, a much greater degree of excitement might have prevailed. The manner in which.the subject had been considered spoke well for the self-control of the association. Like Dr Roseby and the Rev. Mr Mackie, he accepted the decision now arrived at concerning the black-balling of Mr Fitchett as final. '■ """■• ■■*•-.- Mr David Borrie joined with the protest handed in by Mr Reith. Mr Reith : I cannot see my way at present to continue a member of the Association. Mr Charles Moore was much surprised at the effect which the decision had' produced on some of the members. The proceedings closed with a vote of thanks to the Chairman.