Evening star., 1948-04-28
Racial Bias Denounced
lin Methodist ParIey
As 'Un-Christian'
By Cospor Nonnes
Stor Stoff Corresnondsaf

BOSTON, April ga committee
report denouncing racial discrimi-
nation as utterly un-Christian"
was released today as Methodists
here from all of the 48 States and
many countries overseas today
opened the 12-day quadrennial Gen.
eral Conference of the Methodist
Church.
Almost one third of the dis
examinations against colored people
in modern life "are concerned with
the practice of the church and its
membership" it was charged by the
the Commission to Consider the Re-
lations of All Races in the Method
ist Church. Asserting that strong
statements are not enough" the
report declared The Church must
purge its own life of any racial
discrimination.
The commission called on the
constituent bodies of the Methodist
Church to stand for equal opportu-
mites and other facilities of educa-
ton, health, housing, employment
and recreation" 1t also denounced
restrictive covenants, which limit
areas in which minority groups can
live.a
Urges Fight on Prejudice.
1t urged Methodists to fight
against "the injection of class and
race prejudice in community prob
lens and in State and national
political campaigns" A Nation wide
attack on all aspects of racial dis
elimination by members of the
denomination was advocated by the
commission, which noted that Meth
odist churches in America include
340,202 Negroes, 5000 American In
dianS, 5,768 japanese, 637 Chinese
and $50 Koreans.
Proceedings of the conference
today, following a communion serv-
ice in historic Trinity Episcopal
Church, were chiefly devoted to the
recognition of delegates and the
setting up of convention committees
A total of 377 laymen and 377 min
listers representing approximately
100000 Methodists in the United
States and 40 countries overseas
were present when Bishop Paul
Bentley Kern of Nashville, Tenn.
president of the Council of Bishops
called the meeting to order this
morning.
1 A demand to place "laymen in
some Of the key positions in this
conference and the annual con-
ferenceS' by Chester A. Smith OF
Peekskill, N. Y. caused a momen-
tary stir in the convention hall this
morning.
Seeks Layman on Staff.
Mr.. Smith, seconding the nomi-
nation of Lud H. Estes of Dyers-
burg, Tenn, as secretary of the
general conference. told the gather
ing in the past "the laity simply
sit back and pay the bills-and
sometimes simply sit back. I would
like to see laymen share the chair
manShip of the committees and also
preside over the conference. I send
the nomination of DR.. Estes with
the request that he place on his
staff a layman and train him so
he can accept the secretaryship four
years from now"
Sixty-six bishops. including 18 re-
tired bishops and II from overseas
will have seats of honor on the plat
form at the conference. They may
not vote, however, at the meeting
of the legislative and policy-making
body of the denomination.
Bishop Charles Wesley Flint oil
the Washington area and retired
Bishop Edwin Holt Hughes are
among the Washington delegates al
the conference. Others include D
Stewart Patterson, Mrs. Joy Elmer
Morgan, DR.. Frederick Brown Har.
ris, DR.. Horace E. Cromer, DR.. Oris
G. Robinson, D. Robert Moter