Burlington weekly free press. [volume] (Burlington, Vt.) 1866-1928, 1900-06-07
THE GENERAL CONFERENCE,

Review OF the Most Important Gather
ings in the History of the Metho
dist Episcopal Church.
Rev. DR.. !. Richard Boyle has reviewed
the proceedings of the LAT" general con-
ference of the Methodist Episcopal church
for the Philadelphia Press as follows
The general conference &C the Methodist
Episcopal chur-'h, which has been in sos-
sion in Chicago during tn" las, four
weeks Is by far the most important con-
vocation ever held BY that denomination.
Perhaps no other ecclesiastical body III
tho world has such great and varied pow
crs as this quadrenn'ol conference of
Methodism It repre- sents a church that
has 10000 members. 1t "nacts all the
laws of that church. and il ITS court of
last resort 1t elects and constitutes It's
bishops. 1t establishes the boundaries Of
the annual conferences AMI determines the
official residences of the bishops. 1t APP
points the committees that administer the
denomnational phlanthropies, and au-
thCrzes and controls Its world with mis-
sion work. In word, ii superViScs and
governs Episcopal Methudism throughout
the world. The present general confer
ence was the largest in The number of its
delegates and the most distinguished in
its personnel in the history If he church.
Many or the dDleSt ministers OF MtlUD-
dism, scores Of its most prominent cduca-
tors and authors, and not few OF it's
laymen who are well HnOwn in public
life, were among the seven hundred dele
gates who composed the conference. some
of them were veterans who had served in
many previous St sSiOns, ana We're experts
in Methodist history and law The bust
ness was formulated by !arge standing
committees, numb. ring two hundred per
sOrs, or more, to whom were icferr,d al
memorials and resolutions and who re-
ported their judgment To the Body. The
debates upon the conferences floor were
coura geous. exciting and earnest, and, at
times, revolutionary. The flavor of an in
dependence that approached radictlism
dominated the assembly an enormous
amount of work WAS done, and come of
the results reached will be epochal in the
history of the church.
/ The conference elected TWO bishops and
two missionary bishops, the latter to have
Jurisdiction in Eastern Asia: four agents
for the two publishing houses, eight sec
re tarioS and assistant secretaries, one or
whom, for the first time in the history Of
the church. is a laymdn and 70 less than
eleven editors 1t revised many minor
matters of discipline AMI, after he most
stormy debate of the session. II refused
to modify the Jaw regarding worldly
amusements. But this conferenc" will lie
historic and notable because Of four very
/ First-It guaranteed equal lay rclres5n-
taton to the church. In 1872 laymCn were
admitted TO the general conference, hut
in a minority. Two laymen were eligible
from each annual conference, except
where that conferen 'c had but one min
isteral delegate, whom one .ayman could
be chosen. Tho ministers, however, were
entitled to one delegate for every forty
five Of their number, which gave them a
numerical prcpundcrancc Of Two or three
to one. The present conference, confirm
ing the vote of the annual conferences on
the subject, admitted iayn"n in numbers
equal 10 the ministers, ami this Just and
equitable measure will henCeforth be the
law of the church,
second-The conference adopted for
NAL constitution for the Churon which
by simply changing the term "iayman'
to lay member" acCordS to women equal
ecclesiastical rights in the Methodist
church. For twelve years the woman
question" has agitated the denomination.
and by a decided vote the conference
placed itself upon the side If this most
numerous class iii its communion. II the
new organic law shall be ratified by a
three fourths vote of the ministers COM
posing the annual conferences, as 1t no
doubt will be, women will be eligible in
the church to any place that Is open to
laynen. That is, she will sit in the Vari-
Gus conferences or hold office.
wise reform in the administration of the
church bencvolenCes. heretofore
the Missionary. Church Extension and
Freedman's Aid societies have each had
two or more corresponding secretaries,
who are their executive officers, teside
assistant secretaries. This has been an
expensive, cumbersome and useless ar
arrangement, and as anomalous rs it would
be to have two or three presidents for
one railroad or a single bank. The con-
ference ordered that hereafter these So
Cieties, with the exception of the Freed
mans Aid, should have but one secretary
and one assistant. This action will cut
off several high salaried officials and re-
store number of efficient men to the
work of the pastorate.
Fourth But by far the most
important act of TINS general
/, conference was the abolition of
the time limit of the pastoral min
istry. The Methodist ministry is an itin-
orancy. BY the organic law Of the church
every pastor receives his appointment to
his charge each year at the hands or tn"
bishop presiding at his conference. These
appointments can be made for one year
only and up to the present time reap
poirtments TO the same charge could only
be made to include five conSc 'utiVe Noal $
in ten. This restriction is known as the
time limit. 1t was hrst imposed by the
general conference of 1901 at the special
desire of Bishop Asbury. In 1861 the lirhit
was extended from TWO TO tnrc" years,
and in 1855 to five years,
It has been found 10y an experience OF
ninety-six years that this arbitrary le-
striction of the pastoratc wrought hard
ship and often disaster IN the strolg
churches, and that it perpetually prevent
ed the strongest ministers from attaining
their best influence. 1t was tho one point
of friction In the system, and the friction
has steadily increased until the church
was seriously weakened in the great clues
and elsewhere. Perhaps eight hundred
churches and as many ministers were con-
stantly suffering from II, and the general
conference, by a practically two-thrds
Mothers lose their dread for that ter
rible second summer" when they have Or.
FoWler's Extract of Wild Strawberry IN