^^^"^^^ ^'^%, PRINCETON, N. J. She//. J ■A<:^. «■ ' . BX 9225 .S83 F7 Frazer, David R. Memorial Jonathan F. Stearns , D.D. Moss i'i^C (^ A K Drltmoviat^ Jonathan F. Stearns, D. D A SERMON, Delivered in the First Presbyterian Church, Newark, N. J., Dec. ist, 1889, BY THE PASTOR, / REV. DAVID R. FRAZER, D. D. 21) Samuel III : t,S. ** /\/i07i> yc nol thai tJicrc is a prince and a great man fallen this day in Israel? " A Prince indeed, although no crowned sovereign ever placed upon his breast the star or the ribbon which serves as the patent of that nobility which is *'of the earth, earthy." A great man indeed, but his greatness was not after human ideals, it was the outcome of that consecration which seeks the highest glory of God and the highest good of man as the ultimate achievement. " That man is great, and he alone, Who serves a greatness, not his own. For neither praise nor pelf: Content to know and be unknown, Whole in himself." Construed by this standard we can truly say, a princely man has fallen in the midst of us, and can profitably devote this hour to the study of the charac- ter and the career of our beloved and departed P^istor Emeritus. There is great danger, in speaking of those whom we have known and loved and buried, of transgressing the bounds of a sober judgment and of transforming the simple memorial into the high sounding panegyric. Than this, nothing could be more distasteful to our departed Pastor, hence I shall merely trace some of the more prominent features of his life and leave your own love for the man to supply the many omissions of the speaker. Jonathan French Stearns was born at Bedford, Mass., on September the fourth, 1808. Although character is a growth, the qualities which underlie character are received by inheritance, hence there is much in every man's life that is directly traceable to his ancestry. In this respect Dr. Stearns was pecuHar- ly favored. He ''sprung", as Dr. Oliver Wendell Holmes in his poem ''The School Boy" affirms con- cerning Dr. Samuel Stearns, formerly Pastor of the Old South Church, Boston, and brother of our Dr. Stearns, he " Sprung from a saintly race, that never could, From youth to age, be anything but good." His father, his grandfather, his great-grandfather on the paternal side and his grandfather on the maternal 5 were Ministers of the Gospel, hence the poetic saintli- ness of descent, which seems to savor of exaggeration, is Hterally verified by the facts of history. He was one of thirteen children born to the Rev. Samuel and Abigail French Stearns. Eleven of these reached mature years, four of the sons entered the Gos- pel Ministry and, at least on one occasion, the eleven children were permitted to sit with their honored par- ents around the table of the Lord. When our Dr. Stearns was only six days old, his maternal grandfather, for whom he was named, wrote to his father, as follows : '•Andover, September loth, 1808. My Dear Son: '' I cannot find anything I have written upon the Covenant of Redemption as distinct from the Covenant of Grace. Mr. Charnock in the second vohune of his works, page 186 and on, has something upon it. But 1 liave no time to extract or to give you the summary. I therefore send you the volume. Whether you will obtain any more satisfaction from it than from Gill, I know not Had I time to hunt I am persuaded I could find more upon it. " Give my love to my dear daughter and to all the grandchildren, in particular to Master Stearns t//e yoinixcr, and to all. "In too much haste, I am, Your affectionate father, JoNA French." In commenting on this, Dr. Austin Scott, his son- in-law, says: ''This letter thus passes as it were above his cradle. It shews that the first breaths he drew were of an atmosphere full of theology and a theology which made much of Redemption, of Grace and of the Covenants. Charnock's works, and no doubt the identical volume to which reference is here made, were found among Dr. Stearns' books in the room in which he died. Thus his first breaths and his last were, in some sort, of the same sweet air, giving unity and consistency to his fife." His father was Pastor of the Bedford Congregational Church for thirty-seven years, his only charge. The limited income from this rural parish necessitated the most rigid economy in the uprearing of so large a fam- ily, yet the intelligence, the refinement and the religion of that New England parsonage so moulded the char- acter, formed the tastes and fashioned the life of the growing boy that our beloved Pastor made manifest, throughout all his days, the blessed influences of that home in his habits of thought, his forms of speech and his modes of action. So fondly attached was he to the home of his childhood that, in the later years, he was wont to visit Bedford annually, on his summer vacations. In his early boyhood he attended the dis- trict school of the village and continued to do so until he was sufficiently advanced to enter Phillips Academy, at Andover, where he was fitted for college. While at the Academy, he, in conjunction with Horatio B. Hackett, Ray Palmer and others, organized the Philo- mathean Society. With a pride, which was alike legitimate and commendable, he boasted that with his own hands he earned the money which paid for his first Latin grammar. In 1826 he entered Harvard College where he was associated with two of his brothers (his father having sons in that institution for eleven consecutive years) and with others, who, attaining great eminence in after life, were his devoted friends. The Hon. Charles Sumner was, for a part of the course, not only his class- mate but also his room-mate. The cordiality with which the distinguished Senator greeted his old college friend on the occasion of a visit to Newark abides among the traditions of the city. The expenses of his collegiate course were largely met by his own exertions. To secure the necessary funds he taught in the country schools during vacation and was not infrequently compelled to trench some- what upon term time ; he served as private tutor to students needing such help, the most notable among 8 these to whom he sustained this relation was Amos Lawrence, who cherished a Hfe-long affection for him, and he also assisted Wm. H. Prescott in the prepara- tion of his Hfe of Ferdinand and Isabella by translating Spanish manuscripts for him. In reverting to his col- lege hfe, he was wont to speak, with a glowing enthusiasm, of '' The Nine ", a literary society of which he and Charles Sumner were founders. Just prior to his graduation in 1830, he was informed by Josiah Quincy, the President of the College, that he was to have the first place in his class, but, for some reason, that honor was given to another and he was assigned the second position. His theological studies were pursued partly in An- dover Seminary and partly in private study under the direction of his father and his elder brother, William. He was licensed to preach by the Woburn Congrega- tional Association of Mass., in October, 1834, and was ordained and installed Pastor of The First Presbyterian Church of Newburyport, Mass., beneath whose pulpit rests all that is mortal of the immortal Whitefield, on September i6th, 1835, by the Presbytery of London- derry. During this pastorate, which continued for fourteen years, Dr. Stearns made for himself a well deser\^ed and enviable reputation as a preacher and became known to the denomination at lar^e by an ad- mirable address made in the General Assembly of 1836, on the occasion of the trial of Rev. Albert Barnes. The high esteem in which the young Pastor was held by his parishioners and neighbors is attested by the fact that he was chosen to deliver the address at the dedi- cation of the Oak Hill Cemetery, on July 21st, 1842, on which occasion he pronounced a finished and classi- cal oration on "The Respect Due the Remains of the Dead." On September 22d, 1844, he celebrated the Ninth Anniversary of his ordination and installment by preaching a sermon on religious obstacles and en- couragements, from Deuteronomy, first chapter and twenty-first verse : " Behold, the Lord thy God hath set the land before thee : go up and possess it as the Lord God of thy Fathers hath said unto thee : fear not, neither be discouraged." This sermon, which his peo- ple very properly deemed worthy of a longer life and a wider dissemination than could be secured by a simple proclamation from the sacred desk, was printed and evinces the same thoroughness of analysis, clearness of statement, soundness of judgment and refinement of taste which characterizes his later efforts. It closes with this personal reference: " Nine years have passed away since I was set apart to labor among you in the 10 Gospel Ministry. Respecting the past I cannot but thank you for the kindness you have manifested to me, both in sickness and in health, both in prosperity and in sorrow. Forgive me, I fervently beseech you, what- ever has been faulty in my conduct towards you. If I have ever unconsciously wounded your sensibilities, if I have ever manifested too little sympathy in your afflictions and infirmities, if I have ever neglected your immortal interests may God forgive me as I now heart- ily ask your forgiveness. In respect to the future, God only knows what is before us, and God grant that, as long as we live together, no root of bitterness may spring up to trouble us." That this prayer was answered is clearly disclosed by the fact that twenty- one years after his relation to the church had ended, he was invited to deliver the address at the centennial commemoration of the death of George Whitefield, which duty he discharged, with credit to himself and satisfaction to his hearers, on September 30th, 1870. The warm attachment and heartfelt devotion of the people of his first charge were aptly expressed, not only in the touching tribute of respect paid him in the reso- lutions of the Session, but also in that significant mem- orial service which was held on November 21st. Eighty-one strokes of the bell, indicative of the age of II Dr. Stearns, summoned the people to the sanctuary, which was appropriately draped. On the front of the pulpit stood a portrait of Dr. Stearns, and beneath the picture a large floral volume bearincr, in immor- telles, upon its open pages the sentence, *' At rest with God." An original poem, written by Mrs. A. E. Porter, an old parishioner, was read ; the Rev. D. B. Sinclair, Pastor of the church, preached from Revela- tions 14: 13, ''Blessed are the dead which die in the Lord"; a tribute to his memory was paid by Rev. Dr. Fiske, the Pastor of the Congregational Church, to whom Dr. Stearns gave the right hand of fellowship on the occasion of his installment ; a tender letter from Rev. John Pike, D. D., was read, as also another from Rev. Dr. Vermilye, who was the immediate successor of Dr. Stearns in the Newburyport pulpit. Since such a service is very extraordinary there must have been some- thing more than ordinary about a relation whose frag- rance thus survives the lapse and separation of forty years. During his residence at Newburyport Dr. Stearns became quite noted as a lyceum lecturer, and it was on one of his lecturing tours, in the year 1843, that he met, in the city of Portland, Me., the elect lady who was the joy of his life and to whom he was married in a few months after introduction. i^ On the twenty-second of February, 1 848, the pulpit of this church was vacated by the retirement of the Rev. Ansel D. Eddy, D. D. Acting upon information received from two separate and distinct sources the attention of this people was directed towards the suc- cessful Pastor at Newburyport. After a careful study of his record, the Session called a meeting of the male members of this church and congregation, which was held in the lecture room on Tuesday, July 31st, 1849, at two o'clock, P. M., the Rev. Mr. Bradley presiding and opening with prayer. Dr. L. A. Smith and Joseph N. Tuttle acting as secretaries. I quote from the minutes of the meeting : '' Several statements having been made in respect to the ministerial qualifications of the Rev. Jonathan F. Stearns, of Newburyport, Mass., it was thereupon proposed that a committee be appointed with a view of hearing him preach and to make a report at a future meeting of the congregation, which proposition was negatived, 7ie7n. co7t. It was thereupon resolved that the meeting is now prepared to proceed to the selection and call of a Pastor. A proposition to proceed to balloting was unanimously acquiesced in and the Secretaries were appointed Tellers. The Tellers, having collected and counted the ballots, reported to the meeting that fifty ballots had been 13 cast, of which forty-nine were in favor of the Rev. Jonathan F. Stearns and one was blank. It was then unanimously resolved that a call be made out to Mr. Stearns, and that, in case of his acceptance, the congregation agree to pay him a salary of sixteen hun- dred dollars, in quarterly payments, and to provide him with a suitable parsonage. The following persons were appointed a select committee to subscribe said call, viz. : Isaac Nichols, John Taylor, Uzal J. Tuttle, Isaac Baldwin, P. H. Porter, Demas Colton, Jr., and Wm. K. McDonald. A special committee, consisting of Dr. S. H. Pennington, Dr. L. A. Smith and Mr. John Taylor, (Messrs. Joseph A. Halsey and Joseph N. Tuttle, alternates) was appointed to present in person the said call to the Pastor elect and to prosecute the same before Presbytery." From this official record we learn that Dr. Stearns received a unanimous call to the pastorate of this church without a single member of the committee, the church or the congregation having ever heard him preach, and this church made no mistake in so doing. Responsive to this unique invitation Dr. Stearns spent a Sabbath in Newark, studying the field and preaching to the congregation, when being favorably impressed, he signified his purpose to accept the call. H That the way was being prepared for the advent of the new Pastor appears from the Trustees' records under date of October 19th, 1849. '' The Session and Trus- tees having, at a joint meeting, recommended that the salary of the Pastor elect take effect from the first day of August last, (that being about the period he received the call) it was resolved that the Treasurer pay him his salary agreeable to the recommendation." The Treas- urer was also authorized to pay the Rev. Mr. Mcllvaine, who had served as stated supply, " for his ministerial labors in the church and congregation from the 28th day of January last to the 2 2d instant." October 2 2d was Monday, and on the following Sabbath, October 28th, 1849, ^^ the full prime of his manhood and the maturity of his powers. Dr. Stearns began his work in this church. On December r3th, 1849, ^^ ^^^ ^^^Y installed as Pastor, by the Presbytery of Newark, being the fourteenth in the line of able, honored and godly men who had served in that capacity. On this occa- sion, the Rev. Mr. Gallagher, of Orange, presided and propounded the constitutional questions; the Rev. Dr. Henry B. Smith, then Professor in Amherst College, preached the sermon from Colossians 2:9, " For in Him dwelleth all the fullness of the godhead bodily"; the charge to the Pastor was given by the Rev. Dr. IS Brinsmade of the Third Church ; the charge to the people by the Rev. D. G. Sprague of South Orange ; the prayer of installment was offered by the Rev. Dr. Eddy and the services were closed by the benediction from the new Pastor. The relation thus auspiciously established continued for a whole generation, the work being interrupted only by three visits to Europe. In 1854, while the church was being renovated, Dr. Stearns and his wife were abroad for six months ; in 1859 he was absent for three and in 1874 for four months. The duration of the relation is very easily computed, but the results of the relation will never be perfectly known until the seals of God's book are broken. Of results we may not attempt to speak in detail. Suffice it to say that Dr. Stearns received twelve hundred and sixteen souls into the communion of this church during his pastorate ; of these, three hun- dred and eighty-two united on certificate and eight hundred and thirty-four on profession of faith in Christ. In January, 1851, after Dr. Stearns had been settled but little over a year, he delivered four histori- cal sermons, and out of them came that which has proved to be the great literary work of his life, namely, his history of ''the First Church in Newark." He i6 tells us that it was his intention to prepare '' a single practical discourse, founded on a slight glance at the history of the congregation, the early part of which he then supposed had been traced with sufficient minute- ness and accuracy by another hand." The suggestion of the proposed sermon came from the fact ''that the beginning of the present year completed one-half a century since the history of this church was last traced in a century discourse by the venerable MacWhorter, and just sixty since the house where we are now as- sembled was first opened for public worship. Such an occasion I am unwilling to let slip, without at least reminding you that there is a Past to be reviewed with interest and gratitude." When he entered upon his proposed work he found ''the materials so grew upon his hands that he was insensibly led to extend his nar- rative to the space of four pulpit discourses." Respon- sive to a general demand for their pubHcation, Dr. Stearns rewrote his sermons, adding much new mate- rial "which seemed hardly suitable to the dignity and sacredness of the pulpit." He felt also, in sending them forth in this permanent form that it was " neces- sary to pay more regard to completeness and accuracy than had entered into the original plan," hence, while discharging all the ordinary duties of his pastorate, he 17 toiled conscientiously at this work, through 185 i, '52 and '53, up to the issuance of the volume from the press. He tells us that ''the labor incident to such inquiries no one knows who has not tried the experi- ment. The materials must be collected from the widest spaces and wrought into true connection with each other by the most careful consideration of times and circumstances. The determination of a date may often require to be pursued through volumes, pamph- lets, records and obscure manuscripts, the examination of which will cost days of toil, and access to them to be obtained only by the tardy process of correspond- ence, or by visiting in person remote places. And after all perhaps, the result is one which the ordinary reader will either not notice, or regard as a mere matter of course." Long, hard and well did he work, and as the outcome of his labors we have an accurate history of the founding and development of the Church and the City, a history which is recognized as an authority and is the source whence all subsequent writers have drawn their material. By this great work Dr. Stearns laid this Church and this City under obligations which can never be met. For this great work, the Church and the City can never be sufficiently grateful, and through this great work, though he had left i8 nothing else behind him, he will hve in a deathless memory. In 1850 he was made a Director in Union Theolog- ical Seminary, and for many years served this school of the Prophets faithfully and effectively. His personal influence with the men was a potent factor in the movement which secured Henry B. Smith and Roswell D. Hitchcock for their respective chairs in the institu- tion. Indeed it is a curious feature in the history of Dr. Stearns that he was a beloved member of two distinguished triumvirates, both of them centering about Union Theological Seminary. The first group em- braced Dr. Stearns, Dr. Henry B. Smith and Dr. George L. Prentiss, although the intimacy of the three friends began long before either of them sustained any official relation to the Seminary. The closeness of their friendship is set forth in a playful letter, written by Dr. Smith from Vevay, while he and Dr. Prentiss were abroad. '•My Dear Stearns: — You cannot imagine how much George and I pity you, forced as you are to fight the battles of the Church in the midst of these summer heats, wliile we are inhaling long draughts of health and Alpine air. Keep me, my dear friend, in your thoughts and prayers and may God bless you." 19 In 1847, while Dr. Stearns was yet in Newhuiy- port, Dr. Smith having been called from his pastorate at West Amcsbury to the Amherst professorship wrote " Dr. Stkarns : — It pains nic to go so far away from you, but we shall yet meet, and often I trust, and ahvays in friendsliip " While considering his call to Union Seminary, before giving his official response, he wrote to Dr. Stearns, then a Director in the institution, as follows : "My nE\R Stearns: — Yours is received, thanks for it, its lZ ing energy and with unswerving steadfastness. To those who met him only publicly and officially he ap- peared as the reserved, courtly and dignified gentleman. But he was more than this; he was singularly free from assumed stateliness and affectation; while he did nothing from mere impulse as divorced from reflection, his utterances were not weighted down with awful gravity but welled up from the depths of his nature rendered genial by the vein of humor which pervaded it ; his confidence was never rashly bestowed, but when given, was given unreservedly, and the tenderness of his affection, the sweetness of his disposition and the cheerfulness of his manner in the home circle cannot be easily overstated. But above all Dr. Stearns was pre-eminently a man of prayer, his true power being derived from a close, personal communion with God. At the last meeting of K. X. which he attended he offered the closinor prayer and his petitions were marked with such peculiar unction and earnestness that he seemed to be talking with God, face to face. At its conclusion, Dr. Few- smith said, ''Was not that wonderful? What does it mean ? " ''A speedy translation," was my response. But I was wrong, the fiery chariot came not : it was only the man of prayer praying as only the man of prayer can pray. 34 But now his prayers are ended, his work is done. Reviewing that life work we can honestly and thank- fully say, '* He has fought a good fight." " Worn the breastplate and the hehnet, Worn the panoply and shield ; But his sword no rust has gathered On Life's weary battle field. High he held the royal standard, And the banner of the cross Never lowered in the conflict, Never suffered shame or loss." "He has finished his course." Never again shall we see that venerable form in this sacred desk. Never again shall we hear his tender tones proclaiming the truth as it is in Jesus. Never again shall his loving hands dispense to us the emblems of the broken body and the shed blood. We shall see him again, but only when this mortal shall have put on immortality. ''He has kept the faith," and the faith has so kept him that, after filling a prom- inent public position in this community for forty years, 35 he comes down to his crravc without a stain upon his character or a spot upon his reputation. "He has received the crown" which the Master has laid up for those who are faithful unto death. Life's labors ended, he rests in Christ ; his works, speaking in tones of hallowed benediction, do follow him, and although we may not rightly esti- mate the full value of these works or adequately set forth the worth of his character, we can remember the words which he spake unto us while he was yet present with us, we may imitate the godly example which he has set us, and we will enshrine among our dearest earthly memories the name of Jonathan French Stearns. RESOLUTIONS. Resolutions of the Session of the First Presbyterian CJuireJi of iVewark, N.J., on the death of the Pastor Emeritus, Rev. JonatJian F. Stearns, D. D. Newark, Ahru. 12th, iS8g. Although his venerable age and his long enfeebled condition of health had measurably prepared us for the sad tidings, Session has learned, with sincere and j^ro- found sorrow, that on Monday last, November iith, 1889, the Rev. Jonathan F. Stearns, D. D., departed this life. Dr. Stearns came to our church in the full ma- turity of his powers and gave to it the best years of his life, serving as Pastor for thirty-four years, and sustain- ing the relation of Pastor Emeritus for nearly eight years additional, a term of service unsurpassed, save with one exception, in our long history of tw^o hundred and twenty-two years. Endowed with a naturally clear and strong mind, which was thoroughly trained by careful and conscientious study, he devoted himself with zeal, fidelity and success to his pastoral work in 38 the midst of us until the infirmities of age compelled him to retire from the position which he had so long adorned. He was a prudent man, a wise counsellor, a sympathetic friend and a loving Pastor. He was amia- ble in character, courteous in manners, blameless in life and triumphant in death. In a word, Dr. Stearns was an ideal Christian gentleman. Although his faithful ministrations to us and our delightful intercourse with him will henceforth be only blessed memories, yet these recollections can never die and must prove inspirations for good in the days which are to come. We commend his bereaved children and children's children to the grace of our covenant keeping God and pray that the Master, whose preciousness the de- parted Father so fully realised and so ably proclaimed, may comfort them in their sorrow, keep them in his love and finally bring them in the presence of the excellent glory, into an unending association with their glorious and their glorified dead. This minute to be entered on the records of the Session and a copy sent to the family and the press. 39 /vcso/////o//s of tJic Presbytery of iVeii'ar/c, December gtJi, iSSi). The Presbytery of Newark, having learned with pro- found sorrow, that the Rev. Jonathan F. Stearns, D. D., departed this Hfe at New Brunswick, on November the eleventh last, records on its Minutes this tribute of affection and respect to one who, for forty years, was an honored, influential and beloved member of our body. Dr. Stearns came to us in the maturity of his man- hood and the fullness of his powers. He discharged the duties of his long pastorate in the First Church, Newark, wnth credit to himself and to the best interests of that Church. In the wider sphere of our denomina- tion he was recognized as a leader, as an earnest and efficient promoter of many of the most important schemes of church-work, notably the Reunion move- ment, on which behalf he labored faithfully and effi- ciently. He was a courteous gentleman, a wise counsellor, a scholarly minister and an humble servant of the Master. Having, with marked fidelity and devotion, served his own generation, by the will of God, he has fallen 40 on Sleep, he rests from his labors, but his works do follow him. To his stricken children the Presbytery tenders heartfelt and sincere sympathy ; congratulates them on their rich legacy of a father's memory and a father's prayers, and commends them to the loving care of that gracious Master, to whom the father, if living, would direct them as a very present help in trouble. Wm. T. FlNDLEY, Stated Clerk. 41 TJic following 7'csolntioiis ivcrc passed at iJic Session of the First Pixsbyterian CJiurcli of Ncwbiiryport^ MassaeJiusetts : The Session of the First Presbyterian Church of Newburyport, Mass., record with profound sorrow the death of Rev. Jonathan F. Stearns, the sixth Pastor of the church, who departed this life at New Bruns- wick, N. J., on Monday, November nth, 1889. Resolved, That in this sad dispensation we recognize the great loss which the universal church of Christ has sustained, deprived as it is of a faithful minister, a good man, and an ornament to the Christian profession. We nevertheless feel that the stroke which has re- moved him from the church militant to the church triumphant, was sent in love to him and us by our Heavenly Father, ''for we know that all things work together for good to them that love God." Therefore we bow in submission to the divine will, praying that the mantle of the departed may rest upon us who re- main. Resolved, lliat as a church and Session, the death of our beloved Pastor and brother in the Lord calls us to a deeper faith, a closer fellowship with Christ, renewed 4^ efforts to build up his cause in the community, and an earnest preparation for the summons that shall call us from labor on earth to rest in Heaven. Resolved, That we tender our sympathies to his be- reaved children to whom he left the heritage, not only of a good name, but also of a Christian life, '' full of faith and the Holy Ghost." Resolved, That this action be placed upon the records of Session, and communicated to the family of the deceased. By order of Session, Brevard D. SI^XLAIR, Moderator. Wm. Bailev, Clerk. 43 Resolutions of Director's of Union Theological Seminai-y. At a meeting of the Board of Directors of Union Theoloorical Seminary, held March nth, 1890, the following Minute was adopted by a unanimous vote: The Board of Directors of Union Theological Semi- nary, having learned with profound sorrow that the Rev. Jonathan F. Stearns, D. D., departed this life at New Brunswick, N. J., on November i ith, 1889, adopt this Minute as a tribute of respect to his memory. Dr. Stearns was born at Bedford, Mass., on Sep- tember 4th, 1808. His preparatory studies were pur- sued at Phillips Academy, Andover; he was graduated by Harvard College, with high honors, in 1830; he studied Theology, partly at Andover Seminary and partly under the private direction of his father; was licensed to preach October, 1834, by the Woburn Association of Massachusetts, and was ordained and installed Pastor of the First Presbyterian Church, New- buryport, Mass., on September i6th, 1835, by the Presbytery of Londonderry. After a successful pastor- ate of fourteen years, he accepted the call of the First Church, Newark, was installed December 13th, 1849, served as Pastor for thirty-four years, when compelled 44 by the infirmities of age to resign a position which he had long adorned, he was made Pastor Emeritus, and sustained this relation up to the day of his death, a period of seven years, his connection with the church covering almost forty-one years. And his relation to this Seminary was almost synch- ronous with that of his relation to the First Church, Newark. In 1850, Dr. Stearns, then in the full maturity of his powers, was elected a member of this Board, devoted himself enthusiastically to the advance- ment of the best interests of the Seminary, rendered faithful and efficient service for nearly two score years and ended his official relation only when disease made him incompetent to serve. He was one of the prompt, regular and diligent attendants upon the business meet- ings of the Board. He was a wise counsellor, being singularly free, alike from that abnormal conservatism which refuses to recognise the exigencies of the present and from that excessive radicalism which insists upon repudiating the past, simply because it is past. By reason of his long and intimate acquaintance with the men, he was able to render and did render distin- guished service in securing the invaluable services of Heniy B. Smith and Roswell D. Hitchcock to this institution. 45 He was a man of stron^^ mind, lar^^c culture, broad views, warm sympathies and courtly manners. In a word an ideal Christian gentleman. With gratitude to God that He gave and so long spared Dr. Stearns to us we record this Minute as an expression of the respect which we have long cherished for the man, as an exponent of our high appreciation of the zeal and the fidelity with which for thirty-eight years he discharged the duty of a Director and also as an embodiment of our sympathy for those who mourn a Father beloved, and whom we tenderly commit and commend to the all sufficient grace of the Great and Gracious Father above. E. M. KiNGSLEY, Recorder, 46 Resolutions of the Board of Home Missiofis. Rev. Jonathan F. Stearns, D. D., died November I ith, 1889, in the eighty-second year of his age, at the home of his daughter, Mrs. Austin Scott, New Bruns- wick, N. J. Dr. Stearns was for over thirty years an active Pastor of the First Presbyterian Church of Newark, N. J., and during the active part of his Hfe held a high position in the church. In 1868 he was Moderator of the General Assembly of the Presby- terian Church (New School) at Pittsburg. He was very active in bringing about the union of the Old and New School branches of the Presbyterian Church, and made one of the principal addresses on that occasion. But during those years he was conspicuously connected with the history and work of Home Missions. He was one of a strong committee appointed by the General Assembly to adjust certain differences of opinion that had arisen between the Presbyterians and the Congre- gationahsts with regard to the administration of the affairs of the American Home Missionary Society. The committee was not successful, and in 1855 the General Assembly appointed the Church Extension Committee, of which Dr. Stearns was an active mem- ber for six years, when in 1 86 1 the General Assembly 47 resumed the whole responsibility of conducting the work of Home Missions within its bounds, dissolved the Church Extension Committee as no longer necessary, and constituted the Presbyterian Committee of Home Missions. Of that committee he was a member from the first day of its existence until it was superseded by the organization of the present Board of Home Mis- sions at reunion. Of that Board he was also one of the original members, holding his place then till the growing infirmities of life made it impossible for him to attend its meetings. For fully thirty years from 1855 he had borne a conspicuous part in all matters pertaining to the work of Home Missions. Clear in his judgments, courteous and Christian in all his inter- course with men, he was a most valuable member of the Committee of Home Missions and more lately of the present Board of Home Missions. This Minute, as above stated, was adopted by the Board of Home Missions of the Presbyterian Church, in the United States of America, at its regular meet- ing, held December 24th, 1889, and a copy directed to be sent to the family. John Hall, President. H. Kendall, | Corresp07iding Wm. Irvin, j Secretaries, A jnzi Pier soil &^ Co., Printers and Stationers, 30 Clinton St., Newark, New Jersey.