The Wheeling daily register. [volume] (Wheeling, W. Va.) 1864-1878, 1874-01-24
mineral csnsoliaatisu.

The rector Of one Of q, Protsstsst
'Epasouyal churches d Washhgsos
City preached . sermon on Saturday
hast which has been the causs Of COM
siderable comment He took occasion
To speak ct some length upon the course
recently taken BY Bhhop Gummins IN
severisg his relations to the Episcopal
Church, and from the meagre abstract
Of the sermon which We have seen We
should judge that he rather rejoiced in
the action Of the Bishop. He thought
that the chief result Of his action
v ould be that there would spring up
outside the confines Of church limits .
priesthood that could make substan-
tial claim to have received ordination at
the hands OF one upon whom the man.
tie Of apostolic succession authoritative
" rests, OF course no such result will
for IN instant be admitted to be possi-
bic BY those holding to the establ ished
tenets Of Epiecopalianism. And this,
with show OF reason on the side of the
directors, for Bishop White. whose
form Of prayer-book and ritual the
Cummins party have adopted, always
insisted upon the necessity for the pres
epcs and consent ola least three Bish-
OPS to give validity to any ordination.
To such an extent did he carry his
views on this subject that he declined,
alter his own conservation, to take psrt
in any ordination service until two I'D
di.ional Bishops had been consecrated
for this country, 90 az to act co-ordin-
ately with him.
But the Episcopal minister at Wash-
ipaton had another point to his sermon
of Sunday quite as likely to evoke dis
question as the Cummins movement.
He made, it is said, q strsng argument
| in favor OF the union Of the Methodist
and the Protestant Episcopal Churches
OF the United States. The full text OF
bis argument on this suggestion would
be interesting reading, but we do not
Hld it in print. 1t is true, however,
that their preacher is not by any means
the only one Of his denomination who
entertaips ideas OF the possibility Of
such union as he suggeats, although,
perhaps, not to the extent OF . formal
and organic consolidation OF all the in,
terests OF the two bodies. We know
that no less distinguished an official Of
the church than the present Bishop OF
Ohio is . warm advocate Of measures
which would virtually result in the
thorough Identification Of the spiritual
| interests OF the two denominations, and
would enable their respective ministers
10 oficiate jointly, or to exchange pull
pits with each other without any vio-
iation of either the spirit or the letter Of
canonical law. Bishop Bedalfs sug-
gestion 10 an exceedingly simple one,
and has ut least the merit OF being easy
OF accomplishment, ia that the putting
OF il into practical effect depends upon
the decision OF = com arstively small
number Of persons. He proposes that
three of the older Bishops OF the Meth.
odist Episcopal Church shall consent
to receive conservation TO their office at
the hands OF three senior Bishops OF
the Protestant Episcopal Church. 1t
would then follow, OF course, that the
three Methodist Bishops could author
itatively consecrste their associates, and
these in turn ordaiuiDg the ministers
under them it would Boon happen that
the entire body of the Methodist minis
try would be on the same plan as their
brethren OF the Episcopal Church,
and all these acts Of worship or service
would have equal force and effect.
Nor does it require very vivid ina
ginstion to anticipate that such course
| might result, at no very distant period,
| ia the organic union Of the two demons
| nations. In all their essential doc
trines they are now practically one.
Every Methodist can even now, with.
ont hesitation, utter his heartfelt
"amen" to the prayers Of his Episcopal
bretheren. Their respective priests utter
the same invitatiou-almost identically
to their people to partake OF the no;
Hest sacrsmepts. Their most COM
monty employed hymns are very large
ly the productions of the same author.
Charles Wesley's fervld prayers in cong
are as universally sung by the one
church as by the other, and it was real,
ly the underlying idea OF all the &C
tions OF John Wesley, the founder Of
Hethodism, that there never was ne.
cessity for the separation Of that people
from the Estsblished Church OF Eng
land, aud in that church he lived and
died = Cincinnati Tmsa - -