The General Assembly [pp. 521-553]

Mr. Perkin's Complaint.
The case was fully argued by the parties in the case, and
the roll was called for the opinions of members previous
to taking the vote. An immense amount of time was taken
up by this process, the same ground having been travelled over
and over again. The opinions of the members were somewhat
thus divided: lst, that the action of the church session was
unconstitutional, on the ground that no specific charge had been
officially preferred against Mr. Stone, no hearing or trial was
had officially before that body, and therefore the action of the
Synod in reversing the action of the session was right and proper, and that the appeal of Mr. Perkins should not be sustained.
2d, that Mr. Stone having openly declared to the session that
he did not possess the proper qualifications for a member of the
Church; that he would not commune with the Church; and
that he had neglected family worship-were sufficient causes
for dismissal, and that if the action of the session was not
strictly according to the letter of the Constitution, it was in the
spirit, and that therefore the appeal from the decision of the
Synod should be sustained. 3d, that while the Session did
right in dismissing Mr. Stone under the circumstances, its
action was not strictly constitutional, according to the letter,
and that therefore the appeal should be sustained in part.
The vote being then taken stood as follows: —to sustain the
appeal 38, sustain in part 43, not to sustain 79. The subject was
then referred to a Committee to bring in a minute expressive of
the sense of the Assembly in this case.
The Committee appointed to bring in a minute in the judicial
case of Ambrose Stone, according to the vote previously taken,
reported the following resolutions:
Resolved, That no church session has the authority to dissolve a connection with a member except by excommunication,
and that the session is then bound to proceed according to the
Book of Discipline; and this Assembly does condemn the action
of the church, in dissolving its connection with Ambrose Stone,
as irregular and unconstitutional.
Resolved, That the Presbytery and Synod of Illinois acted
correctly in not allowing the members of Irisl Grove church to
vote on approving their own record, and that they did right in
refusing to correct said record.
9
1851.]
549