OTAGO METHODIST SYNOD.

Dominion, Volume 3, Issue 679, 2 December 1909, Page 8

OTAGO METHODIST SYNOD.

'■■■■: QUESTION OP SEPARATION; ) }\ f : ' : (Bj Tcleßraph-Pres»,aßioc!allob.l •' m. ' n ? ■■': -. ■ '■•'■ Gore,,'. December' 1, The. Otago and: Southland District Methodist bynod resumed sitting this morning; Mr B Rosevear, (listrict secretary of Church iperties,. presented, his which showed that thp total, value of Church property in •9fe?„ 0 dlst f, lct WM -* 40 ' 363 ' being-an-increase of £lm \™' the year,■■ whereas the total liability

ballot "for district representative ' to the conferenceiresultediin,the:, election of the Walhs, with the Rev. W. Greenslade as substitute,representative. -. '■■ ■:. : In* the evening:', a':,debate,.took placo : on a motion .by. Mr, Rosevear (Dunedin) :"That this .Synod is of opinion- that a separate conference should, be constituted .for New 'Zealand " ■ The •mover pointed out that,; in'lßss,,when the'Ans- ■ tralian Conference was ,cohstituted,;,thore were only six circuits in Now Zealand.-. Now there were 90 circuits;, and '321 churches, with 15 472 . members. The Rev.; D.JM/Griffon, in 'opposinc the motion, pointed out that thp' United ChuroK .totalled: 137,000 members and 644,000 adherents nndit was egregious to, think'it better to have a ,cpnferenco controlling 15,000 adhorents than to belong to ' a conference .'constituting half n million. -An- objection to separation: also was that/New Zealan'd woulJl probably take charce of one group of the.South Sea Islands missions and Australia the rest,, resulting sin divided authority laws,;and constitution. ■ The' motion was earned,by,3o to-7.' : ■':■; .'..".•