Crawford avalanche. (Grayling, Mich.) 1879-19??, 1894-03-15
METHODISTS MAKEUP
-WO GREAT DIVISIONS OF THE
CHURCH FRATERNlZih0.
After just Fifty Years OF Estrangement
the Northern and Southern Branches
Begin to Exhibit symptoms Of . Desire
for Reconciliation.
Hold q Loye-Feast.

For the first time in half q century
the two great branches Of the Metho-
dist Church in America-the Metho-
dist Episcopal Church, by which name
the Northern body Is designated, and
the Methodist Church South-have
come together in a love-feast. This
has just taken place in st. Louis, and
is especially noticeable as having taken
place in that city, because there the
passions aroused by the civil war ran
high and with unusual virulence. 1t
is specially significant as showing the
growing strength of the fraternal
feeling between the bodies, which may
yet lead to their organic union.
The question on which the once
united Methodist Church Of the United
States split was that of slavery, and the
same lines that marked the seeding
States in the war marked the division
of the church. But this question, while
always cause of dissension in the de-
nomination, and condemned by the
laws of the church, had been tolerated
for years, because the church recog-
nized that under the laws of some OF
the States the emancipation OF slaves
was not always possible. Hence 1t con-
tented itself with occa sional fulmina-
tions on the subject of slavery, but did
not debar the owners of or dealers in
slaves from membership. These ex-
pressions pleased the Northern senti-
ment, and while the South did not 60
into ecstasies over them, 1t took the
matter quietly as long as its pet insti-
tuition was not menaced.
Disruption of the Conference.
This good feeling was rudely shat.
tered in the General Conference of
1874 and the secession spirit which
later threatened to disrupt the nation
made itself painfully manifest. The
conference, which was held in New
York, was required to take action on
an appeal frem the Baltimore con-
ference. The case was that of the
Rev. Francis A. Harding, who had been
suspended for failure to manumit
slaves belonging to his wife, the
laws of Maryland permitted such
ence upheld this decision.
The decisive case. however, was of
Bishop James A. Andrews OF Georgia.
Bishop Andrews had married a Georgia
widow, whose former husband, among
other possessions, had left her several
slaves. When the Bishop married he
secured these slaves to his wife by a
deed of trust.
The connecti IN of a general superin-
tendent with slaveholding caused a
profound sen jation in the n, rehern
church, and 1T was claimed that this
relation would infract the provision
forbidding the General Conference to
destroy the plan of the itinerant Cen
eral Superin idency, since it would
be impossible Tor a slave-holding B sh-
op to preside over the Northern con-
ference. The solution O the difficulty
was for Bishop Andrews to dispose of
his slaves or resign his Cffice. The first
he would not do, because tf his deed of
trust; the latter his people would not
allow him to do.
Division Decided Upon.
Steps were at once taken toward se-
curing division of the church and its
property The South demanded pro-
portional share of the capital, assets,
etc, of the Book Concern. and this di-
vision was generally assehted to as
equitable by the Northern conference.
Owing to the opposition of few, how
ever, UIle OHlUeu oIdIcS oupIcIuS = SOuTt
had finally to decide the question,
which it did in favor of the South.
A call for convention of Southern
Methodists was then issued, and in
May, 1845, delegates from all the slave
holding States assembled at Louisville,
Ky. Here an organization was effected,
and the first general conference de-
cided upon for May, 1916, at Peters
burg. Va Since that time the organi-
tion has steadily progressed in strength
and riches, although the war some-
what impeded its progress. 1t has
now about 1900 churches and the
same number of clergymen and nearly
1,5O0, 900 communicates.
Bishop Andrews continued actively
engaged in the ministry until his
death in 1872. May of that year he
preached in New Orleans; the next
day he died suddenly of heart failure.
He was II years old.