Nashville union and American. [volume] (Nashville, Tenn.) 1868-1875, 1869-03-28
RELIGIOUS lsfEbLleEsCE.
Progress Of Religion at Home and
/ Abroad-MinIsters and Church Mat

teps. VI z A'- FHWtT ~
The ancient Episcopal Church
Hampton, Virginia, 200 years oil
is to be rebuilt. 81
The American Bible Society ha
decided to hold an anniversary, a
New York, in May, as heretofore.
The Presbyterians and Metho
dists in this country are each di
vided into ten different organiza
tons.
The Congregational College a
Middlebury, Vermont, number.
among its alumni thirty, FIVE Epis
copal clergymen, including two
bishops.
The Cumberland Presbyterians
North and South have reunited.
They had before the war 5SS minis
tiers and $4,000 members. Their
church edifices number 500, furnish
ing accommodation for 262,97S.
or forty-six Congregational
churches in Western Michigan, in
the region of Grand Rapids, only
ten are self,supporting. young
pastors from the East are urgently
called for. s--a- -
Religious liberty is now a great
accomplished fact all throughout
the Helvetic Confederation. Even
in the canton of Lucern, lately the
hot-bed of religious bigotry, the
principle of religious liberty has
been acknowledged by the Legisla-
ture. Even the conservatives voted
for it.
The Anglo Continental Society
held its annual meeting Feb. II,
the Bishop of Ely presiding. In
his address the Bishop spoke of the |
chief danger of the continent as the
antagonism between republican
rationalism on one side, and ultra
montana conservatism on the other,
which threatened to shake Europe.
The Madrid correspondent of the |
independence Beige says that the
Spanish clergy are using extraordi-
nary exertions to obtain signatures
to 4 monster petition which is being
prepared against the introduction
Of freedom Of worship into Spain.
The cures, he states, make even
young children sign this memorial.
Bishop Ames, of the Methodist
Church, declared in a recent con
ference held at Alexandria, Va,
hat tobacco was doing more harm
o the church than whisky" That
nay seem extravagant, yet, with
'ut doubt, it will stand an invests
5atiOn, particularly at the South,
where the masses of men carry
heir tobacco in cards, and where
o many women carry their snuff
nd stick for dipping purposes.
Gov. English, Of Connecticut, in
lis proclamation for fast on Good .
friday, refers to an "ancient re.
giOus custom, which has come
own to us, not only from a veneer
ted ancestry, but through an OBJ
ervance of more than thirty cen
lries." The ChriStian Secretary,
Hartford, remarks that "the pc 7
Iod named, we believe, will carry ?
5 back to somewhere about the G
avs of the prophet Samuel, but
e do not recollect any exact pre-
edent there for annual public
Ists." q
The Lutherans claim, in Prof.
article in the last EUangel-
al Revteto, to be by far the
rgest Protestant denomination in
lie world. Out of 100000 Pro-
stants they profess to have more
ian one-half, or 47,115,50O. of
lese Protestants, Germany has
], 100000. In the United States
e l 900, 900. These statistics show,
Iys the Lutheran Observer, that
lie Lutheran Church is larger than
i other churches combined, and
lat even in the United States she
numerically the third denomina-
on, numbering more communi-
lnts than any other church, except
lie MethOdists and Baptists.
Eighteen. Baptist converts were
lptized at a place in Kurland,
ussia, in September last, under
rcumstances Of great personal
SIX TO the administrator, who
assed directly through an in
snsed crowd to the place of bap-
SIN, calmly addressed the perse
ItOrs, performed the ordinance,
nd left his enemies standing with
leir clubs and stakes on the bank
the stream. Afterward they
'llOwed TO witness the close of the
'lemnity, but uttered no more
ven a reproachful word. Two
avs atterward, at another station
Curland, twelve more persons
ere baptized in the presence Of
We on six hundred spectators.
Prayer meetings-warm, earnest,
fruitful prayer meet
Igs-exist in several of the State
risOns OF our country. Meetings
II prayer and conference are stat
lily maintained in the State pris-
rs (male and female) at Sing
ing, New York; at Richmond,
irginia; at Joliet, Illinois; at +
eavenworth, Kansas, and in the
louise Of Correction, at Detroit,
Iichigan. A few years ago a
rayer meeting was held every
abbath morning in the State
rison at Charlestown, Massachu-
stts, but it was given up because
f the inconvenience thereby
aused to the officers in requiring
hem to come to the prison for the
urpose of letting the prisoners
ut Of their cells.
The preaching force of the Meth
dist Episcopal Church is, in Afri-
a, 10, South America, s China,
0; Germany, Al; North of Eu-
ope, 10; India, "a; Bulgaria, 3.
'otal abroad 100. Adding these to
,l5l serving in missions at home,
nd we have 2,2Sl preachers, or
considerably more than one fourth,
nj nearly one third of the entire
ministry Of the church
as missionaries. To