Cheraw chronicle. [volume] (Cheraw, S.C.) 1896-2005, 1911-11-09
Some Facts and Suggestions About
Our Methodist Membership In
the South.

the South.
By Rev. c. G. Scott, colored, pastor
of the John Wesley Nj. E. Church,
Cheraw, S. G..
A little more than two hundred
years ago the Spirit of the Lord
touched the hearts of two young men
in England and caused them to go
forth and call the Church back to
"the old path" and to arouse the
clergy and laity to sense of their
danger and their duty.
Reinforced by others they began
preaching wherever and whenever
they could obtain an audience
"Their evangelistic labors were ac-
companied by an extraordinary di-
vine influence
Taking the slogan "The world for
Christ they Textended their labors
to America; and, as result at
the Christmas Conference, begun in
Baltimore, Maryland, December Oath,
1884, the Methodist Episcopal church
1igion and Sunday Services We're
adopted.
At or about that time We had in the
United States, 80 travelling preachers
we rejoice over and give praise to
God for a membership consisting of
% bishops, missionary bishops, ap-
proximately $50 presiding elders Or
district superintendent, 10000 travel
ing preachers or pastors, $4,000 local
preachers, and 100000 lay church
members
Our worldwide Methodism, spring
from the efforts Of theses two godly
young men upon whose mouths had
been laid the live coal taken from off
Gods eternal altar, rejoices over a
membership of 100000 souls, more
than one million and a half of these
being wholly or in part, descendants
of Negro slaves brought to this coun-
try 300 years ago in a state of abso-
Lutte ignorance of the Christian relig-
ion.
Today Negro Methodists constitute
about one sixth of tn entireMethodist
family of the entire world and near
ly one fourth of the entire Methodism
Of the United States.
AS denomination the Methodist
Episcopal church holds first rank,
numerically. among not only th(
Met among of the 1xaEioJtant denoHe'
nations of the world Practically
forced out of the South in 1914, the
love of the mother church for her
children impelled her to return in
1866, when the war or secession had
ended, and conditions he'd changed,
and to welcome back into her fold
those desirous of returning who had
withdrawn and those who
had been forced to withdraw, from
her communion =
In the 46 years that have elarsed
since then, We have, among our while
bretheren in the South, in our twenty
conferences Qf the Baltimore
and West Virginia conferences may
be properly called Southern conft..-
ences) membership consisting,'of
1871 pastors receiving an average sal
ary of $4,000; "A district superin-
tendents with an average salary of
$1013; and church membershop of
32S,352; with 81 institutions of learn
ing and 6.956 pupils. Among the COL
ored bretheren of our church we have
1888 pastors receiving an average
salary Of $332.75; SO district superin-
tendents with an average salary of
$914.O0; twenty annual conferences
and 310,302 church members. l might
note here that among our white church
members in the South, for
every dollar Of salary received by
the average pastor, the aver
age presiding elder or district super
intendent receives $1.45; and that for
every dollar of salary received by the
average colored pastor of our church,
he,