St. Paul daily globe. [volume] (Saint Paul, Minn.) 1884-1896, 1884-12-18
A PASTORAL LETTER
BY the Bishops Of the Methodist Church
Assembled in Conference at
Baltimore.

BALTIMORE, Dec. 1.-THE pastoral letter
of the bishops read at the centenu nary con-
ference of Methodists is addressed ''To the
Methodist people in the United States and
Canada 1t SAYS:
Permit us to remind you, dear brethren,
while we extend hearty congratulations upon
the success of the past, and express the pro-
foundest conviction that even nobler
and grander achievements await us
in the future. That the mission
given us by the providential allotment is not
yet accomplished. We entreat you, brethren,
do not forget that hitherto Methodists have
been distinguished by the emphasis they have
given essential doctrines of Christianity. In
all the years of our history truths relating to
God, to moral government, to immortality,
TO eternal retributiohs, have been sacredly
maintained and asserted with great distinct
ness. And that we have held in common
with all Christian people to the inspiration and
divine authority of the Scriptures, the Divine
origin of the church, vocation of the min
istry, value of the sacrament and iudispens-
ableness of the strictest morality according
TO the New Testament standard, and that
SSb oSgOhN al IhSSC pOluLS, we nave ID a0e
conspicuous the Nervousness of sin, the
necessity of atohement universally of pro-
visional redemption, freedom Of will aud
freeness of grace. Not one of these
can be discarded or distorted without
training the scheme of salvation revealed
by the Gospel. But even these foundations
of truths, however emphasized, will not meet
the demands of the soul, and never could
lo.v i.
life and history. There are other doctrines
TO be employed; doctrines which relate to
salvation applied well as provided; doctrines
which underlie the experiences Of the soul
in its struggle out of the darkness and death
of sin into light and life in righteousness.
The other doctrines have been the rally
ing cry of Methodists in the past and
must be in the future. They are repentance,
1aith, Justification, adoption, the virtues of
the spirit, sanctiication and Christian perfec-
ton. Out of these come all our experiences,
all our joys and hopes, our inspiration and
zeal; and upon these are built all our special
forms n means Of grace, our charities, our
bsr evidences and our institutions. These
doctrines, above others, have given tone
and shape and spirit to the organization and
Get rmined its work and place in
history. Take from Methodism these
doctrines of experience, or even the empha-
sis given them, or overlap them with lifeless
forms and ceremonies, or mar them by hui
man speculstions concerning the mode of
ne procedure in them, or confuse them
by any conceivable departure from their sim
pncIty, SO they shall become only doctrines
OF the creed, unvoiced in the soul as the
very essence of salvation, and then our glory
is departed forever. We, therefore, plead
with YOU. brethren, as YOU value the puritv
of the church and its power to convert the
people, aud spread scriptural holiness,
hold forth these doctrines and they come
from the fathers, as they appear in the scrip
lures, and as they have been attested by the
experiences of the church in the past agesn
The address urges maintenance of family
religion, 1.-THE hottest sanctuary on earth,"
the address says, sand the Christian home.
Neither church nor Sunday school can be the
work of home, or become an adequate sub
stitute for the influence Of the Bible
in the household. See to it that the
children be all taught Of the Lord