RESPONSE FROM THE SEVENTH-DAY BAPTISTS.
The Sabbath Recorder of Oct. 14, contains the following response from the Seventh-day Baptist General Conference, to the address of the General Conference of the Seventh-day Adventists. For some reason, to us unknown, the paper of the above date failed to reach us, and we were unaware of the action of the Conference until a notice of it appeared in the N. Y. Independent, when the missing number was sent for. This will account for the delay in its appearance in our paper. “DEAR BRETHREN,—We have received, and read with pleasure, your communication expressing toward us fraternal feelings, and congratulating us on the position we occupy with respect to the Sabbath of the Lord. After duly considering the same, we deem it proper to make the following response: “1. While we take no honor to ourselves, but confess with sorrow our slothfulness in the Master's service, yet we do gratefully accept the distinguishing kindness of God in intrusting to us his holy Sabbath, so long rejected by the Christian world at large. It is indeed true, that for faithfulness, even to a limited extent, in the discharge of the obligation, thus imposed, some of our numbers have suffered serious loss, while others have been subjected to inconvenience and loss more or less serious. Yet, when we remember the unspeakable sufferings of our blessed Redeemer, that we might be the heirs of the grace of life, we are ashamed even to speak of our sufferings. “2. It is certainly matter of rejoicing to us, that in God's good providence he has, in you, so largely increased the number of those who observe his holy Sabbath. It sometimes seems strange to us, that after the apparently fruitless toil of the long night which has been upon us, this gratifying change should come so suddenly. We heartily welcome you as fellow-laborers in this field. We also commend you for your devotion to truth, so manifest in your whole history as a people; and pray the blessed Father to grant you, in all things, to see light in his light, until you shall be filled with all the fullness of God! “3. In regard to the doctrine of the immediate coming of Christ—a doctrine commanding your unquestioning belief and strongest religious sympathies—we are forced to say, that it does not seem to us of such pressing importance as it does to you. We entertain the conviction, firmly, that Christ will come again, to take his people to himself. We do not differ with you in regard to the certainty of this event; but, as before intimated, we cannot affirm that the event is immediately to transpire. We cannot, then, join you in urging the claims of the Sabbath upon the attention of the public primarily on this ground; although we are free to confess, that with many, such a course does, and will, have a powerful influence. Our plan is, to press the claims of the Sabbath upon its own merits, employing as a motive for its acceptance the love of truth. We are aware that the growth of Sabbath observance may be less rapid on this plan than upon yours, but we believe it will be much more healthful and enduring. Besides, no one can be certain that Christ will immediately come, and it is inevitable, that should your teachings in this respect prove a mistake, a most serious reaction will occur. We are, therefore, persuaded, that to make the question of the immediate coming of Christ a prominent reason for keeping the Sabbath, is, to say the least, of doubtful propriety. “4. We should greatly dishonor ourselves as a Christian people, if we were to hold you responsible for the ungoverned conduct toward us of some who have affiliated with you in former times. It would be too much to expect that a widely-scattered and not fully organized people would be free from such occasions of unpleasantness; and it would show weakness in us to give place to a spirit of alienation because of these things. “5. We are scarcely at liberty, in this communication, to speak of differences of doctrine, practice, and opinion, between the two bodies, not mentioned by you, and can only refer to them to say, that it is matter of deep regret to us, that there are differences so radical as to keep asunder two Christian communities, agreed in a most important religious doctrine and duty—one in which they disagree with all the other Christian sects around them. The most that we can do at present, perhaps, under the circumstances, is to treat each other with kindness, abstaining from all forms of speech and action calculated to produce alienation of feeling, or misconceptions of each other's views, and hopefully wait the realization of the Saviour's prayer, that his people may be one. Meanwhile we shall be glad to hear farther from you, and shall hold ourselves ready to co-operate with you whenever, and so far as, circumstances may justify and require. “With a view of promoting friendly relations, and making our acquaintance mutually profitable, we have appointed Jonathan Allen to attend your next General Conference. “N. Y. HULL,
NATHAN WARDNER,
T. R. WILLIAMS,
G. B. UTTER, Committee.”