held at 7:30 pm and the clerk noted every meeting in the minute book, as it was not uncommon, after preaching, to bring up issues in the church that had to be dealt with. All get-togethers, services and meetings are always noted as beginning with ”prayers and song”. Attendance was not an option; it was a requirement of membership, and from clerk’s notes it was obvious that every member had their own chair, because ”...when their chair was vacant” one or two members, or a committee, were asked to check them out and report back at the next meeting. Without an excuse or if not in attendance they were often ”...dismissed from the watchcare of the church”. Husbands and wives who were both baptized members appear to be given special considerations in all matters, because they would keep each other on the straight and narrow. if a young unmarried couple in the church were having problems, they would be visited by the elder, deacon or a "committee”,

in an effort to encourage reconciliation. There was one expression often used by deacons and trustees of the

Charlotte Town church when referring to members who had done something against the rules of the church. They insisted that all members have ”a consistent ’walk’ through life”; that is, adhering to all of the vows they had taken when baptized. We often read of members having ”their lwalk’interrupte ”, or perhaps l'abusing their ’walk’”. The terms were used seriously and the offenders could only renew their ’walk’ by humbly apologizing before the full membership. Membership in the Church in the 18405 was a serious responsibility. These wereobviouslysterlingpeopleand theircommitmenttothevowsoftheirimmersion were not taken lightly. Any sign of deviation was dealt with harshly and quickly. In June of 1841, the Charlotte Town Baptist Church officially adopted the serious Articles of the Nova Scotia Baptist Association. The Articles were a declaration of the Faith, Practice and Covenant of the Church of Christ, and examples are items #2

and #3 which said:

That Baptism and the Lord’s Supper are Ordinances of Christ to be continued with His second coming, and that the former is requisite to the latter. That is to say that those are to be admitted into the Communion of Christ, and to partake all of its ordinances and privileges, who, upon profession of their faith, have been baptized by immersion.

Since none but true believers can rightly partake of the Ordinances therefore the door of the Church should be carefully against all such as cannot give scriptural evidence of their union with Christ. It is the responsibility of Bishops, Elders and Deacons to dispose of those who walk contrary to the rules of the Gospel.

The rules were black and white, and there were no gray areas. The

clerk’s records of activity in the early 18405 reflect the serious responsibilities of membership, and one only has to review notes to see how different our membership responsibilities are today. On Sabbath, May 9, 1841. The male members of the church were detained after preaching, to meet with Brother Isaac Jackson concerning some inconsistent conduct practiced by himself and his wife for sometime past. The church withdrew their fellowship for a time until they should manifest repentance.

One month later they wrote, ”June 10, 1841. A minute in the church records confirms last mid weekmeeting when Brother Isaac Jackson and his wife

10