Evening star., 1897-11-30
A CHURCH PROBLEM
Protestant Episcopal Work Among
the Colored People.
THE Two PRINCIPAL PLANS PROPOSED
Appointment of Suffragans Favored
and Also Missionary Dioceses.
Q P IONS EXPRESS SED

In the last issue of the Living Church,
| one of the papers published in the interest
! of the Protestant Episcopal Church con-
siderable space is given to a discussion of
plans for rendering more effective the work
! carried on by that church among the col
| ored people. An extract is given from the
4 address of Rev. William V. Tunnel. the
warden of King Hall, the theological school
for colored men in this city. which was
| read at the missionary council in Milwau-
| kee Rev. MIR. Tunnel is a member of the
| committee appointed by the conference of
workers among colored people. which was
| held in Baltimore last September. and
which was instructed to make a report on
| this general subject.
AS was stated in The Star at the time
Rev. Owen NJ. Waller the rector of ST.
| Lukes Protestant Episcopal Church in this
| city, is the chairman of this committee,
| and, in addition to Rev. Mr.. Tunnell the
| ether members of the committee are: ]. A
| NJ. Pollard of Charleston, S. c.; Scott Wood
| of Petersburg, Va, and w III. Bishop of
| Baltimore. This committee expects to make
| a report at the next meeting of the con-
ference. which will be held next fall II is
| stated that, so far, the committee has not
| determined upon any plan, but that the
| policy will be to submit their conclusions
| when they have been reached To the men,
| pers Oh the conference, IN order mat, as Tar
as possible. the report will represent the
| sentiment of the conference. After the
| conference has taken action and so directs
| the conclusions will be transmitted TO the
| general convention.
Two Plans Proposed.
| So far two plans have been proposed.
One is the appointment of suffragan bish-
| ops. official who evist in the Church of
| England, but not in the church in this
| yyh dlIfie To
| der the direction of the bishops of the dio-
| oese, but not having the right of success
| sion. Another plan proposed is to divide
| the section of the country where the col
| ored people are found in large numbers in
10 missionary Jurisdictions, to be presided
| over by bishops
Rev. Mr.. Tunnel in his address, which is
| printed in part in the Living Church, states
1 That the work among the colored people
| is in its purely missionary stage, and he
| asks why should it not be treated a
| missionary work?
VIII not our bishops of the south cede
| the spiritual care of the colored people to
| the house of bishops as a body (of course
| they are included, and hence Will not re-
| linquish their rights and prerogatives. but
| VIII simply share them with their
| brethren in the corporate episcopate), and
| then let the house of bishops divide up
| these mighty, semi-negro empires into, say,
| two or three missionary jurisdictions over
| seen Immediately by men of cognate blood
| elected by and amenable to the house of
/ bishops. and In the interim of the general
| conventions directed and aided by the
| counsel and means of the commission 10
be constituted as the house of bishops sees
| ht. These Jurisdictions will have their own
conventions or convocations. their bishops
| having seats i'm the house of bishops and
| the jurisdiction such representation in the
| general convention is accorded to juris-
| dictions either foreign or domestic. Hav-
| ing absolute control of it the house OF bsh-
| ops could easily end it IL il did not work
| successfully.
Now See the Necessfty.
The colored clergy, the Overwhelming
majority of whom have hitherto opposed
this plan, have come to see the necessity
for some such adjustment, and at the con-
| ference held September 21-o4 in Baltimore
they said in effect, inasmuch as We have
| separate cars and separate churches and
| separate convocationS, schools, seminaries
and societies. and a separate priesthood,
| let us have separate bishops and separate
| Jurisdictions, and separate conyentins''
| Under the practical operation OF this
| plan, the writer argues diocesan conven-
tions will be freed from a disturbing ele-
| Elent and the church will be delivered from
| the scandals arising from race prejudice.
| He does not claim this plan is ideal but in
| his opinion, it is the only Che that prom
ises internal harmony and external pro-
| g1ess.
| In the editorial comment upon Rev Mr..
| Tunnells paper the editor of the Living
| Church says that he fully appreciates
| the writers account of the difficulties
| and obstacles which lie in the way
! of church work among the colored
| people. Here. as in so many other di-
| rections. the ideal of the Gospel and of the
| church is but rarely attained. The church.
| however is constituted upon that IDEAL
the ideal which denies the place of human
| distinctions Of race or condition within the
| kingdom of God. which declares that in
| Christ there is neither jew nor Greek. bar
| harlan, Scythian, bond or free, but all are
| one. 1t is of course, easy to show that to
| ar overwhelming extent actual practice
does not square with this theory"
White Priests and Bishops.
| The writer goes on to say that the most
| obstinate features of the problem are found
| in the case of the white priest, and finally
the white bishop working among the col
| ored race. 1t is impossible, he adds. for
such priest or bishop to come into that
| social relation of which ''eating with them"
| is symbol, and he says that these points
| are strongly put by Mr.. Tunnel.
| I'VE have observes the editor, 'incon-
| sistent as il is with high ideals. separate
| colored parishes and colored priests who
| are debarred from ministeriug except I'm
| such parishes. In the councils of more
| than one diocese a negro priest as such is
| disfranchised. and parishes composed of
colored people are excluded from repre-
| ssntation.''
The danger is pointed out of accentuat-
| ing the distinctions which now exist and
| opening the door to n permanent division,
| in which the very idea of unity in one
| catholic church will disappear and a sep
arate african Protestant Episcopal
| Church" will emerge. The editor is of
the opinion that Mr.. Tunnels proposition
would have such a tendency. He warns
| against the dangers of creating greater diff
| ficultes in dealing with existing difficulties.
i Proposition is Revolutionary.
| In its present shape he thinks Mr.. Tun-
| nelrs proposition is revolutionary. He says
| that such thing two bishops exercising
| jurisdiction over the same territory inde-
| pendently of each other is excluded by the
| whole trend of canon law. because it is in
violation of the principle of unity. He is Of
| the opinion that hardly any number of dio-
| cesan bishops will sanction such step.
He thinks that there may be better and
| safer plan.