The morning news. [volume] (Savannah, Ga.) 1887-1900, 1892-09-11
GREAT CHURCH COUNCIL.
TIE CONVENTION OF EPIsCOPALI-
ANS AT BALTIMORE IN OCTO 5BR.

Hook7-The Proposed New HymnaL
A Radical Report and It's Probable
Base-The Proposed Provincial Sys-
1am-"setting Off" Missionary Bish.
ops ,,-,, ,oo,
Nrw YoRK, Sept. 10.-The church Of
George Washington and most Of the other
eminent leaders in the American revolution
will hold q triennial council in Baltimore.
beginning on the first Wednesday in Octo-
Der next. Numerically, the Protestant
Y>4scopAl church is far behind the Cath
ol.c, Methodist aud Baptist bodies, bat 1t is,
in proportion, by far the wealthiest of all
the religious organizations Of the United
States, and is growing in membership and
influence faster than any other Of them.
The chief OF the division of religious stats
tics of the forthcoming United States CEN
sus estimates the total church
membership Of this country at about
%, OOO, 600, with property amounting to
$64e, l25, 7O4 In round numbers sse Epis-
copal church has SOC, 900 communicates and
property amounting 90 $40, 0o0, 900, or Sl46
per capita. Before the revolution the
clergy received orders ia England; after the
revolution certain American clergymen
were consecrated bishops by the English
church. The Church Of England and the
Protestant Episcopal church are alike as
constituting branches Of the Anglican COM
munion, and the eloquenoe OF Phillips
Brooks Is as much at home IN Westminster
abbey as in Trinity church, Boston.
The tFiennial council. TO be held in Balti-
more in October, will be known as the gen.
eral convention of 1892. 1t will consist, as
its predecessors consisted, OF two houses
-. l. ~
deputies. The concurrence OF both houEss
is necessary 10 the validity OF decisions
governing and binding on the church, but
legislation may be originated 10 either one
of them. Sixty-seven bishops will copsti-
tute the upper HOUSE," each OF the fifty
two dioceses OF the church will be repre-
ssnted by four clerGymen and four laymsn,
making the house OF deputies which Is
known colloquialiy as the Clover house,
co consist of 4l6 meu1berA The venerable
bishop Of Connecticut, the RE Ray.
John Williams, D. D., 81. D., will
preside in the house OF bishops, by
seniority; and, In his absence from any
cause, the Ri. Rev. Henry A. Nicely, u.
D., bishop Of Maine, who was elected to
the honor Of presiding in the absence OF the
senior bishop at the last convention, held In
New York in 1889. The rector OF Trinity
Church, New York, the Rev. Morgan Dix,
s. T. D., d. c. L., was elected 70 preside
over the deliberations Of the house OF de-
puties ct the convention OF 1885 and 1889,
aud it is expected the deputies will make
him their chairman at the coming oonven-
tion. His ability as @ persiding olncer Is
very remarkable and be represents What Is,
10 respect TO his age, wealth and influences,
the leading parish Of ths church.
A matter of great Importance 70 church
people, which will come up for hnal action
at Baltimore, is liturgical REVISION. At the
convention Of twelve years age. acting upon
a resolution moved BY the Rev. William
r. Huntington, s. 7. D., LI. D., now roc
tor OF Grace church, New YORK, q commit
tee was appointed to report At the oonven-
ton of 1888 on liturgioal changes
deemed desirable to promote greater
fiexioility in the services Of the church.
Their report was received and continued
10 discussion until the convention OF
1889, when it was approved aud left to be
passed upon by the convention OF this year.
The proposed changes having been passed
upon as thus provided, q standard prayer
book of the church will be issued, it is hoped,
promptly after Nhe convention, TO the graft
fication OF both ministers aud people; and
leaflets bound up with the standard
Prayer Book Of 1889" to be used optionally
during the recent years OF transition, will
be among the Affections of the past. Changes
are chiefly, as was DR.. Huntington's visa,
ia the direction Of giving greater degree Of
discretion TO the ministers in the conduct of
public worship. Both morning and even
ing prayer are considerably shortened et
the will Of the clergyman. a few changes
are RESERVATIONS, and the new STANDARD
Prayer Book will more nearly resem bic the
Book of Common Prayer" of the Church
of England than tAat of 1889. The addition
of new feast, that of the TRANSPORTATION,
TO the church calendar, its date Aug. o, is
another notable Change
Second only in Importance to the matter
of liburgioal revision will be the considera-
tion of the report on the hynnal for the
church, approved by the general oouven-
ton of 1889. The hymnal Of 1871, In
proved in:t8T4, has been ia general use since
that date, and 1t is by no means certain that
the new book, prepared BY committee at
the head of which is the RI Rev. William
Crosswell Doane. d. D., LII. D., bishop of
Albany, will be authorized TO super
sede it. While there seems 90 be
almost a certainty that the new
"Standard Prayer Book" will be adopted by
the convention, the report of the commit
tee on the new hymual, which, Ia com
mon with that OF the committee on litur
gical revision, Is published in printed form
is provoking so much adverse criticism as
msy result in its being amended and hBal
action postponed for the convention of 1895
The complaint is made that the committee
has been too radical in its action, Their
book leaves out 26l hymns contained in the
present hymnal, which is a seriously radical
innovation for 50 conservative q body
as convention of the Protestan al
Episcopal church 70 make. Ii forms
a far more comprehensive volume
than the present hymnal containing
67S hymns and 81 doxologies Little fault
is found, or can be found, with its literary
quality and whether or not the matter of
providing new hymnal for the church will
be postponed until the convention OF 1895.
Bishop Doane and his fellow committeeman
have compiled a volume, which is exceed
ingly valuable as a treasury Of devotional
poetry, intended for use in public worship.
Not a few Of the clergy favor the adoption as
the American hymnal Of the most popu-
lar ERglish hymn book, Hymns Ancient
and Modern ~ aud possibly. II the convention
should decide upon taking radical course
in giving the church a new hymnal which
10 quite unlikely to happen, the English
book may have the preference over that OF
the Bishop Doane committee. Lively dis
cussion certainly will follow the report on
the proposed hymnal. The various schools
Of thought, which alike hnd home and low
atty within tde broad Enclosure of the
Protestant Episcopal church, will find on
portunity Of large discourse 81 its consider
alton.
IL is probable that some action will be
taken at the Baltimore convention with re-
gard thu tion-,ors % II - m