The Manning times. [volume] (Manning, Clarendon County, S.C.) 1884-current, 1890-05-07
MILLIONS OF METHODlSTS.
Quatlrsnnlal Conference of the Souther
Branch of the Great Wesleyan Church.

| QuatirsnnIal Conference of the Southern
Branch of the Great Wesleyan Church.
One of the greatest religious bodies
in the world Will meet in st. Louis
May 10. The General Conference Of the
| Methodist Episcopal Church, South,
meets quadrennially Such has been
| the growth of the church during the
past decade that itnow stands second
among the great Protestant religious
assemblies of the world, The Gene
raj Conference of the Methodist
Church alone excels it in the number
of communicates represented and
the value OF property owned by Pro
tcstant Church authorities. The
Methodists in this country, white and
! black and Of all kinds, number more
than five millions (actual comnuni-
cants) The Methodist Episcopal
Church has nearly three million and
the Methodist Episcopal Church,
Soutn, has about one million eight
hundred thousand.
Prior to 1914 there was no division
among the American Methodists.
One General Conference represent
ed the whole Church. At the quad
rennial session of that conference IN
New York III May. 1914, division oc-
CURED, caused by the slavery ag gita
ton, ending in the withdrawal OF all
the delegates from the slaveholding
STATES and Territories. After a very
animated and long -protracted debate,
the final separation was arranged, and
the Methodists of the Southern States
were no longer under the same iulis-
diction as those of the North and
East. The seeding delegates called
convention at Louisville, which was
held in May, 1915, which permanently
organized the methodist Episcopal
Church in the South" adopteda book
of discipline similar to that OF the
old General Conference and contain
ing exactly the same doctrinal teach
ings and the same forms and ceremo-
MES: in fact, no other difference than
that of jurisdiction then existed
between the two branches OF Metho-
dism.
The Conference will be called to
order at noon on the 10th day of May,
when the senior bishop Of the church,
the venerable J. G. Keener, will read
Scripture lesson and offer prayer,
and then formally open the proceed
ings. He is ex-officio president of
the Conference, though all the bishops
will preside in the order of seniority.
There are eight bishops. They hold
office during lifetime and receive an
annual salary Of $4,000 and travelling
expenses. Bishop J. c. CRANBERRY
will rank next to Bishop Keener.
He is Virginian, but has made St.
Louis his home for several years.
The secretary will doubtless be
the Rev. John S. Martin, D. D., of
Baltimore, who succeeded Dr.. Sum
mers, md was elected at Richmond.
Bishop E. R. Hendrix of Kansas
City is the junior bishop Of the Church.
He has taken the place of the lament
ed Bishop Marvin in the estimation
of Missouri Methodists He will be
conspicuous figure both in the chair
and among the delegates. He was
president of the Central College at
Fayette when elected bishop four
years ago.
The denomination h:>s churches in
foreign lands as well as IN The United
States. It carries on al .xtenslve
publishing business at Nashville,
Tenn. and has missionaries III China,
Japan, Mexico, Brazil and several
countries. The missionary opera
tions are all directed from Nashville.