EVANGELICAL ALLIANCE (ante). This voluntary association of Christians belonging to various denominations and countries, had its origin in a general and strong desire for a more practical union among Protestants in order to promote the cultivation of Christian fellowship and the extension of Christian faith. After full conference and correspondence the alliance was formed in Freemason's hall, London, Aug. 19-23,1846, at a meeting, of about 800 persons, Episcopalians, Presbyterians, Independents, Meth odists, Baptists, Lutherans, Reformed, Moravians, and others. Among these were many distinguished ministers and philanthropists from Great Britain, Germany, France, Switzerland, and the United States. The following doctrinal articles were adopted, not as a binding creed, but simply as an expression of the points of faith' considered essen tial among those who are embraced in the alliance. 1. The divine inspiration, authority, and sufficiency of the Holy Scriptures, 2. The right, and duty Of private judgment in the interpretation of the Holy Scriptures. 3. The unity of the Godhead and the Trinity of the persons therein. 4. The utter depravity of human nature in consequence of the fall. 5. The incarnation of the Son of God, his work of atonement for the sins of man kind, and his mediatorial intercession and reign. 6. The justification of the sinner by faith alone. 7. The work of the Holy Spirit in conversion and sanctification. 8. The immortality of the soul, the resurrection of the body, the judgment of the world by our Lord Jesus Christ, with the eternal blessedness of the righteous and the eternal punish ment of the wicked. 9. The divine institution of the Christian ministry and the obliga: tion and perpetuity of the ordinances of baptism and the Lord's supper. The organiza tion thus happily commenced has since been extended throughout Protestant Christendom. Branch alliances have been formed in Great Britain, Germany, France, Switzerland, Sweden, the United States, Australia, and among the missionaries in Turkey, India, Brazil, and Japan. These national branches are related to each other as members of
a confederation having equal rights. The whole alliance appears in active operation only when it meets in general conferences having the character of Protestant ecumenical councils, but claiming only moral and spiritual power. These have already been held at London, 1851; Paris, 1855; Berlin, 1857; Geneva, 1861; Amsterdam, 1867; New York, 1873; Basle, 1878. The most enthusiastic and effective of these was the one at New York, when, for the first time, Christians from all parts of the earth met together in the new world to take counsel concerning the condition of Christendom. Christian union, Christian life, Christianity and unbelief, Christianity and error, Christianity and civil government, Christian philanthropy, and reform of social evils. The visible results of the E. A. may be seen, in part, in its promotion of religious liberty wherever that has been restricted or assailed. Since its organization several cases of persecution have °marred in southern Europe under the operation of penal laws against Protestants. In these cases the influence of the alliance has been successfully exerted to bring the perse cution to an end. It has aided in bringing about the remarkable changes in favor of religious liberty which have taken place in Turkey within the last quarter of a century. It interceded for the Methodists and Baptists in Sweden, and that country lies since abrogated its penal laws against dissenters. It sent a delegation in 1871 to the czar of Russia to plead for the Lutherans in the Baltic provinces, and since that time they have not been oppressed. It remonstrated against the persecution of Roman Catholic and other Christians in Japan, and the persecution has not been renewed. These instances are sufficient to show that the power of Christian public sentiment, as expressed by the alliance, already commands a respectful hearing everywhere, and must, ultimately, be universally obeyed.