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TWO DOLLARS AND FIFTY CENTS.
PER IST ISTUIvI.
VOLUME XLI., NO. 4.
(Driqhd |!octi|.
ON IIEAKING V SEMI-UENTENNIAL
SKIOION 12TII DKCKMBF.R, 1*77.
Fifty years of hopes and fears.
Fit*/ ye >rs of watching, weeping.
Fifty ye: rs of prayers and tears.
Fifty yr' of sowing, reaping!
oh ! how long how long ago,
since they celled thee “the boy preacher.”
Sir-ee, when, in life's morning glow.
Mod did send thee, forth, a teacher
Of iii blessed g 'pel truth
Tbou, by word -and actions, showing.
Though, thou in thy verdant youth,
y r thy St *♦. that *ru!h wast knowing.
Thy ? '-i t hair of sunny brown—
Round thy neck in clusters curling;
On thy iir, youth’ silken down
When thoi; v ast the flag unfurling.
That same flag, that to this day,
\V !tii unwearied /.aal thou’rt waviug,
Now, thy head w’.th years is grey.
The battle and the breeze that’s braving.
With the lire of ardent youth,
Thou donned, nil!, thy proven armor.
To contend for God’s own truth.
With zeal, with ago that grows the warmer.
Hug old the Lainb! Boh dd tho Lamb!
With undiu.inished power, still, crying
Wuile trusting, that most precious Name
i.e even gasped, by thee, in dying.
Go on for a little while
Longer, proclaim tho cro's’s story;
77- l a, re-*t from thy care and *oi!^.
77m ,i, t ru er tire pearl-gates of glory.
Then draw near the Great white Throne,
1 <i bio ti wa hod robes, all white and shining.
Thy Lord n i l haii thee, as his own.
At his right hand thy place assigning.
On thy head he’ll place a crown.
With thousand thousand stars resplendent,
Tho saved by thee—then down,
AViih thousand saints on Him attendant.
Thoul’t bow before his feet, and cry,
"Glory, forever and fore , or.
To Him who rules and reigns on high !”
Of glory, and of grace the giver.
■rv c&santzamk ..
Contributions.
SUGGESTIONS FOlt PRESERVING THE
PC KIT V A.\l I SITV OK EPISCOPAL SETHOOISK.
The unparalleled success of Methodism
here has been the wonder oi all. In a little
over one hundred years, it has numbered its
convert- by millions. This result has been
due to its doctrines, its usages, and its itine
rancy; to the inspired zeal of its preachers,
and the holy liviug of its members. Its doc
trines, usages, an ! itinerancy have demon
strated their scriptural authority and won
derful adaptation to the whole work of evan
gelism ; ihe zeal and purity of its ministry
and lai'y have attested that, from the begin
ning, it has had the divine sanction. .1 edged
by its converts to the cross of Christ —their
numbers, their station in life, their conse
oration to Got, their devotedness to Christ
and the Church their love for souls, their
mi-si mar,' tire, and their zeal to preach the
gospel to the poor and bear the glad tidings
of salvation “into the regions beyond' I —it.
has proved Us heavenly birth, its apostolic
mi-sion, it a peutecostal power, and its right
to be considered the most efficient organized
means ordained ot God for the conversion of
§ottlJtertf Cferisllii IMiwafe*
Let thereby an Ecumenical Conference —
using the word Ecumenical for distinction
sake—composed of an equal number of del
egates from the respective General Confer
ences, to be presided over by the Bishops of
the respective General Conferences who shall
be, ex officio, members of the Ecumenical
Conference-
Let the Ecumenical Conference have origi
nal jurisdiction over all questions affecting
our Articles of Religion, General Superin
tendency, Itinerancy, and General Kules.
Let it have no power to revoke, alter, or
change, our Articles of Religion. And be
fore any change can be made in our General
Superintendency, Itinerancy, and General
Rules, such change must originate in, and
pass, the Ecumenical Conference by a two
thir fa vote, and afterwards be confirmed by
ail the General Conferences.
Let the General Conferences be held, the
same year, quadrennially; and let the Ecu
menical Conference be held quadrennially
the year before the sessions of the General
Conferences.
Let the Ecumenical Conference have ex
clusive jurisdiction over all Foreign Mis
sions ; and let it assess the sums to be raised
for Foreign Missions upon the Geneial Con
ferences.
Let the Board of Foreign Missions, elected
by the Ecumenical Conference, beot an equal
number from the respective General Con
ferences.
Let the secretary, or secretaries, of For
eign Missions be elected by the Ecumenical
Conference quadrennially ; and let the sec
retaries be ex officio, members of the Board,
Let there be but one Book Concern, wilh
as many Branches, or Depositories, as the
Ecumenical Conference may determine,
there being, at least, one Branch, or Depos
itory, for each General Conference ; and let
the Ecumenical Conference have exclusive
jurisdiction over the Book Concern and its
Branches.
Let the Book Editor, and the Agent, or
Agents of the Publishing House, and those
of its Branches, be elected quadrennially by
the Ecumenical Conference; and let the
Book Editor, and the Agents of the Book
Concern be, ex officio, members of the Pub
lishing House Board.
Let the Board of, the Publishing House,
and the Boards of the respective Branches,
be elected quadrennially by the Ecumenical
Conference.
Let the Board of the Publishing House be
composed of an equal number from the re
spective General C inferences
Let the Boards of the respective Branches
be taken from the respective General Con
ferences in which the said Branches are lo
cated.
I, tno book be published by the Book
Concern, or its Branches, with the imprima
tur of the Ecumenical Conference, unless it
has been approved by the Board of the Book
Concern.
Let the profits of the Book Concern and
its Branches be appropriated as the Ecumen
ical Conference, by a two-thirds vote, may
direct.
Let there be but one Hymn Book for all,
said Hymn Book to be prepared and adopted
by a commission appointed by the Ecumeni
PUBLISHED BY J. W. BURKE & COMPANY, FOR THE METHODIST EPISCOPAL CHURCH, SOUTH.
FILLS IN PROSE AND POETRY.—So
“ Liberal Views.”
The world has had its various ages—the
golden—the iron, and the brazen. What
shall we term this in respect of religion and
theology. It. seems to be an amalgam of all
the others, with the brazen element predomi
nating. It is the composite, or pudding
stone age. It is the India rubber age of free
thought and latitudinarianism. “Free con
science and thinkers’ rights” is the motto
now. “ Liberal Views!” How this caption
at the head of a religious article captivates
the eye! 1 confess I rather like it I like
freedom— freedom in capitals. It’s a capi
tal idea freedom from oppression aud
tyranny. How the nations have fought
for it! Our pilgrim and puritan fathers (
fought and bad for it. The angels in Hea
ven fought for it, according to Milton.
Adam and Eve wanted more of it. Israel
wanted jnore of it in the wilderness,
when they worshipped the golden calf. Free
dom of thought and conscience! Luther
and John Knox suffered for it. The martyrs
died for it, and “the blood of the martyrs is
the seed of the Church.” And now we reap
the harvest. Glorious liberty! It is the
heritage of the present age. How the world
revek in it! We have its saturnalia —its
jubilee—its grand culmination upon us.
“Westward the star of liberty makes its
way.” All hail freedom of thought! We
take off our hat and say—“all hail, glorious
godlike reason, and sublime science! Avaunt
—to the rear—faith and the Old Fashioned
Bible! li-etieat ye hosts of the Lord, and
the noble army of patriarchs, prophets, and
apostles, and your Master the Captain of our
salvation and the Teacher sent from God, as
He is vainly called 1 Away with Him 1 Bring
forth not “the royal diadem” to crown Him
Lord—but the crown of thorns, and the reed,
and the mock robe3, and the cross; —is not
this the carpenter’s son ? Is He “the way —
the truth—and the life?” Fie upon it!
Doctrines of Christ! what are they but dog
mas and fables ? Fundamental truths ? Bah—
intolc-rubie —fundamental trash! Orthodoxy?
Is that “the faith once delivered to the
saints?” let it be delivered to the winds—
the waves—the flames! Lift up your heads
ye everlasting doora, and iet free thought,
aud philosophy, and reason, come in! Be
thou exalted ch science, and be thou en
throned oh philosophy, and be thou deified
oh reason! and speak thou unto ns, oh great
oracle! and heed not those who persecute
thee, saying—“Reason run mad—sacrile
gious and profane!” Say and keep saying—
“l do swear by the Lord Jesus Christ—by
His groans—by His tears of agony —by the
wounds in His side that it is impossible,”
that they have gone to hell. “That kind of a
heaven, with such a demoniac head, is a kind
of heaven I do not want.”
Lift up your heads ye scientists, on the
one hand, and deny the existence of a spirit
ual God, and of a spiritual immaterial soul,
because forsooth by the scalpel, and the
crucible, and electrode, and chemical analy
sis, you have never found the subtle essence;
and you rationalists, on the other hand, scout
the doctrine of a material —-local hel!—give
it a name, but no local habitation —let it have
only a name — ”stat umbra nominis Let
MACON, GEORGIA, TUESDAY, JANUARY 29, 1878.
prospect ot damnation for the wicked is an
alarming one, and they clutch at any straw
that gives them a hope of escape from it. ’
How can he write so! Who’s afraid? Hell’?
a chimera —a myth—a parable—a fable ! It
anybody doubts it read Math. xiii. 36, 42:
47, 50: and Math. v. 21, 30. True, Christ
was preaching a sermon but he told fables in
sermons, and here he interprets fables by
fable s, of course, and not by matters of fact.
It is folly to be afraid of fables. As for me \
am not afraid, for “I do swear” —I am on the
side of the biggest Canon, (cannon) as Napo
leon said of Providence and the biggest armies.
I am for Paul —for Jesus Christ, oh no —I
mean I am for free thought, Farrar, and
Frothingham. lam for progress and science
and “the march of intellect”—for “Liberal
Views”—“Free conscience and thinker’s
rights”—for expansion and India rubber.
Hitherto my theology has found expression
in this sentiment —“we are the circumcision
who worship God, rejoice in Jesus Christ,
and have no confidence in the flesh”—in
Paul, Peter, Apollos, or anybody else’s flesh;
but now if you please, I am with all heretical
sinners falsely so called; lam for “the world
and the flesh,” and against hell, and the
devil. lam now “rectus in curia,” and let
it be written of on the docket of the
Church “ retraxit /” And now if ybu would
know in further on this subject;
Mr. Editor, —here they are in verse —
THERE’S NO HELL.
BY W. P. R.
What’s the matter in Westminster?
Orthodox’s doom and knell!
Canon Farrar's turned against her—
Hark his thunders roll and swell! 4
Canon must surely convince her —
There’s no hell.
Hark the echo—fear and wonder !
Beecher’s cannon-shoLs must tell;
Beecher never makes a blunder,
Brooklyn loves the powder well;
There's no sulphur in his thunder—
There’s no hell.
Let flie little guns surrender !
Who can those great guns excel ?
Orthodoxy! who’ll defend her—
Who will ring her tocsin-hell ?
For despite all aid you lend her —
There’s no hell.
Preachers, talk no more of battle—
Yield the ground—no more rebel!
With your email arms’ idle rattle,
You can ne’er the foe repel;
Cease your preaching and your tattle
Of a hell!
Idle dogma!—wise men know it.
Though the priest may ring it out;
Progress and free thought will blow it,
"Higher than a kite”—no doubt!
Yes we know it—blow it—blow it!
Hell’s burnt out!
Oh ye Churches—cease your braying—
Founding sin as with a mall!
There’s no use of preaching—praying.
There’s no hell for sin at all ;
Oh believe the gospel—saying
•Heaven’s for all!”
Shout ye long deluded sinners !
Scout all laws and all police !
Sinners are the only winners—
Let all fears of judgment cease !
Plunge in crime ye young beginners—
All is peace!
Sing ye sinners of the nation !
C.itthroat?, robbers, debauchees.
Ghouls of human incarnation,
Burn and kill—do what you please !
| JleaUacgf, UvsnenGnHi- -....H
some learned men to prepare anew revi
-visionof the Bible, which, divided into chap
ters and verses, is called the Bishop’s Bible.
In thirty years it was printed in as many
editions.
Kinq; James’, or the English Bible, now in
coin mo i use, was decided upon at the Hamp
ton Court Conference in ]i>o:> and printed in
1611. The 47 learned men who made the
revision, had before them all the former
translations, as well as the original Hebrew
and Greek, from which to make the revision.
The main design was to have a Bible without
“ note or comment, and to correct the or
thography to correspond with the improve
ment of the language.
The Bible we have cost not only the life of
the Son of God, but the life-long toil of many
of the greatest minds the world ever pro
duced, and cost the lives of many not men
tianed in this brief history. How then should
we apprecia’e the Bible in the English lan
guage—our present version ?
New nan, Ca. W. A. Parks.
FOUR CATECHISMS, AND FOUR BOOKS
of ixsmiiruK.
Thisis an age of book making. The Church
in this respect is doing but little for the per
manent enlightment of either her ministry
or membership. Our Sunday-school method
of instruction is not satisfactory. Our the
ology costs more than the masses of the peo
ple are able to purchase—Wesley’s Sermons;
Clark’s, Benson’s, and Summers' Commen
taries, Watson’s Institutes, Watson’s Dic
tionary, Fletcher’s works, etc. Our young
preachers have not the means to buy, nor
the time to read so many books ; and besides
all this, no man can obtain from our stand
ard writings a clear and well defined idea of
the real doctrines of the Methodist Church,
as believed and preached by the men of
tiiought of this day. Mr. Wesley was to the
Christian Church what Moses was to the
Abrahamic Church. Mo3cs led the people
where they could see the promised inheri
tance; Mr. Wesley saw, and in doctrine and
spirit entered in, but if he had attempted to
c.-rry his Societies fully over into Meth
odism, they would have remodeled the old
Ojilvinistic calf, and all gone back to Egypt,
oil'd left Mr. Wesley to possess the goodly
laud alone. The great distinctive doctrines
of Methodism are now clearly taught, and
understood, by the more enlightened part of
the ministry. The universality of the Atone
ment, the possibility of the salvation of all
m .n, the conscious freedom of the soul, and
personal holiness, are our great distinctive
doctrines. It is true these fundamental doc
trines are taught in our standards, but much
obscured by the old leaven of Geneva—origi
nal am, effectual calling, and imputed right
eousness, etc.
We want four catechisms, setting forth in
a simple, but clear light, our doctrines.—
There esn be no permanent instruction of
children without catechisms. We have good
catechisms, but we want a properly digested
series. Then the pastor of the Church could
instruct the children of his
charge. For instance: A is a member of
the Church, of catechism No. 1,- B. is a
member of the Church, of catechism No. 2,
etc. If such a series of catechisms were
| ' v >>[, gmfgafae Chnrch, private families,
affliction; and finally, in the agonies of
death he was not disappointed. We found
him calm, recollected, peaceful.
He commissioned the writer to bear to his
brethren the last messages of his undying
affection: “ When my name is called, tell
the brethren I thought of them and prayed
for them.”
On ihe 17th of October he became worse,
and it was evident that the catastrophe had
at last come. He was ready, and in the
midst of his family and friends tell asleep
in Jesus. The beautiful lines of Sir Walter
Scott describe the character of this good
man :
Far may we search before we find
A heart so manly and so kind ;
But not around his honored urn,
Do friends alone, and kindred, mourn;
The thousand eyes his care has dried
Pour at his name a bitter tide:
And frequent falls the grateful dew
For benefits the world ne’er knew.
If mortal charity dare claim
The Almighty’s attributed name—
Then write above his mouldering clay
“ The widow's shield, the orphan’s stay.”
[We have deeply regretted that, by some
accident, this memoir failed to reach us in
connection with the rest of the report of the
Committee.—Ed.]
OUR PASTOR.
I do not propose, in thiß short article, to
discuss the many duties connected with the
pastorate, but would speak rather of the ob
ligations resting upon the members of each
charge.
Success depends upon uuity of action.
Where this element is lacking there is al
ways more or less friction, and little Chris
tian progress. Each member of the Church
militant- must, in order to maintain an un
impeachable character, colabor with his pas
tor in the great work of saving souls. Deity
demands, on the part of every convert, visi
bilily. A demonstrative Christianity, whose
exhibit is good works, is the demand of the
nineteen!h century, and is the only true
y/angelist. The great work to which the
Church is called requires all her zeal, ener
gy, ability. Prosperity at home, spiritual
vigor, and an aggressive spirit, are essential
to life abroad. The power of the Church as
an evangelistJs measured by these, and her
inefficiency may always be traced to their
absence.
The relationships that exist in the Church,
and the reciprocal duties evolved therefrom
are by Diviue appointment. The individual
that ignores these severs his connection
with God'B Church, comes in distinct an
tagonism with the gospel of Christ, and for
feits his privilege as a disciple. The heralds
of the Cross are human. Our pastor needs
the sympathy, prayers, love, and support of
his entire charge. If these are withheld, his
hands droop, his usefulness is circumscribed,
and the enemy prevails.
“Be ye fed and be ye clothed" constitutes
no part of the Christian religion, but is char
scteristic of antichrist. Our pastor must be
supported. The Divine Legislator declares
this truth when He asserts “the laborer
is worthy of his hire.” Deity measures the
capacity of all his creatures, and the standard
to which each individual must attain, or suf
fer loss, is the limit of pergonal ability. Out-
CONSECRATION.
Illustrated from the Bible. Verses by Francis Rid
ley Haver gal.
BY A. L. HYDE.
Take my life, and let it be
Consecrated, Lord, to Thee.
But none of these things move me;
neither count I my life dear unto my
self. so tbat I might finish my course
with Joy.—Acts xx. 24.
Take my moments and my days.
Let them flow in ceaseless praise.
In holiness and righteousness be
fore Him all the days of our life.—
Luke i. 75.
Take roy bands, and let them move
At the impulse of thy love.
Let him labor, working with his
hands the thing which is good, that
he may have to givo to him that
needeth.—itphesians iv. 28.
Take my feet, and let them be
Swift and “beautiful” for Thee.
How beautiful upon tho moun
tains are the feet of him tbat bring
eth good tidings, that publisheth
peace.—lsaiah lii. 7.
Take my voice, and let me sing
Always, only, for my King.
Speaking to yourselves in psalms
and hymns and spiritual songs, sing
ing and making melody in your
heart unto the Lord.—Eph. v. 19.
Take my lips, and let them be
Filled with messages from Thee.
By Him, therefore, let, us offer the
sacrifice of praise to God contin
ually—that is, the fruit of our lips,
giving thanks to His name.—Heb.
xiii. 16.
Take my Bilver and my gold;
Not a mite would I withhold.
But all tho silver and gold are
consecrated unto the Lord, they
shall come into the treasury of the
Lord. —Joshua vi. 19.
Take my intellect, and use
Every power as Thou shalt choose.
Thou shall love the Lord thy God
with all thy heart, and with all thy
sou), and with all thy mind.—Matt,
xx. 37.
Take my will, and make it Thine;
It shall be no longer mine.
Not my will, hut Thine he done.
—Luke xxii, 42.
Take my heart, it is Thy own;
It shall be Thy royal throne.
That Christ may dwell in your
hearts by faith.—Eph. iii. 17.
Take my love, my Lord, I pour
At Thy feet its treasure store.
Whom having not seen ye loye.—
I. Pet. i. 8.
We loved Him because He first
loved us.—John iv. 19.
Take myself, and I will he
Ever, only, all for Thee
And the very God of peace sanc
tify you wholly; and I pray God
your whole spirit and soul and body
be preserved blameless unto the
coming of our Lord Jesus Christ.—
I Thess. v. 23.
—Christian at Work.
Condensed from National Sunday-school Teacher.
INTERNATIONAL LESSONS.
February 3,1878 —Jehoshaphat Reproved.
2 Chron. xix: 1-9.
Golden Text. —“ There is no iniquity
with the Lord our Cod, nor respect of per
sons, nor taking of gifts.” — 7.
Topic.—“ Thus shall ye do, in the fear of
the Lord, faithfully, and with a perfect
heart.”
Home Readings. —Monday,Deut. i: 1-17—
The Judgmentis God’s; Tuesday, Cos), iii: 1-
17—Do all in Jesus’ Name ; Wednesday, 1
Cor. x: 1-31—Do all to God’s Glory;
Thursday, Rom. 14: 1-23—We Live unto
the Lord ; Friday, 1 Pet. iv: 1-19—That God
may he Glorified ; Saturday, 2 Cor. v: 1-17
—Live unto Christ;Sunday, Eph. ii: 1-22
Created unto Good Work.
Time. —B. C. 897. Place. —Jerusalem,
and kingdom of Jndah. Rulers.—Jehosh
aphat, king of Judah; Ahaziah, king of Is
rael.
NOTES AND COMMENTS.
The King Reproved (1-3). —There are,
I , r ° five years—no young lady ~aic us to go’
will dupiic.il.e it ? One
F. M. KENNEDY, D. D., Editor
J. W. BURKE, Assistant Editor
A. G. HAYGOOD, D. Editorial Correspondent
WHOLE NUMBER 2086.
sential part of, oor lesson. We now look at
the reproof that these facts brought upon the
king. 1. We note the time when it was ad
ministered. It was when the king returned
to his house in peace. By that, two things
are probably meant: Ist. That he returned
unharmed, and, 2d, that the Syrian king did
not take advantage of his victory to pursue
him. It was when he was coming back from
the signal defeat that the two kings had suf
fered lhat Jehu met him. Jehoshaphat then
must have been suffering no ordinary humil
iation. Very probably he was pondering
over all the facts, and very likely, too, he
was realizing his error. It was when he was
in such a state of mind that Jehu appeared
before him. 2. We call attention to the
fearlessness of the reproof. It was probably
the father oi Jehu whom Asa put into a pris •
on because of his faithfulness in rebuking
him. xvi: 7-10. And, therefore, Jehu must
have known that it was dangerous to reprove
a king, even though he was a true servant
of the Lord. 3. Next mark its character.
“Shouldest thou help the ungodly, and love
them that hate the Lord ? It is only a cer
tain kind of help and a certain kind of love
that is here reprobated. The Scriptures
nowhere condemn, and, indeed, everywhere
commend those who help even the ungodly,
when they are in trouble and need help. The
good Samaritan did not stop to enquire
whether the man whom he succored was a
good man or a bad one. But helping them
in distress is a very different thing from aid
ing them to be more prosperous and, so,
strengthening them in their evil doing.
4. Next is the sentence. “Therefore is
wrath upon thee from before the Lord.” If
Jehoshaphat had had any doubts of the oc
casion of his defeat, that explanation of it
dispelled them. The Lord had fought against
him. But it wbb not only an explanation of
his defeat, but, also, a hint of coming pun
ishment, of which the invasion of Moah was
the first realization. 6. Lastly note the com
mendation. “Nevertheless there are good
things found in thee." God is tender as
well as severe. He will insert the probe no
deeper than is actually uecessary. When he
wounds, if we are only contrite of spirit, we
will feel the balm immediately applied. And
that fact shows that Jehoshaphat hud meek
ly received the reproof. Ifhe had been in
a hard and rebellious mood, those graciouß
and comforting words would never have
been spoken. And another thing that this
shows is the fact that God keeps a fair re
cord of our deeds, even according to human
ways of thinking. We obtain credit with
him for all tbat we do that is right, and it is
not overshadowed, or blotted out, by tbat
which we do that is wrong. We do little
enough that is good, but all that we do ac
complish is always placed to our credit. And
it was high commendation for Jehoshaphat
when the prophet could say that he had
taken the groves out of the land, and had
prepared his heart to seek the Lord.
The People Reclaimed (4.) —After this
rebuke, he set himself to work more sedu
lously than ever to establish the kingdom in
the hand of the Lord. That fact shows the
excellency of his spirit. He tried to make
up for his error abroad by greater effort at
home. He became an evangelist, and “went
out again through the people, from Baereheba
to Mount Ephraim, and brought them back
to the Lord God of their fathers.” From
the expression, “he went out again," it is
inferred that he went out with the same
commission of instruction which had gone
throngh the land once before. Addressing
Himself to this taßk thus thoroughly and
zealously, we are not surprised at the result
—he “brought them back unto the Lord
God of their fathers.”
The Judiciary Reformed (5-9). —In his
next act, we have additional evididence that
Jehoaaphat was not a man of piety merely,
but was a man of breadth and of statesman
ship as well. He saw that if he would have
an upright people, he must have an upright
judiciaiy. It is poor encouragement for men
to be honest whan knavery receives a pre
the hands of justice. The fountains
Fwice must be pure. The courts in Ju
; ft.it have been quite corrupt. Aside
the charge given by
judges,
worship
Ji-