Vermont Telegraph

MR. Editor,

The following lines, preamble and resolutions, were recently read before the Baptist church in Chelmsford, and adopted by a majority of one or two. For certain reasons, I thought it expedient to keep my lips together; but my belief was, that the honor of our church and the good of slaves would be better promoted by their suppression than by their publication. I doubt not you are of the same opinion.

John Parkhurst.

The Baptist church in Chelmsford, county of Middlesex, Commonwealth of Massachusetts, to all the Baptist churches and ministers throughout Christendom—sendeth Christian salutation.

Whereas, God has made of one blood all nations of men to dwell on all the face of the earth, and has endowed them with certain inalienable rights, among which are life, liberty, and the pursuit of happiness, and as it is a fact that in the midst of this reputed land of liberty, more than two and a half millions of the human family, are held in abject servitude, and deprived of the use of their rights, and that the church of God and his professed ministers in a great degree have been and now are engaged in the sinful traffic, by which they say that slavery is gospelwise.

Therefore,

1. Resolved, That the buying, selling, and holding human beings as goods and chattels, is a heinous sin in the sight of God; and as such is marked in his word.

2. Resolved, That it is the duty of all, and especially of every Christian that is involved in this sin in any manner, to free him or herself from the same without delay.

3. Resolved, That it is the duty of every church of Christ, in the meekness and firmness of the gospel, to plead the cause of the poor and needy, by bearing testimony against the principle and practice of slaveholding, and to lift up the voice of alarm, cry aloud and spare not, until the church of God—throughout the whole world shall be cleansed from the guilt of this heaven-daring sin.

4. Resolved, That as a branch of the visible church, we can hold no fellowship or communion with those societies calling themselves churches, or with the persons calling themselves ministers, who, at the present time, after having been thus enlightened on the subject, still continue to practice the abomination of slavery, or advocate the principle and thereby defile the church of God, until they repent of and put away this abomination out of their midst.

5. Resolved, That the Clerk be directed to send a copy of the above to the editor of the Christian Watchman and Liberator for publication, with a request that editors friendly to the cause of Christ, give the same publicity in their papers.—

Christian Watchman.

For certain reasons I thought it expedient for me to keep my lips together; but my belief was, that the honor of our church and the good of the slaves would be better promoted by their [the preamble and resolutions] suppression than by their publication. I doubt not you are of the same opinion. What pitiful pandering here, to the foul spirit of slavery which is continually "going to and fro in the land," and "walking up and down" among the professed churches of the Lord Jesus Christ! For certain reasons, however, this minister, or church clerk, or whatever he may be, withheld his opposition to this "pleading the cause of the poor and needy"—this "remembering them that are in bonds as bound with them." Query: Had he any better "reason" than that the "majority" were against him? He ought to have had pretty good and substantial reasons to shut his lips when he believed that these resolutions were going to do violence to the "honor of the church, and the good of the slaves." Judge ye, of that man's religious fidelity, and of his moral integrity, who thinks it expedient for him to keep his lips together, when he sees such interests endangered as the honor of the church, and the good of the slaves! This self-convicted betrayer of the cause of Christ and of crushed humanity, tells the editor of the "Christian Watchman" that he believes him to be of the same opinion; and this editor gives his tacit consent, not thinking it expedient, probably, to hang out his flag, until he sees which way the wind blows! Such Watchmen!!