Newspapers / The Star of Zion … / April 2, 1903, edition 1 / Page 1
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of THE OFFICIAL ORGAN OF THE AFRICAN METHODIST EPISCOPAL ZION CHUR.n Vol XXVI Charlotte, N. C., Thursday, April 2, 1903. No Is FACTS VERSUS FICTION What Manner of Man a Bishop Must Not Be. by bishop j. w. hood, d. d., ll. d. LETTER NO. 12. “Not a brawler.” (4) ‘‘Not soon angry.” We consider these together be cause they belong to the same class of disqualifications. Brawl ing and anger are both the result of a lack of self-restraint or self government. They are human weaknesses which are to be de plored in any one. It seems al most marvelous that the Apostle should have thought it necessary to mention these as things which disqualify a man for the Episco pal office' It ought to be evident to every thoughtful mind, that a chief among the preachers of the gospel of peace, would appear in a very ridiculous light as an angry brawlei; but experience has taught us that the Apostle’s admonition was not out of place. We have seen men who thought themselves suitable candidates for the bishopric who had very little self control; who would get angry and brawl and talk about fighting,1 on very slight provocation. I can remember when in Bishops’ meet ings there were at times exhibi tions which were not entirely creditable. ine iwenuem century, nowever, ought to produce a Bishopric which shall always and every where exhibit that perfect self control and sweetness of temper and disposition which breeds har mony, and that lamb-like meek ness of which Jesus himself was the model, who was led as a lamb to the slaughter and as a sheep dumb before the shearer, h e opened not his mouth. As the Chief Shepherd and Bishop of souls he was an example for all, especially for the Bishop, who is an under-shepherd, and ought on all occasions to keep his feet in the tracks of his Chief. (5) “Not greedy of filthy lu cre.” (6) “Not covetous.” The love of money is said to be the root of all evil. Money has its place in the transactions of business, and for this purpose, we should labor to secure what we can honestly; and not one cent be yond that. In getting money, no one should be actuated by a greed for gain. A Bishop especially should avoid making his ministry subservient to any secular inter ests; he should also avoid descend ing to any base or sordid means of getting money. The less interest a Bishop shows in the wealth of world, the brighter will he shine in the world to come among those who Have turned many to right eousness And yet he may still enjoy evory needed blessing here. (7) “Not self willed. ” Human selfishness is one of the greatest hindrances to religion. Jesus said, “If a man will come after me, let him deny himself.” Thus it is seen that self-denial is , indispensable to discipleship. Pos sibly, however, the Apostle here means that the Bishop shall not manifest a stubborn disposition, but shal1 be ready to listen, and get ail the information he can from every possible source., If he finds he can accomplish more good by yielding his own opinion, he ought to yield. (8) “Not a novice,” lest being lifted up with pride, he fall into the condemnation of the devil.” This is the last of the things which the Apostle says a Bishop must not be.\ Ripe experience is indis pensable, to the proper discharge of the duties of the episcopal office. There is no finer art than that of finding the happy medi um in developing young men. There is sorhetimes a disposition to keep them back unreasonably; to refuse them a fair opportunity. There are two evils in this: First, the work which they might d<>. is possibly in the hands of some one who can not d> it nearly so well; and secondly, they may be come discouraged. On the other hand, some are pushed so fast, that they get what we call the “big head.’' It is this danger that the Apostle refers to here. In training young men in the ministry it is necessary to study them ciosely. There are some you cannot hurt. Others are easily hurt one way or the other. lonce put a. young man in charge of a church, soon after he was licensed to preach. In the course of time he passed a splen did examination and was elected to Elder’s orders. Before his or dination he came to me and asked me if I were sure Iwas not making a mistake in pushing him so fast. If there had been any doubt in my mind as to the wisdom of ordain ing him, that conversation would have ended it. A man that is cau tious and careful as to where he treads, will never be in danger of committing the crime for which the devil was cast out of heaven. I ordained him notwithstanding his doubts. That man is now a Bishop respected by all who know him. Fayetteville, N. C. Good Articles. BY REV. A. J. WILLIAMS. Beyond doubt Bishop Hood has put the readers of the Star to thinking, and the great men of our Church to wondering. His ee ries of epistles upon the all impor tant subject, “The manner of man the Bishop must be,” and his epis tolary style of writing is worthy of commendation. He has voiced the sentiments of the Christians of the world. A hint to the wise is a great lesson—to the intelligent. W e have' read and drank deep of his instruction and have learned by reading between the lines of his epistles that he means great things to be found in great men in high ranks. If the Bishop’s series of letters were read and considered by the aspirants to the bishopric in the A. M. E. Zion Church, they will see at once that the object of the writer is not to impede the prog ress o f the progressive candi dates, but to better inform the constituents of the General Con ference as the manner of material or men required to fill the highest position in the Church. All eyes are open from the episcopal bench to the humblest office held in the Church by the layman. If indeed the Apostle Paul is to be regarded as an inspired writer, instructor r>r teacher, we should always bear in our minds the lesson taught by him as to the “manner of man a Bishop should be,” for he was a teacher among teachers. Success to the Editor and Mana ger. Chester, S. C. WILLIAn C. CHAPMAN A Strong and Faithful Zion Layman, and Leading Contractor AO Bore. BY REV. F. H. HILL, D. D. After an illness of five weeks, during which time he was a great sufferer,Mr. William C. Chapman, of Carlisle, Pa., died at bis home on North College Street Monday morning March 24th at 3:45. Mr. Chapman was born in Vir ginia sixty years ago, December past. He was a veteran of the Civil war, being a member of Com pany F, United States Colored Troops, in which he did valiant service to save the Union and free himself and enslaved race. After the triumph of the Union forces, he was mustered out, went to Pitts Mr. William C. Chapman. t>uror, Pa , where he remained until 1869, at which time he came to Carlis!e and settled down. He was the founder of G. A. R. Post No. 440. He became a Mason in 1867 at Pittsburg, and transferred his membership to Carlisle Star Lodge by demit in 1869, and had held all the offices in his Lodge and proved efficient and faithful in each place, reflecting credit upon himself and doing honor to his brethren of the fraternity. He was also a mem ber of Cumberland Brotherhood Lodge, N. 1527, G. U. 0. of O. F., he being a Charter member when it was organized in 1873; and a member of Past Grand Masters Council and Most Venerable Pa triarch. But it was as a good citizen, an exemplary member and officer.of the West Street A M. E. Zion church, and a very successful con tractor that he was most noted in the city which he adopted as his home. He had been a most faith ful member of the A. M. E, Zion Church for more than 40 years and a member of the West Street church in Carlisle since 1869. As a member of the West Street church, Carlisle, he filled the offices of trustee, class leader, preacher’s steward, and superintendent of the Sabbath school, having served as superintendent for thirty-four years, having died while filling the offices of class leader, trustee and superintendent. His zeal for and bis ioyalty to the church of his choice, his faithfulness and effici ency as a church official, and great devotion and unfaltering love to his beloved wife and only daughter marked him as a maD whose ex ample is worthy of emulation. As a contractor, he helu first rank in Carlisle, and was often called away to other towns and cities to do work. Some of tbe best buildings in Carlisle were erected by him. At the time of hi* death he had the contract i\<r build ing cellars for forty housts ir. the new mountain settlement near Carlisle He was held in high esteem by all the citizens of Car lisle regardless of race. He has represented the church as delegate to district and annual Conferences where he was alw ys called into the councils when important mat ters were under consideration. He was not only a liberal con tributor to all the benevolences of his home church, but he often contributed liberally to aid church es in other places when he saw an opportunity to strengthen and ex tend the borders of Zion. It was largely through his efforts and contributions that the church at Huntsdale was secured to Zion. His charity and liberality were not confined to church circles. He often came to the rescue and aid of those who were in distress and struggling under disadvantages. His death has cast a gloom over the church of his choice and caused lamentation throughout the city. Wherever his death is spoken of the expression that “Carlisle has lost a good man, an exemplary citizen and an efficient workman” is heard. It can be truly said that few men of his age, especially from the laity, will be more missed or cause a greater loss to our Zion than the death of Mr. William C. Chapman. He leaves to mourn his loss, a devoted wife with whom he had been united in happy wedlock for thirtydive years, and an only daughter, with a host of friends both within and without the church. »" runeraJiSenices. tJ8 JL. Wednesday, March 25tb, was a sad day. Brother William C. Chapman was buried. From early morniug friends visited his home and viewed the body which laid in the parlor surrounded by flowers. At 1:30 p. m„ the Odd Fel lows, the G. A. R. Post which he or ganized, and his lodge of Masons (Car lisle Star No. 18), assembled at the resi dence and escorted the body to the church, and thence to the cemetery. There were eight pall bearers, two each from the two lodges, the Grand Army Post, and the board of trustees of the church.! Arriving at the church at 2 pTmTTthe body was borne through the open ranks of the societies into the church and de posited within the altar while the organ gave forth most solemn and impressive strains. The Sabbath-school under the direction of the assistant superin tendent, Mr. James Beals, occupied the seats at the left of the pulpit during the services and sang Brother Chap man’s favorite hymns. Immediately behind the school, sat the members of class 5 of the church, which Brother Chapman had led for many years. The body of the church, the aisles and the stairway leading to the auditorium were crowded with white and colored who had come to pay their last tribute of respect to one of Carlisle's noblest, bast and most representative citizens, a man of integrity and of positive, force ful and upright Christian character. The church choir sang with wonderful effect the hymns, “O for the death of those, who slumber in the Lord,”- etc, and “Forever with the Lord! Amen, so let it be.” The first hymn was lined by Rev. J. B. Warner of the Bethel Church; Dr. E. H. Curry read the first lesson; Rev. Braham of the, Presbyterian Church read the second ; prayer was offered by Rev. Robinson of the Baptist Church; the Sunday-school sang, ‘‘Work for the aight is coming,” after which a letter trom Rev. M. M. Bell, former pastor of the church and a friend of the deceased ’or over 20 years, was read. The reso utions from the Sunday-school were read by Mr*. Sarah Fisher, one of the teachers of the school. Rev. Blalock, [Continued on Fifth Page.] CHURCH EXTENSION. Food For the Digestion oi the Ministers. BV REV. W. H. COFFEY, D. D. All hail, to the great H, J. Cal lis, D. D., the great pastor and pyschologist of Elizabeth City, N. C., a man of true love, and sym pathy for Zion, who is always ready to extend a helping hand to the needy. Bro. Callis has opened the fountain and started the stream to run by sending in his order to-day for fifty souvenirs, to be forwarded to him at once. I'nis certainly shows the kind of business stock Dr. Cailis is made of. Men who show great business tact in their charges, will do the same if promoted. And the church of God needs to-day, next to thorough consecrated men filled with the Holy Spirit for pastors and officers, men of great execu tive ability and business tact. I hope that every pastor in Zion will follow Dr. Callis’ example, go among the members and friends of Zion and show the people the necessity ©f having in their homes a ‘‘Souvenir of the Twentieth Cen tury Movement to Extend the, Kingdom of God.’’ Possibly, there is no picture outside of Christ and His Apostles or a Bibli cal collection of characters, that will show more the glory of God to true Zionites, than our present Souvenir. Brethren, send in you! orders and thus help to extend the kingdom of God, Brethren, please send in your subscription to the “Bishops’ Church Extension Fund;” so that we can meet our obligations. I believe that every man will pay it before or at Conference; but, brethren, we need it now and do not wish to be bothering you at Conference about it. 1 believe* from the bottom of my heart of hearts, that you intended to pay at the time promised whep you gave me your names; but something, over which you had no control, prevented you. I now hope that you are in the condition to pay; and pray you, in the name of this needy department, to delay no longer. May the God of our fathers bless you and give you great success in your work this year. And re member, what you give to this cause is “Bread cast upon the wa ter” and may return some day to feed you and others. .oretnren, please read Bishop Hood’s and Dr. Sides’ great and wise articles in the Star of March the 26th. Truly, God is with the fathers and sons in Zion. Brethren, take up your Church Extension collections on . the last Sunday in May. But remember, that all the Conferences which meet the last Sunday in May, are to take up their collections before their Conference. Brethren, make your Church Extension collections as large as possible; so that every man will have a good report and no excuse. Work it.up and put it before your your people in the proper way, with fire in your souls aud earnestness in your words, and you will get the mon sy* You will have no excuse to nakeat Conference;' but 1 will be iappy in feeling that you have ione your whole duty for Zion. Philadelphia, Pa.
The Star of Zion (Charlotte, N.C.)
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April 2, 1903, edition 1
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