Part 8 Effect of Civil War on the Methodist Episcopal Church
Since the local Methodist Church is a connectional church it is important to look at what was happening nationally as a result of the Civil War and think about how that might have effected the local churches in the post-war period. Most of the materials in this part comes directly from the UMC Church Library History.
The Civil War dealt an especially hard blow to the Methodist Episcopal Church, South. Its membership fell to two-thirds of its pre-war strength. Many clergy and parishioners had been killed during the war. Many of its educational, publishing and missionary arms were in financial and operational ruin. Interestingly, while the war had caused this ruin it also was perhaps the impetus to its growth to more than two million members, a four fold increase, in the next fifty years.
The African Methodist Church also was in ruins and those remaining churches were transferred to The Colored Methodist Episcopal Church.
About this same time, Alejo Hernandez became the first Hispanic preacher in Methodism even though Benigno Cardenas had actually preached the Methodist message in Sante Fe, New Mexico as early as 1853. It was the same year that Uriel Rideout was preaching the first sermon in the new Ferry Village Methodist Episcopal Church.
The Methodist Episcopal Church had not suffered as much as the southern church and was gaining rapidly membership-wise by the end of the 1860’s. A four hundred percent increase was realized in membership by 1870. Church properties and values began to soar and affluence seemed to reflect on generally prosperous times at least in the North.
In part 9 of this series we will see how this national phenomenon reflected in local church prosperity as well.
Mission work both at home and overseas was high on the agenda of churches. Home mission programs sought to Christianize the city as well as the Native American. Schools for former slaves and their children were established. Missionaries were increasingly effective on all of the continents of the Earth. More often than not it would be the women in churches that would form Missionary societies that were designed to raise monies and acquire goods that would be sent often to specific missionaries and their families stationed overseas or elsewhere on this continent. Many times women were the missionaries as well.
Two critical issues caused substantial rankling in the churches during this time. The role of lay persons and especially the role of women were at issue. Should laity be given a voice in the General Conference and annual conferences? The Methodist Protestants had given laity equal voting power as early as their formation back in the 1830’s. The Methodist Episcopal Church which would have included the Ferry Village Church among the other historic roots of today’s United Methodist Church were much slower in allowing lay involvement. It was not until 1932 that many of the bars to lay involvement were finally torn down. There is an indication in some of the local church records that the Methodist Episcopal Church, at least in the Maine Conference, allowed laity including women to “be involved” in Conference affairs. On voting issues it was not until the 1904 that women, could have full involvement in voting functions within the Methodist Episcopal Church. Women who desired to enter the Methodist Ministry were not allowed to do so until after the major merger of Methodism that took place in 1939. Even later the Evangelical Association never ordained women.
Other theological developments playing a significant role in the growth of the church during this same time related to such items as the “holiness” movement, liberal theology and the Social Gospel movement. The Methodist Episcopal Church regarding social issues developed a Social Creed in 1908. Social problems also spurred the movement toward ecumenism and interchurch cooperation. All of the denominations now a part of the United Methodist Church became active in the Federal Council of Churches which was probably the first major ecumenical venture among American Protestants.
We have made a few references to the local church throughout this part in our development. There are a number of implications that could be looked at in more detail, but space does not permit. Hopefully there are some readers who may wish to take some of the items that have been suggested in the words and expand their knowledge and perhaps wish to share their findings and thoughts in writing or orally with other parishioners.
The New England Conference over the years had been divided into separate conferences as the membership and land area expanded. The Maine Annual Conference was established in 1824 with New Hampshire following in 1828 and Vermont being established one year later. The New England Conference saw another erosion of its size in 1840 when the Providence Conference was established. This Conference did accept itself as the New England Conference South and included Providence, New Bedford and Connecticut. It would not be until the Post World War II period that the movement of returning to a New England organization began.
Since the local Methodist Church is a connectional church it is important to look at what was happening nationally as a result of the Civil War and think about how that might have effected the local churches in the post-war period. Most of the materials in this part comes directly from the UMC Church Library History.
The Civil War dealt an especially hard blow to the Methodist Episcopal Church, South. Its membership fell to two-thirds of its pre-war strength. Many clergy and parishioners had been killed during the war. Many of its educational, publishing and missionary arms were in financial and operational ruin. Interestingly, while the war had caused this ruin it also was perhaps the impetus to its growth to more than two million members, a four fold increase, in the next fifty years.
The African Methodist Church also was in ruins and those remaining churches were transferred to The Colored Methodist Episcopal Church.
About this same time, Alejo Hernandez became the first Hispanic preacher in Methodism even though Benigno Cardenas had actually preached the Methodist message in Sante Fe, New Mexico as early as 1853. It was the same year that Uriel Rideout was preaching the first sermon in the new Ferry Village Methodist Episcopal Church.
The Methodist Episcopal Church had not suffered as much as the southern church and was gaining rapidly membership-wise by the end of the 1860’s. A four hundred percent increase was realized in membership by 1870. Church properties and values began to soar and affluence seemed to reflect on generally prosperous times at least in the North.
In part 9 of this series we will see how this national phenomenon reflected in local church prosperity as well.
Mission work both at home and overseas was high on the agenda of churches. Home mission programs sought to Christianize the city as well as the Native American. Schools for former slaves and their children were established. Missionaries were increasingly effective on all of the continents of the Earth. More often than not it would be the women in churches that would form Missionary societies that were designed to raise monies and acquire goods that would be sent often to specific missionaries and their families stationed overseas or elsewhere on this continent. Many times women were the missionaries as well.
Two critical issues caused substantial rankling in the churches during this time. The role of lay persons and especially the role of women were at issue. Should laity be given a voice in the General Conference and annual conferences? The Methodist Protestants had given laity equal voting power as early as their formation back in the 1830’s. The Methodist Episcopal Church which would have included the Ferry Village Church among the other historic roots of today’s United Methodist Church were much slower in allowing lay involvement. It was not until 1932 that many of the bars to lay involvement were finally torn down. There is an indication in some of the local church records that the Methodist Episcopal Church, at least in the Maine Conference, allowed laity including women to “be involved” in Conference affairs. On voting issues it was not until the 1904 that women, could have full involvement in voting functions within the Methodist Episcopal Church. Women who desired to enter the Methodist Ministry were not allowed to do so until after the major merger of Methodism that took place in 1939. Even later the Evangelical Association never ordained women.
Other theological developments playing a significant role in the growth of the church during this same time related to such items as the “holiness” movement, liberal theology and the Social Gospel movement. The Methodist Episcopal Church regarding social issues developed a Social Creed in 1908. Social problems also spurred the movement toward ecumenism and interchurch cooperation. All of the denominations now a part of the United Methodist Church became active in the Federal Council of Churches which was probably the first major ecumenical venture among American Protestants.
We have made a few references to the local church throughout this part in our development. There are a number of implications that could be looked at in more detail, but space does not permit. Hopefully there are some readers who may wish to take some of the items that have been suggested in the words and expand their knowledge and perhaps wish to share their findings and thoughts in writing or orally with other parishioners.
The New England Conference over the years had been divided into separate conferences as the membership and land area expanded. The Maine Annual Conference was established in 1824 with New Hampshire following in 1828 and Vermont being established one year later. The New England Conference saw another erosion of its size in 1840 when the Providence Conference was established. This Conference did accept itself as the New England Conference South and included Providence, New Bedford and Connecticut. It would not be until the Post World War II period that the movement of returning to a New England organization began.
posted by Arthur Tordoff | 11:00 AM
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