The Wheeling daily register. [volume] (Wheeling, W. Va.) 1864-1878, 1876-03-20
RALIGION IN POLITICS.

The Intell,geacer of last Wednesday
in long article on the gathering of the
Methodist ministry in this city at their
annual Conference, branches of into q
lengthy review of the ecclesiastical Or
ganization Of the Methodist Church and
its influence upon the politics of our
State. We do not propose TO enter into
discussion Of the ecclesiastical Auto
cracy or Democracy of Protestant bodies.
Notwithstanding that our neighbor
thinks the Nj. E. Church is the most
democratic Of all Protestant denomina.
tions, it was HENRY CLAY who said that
the Presbyterian church of the United
States embodied more truly the ideas Of
y democratic government in Its organiza-
ton than any other religious society, and
Mr. WEBsTER, asserting thereto, remark
ed, that as long as that denomination re-
| mained undivided, he had no fear Of
dissolution Of the Union. We merely
mention this TACT to show how great
minds will differ, not that we have any
opinion to expires. on the subject, for we
| believe that il is matter OF but little
consequence whether church govern-
Il ent Is autocratic or democratic in its
form, for the Great Head is both Priest
and King; and, we believe, the last title
ever given Him on, earth was that writ
ten in Greek, in Hebrew, and in Latin,
JESUS, King of the Jews"
But there is one point in the article of
the Intelii9encer that We do wish
to refer to, and that is. the in
auence of the church upon the politics
of our country. The great question In
Europe to-day is, shall the Church and
State be united, and the Church control
the Slater While many of our Ameri-
cun Pro.estants are declaiIning with
holy horror against such proposition,
We find some of those very parties assum-
ing in our Republic power that they de-
cry as an outrageous assumption on the
part st the Church among the monarch.ca
ot Europe. The InteLiigemcsr says: Tie
Methodist Church North being an essen
italy anti-slsvery body and deeply per-
meated with belief iii that dogma OF
john " EsLEY's pronounclng slavery
as "the SUN ot all villanies," its ministry
in West Virginia could not help being as
II whole, a strong Union body. Their
influence was seen aud felt III hundreds
Of W est Virginia cabins, &c. "For this
reason the Methodist ministry were
largely decried by rebel Sympathizers rs
body of politico-ecclesastics, as was
Bishop SIMPSON when at the memorable
meeting in Chicago, in 1861, he had the
American flag flung to the breeze over
the headquarters OF mis- assemblage.'
" hat u picture .how like the meek and
lowly NAzAEENE whose follower he pro-
iessed to be! Just imagine Christ un-
iurling the banner Of Judaism from the
Ilamparts o! Jerusalem rs au offensive
,sunl to the Roman Lesions! What
a contrast such spectacle
would be with what We have
been taught of the lovely character OF
Him whose mission on earth was 'peace
and good will" and who distinctly
taught that things secular and things re-
ligious were to be KEEP, ditinct and sep
arate in that memorable reply 10 some
astute politicians who sought to entraP
Him into betrayal of expressing polit
ical opinion by cstechisins Him about
the tribute money when lie SAID Render
unto CAESAR the things that are
CAESARS, ana unto GoD the things tina.
are COPS
Yet it is lamentabe fact that the
ministry Of the Northern Methodist
! Church have welded an influence in the
politics, not only Of West Virginia, but
of the nation, more potent than any other
power, aud more destructive 10 constitu-
tionai liberty than that welded by the
/ Pope over the monarchies of Europe.
The greatest writer and thinker of the
present century has eloquently diScoursed
ON the great doctrine OF uniform sequence
of cause and effect in all things, but we
! have higher authority tLan the power
ful and philosophic BUCKLE, or any
other earthly sanction to prove that an
unerring certainty exists between the
visible results of human conduct and the
absolute causes from which they arise.
"Ye shall know them by their fruit
Gwen SO every good tree brinseth forth
good fruit; but corrupt tree bringeth
forth evil fruit" Let this unchange-
able standard of truth, established by the
physical and moral sciences, and sane
toned by the voice of Divinity be aP-
piled to religious interference with the
politics of this country, and see what is
the. result. We can all recoilect
that few years ago, when our
State Legislature was largely COM
posed of Methodist preachers what
WAS the character of our legislation?
II was solely of that character which was
nIsnted in hate and purtured in corrup-
ton, In the first place contiscation laws
,,.o-o anacted. which it is true, were null