The Richmond palladium. [volume] (Richmond, Ind.) 1855-1875, 1869-04-20
From the n Y. Daily Tribune, March oath.
THE METHODIST CHURCH.
The Lay Delegation Movement in the
Il Ises M e. Church.

& 8ses51a NJ e. Church. zes
During the month of June next q
question will be submitted to the votes
| Of the entire membership of the Metho-
dist Episcopal Church, male and female.
above the age of 81 years, the decision
| of which cannot fail to have marked
influence for good or evil upon the fa,
ture Of that large and rapidly growing
denomination. This question is, wheth-
er the laity shall be, represented in the
legislative assembly. of the church, or
whether the law making power shall re
| main, as it has heretofore, solely in the
hands of the ministry 70 fully apprc
ciate the importance which Methodists
themselves, of either way of thinking.
attach to the result of the forthcoming
| expressions Of the popular will, it will
be we'll to glance at some Of the circum
! stances of the origin and. growth
Methodist Episcopacy as an ecclesias-
! teal system.
When John Wesley. in 1879. at the
solicitation of Whitefield, who had pre-
ceded him in the work, commenced his
public ministries as field preacher In
England, he had evidently no design o.
| organizing a church: nor, does it appear
that subsequently. when he numbered
his followers by thousands, and many
societies had grown up. and were, with
| their pastors, under his supervising
care, he had any thought of constructing
an Ecclesiastical system, outside and
independent of the English Church Of
4 which he himself lived aud died mem
Der. He instituted Society as an Evan
gelizing Supplement- to the Established
| Church, and all the distinguishing Pc
| A1,s safx ant hoe
pertaining to religious faith and life,
were the result of accident. In nothing
/ is Wesley's sagacity for fitness and lead
ership more clearly manifest than in
| that bright institution which, as by a
fash, discerns the true meaning of things
present; and which, in the same instant,
| adapts itself to the shifting circumstan
4 ces of the hour or day. Lay preaching
forced itself on his attention as a good
thing, and he adopted it; the class meet
ings arose by accident, and became q
part of his system. Being but Society
and not Church, Wesleyan Methodism
was ruled by it's founder, with almost
absolute sway, and no Governmental
4 functions or Independent Liberty of &C
ton were allowed to its preachers o. to
the people.
In 1854, Mr. Wesley took the first
step toward the organization of a
Church, aud in this, IS in other meas.
ures, he seems to have followed only
where necessity or well-defined expedi-
ency led him. Previous to this time
Methodists had considered themselves
4 as Episcopalians, and received the sa-
craments in the churches, and from the
ministers of the Establishment; but in
, America there were now some 81 Meth
odist preachers, and $4,000 Methodist
lsymen They were scattered all over
the country, and the Episcopal churches
: being few and inaccessible to many, this
/ large body of Christians was deprived
, of all schurch' relationship, and of par
ticipationI in the sacraments. Wesley,
pitying their condition, and yet wishing
to avoid irregular action, besought the
Bishop of London to ordain ministers
who should administer the sacraments
? among the American Methodists OF
= America The request being refused he
4 thought himself authorized by the ne
/ cessities of the case to himself ordain
Thomas Coke, already a Presbyter in
. the English Church, a Superintendent
or Bishop for America. On Christmas
dav, 1884. as many as possible OF the
Methodist preachers in America met IN
Baltimore, Bishop Coke presiding, and
s the Methodist Church was formally or
gauized.
Though this cllnrch has. ever since,
evinced the same aptitude in adapting
it's polity to changing circumstances
which characterized it's founder, aud
a which led to its own ecclesiastical exist
q ence, the respect and yeneration felt fol
. Wesley has induced the continuance, liz
u the church, Of a system. based upon the
= practice of Mr.. w esley toward his socie-
, ty. From the first the ministry ha:
IS been the sole Legislative p3we', tn:
l. people having no effective voice in th'
;e making of laws, and the election o
ID church officers. Each church gets on
1t minister In the Qualrennial Genera
Conferences, until 1872, all travelling
. ministers of the denomination were en-
- titled to seats and votes. Since tina
ID time the General Conferences have con
ID sisted of delegated members-them-
,g selves ministers. and chosen by minis
in ters The church edifices are held b,
n lavmen, but for the use Of the church
err and the pulpits can only be occupied b.
ID such ministers as are appointed by til
J: bishops. Probably no other churc
!" organization exists SO completely unde
;" clerical control This has been owin
to the influence Of no especial class il
the church; the ministers have arroga
,e ted to themselves no more than has bee
ar willingly conceded by the people. Thcr
has been wide spread repugnance t
change. The Church has been wel
enough as it is. There has probabl
d. been no time then when the laity, take
ke as q whole, have been in advance {
re their ministers on the subject of lay
X mem rights. The subject of Lay ReE
to resentation first began to be agitate
= among the Methodists half q centur
ago. and in 1926 the Rev. d. b. Dorse
:. was expelled from the Baltimore Annu.
ng Conference for circulating paper call
i'll o6 .MrtnoI I2;rbta thA object of whic