The Fairmont West Virginian. (Fairmont, W. Va.) 1904-1914, 1908-05-05

Confer ence Will
Open i ono ow

BALTIMORE. May 5.-From all
parts OF America and from foreign
lands. clergymen and laymen OF tbs
Methodist Episcopal Church are
throngtng into Baltimore to-day, and
during the remainder OF the month
Methodist eyes In all sections OF the
world will be turned toward this city.
The quadrennlal general conference.
which will be opened tomorrow. Is
one of the most important religious
institutions in existence 1T holds the
keys to all the Important Offices OF the
church. including the bishoprics. the
edttorships and the secretary ships. and
is the supreme and only law-making
body of the denomination. &
One. OF the most important subjects
to come before the conference will be
that OF restoring time limit to pas.
torntes. Several of the largest con.
ferences. including New York and Bal.
tinore. have declared in favor or the
restoration Of a time limit, and there
Is strong sentiment in other parts Of
the country In favor Of such action,
The present plan has not Injured to the
permnncnce of the pastoral relation.
or to the stability OF the ministry: In.
deed In some cases congrega tons have:
been more restlve than they were .un.
der the three>year or the nve-year.
limit. Then. II there were dlssatisfac.
ton with the minister. they. had only
to wait a definite time before a change
would come automatically. Now. they
have to give concrete expression to
their desire for a change at the quar-
terly conference when the question OF
continuing the va rious pastoral rela:
lions comes up. Moreover, the very
agitation OF the possibility OF. a change
as a: part OF the routine programme OF
the quarterly conferences sometimes
helps to beget dissatisfaction and so
the local minister in some cases comes
to dread the meeting at which he
knows the question Is to be raised.
The practical outcome often Is that
men stay less than five years and often
less than three years. and so the gem
eral restlessness OF the churches and
the uncertainty OF the ministry are
not to any extent allayed by the alb.
sence OF all time limitation. or course
where relations between pastor AMI
people are mutually satlsfying-and
there are many such instances in
Methodist as well as In other church
es-any time Limitation whatever I'M
posed by the general conference Is
resented and heretofore the strong
city churches. thus situated. usually
found a way OF retaining their minis
tiers from period to period.
Another important question Is the
proposed repeal OF the discipline stat
ute which forbids dancing. card-play-
ing and theater.going. on penalty Of
accommodation. Such action has
been demanded by the New. York con.
ference. s55 /, y
& Doubtless the sentiment In the East
generally would favor such action;
while in the West and even in rural
districts OF New England. II would be
viewed with considerable alarm. as
being concession to wosldltneas quite
foreign to the spirit OF the Methodist
church. In the large cities the rule
is already practically diaresarded and
the New York conference delegates
simply want to make tho rules tally
with accepted usage. thinking that In
this day OF ethical awakening. che
Church ought to square It's profes.
sions to its actual behavior, It Il Is
not able to regulate dts behavior by its
Il, A.
It is a cheering showing which the
Official statistics for the last four years
make. The increase In members ia
a74 1888. or an average OF nearly nine
t. thousand a year, while 43a new
have ben added to the list
this last year. This quite sustains the
OF the church acquired
that famous remark Of the
late Chaplain McCnbe to the effect
that the Methodist church built new.
editice every day in the year.
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