Evening star. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1854-1972, 1891-10-13
RELIGION AND JOURNALISM.
Very Lively Debate in tho Great Methodist
Conference.

THE RELIGIOUS AND SECULAR PRESS AND THEIR
ISFLUEScE DISCUSSED At LENGTH AND IN An
EARNEST AND THOUGHTFUL MANSER-ENaLIsH
POLITICS cREPT INTO TIE DEBATE-FnArERSAL
DELEGATES RECEIVED.
The attitude Of the press toward religion
and the attitude of the church toward the press
is getting to be recognized as a decidedly
impcrtan. matter. So important is 1t that tho
committee which has had charge of the topics
to be discussed at the sessions Of the ecumeni-
cal. which the readers Of The STAR may save
noticed is now in session in this city. set apart
one session OF the conference for the sole dis
cussion of This question. Yesterday afteru Don
was the one set apart for the purpose and the
subject as well as the eminence of the essayist
and the speakers we're more than enough to
bring together one of the largest audiences
that has attended any of the sessions Of the
/ conference so far.
The chief essay of the afternoon was by Rev.
Hugh Price Hughes of London, that wonder
/ fully enthusiastic and earnest leader of the
! advance movement" whose appearance be-
fore the conference is always the signal for ap-
plause and then for the closest a.tention.
| His paper was an interesting one and was one
| OF the most glowing eulogiums that the power
| OF the press has ever received before an aildi-
ence in this city. He claimed that this power
/ OF press as n mOiuer Oh opinion
could scarcely be overes!inated and there was
little or no excuse for the actions Of the church
| In Ignoring or overruling it. The church was
| rapidly outgrowing this feeling in the matter,
| be was glad 10 say, and the good that Gould be
| accomplished for the cause of Christ through
| the columns of the press is now realized to a
| point never reached before.
Rev. VI. t. Myers, president of the United
| Methodist Free church, of Rochdaie, England,
presided.
DIR. DEwABT's ADDRESS
At the conclusion Of Mr.. Hughes paper,
which was published in yesterdays STAR, DIR.
Dewart Of the Methodist church in Canada was
introduced to deliver the first Of the invited
! speakers to follow. He began his address with
the remark that the use one made Of anything
was in proportion to the value he expected to
derive from it. II this so, then he must
ADMIT that the church had never derived as
much good from the press it might have
done. The value of the secular press should be
clear to his hearers. DR.. Dewart said. when
they saw the a.,nifcent accounts of the sacred
words spoken in this conference that the secu-
lar press of this city well elsewhere are
sending broadcast through the land. The press
| should be in sympathy with the great moral
questions and the social problems OF
the day that are pressing upon the heart
| and brain for solution. The paper will never
be a success that is a weathercock in the drift
| OF opinion and does not take a decided stand on
all questions of importance As for the re-
lgious press, the church should maintain papers
for the reason that it main tains its pulpits
| and its preachers and the speaker sail he did
not think the church had ever vet appreciated
the power of the press as an element for good
at its true value.
DIR. Dewart said he did not think that editors.
editors of religious papers especially, were as
narrow minded a set OF men as some people
| are likely TO consider them. The sec ular press
might be used in two ways. 1t could DE used
to disseminate the news of what is being done
In the churches In all their departments as well
as to correct any incorrect statements that
might have been made elsewhere. In this way
many people would be reached who never would
be through the columns of the religious press
REV. JOSEPH FERGUSON.
Rev. Joseph Ferguson, D. D.. president Of the
Primitive Methodist church. followed DR..
Dewart in an address, in the course of which he
said that there were thousands of people in
England who do not receive their knowledge
Of affairs from the daily press. but from the
weekly journal. Fer this reason the weekly
secular and religious press should rightly use
their immense power in the settlement of ali
religio-poltical problems. The children of
England with whom the speaker WAS familiar
stand grievously in need of a better religious
training not only from their Sunday schools.
but also through the columns Of the daily press.
They should know what we believe and why
we believe as we do. The press should recog-
nize more than 1t does the fact that Christ Is
the leading element in the spirit Of the times
In this country since he had been here he had
noticed much that had been written in relg-
ious vein. for when paper attacked wrong it
did it religiously. Still he would urge u closer
| alliance between the church and the press and
bewailed the fact that there are SO few Meth
odists connected with the press. The press and
not the pulpit must discuss the great scientific
| and political questions that are of the most
vital importance TO the welfare of the human
| race even though they did not properly come
within the province of the pulpit.
REV. Z. Z. HOss.
Rev. E. E. Hoss. ID. d., of the NJ E. church
south, was the last of the invited speakers Of
the afternoon. He said he would omit the
best part of his address and contine himself to
a discussion of the religious press. In this
country. he could say without fear Of contra
diction, that the Methodist people had always
been the firm supporters of religious press.
DR.. Hoss then went on 1T some length to name
over some of the leading men who have been
connected with the religious press in this coun-
try, closing with reference to Bishop j. c.
heener, .'who neyery said a stupid thing and
never did cowardiy one.
The religious press should always be under
the direction and authority of tie church, for
the premise that an official press is ALWAYS a
| muZZled one is false premise. That the
| church should keep its hand upon the pulpit is
an equally good argument that ii should keep
| its hand upon the press. The religious press
should not be run for revenue only, and in the
opinion of the speaker when such a paper made
more than a certain amount of profit the over
! plus should be turned back to the betterment
| of the paper. Goodness is ain, but gain is
| not always godliness. The religious press
| should be more than a mere bulletin OF events
| IL should take firm stand all matters of
| moral and political reform, and the editor who
| dared 10 keep silence in the face of the liquor
| eyi! should be hiered at once.
BRIEF SUPPLEMENTARY REMARKS.
The first of the speakers to follow in brief
| supplementary remarks was Rev. ]. NJ Buck
/ ley of the New York Adcocdte At the local
| conference in this city last spring DIR. Buckley
| took occasion to make Il rather severe and un-
called for attack upon the local press and the
| newspaper men who were present This WIS
| for the purpose of showing how much better
| his paper was, and at the meeting Yesterday he
| took the ground that the weekly paper is a
much more essential element in forming public
| sentiment than is the daily paper. The latter,
1 he said. is SO frequently mistaken, generally
| by accident. he would admit. but still the fact
| remained, and i'll support of his statement ne
| quoted ono or two examples from remote
| PoIuts and times to show that daily papers
| sometimes make mistakes, both in their edi-
| the weekly papers are more carefully prepared
| and mother down to the little ones Of the family
| Mr.. Thomas Shape of Liverpool made a few
| pleasant remarks. in which he took exception
Il Al.