The New York herald. [volume] (New York [N.Y.]) 1840-1920, 1878-05-08
REFORMED EPISCOPALIANS.
Annual Session Of the General Council
at Newark To-Day.
IMPORTANT WORK IN HAND
Present and Prospective Condition Of the
Church-StatiSticS Of It's Growth.

IICNVnt anu IIuNpCtNC tuuuiiluu vi wv
Church-Statistics Of It's Growth.
The General Council Of tho Reformed Episcopal
Church win In annual session to-day IN Newark,
n J. II may not have representatives from the Re-
formed Episcopal Church OF England present, but tho
American and Canadian branches Will furnish
spectacle gathering In numbers and influence. Less
than year ago consecratcd and sont back 10 Eng.
land Bishop Gregg. who has since organized nearly
OF congregations some OF them. quito large hav.
Ing gone over body the disintegratng ritual
izipg establishments Ho has also obtained coadju-
tor aid him in tho constantly increasing work Of
tho church tho other sido OF the Atlantic The
organized Reformed Episcopal congregations IN Great
Britain number nearly one hundred and the
COMMITMENTS nearly seven thousand ministcrsd 70
by about forty cergymcn Tho rituastic fight with
tho ecclesiastical md civil authorities 10 driving the
conservatives and evangeIicals OF the Established
Church into tho reformed body that tho statistics
OF tho latter vary nearly every week. And At the
samc timo the Rmuasts sccedng at the other ons
OF the limo and going over Rome Tho London Nom
conforist notices these facts evidences Of rre
prcss,blo desire Tor freedom springing up u
tho Church OF England. Tho Same desire
Is psrceplibie In tho Protestant Episcopal
Church OF tho United States and OF Canada whore -
this tmo the Reformed Episcopal Church. though less
nvc yoars OLD. numbers 100 congregations. 100
ministers aud $500 communicants When the wss-
logan began in England lao years ago. altar
tho first four ycars Of its history Wesley could
mand only twonsy-nvc clerical foowcrs and whom he
chilled his first conference II consisted OF only ten
ministers. Tho same facts wcrc moro strikingy illus
tratcd by Mcihodism IN this country y century ago
So that, Judging by past movements 10 thc eocesast.
cal world. the Reformed Episcopal Church has met
with unequaed in tho history Of scoessons~
all things considered.
BISHOPS or the REFORMED EPISCOPAL CHURCH.
This Church has four bishops In the United ststos:
Bishop Samuel Fallowos. d. D., formerly Methodist
minister who stood In tho front rang q scholar
and eloquent preacher In that denomination, and
who is now, by tho authority Of his donomnation,
relieved IRON local pastoral work that no may travel
largo and superiotend tho general interests Of shs
Church Bishop William r. Nicholson. d. D., was An
Epscopalian originally, and haa given twsnty-six
years OF mis- public lie TO that Church. 10 has been
10 tho Reformed Episcopal Church since 1874, aud
rector In Newark, N j., uatl his traosfer 70
| Pn,adolph,s, where ministers o local con.
gregaion well supsrintends the eight other
grcgations OF the denomination which have grown up
| old Church. Bishop Charles J. Cheney, u d. Is also
rector IN Chicago though in somo sense relieved Of
Is IN the West. rs Bishop Fsliowss DOES in The East
| lie was consecratod by tho sanity Bishop Cummina
and was n. successor ior tune. MS ps,ss,ons nsns
ter r,luasts then In the Church-pointed him az
leader IN tho roiorm movcment Hs church stood
nobly BY him. aud for q series OF years fought tho
Bishop who was backed by HIS diocese both 10 the
ccossias ca and In tho civil courts, won In svory
oasc and stands forth IN tho Lake City ~ the a.
traction Tor evangelical Episcopallavs His church no
| longer stands alone with him. II mas oight or ton
companions who're four years ago u had TO bsar
brunt OF battle nerce aoy wagcd during tns
century. Bishop Crogc. Of Canada, Is inc fourth
with tho two EuSl,sh bishops tho Reformed Episcopal
Church has six bishops now. Tour Of whom - least
Will attend tho Council which meets In Newark to-day.
-N DOCTRINES ELIMINATED.
In It's exit from tue Protestant Episcopal Church
eliminated from ritual everything that OF
bsptisma regeneration, sacrameuta grace. soccrdosai
they claim TO have much OF tho last named ~.
| mont as the ola Church has Whatever OF tho apos-
Bishop Cummins, who spent twenty -ssnt years IN
| tho Protestant Episcopal Churcns ministry. seven
nation 70 begin wi,n followed by two episcopal ord,-
nations aud consccraton-whatovor virtue thcro
n em sn ' esreo and. Of oourso' ,mpsr.oa
TO Bishop Cheney, who has transmitted is
puzzled than 10 understand any reason Tor aha
existence Of tho sect seeing that the rcormers deny
the apostolic succession claim They adhere to tue
ceremony because venerable and orderly but st.
tach NO especial apostolic ssnct'ty 10 IL Two worry
eminent ministers N the pro.esana Episcopal
ana Rov. H. h. Morgan, u. d., IN Cincinnat-havs re-
Gently gone over 10 The reformed Church-he latter
two weeks ago Tho former carried his ooo grcgatioo
with him. and thcy win soon dedicate larger
church cdInco than that which they lett. DR.. Nor
his new eccIesasl,ca home /, WINS tho largest Epis-
! copal congregation in Cincinnati Whenever MIN
isior leaves the Protestant Episcopal Church hs
| Is not allowed TO Withdraw quietly, wish tho
| blessing OF his diocese and brethren upon
but sas9"s: s 10:
ola church does what sue can TO degrade her depart
Church prcsa TOO, gives currency to Whatever win
lessen the mporancs oil the secedcrA Tho Churrhnsdn
| for February o. 1878, contained Two column COM
l mn uftau inteu IN
| utIe worth OF such men In the Reformed Ep'scopst
Church as bishops Cummins ana Nicholson, Rcvs.
| Mason Gallagher, Is Is. Lcacock, j. Howard smith.
William Newton md others Tho writer found that OF
seventy cergyncn in the Roformed Church lass
year only thirty Tour were the list oil tho clergy Of
the old Church Ia lsI3. when tho reform secession
took place And about ten Of these had not been 10
tho ministry CT the Church over ave year, land were
SIMPLY doscons.v Ana OF the other twenty four no
says their ministry can be expressed BY two words
instability and failure. Tho writer then proceeds 10
denons,rate tins point by the number or changes
which the leaders IN the reform movement, made
| curing their ministry, Bishop Sicnolson, Tor In.
stanoc. made nve changes twenty Year,: Air.
Gallagher eleven changes IN twenty EIGHT years; Mr..
cn.nses in ,wensy.sx years, and Dr. Newton, 6vo
| changes tn tweniy-sx years. Well, considering tnas
he srsg' pas,ors .ne hp'scopas .n y, a.,.
bility aud iaurc must Dc proved by sonc other sta
sistcs than those OF 'f,t,spurg." In tho Chwca"dM
| rnArEKSAL HkLAricSs WITH OTHER CnuRcnES
Tho Reformed Episcopal Church holds friendly rolls
tons with every other evangelical Cnureh ia TIE land
Methodist or Baptist or Presbyterian minister eau
transfer his ecclesiastical relations TO the Reformed
| Episcopal Church without nnv forfeiture OF his min.
| ,storini or Chriai,u standing only Tow months
| ago DR.. Thomas j. McLlsh Icr tho Baptist Church
% i1 the w psss.n ,1 ministry oS lie Reior%ea Epss
| copsi Church originally Mcshod'sis Tho Epis
| copacy OF tho Reformed bpscopal church
~ not diocesan, DOT ike tho Mcthodists
| Is general, and tue Church probably represents
| John Wosicy's original idea better than even tho
| organization witch bears ms name The Reformed
Ep,soopniisns stand toward the mother church pre-
| c,scy as tho Protestant kpiscopaaus stand or did
A nd fnv ri n pf 4 n
that The council which assemblies to-day In NcvIb
Will elect more bishops aud relieve from local
| pastorates those who now botd such relationship II
Will not have very much legislative business TO trans
| aci. Its constitution and Book Of Common Prayer
| MS nearly perfect Ms they can DO made. IL MAJ
already provided organizing synods Ia any disric
whero six congregations unto tor that purpose. Th'
synods IT, thor consttuiions-supject to thG
OF The General Couucil-and about tho middle OF an
| uary Inst tho chur OF New fork, brooklyn ant