, ».Wi ... Jt.
ORGAN
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VOL. VH1.
PETERSBURG, VA., FRIDAY NOVEMBER 14.1884.
------;
NUMBER 46
r '.i
j I ROM THE MIX ESTERS AMD
t MEMBERS OF THE A. M. E. ..
ZION CONNECTION £N
ALL PARTS OF THE
LNITED STATES.
TO THE STAR OF ZION.
iAN ADDRESS
DELIVERJ3D BY
Richard McN. Williams,
BEFORE THE
District Conference, Fayettville, N:
C., October 24th, 1884.
“TEMPERANCE.”
Life is short and full of vicissitudes
and uncertainties. The man who be
gins active life has many things to en
dure, many hardships to undergo, and
he who spent a long life of usefulness
among mankind shall live in the mem
ory of his fellow men. The man who
has loyal principles, the morally good,
the man who lives for the good he can
do, regardless of the circumstances,
and the true Christian all hope to re
ceive their re ward. In order that*one
may die a Christian, he must live a
Christian. The process of living pre
cedes that of dying, We are told that
we may have all the pleasures of this
life, that we may live in extravagance
and luxury, and have a good time so
far as the pleasures of this world are
concerned, forgetting the laws of God
and our duties to our neighbor, but
with how sad an admonition does thii
portion of scripture close, “But know
thou that for all this thou shalt give a
strict account.”
The ways of God are past finding
out, and it is impossible for us to un
derstand the decrees of his judgments.
In consequence of our manifold sins
we are inclined not to want our merits
weighed but our offences pardoned.—
Were we to receive justice from our
Maker too sad would be the conse*
quence, but we hope that his justice
will be tempered with mercy, and we
be not banished into oblivion for our
sins. As such is the case the fear of
punishment should at least compel us
to pursue a, better life, and on the
other hand a hope of reward should
stimulate us in leading the same.
The general object of all formed
associations is mutual improvement;
but the one grand object of our Tem
perance Band of Hope is improve
ment in knowledge and virtue. Vir
tue is said to be its own reward, hence
"the necessity of carefully cultivating
it.
Nothing I think is nobler than a re
form. Fearfully is it needed among
our own race, especially in the way of
temperance. Should economy, up
rightness, honestness, sobriety, each in
their turn to take the place of the
many vices that we are addicted to or
should the raging flood of intemper
ance which new sweeps through our
land, this world of ours would be a
happy one. Would that we could
make a Paradise of earth—much to
our comfort would it be. .'But the
combined efforts of sages in succeed
ing generations would tremble at such
a task. However, let us* work with ail
our might ft* make the world as good
ag we possibly can. Let us work
againist the evils of intemperance; let
us put the evil away, that others, see
ing our good examples, may turn from
their wickedness (and live). If we
desire others to be temperate we must
be temperate ourselves ; if we would
command others we must command
ouwelven.
We must practice what we preach.*
No man liveth unto himself. Every
man makes his impression in the world
before leaving. He may hide his light
under a bushel—he may profess to be
a Christian in word, through really he
is a sinner in deed, but such a man
you know to be a curse to society and
himself.
Temperance is no new thing. Its
lofty foundation, its noble principles
have been embraced by all good men
of every age. Remember the motto
of our school, “Dare to do right,” and
to this we may add, “Dare to be true,
for other men’s failures can neversave
you.”
Were these words universally ob
served, we, perhaps, would wear a
much brighter crown at some future
day. Since the evil (me has made his
advent to this world, he -has not been
idle as many of us perhaps, but he has
been steadily at work spreading his
evils throughout this land of ours. It
has been allowed therefore by our
Maker, and hence the bad are ever
mingled with the good.
We must work not expecting to
finally annihilate or fully extirpate
all evils that may be around us, for
this is a task ; this is a work unaccom
plishable, but let us work to save as
many as we can from the blighting
curse of intemperance, iemperance
literally means moderation, sobriety,
calmness. But this is not the kind of
temperance that I would advise you to
adopt.
Instead of indulging in a moderate
use of intoxicating beverages or pro
fanity, and evils generally, I would
recommend total abstinence from
them., I shall not here attempt to
portray many of the evils resulting
from intemperance, or to bring before
you the horrible aspects consequent to
it, but of necessity I must mention a
few of them. •
We know that the principles of our
society discountenance vice, and that
one of its greatest objects is to encour
age virtue. In the term vice we in
clude all profanity, evil pursuits, the
evils resulting from becoming a drunk*,
ard and tobacco in all its forms. A
man who has any respect for himself
or for those around him, would never
be guilty of the firet of the enumera
ted vices. The man iq such a case
having already become depravecf,loses
control of himself, and we sometimes
perceive the sad condition of his mind.
Such persons are extremely danger
ous," and their company should be
avoided. ,
We shall net torn our attention to
the drunkard. Drunkards are men
who suffer themselves to be continual
ly intoxicated. Men who have very
few personal interests, and are groping
about under a banner which unfurls
degradation to themselves, their fam
ilies, and mankind generally. It is
not enough for us to say after witness
ing the drunkards career that I would
not want to be a drunkard, but you
must resolve never to be one, or you
too may fill the drunkard’s grave*
It is reasonable tp admit that no
man wants to be a drunkard, that he
really wants to destroy himself or
squander his hard earnings, and be
come a pauper. But he has never
adopted a resolution that he would not
be a dnmkud, and consequently he
a _’t . * B ' • "J
has been led one from one degree to
another, and on and on, until he finds
himself at last a wteck, a pauper, in
all a vagabond, a drunkard.
Says Virgil, it is easy to get into
a difficulty, but to retrace thy steps
and soar to the realms of day, this is a
work, this is* labor.
So is it with the* drunkard. He
feels that he can never retrace his
steps, that he is literally ruined.' That
he is not able at this late stage to re
form. Had he never taken the first
drink, he never would have been a
drunkard.
It is not at all pleasant to behold a
fellow man bound fast in the chains of
intemperance. We pity him. We
feel sorrow for his suffering family.—
But alas! does this make' the world
better; by no means. As a remedy,
we have organized or established tem
perance societies throughout our land,
and we cordially Invite and welcome
all who have not connected themselvts
with us to do so for their own good.—
The boy is father to the man, and we
therefore must sooner or later take the
places which our fathers’ once occu
pied, and we must practice virtue and
oppose vice, that we may the better
succeed. Hence, let your aims be
lofty. We cannot aim too high. One
whose > aim in life is very high will
soar much higher than one who aim
at objects very near on a level with
himself.
Work on, then, in this noble cause,
and may your efforts be crowned with
success. •
Bishop Hood’s Address
To the Members and Friends of the
Kentucky Annual Conference of
the A. M. E. Zion Church
in America.
Beloved Brethren:
In the kingdom of our Lord Jesus
Christ, assembled as we are in annnal
convocation, it is our indiapensible
duty to render acknowledgment and
thanksgiving unto God, our, father,
the sovereign ruler of the univemejbr
all the many mercies we have enjoy
ed. While desolating and inundating
floods have spent their force in our
very vicinity, unusual storms and the
^earful shaking of the earth, have
filled guilty mortals with awful, dread.
Yet we have enjoyed the peaceftii and
happy assurance of Divine favor.
In assembling in our annual con*
ference, the interests of that kingdom
for the coming of which we are taught
to make the first petition of our . devo
tional exercise should engage our
chief attention. Not what we shall
eat or what we shall drink, or where
with shall we be clothed, should be our
first thought*: but what can Ido to
hasten the reign of righteousness on
earth. Whoever may manifest their
indifference respecting the. coming of
Christ’s kingdom, surely God’s chosen
ministers will not. AAdyetit is to.be
feared that there axe many in the nun
isterial ranks who, far somereesen,are
very far from being workers together
with Christ, for the rpptraildiag of his
kingdom, ; I hate < nptmed thnflfr evils
Which hinder the work of the Lord* -
First; Selfishness, Lika Peter, we
are selfish. We won’t do anything
for the Lord unless we can see, some
personal gaim—forgetting that, the
richest of God'# blessing are yet to be
revealed. When we reach the mount
of transfiguration we want to build
?»» "r-f & » -7 5^*? i 1
and Stay, forgetful of the perishing
million# in the valley below, to whom
wp are sent to aisciple and bring to tihe
shepherd of souls.
While all ofr institutions are lan
guishing for the want of means to run
them, and while churches, not paid
out of our hands,
men are cofwent setting down on. large
salaries, with folded arms, .wholly in
different to Zion’s chief interests. One
man gets $i600 a year, or twice what
the law allows him, and brings up
from 700 members $100 or $250 less
than that dut) requires of him. Do
you think that we can live at this
poor dying rate ? Can we hope to
have God's blessing while coming that
far short of duty? How long think
ye will there be any fat place to sit
down ih, if -this state of things con
tinues. While there may be very few
who are receiving dpuble the amount
of salary fixed by law, yet I know of
more than one, two or three men in
Zion who have injured their own use
fulness and the cause of Zion, by de
manding unreasonably large salaries
from strong-living churches, whereas,
if they had been .willing to accept a
reasonably large salary, and thus re
tained a much larger influence for
good, in inducing the people to con
tribute the means to pay for churches
and support our institutions, they
wouldi have had much more influence
to-day, and the churches they have
had charge of would have been a hun
dred per cent, better off than they are
now. And I doubt not that these
ministers would have been in better
condition themselves, for it has been
remarked that ill-gotten gains takes
to itself wings.
I might mention other churches
which have suffered from like causes,
but I speak of these four in the 5th
district, because they are conspicuous
illustrations of the point I am making
namely, that selfishness is a great hin
derance to our work. I am told of a
case here in the Kentucky conference,
in which the church was lost simply
beeause the minister insisted upon ap
propriating for his personal use the
money which had been raised to pay
the church debts. The locality of that
chtirch is now destitute of a place of
worship, notwithstanding it is a locali
ty ih which we ought to have had a
flourishing church.
Secondly—And closely connected
with die evil of selfishness, is that of
self-indulgence. Needless self-indul
gence is one of the evils condemned
by. our general rules, and yet I doubt
whether there is any evil more preva
lent in the char eh... This evil assumes
a variety of forms. Sometimes that
of laziness. Some men are just too
lazy to move around and perform the
duties of the ministry. I might use a
softer expression, but sometimes evils
assume such stubborn attitudes that to
handle them with gloved fingers is to
trifle merely. The bishop has no power
to apply the law, belt he can declare
it. And itis his duty if m his power
to createiueh a sentiment of honest
purity in the conference as shall make
it unpleasant for men to live a slack
twisted ministerial iif% and impossible
for them t? violate lawwith impunity.
I assure you • that I shall not shrink
from this duty. So fhr as it Is in my
p6#ei* 2 shall make it too hot or too
cold for the this district. A
pastor of a church should;Bee every
member once amonth impossible. He
ihouk^knowallof his members person
ally. He cannot do this however, if
contrary to discipline, he spends long
hours in foolish gearing with his good
flartinmis^tefamd loose in habit) to
Yf'mft? Whiff? T<
the shameful neglect of those who are
sick. Sometimes ministers are sent
for to see the sick but neglect to do so.
Then when the neglected people, and
their surviving friends get somebody
else to attend the funeral, j they ob
jected to it mid sometimes hinder the
invited minister from doing, what he
..would not have'Jbeen called upon to
do, had the pastor discharged his
duty in visiting his members* Some
times these negligent pastors, in a fit
of anger, better becoming a demon
than a minister, get up in the pulpit,
and scold until they drive large
numbers of members irom the church
If scolding must be done,'it should be
left to wicked old women—by minis
ters never, and the evil becomes intol
erable when a tardy minister scolds
about the results of its own~[laziness,
or neglect of duty, from any avoida
ble cause. ^Ministers, must learn, if
they have not, that the ministerial
calling demands the minister’s entire
time, which he has no more right to
trifle away than he would if he was
employed] by a planter," merchant, or
architect. In the one case he is re
sponsible to his employer whom he
must render faithful service or get no
pay. In the other case he is responsi
ble to the body with which he is con
nected, whi^h, if it regards its own in:
terests, must see to it that he renders
faithful service. Among the things
we have a right to inquire into in this
conference, is whether or not the min
isters, from presiding elders down,have
faithfully served the people to whom
they were sent, or whether they have
wasted their time in politics, or in or
ganizing and attending secret associ
ations, to the neglect of their minis
terial work. They have the same
right to vote, and to freely express
their political opinions that other peo
ple have, and if those in their charge
want any political information which
they possess it is their duty to give it,
and they ought to inform themselves
as far as is convenient, on all public
matters. “The priests lips should dis
pense knowledge,” but they have not
the time to play the politician. *
Another shape in which the evil of
needless self-indulgence appears is in
following the cravings of the appetite,
for that which is needless, yea, for
that which is hurtful, and therefore
sinful. I have before this, referred to
the useless, filthy, obnoxious, hateful,
undignified, unreasonable, unnatural
aud ungodly habit of chewing, snuf
fing or smoking tobacco, and am hap
py to know that some have repented
of the evil; experienced a change of
heart, and have chosen the better way.
I hope others will soon follow. I have
much hope for the man who has the
[To be continued.]
A SKETCH OF JOSEPH CALLAN'S LIFE.
SUMMEBFIELD, ALA., )
October 25, 1884. J
Mr. Editor:
Please permit a sketch of Brother
Joseph Callans’ life through the col
umns of the Stab :
This noble worker of Zion’s breath
ed his last on October 15th. He was
a man who acted in such away that he
won the respect of all who knew him,
and they had long since learned to
love, cherish and honor him before
his death. He was a pious and manly
old man who had always been so from
his youth. It was natural with him. I
•say this without contradiction, because
I have been with him for eighteen
months, and Ott the day of his death
he was just as I found him. I found
him a member of the church and class
leader. The church said that he had
been for fourteen years what I had
found the fourteen months. * *
I have"{!had long conversations with
him and he always had a word to cher
ish. He has often remarked in speak
ing of his class and duties that he
tried to^teach his members their whole
duties and responsibilities in the
church of God the way they should go
to reach eternal ages. He was a lov
ing husband, father and grandfather,
leader and member of the church.
Then wake
Stirrings of deep divinity within, and
Like the flickerings of a smouldering
flame,
Yearnings of a hereafter.
Thou it was, f I
When the world’s din for passion’s
voice was still,
Calling thy wanderer home.”
There repose deep in the human spirit
the idea of the perfect. ,
And; “We speak ot the realms of the
bless/’
Of that country so bright and so fair,
And oft are its glories confessed,
But what must it be to be therej
We speak ot its pathways of gold,
Of its walks decked with jewels so
rare,
Of its wonders and pleasures untold,
But what must it be to be there!
We speak of freedom of sin,
From sorrow, temptation and care ;
From trials without and within—
But what must it be to be there!
We speak of service of love,
Of robes which the glorified wear, , - N
Of the church of the first born above,
But what must it be to be there!
Do thou, Lord, ’midst sorrow and
wo,
Still for heaven my spirit prepare;
And shortly I also shall know
And what it is to be there.
When the inhabitants of that lovely
and peaceful land shall come, we shall
meet Brother Callans in the band, so
mates, if we be faithful until death,
we shall meet him on the banks of
sweet deliverance, where parting will
be no more.
s
ives, relatives and class
NOTICE! NOTICE!!!
To the Ministers and Delegates of the
North Carolina Conference.
Dear Brethren.—1Our next annual
session will be held in Newbern, N‘ C.
and will convene on the 4th W ednes
day (26th day) of November, 1884,at
10 A. M, Rt. Rev. Thomas H. Lo
max, will preside. I have secured the
following reduced rates on the follow
ing railroads, respectively:
Richmond and Danville railroad, ; •#
North Carolina division, from Hills- ■
boro and all intermediate stations to
Goldsboro. Tickets will be on sale
for two days only—namely, Novem
ber 25th and 25th—good to return for
ten days.
Raleigh and A. A, Line Railroad,
Carolina Central, Raleigh and Gaston,
respectively. Tickets will be granted
at three cents per mile each way—
good from November 24th until De
cember 4th, 1884.
Wilmington and Weldon. Special
rates. No cheaper than the regular
rates.
Atlantic and N. C. Terms not yet
received.
I will write or telegraph you at I.
Goldsboro in due time.
Yours in Gospel service.
A. B. Smyer, .
! Secretary N. Conference.