The Farmville Herald And Farmer Leader

Letters To Editor
Synod's Action Is Not Final

Editor of Herald:

Enclosed is a reply to what Mr. Rogers has to say. My discussion covers a wide territory. I have tried to boil down what might have been written.

For the past 15 years the writer has followed the debate on Organic Union with keen interest. He has had correspondence with those leaders favoring union. As he sees the situation today, the leaders for Union, attending this last Assembly felt that it was now or never with their Cause. They employed every means within their reach to carry the day. Every known method was employed. They set the stage with a new feature, racial segregation. They presented a Supreme Court ruling (that they played an active part in securing). This Court decision was the making of a new law, rather than an effort to interpret the Constitution.

The cause of Union was in desperate straits. They knew it. Hence their willingness to play politics! This writer is glad that this group in our Southern Presbyterian Church adopted and presented such measures. They proclaimed to the world what they would do, to gain their point. They thereby ran the risk of destroying their own Southern Presbyterian Church.

Let us never forget that at this meeting of our Assembly a strong opposition group was present. After the first vote was taken and the opposition was seen to be in a minority group, they kept quiet and permitted the majority unmolested to set the stage, and map out work for the Synod and Presbytery.

When the Synod of Virginia met in Staunton the Moderator presented the views of the majority in the last Assembly. It didn't just happen that the Moderator of the previous Assembly and the retiring Moderator of the Synod of Virginia should have been men of the same mind and purpose. Can anyone think so? He might have elected to show some deference to the well known sentiments, cherished by this orthodox, conservative and straight-laced First Church, Staunton. But no, he was willing to tell the Mary Baldwin College how it must run its affairs henceforth.

This meeting of Synod could not do anything to change the order given by the Assembly. The Assembly had passed a Resolution, relative to segregation in church controlled institutions .... shall direct the Trustees of all its institutions of higher education, to open its doors to all races.

To raise any opposition, then and here in the Synod, would have been fruitless. The present minority in our Assembly, may become a majority, when the final vote is taken. That is the hope for the future. There is a time and place when final action will be taken. That is all that can be said at this stage of the conflict. The battle is on.

One word more, in closing. Let me quote from Assembly Minutes 1954, page 36.