twenty or more individuals, who meet once | ties as a preacher, he is authorized to a week for mutual edification. These classes are the real normal schools, if we may so speak, of the Methodist Church. 3. The minister, under whose pastoral care the classes in a society are placed, appoints a leader to each, whose duty is to see every member of his class once a week, to inquire how their souls prosper, and to receive what they are willing to give for the support of the church and the poor. 4. Stewards are appointed in each society by the Quarterly Conference, on the nomination of the ruling preacher. These have charge of all the moneys collected for the support of the ministry, the poor, and for sacramental occasions, and disburse it as the Discipline directs. solemnize marriages, to administer Baptism, and to assist the elder or presbyter in the administration of the Lord's Supper. 9. An elder, in addition to these functions, is authorized to administer all the ordinances of God's house. 10. A presiding elder has the charge of several circuits, collectively called a district. It is his duty to visit each circuit once a quarter, to preach and administer the ordinances, to convene the travelling and local preachers, exhorters, stewards, and leaders of the circuit for a Quarterly Conference, and in the absence of a bishop, to receive, try, suspend, or expel preachers, as the Discipline directs. He is appointed to his charge by the bishop, who may, for the time being, have a special oversight of the Annual Conference in which he is placed. This office arose from the necessity of always having someone to administer the ordinances through 5. There are trustees, who have charge of the church property, and hold it in trust for the use of the Methodist Episcopal Church. These are elected by the congregation in those states where the laws so provide; in other places they are appointed as the Dis-out the circuits, for it often happens that cipline directs. 6. There are, in most societies, exhorters, who receive their license from the preacher in charge; but this license cannot be renewed except by a vote of the Quarterly Meeting Conference; they have the privilege of holding meetings for exhortation and prayer. the travelling preachers, from their not having received ordination as elders, cannot administer the Lord's Supper; nor even Baptism, if they are not deacons. 11. A bishop is elected by the General Conference, to which body he is amenable for his official and moral conduct. It is. his duty to travel through the country, to superintend the spiritual and temporal affairs of the Church, to preside in the Annual and the General Conference, to ordain such as are elected by an Annual Conference to the office of deacons and elders, and to appoint the preachers to their stations. As there are several bishops, they usually divide the country among them, each having his own field, and all meeting at the General Conference. The episcopacy in this church is, however, an office, not an order. 7. A preacher is one who holds a license to preach, but may not administer the sacraments. He may be a travelling or a local preacher. The former devotes his whole time to the ministry, and is supported by those among whom he labours; the latter generally supports himself by some secular employment, and preaches on the Sabbath, as well as occasionally at other times, but without temporal emolument. Both receive a license, signed by a presiding elder, from a Quarterly Meeting Conference, after being recommended each by 12. A leaders' meeting is composed of all his respective class, or by a leader's meet- the class leaders in any one circuit or sta-ing. Thus the people, in those nurseries tion, under the presidency of the preacher of the Church-the "classes" and "lead-placed in charge of that circuit or station. ers' meetings"-have the initiative in bringing forward those who are to preach the Gospel. After this license from a Quarterly Meeting Conference, they may be taken into the travelling service by an Annual Conference; after two years spent in which, and pursuing at the same time a prescribed course of reading and study, they may be ordained as deacons. Then, after two years' circuit travelling as deacons, and pursuing a farther course of reading and study, they may be ordained presbyters or elders. Such is the training for the ministry in the Methodist Episcopal Church, and it is much more efficient than persons not well acquainted with it would suppose. 8. A deacon holds a parchment of ordination from a bishop, and besides his du Here the weekly class collections are paid. into the hands of the stewards, and inquiry is made into the state of the classes, delinquents reported, and inquiries made as to the sick and poor. 13. A quarterly meeting conference is composed of all the travelling and local preachers, exhorters, stewards, and leaders belonging to any particular station or circuit, under the presidency of the circuit elder, or, in his absence, of the preacher who takes charge in his place. Here local preachers are licensed, the licenses of exhorters annually renewed, and preachers recommended to an Annual Conference to be received into the travelling ministry; appeals are likewise heard from any dissatisfied member against the decision of a committee of the society to which he belongs. This body performs, therefore, a most important part in the whole system. 14. An annual conference is composed of all the travelling preachers, deacons, and elders within a specified district of country. These are the executive and judicial bodies, acting under rules prescribed to them by the General Conference. Here the characters and conduct of all the travelling preachers within the bounds of the conference are examined yearly; applicants for admission into the travelling ministry, if accounted worthy, are received, continued on trial, or dropped, as the case may be; appeals from local preachers, which may be presented, are heard and decided; and persons fit for ordination, as deacons or elders, are elected. An annual conference possesses original jurisdiction over all its members, and may therefore try, acquit, suspend, expel, or locate any of them, as the Discipline in such cases provides. the family of each married preacher on their circuit or station, and also to grant an allowance for their fuel and table expenses, which is estimated by a committee appointed by the Quarterly Meeting Conference. In these respects there is no difference between the preachers, deacons, elders, presiding elders, and bishops-all receive the same salaries; all have their travelling expenses. The widows of all the ministers receive 100 dollars each. The above is the provision fixed by the General Conference; but we believe that in many circuits the collections, &c., do not fully meet it. Such is an outline of the Methodist Episcopal Church in the United States, and it is as minute as a work like this could admit. Since its organization in 1784, though not without its share of difficulties, its career, upon the whole, has been remarkably prosperous, and God has enabled it to overcome every hinderance with wonderful success. We have seen the numerical amount of its ministers and members sixty years ago; in 1843 it was as follows: 6 Bishops, 32 annual conferences. 3,988 Travelling ministers, who devote themselves entirely to the ministry. 7,730 Local preachers, assisting the regular travelling ministers with frequent preaching. 1,068,525 Communicants. 15. The General Conference assembles once in four years, and is composed of a certain number of delegates, elected by the annual conferences. It has the power to revise any part of the Discipline not prohibited by restrictive regulations; to elect the book agents and editors, and the bishops; to hear and determine appeals of preachers from the decision of annual con- And the probable proportion of the comferences; to review the acts of those con-munity under the influence of this church's ferences generally; to examine into the ministry, that is, who attend its preaching, general administration of the bishops for as stated by Bishop Soule before the Britthe four preceding years; and to try, cen- ish Conference in August,1842, is 5,000,000. sure, acquit, or condemn a bishop if ac- Surely we may well exclaim, "What hath cused. This is the highest judicatory of God wrought!" It covers the whole land the church. with its network system of stations and circuits, and carries the Gospel into thousands of the most remote as well as the most secluded and thinly-peopled neighbourhoods. 16. A love-feast is a meeting of the members of a society, held occasionally, in which they partake of a simple repast of bread and water, during an hour, at which such as are disposed relate what God has done for their souls. These meetings were instituted by Mr. Wesley, as a sort of resuscitation of the Ayana (Agape) of the ancient church. Their object is to make the members better acquainted with each other, and promote brotherly love and mutual edification. 17. The salaries of the ministers are raised by various collections in the societies, and also in public meetings. Provision is made for aged and infirm ministers who have continued to exercise the duties of the ministry until incapable of farther service. Omitting unnecessary details, I need only say that each travelling minister receives at present 100 dollars a year for himself, the same sum for his wife, if he has one, sixteen dollars a year for each child under seven years of age, and twenty-four for those above that and under fourteen years. Besides, the stewards of each circuit and station are directed to provide a "parsonage," or house of residence, for This denomination has made great exertions to increase the number of its church edifices within the last few years. But its itinerating ministers preach in thousands of places where no such buildings are yet erected, or at least none belonging to that denomination. In these cases they hold their meetings in schoolhouses, courthouses, and private houses. No American Christian who takes a comprehensive view of the progress of religion in his country, and considers how wonderfully the means and instrumentalities employed are adapted to the extent and the wants of that country, can hesitate for a moment to bless God for having, in his mercy, provided them all. Nor will he fail to recognise in the Methodist economy, as well as in the zeal, the devoted piety, and the efficiency of its ministry, one of the most powerful elements in the religious prosperity of the United States, as well as one of the firmest pillars of their civil and political institutions. We have already spoken of the Home | that is Episcopal, in the usual acceptation Missions, the Tract, Book,* and Sunday- of that word. They claim descent, as is school operations of this church. In an- well known, from the ancient churches of other place we shall have occasion to say Moravia and Bulgaria, founded by Methowhat it is doing in the cause of Foreign dus and Cyrillus, two Greek monks. NotMissions. withstanding repeated persecutions from the Roman Catholics, some remains of these churches survived in Bohemia and Moravia as late as 1722, when a party of them fled for refuge from continued vexation in Moravia to the estates of Nicholas Lewis, Count of Zinzendorf, in Upper Lusatia, and there they founded Herrnhut. Their protector, some years after that, became one of their bishops, and laboured most zealously for more than twenty years in the cause of God, by forming societies of the United Brethren. While on a visit to America, in 1741, he took part in founding a mission among the Indians, and greatly contributed to the establishment of several settlements for those of the Brethren who might choose to emigrate thither. Such was the origin of the pleasant villages of Bethlehem, Nazareth, and Litiz, in Pennsylvania, and Salem in North Carolina. Moravian families, meanwhile, settled, and formed societies in Philadelphia, New-York, and several other places. The Methodist Episcopal Church was long reproached with neglecting to promote learning among its ministers, and it was charged even with having no wish that its ministry should be learned. There was, apparently, some truth in this; for, though its influential and enlightened members were never opposed to learning, they had a well-founded dread of a learned but unconverted ministry. Yet they attempted even, at an early period of their Church's history, to found seminaries for education. Among these there was a college in Maryland, which flourished from 1787 to 1795, when the building was burned down. A second was attempted at Baltimore; but there, too, the college building was burned, and a church that adjoined it shared the same fate. These calamities, involving a loss of about 90,000 dollars, had a discouraging effect for a time; but for some years past the Episcopal Methodists have shown a noble desire to promote the education of young men for the ministry, and other walks of life in which they may advance the cause of Christ. In order to this, they have founded no fewer than twenty-one academic institutions, besides eleven colleges, two of which are called universities, and these fountains of knowledge God is blessing by shedding upon them the influence of his grace. No fewer than four religious newspapers are published under the auspices of the General Conference, and four more under those of annual conferences, besides others that are edited and owned by individuals of that body. These journals must have a vast circulation in the aggregate. Having concluded our notices of the five larger evangelical denominations, we shall now proceed with the smaller in the same order, and thus associate them with the respective families of churches to which they more properly belong. CHAPTER VII. THE MORAVIAN CHURCH. THE United Brethren, or, as they are more familiarly called, the Moravians, form the only one of the smaller evangelical denominations in the United States The "Book Concern" of this church is established in New-York, and is carried on by agents and editors appointed by the General Conference. It is conducted with great energy. The peculiar economy of the United Brethren is too widely known to require any notice of it here. Their settlements in America are the same abodes of order, provident regard for the morals of the young, and for the comfort of the aged, of cheerful industry, and pleasant social life, enlivened by the sweet strains of music, and, withal, of that deep interest in missions, which characterize their settlements in the Old World. It may be said, perhaps, that too much worldly prosperity has been to them, as to many other Christians, a hinderance to their piety. They maintain flourishing boardingschools for girls at Bethlehem, Litiz, and Salem, and one for boys at Nazareth, where, also, their young men preparing for the ministry commonly pursue their studies. The Moravian missions among the Indians within the boundaries of the United States are mainly supported, as well as directed, by their congregations in that country.* Their doctrines coincide, in the main, with those of the Augsburg Confession. The number of their churches and congregations in the United States is twenty-three; of their ministers, twenty-seven; of their communicants, about 3000; and the entire population under their instruction is about 12,000 souls. * An interesting historical sketch of these missions will be found in Mr. J. C. Latrobe's "Rambles in North America." CHAPTER VIII. SMALLER BAPTIST DENOMINATIONS. THERE are a few Baptist denominations in the United States not usually included with the Regular Baptists noticed in Chapter IV. They are as follows: endeavouring to regain a sound orthodox position. Some of them have come to see that creeds are unavoidable, and had better be definitely expressed in writing than merely understood. They have accordingly introduced creeds, and, in some instances, even written articles in the form of a constitution. This augurs well. Their church government, like that of all the Regular Baptists, is vested primarily in the churches, or assemblages of believers convened for worship. These send delegates to quarterly meetings, the quarterly meetings to the yearly meetings, and these, again, to the general conference. The office-bearers in their churches are elders and deacons. The former are ordained jointly by the church to which they belong, and by the quarterly meeting acting by a council. Each quarterly and yearly 1. THE SEVENTH DAY BAPTISTS-who have fifty-nine churches, forty-six ordained ministers, twenty-three licentiates, and 6077 members. The population under their instruction and influence is reckoned at about 35,000. They are quite evangelical in the doctrines that relate to the way of salvation, and are in good repute for piety and zeal. They differ from the Regular Baptists as to the day to be observed as the Christian Sabbath, maintaining, in opposition to these, that the seventh day was not only the Sabbath originally appointed by the Creator, but that that appointment re-meeting has an elders' conference, which, mains unrepealed. Their churches are widely scattered throughout the States. There are four in New-Jersey,* twenty-nine in New-York, six in Ohio, eight in Rhode Island, and four in Virginia, and eight in other parts of the country. They observe Saturday with great strictness as their Sabbath, have Sunday-schools, and one religious newspaper. They have recently formed a Tract Society, a Missionary Society, and a Society for the Conversion of the Jews. They have four Associations, and a General Conference-all meet annually. Altogether they are a very worthy people. 2. FREE-WILL BAPTISTS. This body dates in America from 1780, when its first church was formed in New-Hamphsire. In doctrine they hold a general atonement, and reject election and the other Calvinistic points. On the subject of the Trinity, justification by faith alone, regeneration, and sanctification, they are, with some exceptions, sound. Starting with the wrong principle that, dispensing with written creeds, covenants, rules of discipline, or articles of organization, they would make the Bible serve for all these, they were soon in great danger from Arians and Socinians creeping in among them. But of late years they have separated from the Christ-ians (a heretical sect we have yet to notice, and likewise opposed to creeds), and are, consequently, * In New-Jersey, and I doubt not in other States also, there are special laws in their favour. This disposition on the part of the civil power in the United States not to coerce the consciences of any religious community, however small, strikingly contrasts with the legislation of France in a like case. In the winter of 1840-1, when the factory-children's-labour-bill was before the Chamber of Deputies, it was asked whether there ought not to be a clause for the protection of Jewish children in the observance of their Sabbath. "No," said the committee upon the bill, they are too few to make that necessary." To this M. Fould, the banker, himself a Jew, assented, saying that the Jews were only 300,000 in the kingdom! with the general conference, regulates the affairs of the ministry as far as the Presbytery is concerned. Thus they depart from the principle of a pure Independency. Within the last ten years they have entered on the work of sending the Gospel to the heathen, and there can be no better sign than this. They have also a Home Missionary Society, a Tract Society, and an Education Society. Many of their churches have Sunday-schools and various charitable institutions. A religious paper, also, is published under their auspices at Dover, New-Hampshire. Until a few years ago, these Arminian Baptists took but little interest in the education of young men for the ministry; but they now have six academies. They have this year (1844) 1165 churches and 771 ordained ministers, 250 licentiates and 61,372 communicants.* 3. DISCIPLES OF CHRIST, or REFORMERS, as they call themselves, or Campbellites, as they are most commonly called by others. It is with much hesitation that, by placing these in this Book, I rank them among evangelical Christians. I do so because their creed, taken as it stands in written terms, is not heterodox. Not only do they not deny, but in words their creed affirms the doctrine of the Trinity, of salvation by the merits of Christ, and the necessity of the regenerating and sanctifying influences of the Holy Spirit. Yet I understand that there is much about their preaching that seems to indicate that all that they consider necessary to salvation is little if any thing more than a speculative, philosophical faith, in connexion with immersion as the only proper mode of baptism; so that there is little, after all, of that "repentance towards God," and "faith towards our Lord Jesus Christ," which are the indispensable terms of the Gospel. * The Free-Will Baptist Register for 1844. It is on this account that evangelical Christians in America, Baptists as well as Pædobaptists, have many fears about Mr. Campbell and his followers. It is believed, however, that, as yet, there are not a few sincerely pious people among his congregations, who have been led away by his plausible representations respecting the evil of creeds. Time can only show the issue. Two or three religious papers are published by ministers of this denomination, and are almost entirely devoted to the propagation of the peculiar tenets of the sect. The churches in its connexion are constituted purely on Independent principles. Its statistics are not well ascertained. Mr. Campbell says that it now embraces from 150,000 to 200,000 persons. As for the churches and ministers, I have never seen their number stated. The founder of this sect is a Mr. Alex- tion. This is all well enough if faith be ander Campbell, a Scotchman, who, togeth- truly explained, and the sinner really does er with his father, left the Presbyterian come to Christ with that godly sorrow for Church in 1812, and became Baptists. sin from which saving faith is never disSoon after this change he began to broach severed. But if a mere general belief in doctrines that can hardly be called new, for what the Evangelists and Apostles have the Christ-ians, now, though not always, a said, together with immersion, be all that heretical sect, had advanced them before is required, it is not difficult to see that his time. His views seem to be substanti- churches may soon be gathered in which ally as follows: "All sects and parties of there will be but little true religion. the Christian world have departed, in greater or less degrees, from the simplicity of faith and manners of the first Christians." "This defection” Mr. Campbell and his followers" attribute to the great varieties of speculation, and metaphysical dogmatism of countless creeds, formularies, liturgies, and books of discipline, adopted and inculcated as bonds of union and platforms of communion in all the parties which have sprung from the Lutheran Reformation." All this has led, as they suppose, to the displacing of the style of the living oracles, and the affixing to the sacred diction ideas wholly unknown to the Apostles. And what does Mr. Campbell propose to do? Simply "to ascertain from the Holy Scriptures, according to commonly-received and well-established rules of interpretation, the ideas attached to the leading terms and sentences found in the Holy Scriptures, and then use the words of the Holy Spirit in the apostolic acceptation of them!" But let us hear him farther: "By thus expressing the ideas communicated by the Holy Spirit, in the terms and phrases learned from the Apostles, and by avoiding the artificial and technical language of scholastic theology, they propose to restore THE origin of the Cumberland Presbytea pure speech to the household of faith." | rians was as follows: In the extensive And in this way they expect to put an end and, in some respects, wonderful revival to all divisions and disputes, and promote of religion that took place in Kentucky the sanctification of the faithful. And all during the years 1801-1803, the call for this is proposed by those who reject all Presbyterian ministers was far beyond creeds for churches; excepting, indeed, what could be satisfied, and in this exigenthat which consists in making the Bible cy it was proposed by some of the minisspeak theirs! However plausible it may ters that pious laymen of promising abilibe to talk in this way, all church his-ties, and who seemed to have a talent for tory has shown that there is no more certain way of introducing all manner of heresy than by dispensing with all written creeds and formularies of doctrine, and allowing all who profess to believe in the Bible, though attaching any meaning to it they please, to become members of the church. For a while, possibly, this scheme may seem to work well; but, before half a century has passed, all manner of error will be found to have entered and nestled in the house of God. CHAPTER IX. SMALLER PRESBYTERIAN CHURCHES.-THE CUMBERLAND PRESBYTERIANS. public speaking, should be encouraged to make the best preparations in their power for the ministry, and thereafter be licensed to preach. This suggestion was carried into effect. Several such persons were licensed by the Presbytery of Transylvania; and a new presbytery, which had been formed in the southern part of the State in 1803, and was called the Cumberland Presbytery, admitted and ordained those licentiates, and took on trial others of similar characters and attainments. These proceedings were considered disorderly by the Synod of Kentucky, and a commission was therefore appointed to examine them, and to inquire what were the doctrines held by persons thus admitted into the ministry, in a way so foreign |