New-York tribune., 1879-11-08
SLAVERY AND METHODlSM.

SLAVERY HIsroRY-THE FOUNDER BISHOPS
Mr. GARRISON As A LEADER.
10 the gdftor OF me TrtbWhe
SIR. Before discussing the main TOPICS of Mr..
Johnsons reply to INV letter, note two subordinate
points: Firsf-He complains tn did no; conine
r,vsclf IN h,s dates lS3Q-3S. or course | did
not. For as l was replying to charge against the
entire history Of the Church defend, 50 ran
throuch "A summary of her anti-siaVeIy history from
h,r founding down To the emancipation AS To that
l.. rticular date. however showed that IN BoS'ou
Methodist auti-slaveryIsm was not the remnant
Mr Johnson maintains. bnt was the mai 'rity.
Second MT. johnson sarcasticaiiy contrasts my
churchly doctrines IN regard to slavery win ny
voting with the LborV party; as mace
my politics purcr than my rohsi"h' VI
reply is that my politics are part OF ana one WIN
nv religion. As cliurchnan. lcIeNed ana ''"s"'
That slavery should be abolished as soon as lie
moral strength of CLutch and state was competent
10 the achievcmeut: and that slavery WAS II great
orcanic evil based in laws ana claiming ir'nda-
,,,n even i'm our National Constitution. 80 nay icig
ION taught me that the true way for It's aboNil"n
WIS through The ba lot 10 statutory limitations
restrictions and ultimate cXtirpation. The Nepnb-
Ican organization was 60 tins cud an uprising OF
tie Chris an clnScerce of our country; and II was
the first and effective form winch Methodi>in'
with the other evangelical masses. assumed III DC
stroving slavery. Tn great truth Mr. Johnsohs
b,.torv of CRIME ignores An eminent statesman
few days since afimcd The Mc,lodists are the
greatest pillar of The Republican party in Tie com
,rvr What affirm Is that they owe this fact to the
onr-s'ayerv traditions derived and maintained
+broupb their whole history from thor ani-slaNcIy
founders.
ANrI-sLAvrRY HISTORY or ME1RoDiSM.
NV issnc with Mr.. johnson was taken against MS
snread-cage charges that all or churches were
"jn.ensble to the SIN AMI shame Of savcry,' and
were "bnlwarks of slavery So far as the only
church whose history understand is concerned
the charge is unhstoucal. and traced lis history
T. show lis faslty. Mr.. Johnson replies by quoting
8 few instances in which We had wavercd in our
warfare against tie enemy; winch is no more than
had admitted. and even fully stated before him.
Tie human Church Is human; the en.pyrcan
Church is in the empyrean. Mr.. j. quotes tn
upphantlv NY admission that we had made " con-
ces,ons 10 tie growing power of slavery" as proof
that We were "bulwark of slavery" But by
accepting nv word concessions" he admits that
Mcthodsm and slavery were two antagOnzing
parties and that the former only made conocs-
sions." which is the reverse of ones being the
others own bulwark."
MI Johnson's isolated points TO prove MS this
"hulwark" only prove such "concesslons' One
General Conference before southern Net odlsm Sc
(pGeNl
mony from church trials but be omits to add that
The act so aroused the anti-slavery feeling of the
Church that it was rescinded at the next session.
lie quotes the disavowal by General Conference
Of 1886 Of any purpose TO interfere with the rela
tion. of master and slave, which was simply dis
avowal of all connection with the helhgeront dem
onstrations Of GarTisOnisIn. which WAS maddenlng
the Shareholders and creating a hostile Solid
South" Again. Bishop Hedding refused % put mo-
tion IN conference that slavery moral evil but
i have already granted that the course OF our
Bishops was "repressve" and vet the known
fact that the Conference would have approved the
motion proves quite much for the anti-slaverylsm
of the Church as the Bishops for its proslsvery
ism. Mr. johnson afirms that our disciplinary pro-
test. maintained from the timo of our founder
Bishops until the destruction of slavery, was a
dead letter." like the temperance pledge in the
pocket of the bOosy ITishman l deny the atirma-
fion but accept the illustration. Pat, with the
whiskey in bis head and the pledge in his pocket.
was no abandoned drunkard, and no "bulwark OF "
drunkenness. Kindly trace his course and YOU will
find that his pledge proved his final salvation John
r. Gouch was once in a very lapsed condition; but
had he committed a dozen lapses he would never.
theless in his great career have been bulwaIk OF
temperance.
ACTION OF THE FOUNDER BISHOPS.
But what Mr. johnson doubtless considers the
that our founder Bishops, not strong enough TO
destroy slavery immediately. allowed shareholders
4 place in the Methodist Church and TO that point
/ now apply myself. Does Mr.. johnson perempto-
rly affirm that 10 STAKEHOLDER was ever Chris
tiaug Does he maintain that in no case should
slaveholders be allowed place In the Christian
Church | VIII cheerfully affirm that slaveholding
is "A defect and a drawback in any mans Christian
character. But bout the most perfect Christian
gentleman ever knew, in all other respects than
slavery was hereditary Mississippi stakeholder
In Young manhood he surveyed his small domains
and in Christian cOnsciencIOusness quite as pro-
found, perhaps as Mr. JohnsOn's OF my own. decided
10 retain them and devote his life to
their well-bcng, becoming. thereby. In true
seuss. n seir,s s1rOrum, a slave of his slaves. !
cheerlully affirm too. that slavery. as a great Or
ganic evil depreciatcs the Christianity of the people
pmong whom II exists; hut cannot admit that it
completely unchris. ianizes the whole | cheeTfuy
affirm that one of the very vllanies Of this vile
sum of all human vlllanies " Is that il cOmpli-
Gates human society as TO involve good and other
wise pure men in its serpentine folds by nyriads Of
ties and iibrcs producing whole section of cases
Of apparently justifiable slaveholding-or at
least such slavchodng as none but the most subl-
mated con-ciences would reject. Gilbert, the apos-
lie of West Indian Mcthodism. accepted by Wesley
himself was a Shareholder.
If Mr.. johnson aflirms that Christian Church
NAV IN no case retain Shareholders then affirm
he contradcts the whole theory and practice Of the
Church m all past ages IN dealing with great ard
immediately irrem1vable OTganlc moral evils.
will not now dwell Ou the moOfed question of the
me,hOdS and language of the New Testament. But
no ecclesiastical scholar WILL think, deny that
while the Church Of past ages condemned slavtTya
a blot on her Christianity, aud removed II when IN
her power she tolerated II great eyil,' under
protest. and with " the pledge in her pocket,
seeping. but not "dea 4 letter" until the day of
visitation aud of reformation When that day comes
L.. L.. in l.O,r..r. Il l..r