The Rhode-Island Republican. [volume] (Newport, R.I.) 1809-1841, 1833-11-19

sympathy for the Methodist Church, in-
disaied by it and. second, because Sol
omon somewhere says. %" lie that ans
wereth matter before he heareth it re.
! suspect however, finally, that the arti-
Gle was either written or dictated by a.
mother person connected with the Gaz-
ette, and a prominent member of the
Methodist Church-This alters the case.
The person, whoever he may be, Is or
appears to be, very sensitive Of the SUBJ
ect and by his deprccating manner of
popping the question, would evidently
seem to think that there are some things
behind the curtain, that it would be inju-
rious to the church, 10 bring to light.
1t is not good omen for man to enter
the plea Of" not guilty before having
been accused. Arisfides has not
laid the accusation, that the Methodist
Church is in tho habit Of interfering in
political affairs why does the denial
come previous to the charge I! Aristi-
es Twill shew however, that the con-
nection. in this country, are building up
a power that will soon enable them to do
so power that no religious sect on earth
has ever failed to WELD for the promo
tion Of their own views, when obtained.-
Although the writer. says that my re-
marks apply equally to all other orders
Of christi AZ, and although this assertion
we're tile, still il would not, for that ren-
son, apply less forcibIe to the Methodist
Church. nor render their conduct less q
subject Of animadversion.
But the assertion is not true so far
from ii, that there is no other denomina-
tion of Protestant Christians in Anerics,
that possess. at this moment, a control
SO complete. over SO great mass of peo-
pie as the clergy ofthe Methodist church.
There is no other that exercises a ju-
risdiction so absolute, and at the same
time SO arbitrary. None that has an
equal amount of property in the hands
of its clergy. and make use Of SO many |
facilities for its accumulation property
contributed by the people. but held in. fee
by the Clergy for their own use and ben
eft, and without the least responsibility
for its application without being a.
counted for in any manner. except nc.
cording to rules Of their own formation,
and which they can alter and revise, or
annul at pleasure.
If the facilities for bringing unworthy
preachers to trial, and dealing with the a,
n justice, are SO great and numerous,
sill the Gazette inform, os how il sp-
ears, that SO few oftheir preachers hap
zen to be dealt with by the Church.
nd publicly censured, and that, nearly
III their misdeeds, with which the pub
ic become acquainted, come 10 them
trough the medium of common report,
" the doings Of courts Of justice. 1t is
lot SO in other bodies, in which. indi-
'idual churches :,ave jurisdiction over
heir own preachers, and have the privi-
ege upon their conduct, without the for
mality of preferine formal complaints to
a Conference. appealto the writer of
she above articlc--Iappeal to an snl,ght-
ened public--and I ask, 10 there another
body OF christians in the United States,
that would have acted in the case of Eph-
rain X Avery, had he been a preacher
among them, rs did the New-England
Methodist Episcopal Conference The
Clergy Of no other order would have done
it ; or, it they had, they could not have
forced tho lame report Of that body
on the Teople of their charge as justi-
6cation of the man.
No other body could have had the ell.
ronscry to ncquit him Of wrong, and de-
clared free froma moral stain, after hav.
ing known him guilty Of public defama-
tion against a brother clergyman, foun-
ded on a charge he virtually acknowl-
edged to be groundIess. Nor would they
have permitted to pass unnoticed, his
vile SANDERS. aud cruel prosecutions Of
an innocent woman, ofthe first respect-
ability, member of his own church as
was the case with Mrs.---at Scituate,
Mass. who though she repeatedly de-