The times. [volume] (Richmond, Va.) 1890-1903, 1902-06-01

Or. Lear's Views Aboutthe Recent
General Conference.
THE ORDER OF DEAC0NEssES.
Its Institution Was the Most adlca
Step Taken by the Conference-A
Sketch of the New Editor of the
Nashville Advocate.

What was in many respects the most
radical and important meeting Of the
General Conference of the Southern Meth
cdist Church held in the past fifty or
more syears has recently been concluded
in Dallas, Texas. At it steps were taken
which will serve to mark the session down
in history as epochal, and to cause it to
be remembered in the future similarly to
tho one in 1916, when the church divided
into the present two branches.
And concerning this meeting in Dali
las several local Methodist preachers de-
clare mistaken impression has crept
abroad and settled upon the minds Of
many people. 1T is very generally taken
as settled fact that the conference, in
addition to transacting deal of vastly
important business, succeeded in entang-
ling itself in a terrible wrangle, and TOR
time proceeding in great confusion.
But one or two of these say 1t is not so.
When seen day or two go DIR. w. w.
Lear, pastor CT Centenary, this city, who
was present in Dallas at the greater part
of the meeting, was very outspoken about
the matter. and in SO many words de-
clared that the newspapers had done the
conference a great injustice. So far
from being a great nx-up, the body
proce eded in an unusually orderly and
parliamentary manner. Said DR.. Lear:
GAS well as I can remember, but one
brother had to- be called to order for
exceeding the bounds Of parliamentary
= H. I'M, ,,1< 0f orox
sort. The reports were couched In mild
and appropriate language, and were not
designed to provoke a fight. This is just
as true of Dr.. James Cannon's minority
report which caused the great sensation
as of any of the others. The talk that
DR.. Cannon's paper was libellous is ri
diculous."
In the opinion of DR.. Lear and others,
the meeting was, on the whole, a fine
one. Dallas is a good place, and the
Methodists there gave the conference a
big reception. Unlike other bodies Of the
kind. the conference pays all the ex-
perses of its delegates-railroad fare,
board, street car fare, etc. For three
hundred men and two or three weeks
spent in the meeting the total cost to the.
church will easily be- $4,000 or $50. 00O
But one objection could be found with
/ Dallas, that it was too far off on the
euge. The conference wants a central
spot on which to ihbld, its. meetings, and
prolitlng by the experience at Dallas will
probably see to 1t that it gets such a
place at the next meeting, in 1906. For this
reason the prospect that the body will
come to Richmond at that date Is very
remote indeed. Still the West Richmond
District Conference has taken steps to
give the General Conference a cordial In
v!tation, and the unlikely sometimes oc-
ours.
THE DEACONEss MATTER,
The effects Of the Dallas meeting will
be manifold. Several important changes
were made and these will be put into
effect gradually as the different Confer
ences meet. For instance, the Commit
tee on Episcopacy. which reviews the
acts Of the bishops, entered a recommen-
dation which will have the practical eff
feet of a law, that fewer nominal ap-
pointments be made. But the great and
radical movement was the institution Of
the order or deaconesses, against which
a hard fight was made. Dr. Paul White
head, of the Virginia delegation, was
one Of those who registered q strong pro-
test against the change.
Just how the order will be managed
cannot be learned. Several Methodist
preachers here have hazy ideas about
what the order will be, but none Of those
seen knew just what it meant. A copy
of the minority report containing the
regulations under which the new order
will carry on it's work could not be pro-
cured.
Still it is known that the deaconesses
will be to the Methodist Church some
what Of what the Sister Of Charity are
to the Roman Catholic Church. Only
single ladies and widows will be eligi-
BILE A training school will be started
and the ladies will be instructed in the
work they will enter upon. They will
visit the poor and the sick and generally
perform duties similar to those Of city
missionary. They will be connected with
different churches as assistants to the
pastors The Woman's Home Mission
Society of the NJ. e. Church will have
general supervision of the work
The discussion Of the proposition to In
stitute the order was long and interest
ing. On one occasion Mr.. W. R. Pee
bles. Of Nashville. Tenn. had just OPP
posed the establishment of the office and
declared that it would be class les1sia-
ton and undemocratic He said that
the deaconess can't be married woman
and that the order is in the interest OF