Newark evening star and Newark advertiser. [volume] (Newark, N.J.) 1909-1916, 1912-05-03
WOULD LIFT BAN
ON ADJUSTMENTS.
Bishop Tells Methodist Con-
ference Church Rule Should
Be Abolished.

MINNEAPOLIS, MINI, May 3.-The
American people are too far advanced
longer to be restricted by church rules
as to that their amusement shall be.
The rule prohibiting dancing, card play
ing, gambling and going to theatres, cir
cuses and horse races therefore should
be abolished"
This is the gist of a report presented
today TO the general conference of the
Methodist Episcopal church by the board
OF bishops. In recommending this radi-
cal change, the twenty-four active bish-
ops stipulated that the church. however.
should not be Indifferent ON these sub
jects but that the people should be lett
to judge for themselves what is right or
wrong in amusements, having before
them only the injunction of ohm Wesley.
which forbid the taking of such diver
sions as cannot be taken In the name OF
the Lord Jesus"
The bishops declared the church reiter-
ated it's opposition to theatre-going n
gambling, but the dule in force since 1872
could not fix a point between tine turI
and the stock market" The bishops
report was delivered by Bishop Earl
Cranston, of Washington, ID. c., and 1t
formed the second session of the episco-
pal address, the first half of which had
been given the day before.
I'VE would poyfully acclaim the DAY
when every Christian would abstain
from the amusements which have been
prohibited, but we can't express our
conviction that Wesley dealt more wise
Nv with the danger. The bishops there.
fore. recommend a return to the con%
slstent treatment of this subject by
Wesley, and the more earnestly because
we are dealing with the American people
and the intelligence of the tWehueth
century.
Al a church, we cannot approve dane
ing and theatre going. They are ques-
tlonable amusements. To us, as TO sew
eral of our sister churches, they VINO
Justify these amisements as cohsisten.
with the spiritual life seem 10 mahliesl
a deplorable lack of spiritual preeeptoh.
Again, we stand unitedly aeains.
gamblinf. and we recognize clearly that
1t Is the same sin in Wall street that IL
is i'm the lowest resort. but we ave never
yentured legislatively to fix the point
where the race track gambler, passlhs
from the turf to the stock market, pc
comes a respectable business man, elig-
ible to church membership and the chal'-
man of the board of trustees.
I'm our absolute helplessness peioie
This question we must continue TO allow
the world TO suspect thai the larger the
stake and the more reckless OF pubic
veal the gain. the less vicious the crime
provided the WHINE pays tithes to rel-
gion or benevolence.
Criticism of the condition which enabled
church to gain LESS than 2 per cent. IN
membership in the last year" and charges
that the church press was being USED as
a free forum by the promoters OF disai-
lection were made in the bishops re-
port to the quadrennial general CONFER
ence of the Methodist Episcopal Cnurch
yesterday.
dress. was signed by eighteen bishops In
this and six bishops in foreign countries,
and IL regarded as the most important
document to come before the conference,
as 1t contains the bishops
lions for the future policy of the church.
an the last year." said the report. tine
church has made a net gain of but 3D.
900. which is less than 2 per cent, as
the outcome of the yenr's activities anu
the outlay of many millions sre OF n uo nnt
of couutenanee. 1t shames and humn-
iates us. What ase honors or omces
worth in any army that does not n w1n
posing to reduce the heterogeneous 10
This was n reference to a proposed
limiting of the activities to q Local nls-
trict of the bishops whose jurisdiction
now Is universal.
Among the reasons for the meagrs
growth; as 81 set me dor law w "f The church de-
"A IDDllidllVh VI VIZ -
handing that all members Wno remoye
from a given community without thelr
church letters be dropped from memper-
ship after one year. -
"a fair calculation" the report sara,
..reyeals the astounding fact that prop
ably not less than. o;00o mempers us, us
appeared from our rolls Dy rechiesS uso
of the dropping process
aNeyertheless, we still face the patept
fact that our distinctive doctrines are
not being emphasized as they once Were,
or. where preached, are discrediteu lot
the time by a gainsaying world druak
with vain PHILOSOPHERS and sated WIN
gluttonous indulgences.. a.
Pleading for an emphasis on the dis.
t~inctive Wesleyan doctrines the report
said that they were the only power TO
save the nation against vice. IT says:
aWbere is the evidence that sciences
has ever regenerated one soul, or that
culture has redeemed one libertine' or
taken envy. malice, pride, Jealousy, or
creed out of any heart? These utter
ances are not reactionary unless this
world has outgrown Jesus Christ.
s,Our second lapse is that our system IS
not being worked as it formerly was.
Certain distinctive parts have been aban-
! doned. others modified. Innovations,
nonions to our pastoral as well as to our
supervisional methods, have interviewed
\ to the hurt of both
The address condemned the practise that
was said to have grown NJ. in certain
churches of calling In eFangelists to car
nv on revival services as against the
pastor in charge of that work.
Turning from this the report con
demned the so-called congregational sys-
tenn Of calling pastors for local churches
which was said to have become general in
Methodism.