This Week in Texas Methodist History February 28

 

Olin Nail Calls for Reduction of Annual Conferences in Texas from Five to Three, March 1936

 

Two weeks ago the subject of this blog was how Texas Methodists cooperated across conference lines in 1934,  1936, and 1938 to celebrate the centennials of Texas Methodism, Texas Independence, and the bicentennial of Wesley’s Aldersgate experience.  I mentioned that the three celebrations fostered connections across the conferences and helped create a feeling of common identity among Texas Methodists.  The celebrations elevated the work of the Joint Planning Commission which coordinated the centennial celebrations.  The work of the Joint Planning Commission soon led to the establishment of the Committee for Future Work consisting of five clergy and five laity from each conference.  The most lasting legacy of that committee is the Texas Methodist Foundation whose mission transcends conference boundaries. 

 

Although the celebrations were the work of committees, much of the energy for the historic celebrations was provided by two preachers, Olin Nail of the West Texas Conference (today the Rio Texas Conference) and A. J. (Jack) Weeks, editor of the Southwestern Christian Advocate.  One would expect Weeks to have a multi conference-wide perspective since the Advocate served all the conferences in Texas, New Mexico, Oklahoma, and sometimes Colorado.  Nail’s perspective of the unity of Texas Methodism across conference lines came from his passion for history.

 

In March `1936 Texans were preparing for the 1936 annual conference sessions were to be held in Houston so that attendees could attend celebrations at the San Jacinto Battlefield.   That month ground was broken for the construction of the monument.  That monument had important Methodist connections.  Jesse Jones, a member of Houston St. Paul’s and also a board member of Houston Methodist Hospital, was Secretary of Commerce and Chair of the Reconstruction Finance Corporation, He had shepherded the funding through.  The architect was Alfred Finn, the architect for St. Paul’s. 

 

Inspired by the unity of Texas Methodist History, Olin Nail called for a reduction of the number of annual conferences in Texas from five to three.  Actually Nail was omitting the New Mexico Conference which included churches in El Paso, Odessa, Pecos, and other western cities.  He was also omitting the Spanish speaking churches in the state.  He had no intention of integrating the Spanish speaking Methodist churches into the English language churches. 

 

 

Naturally Nail began his call for consolidation with a historical sketch.  He contrasted the difficulties of travel experienced by Jesse Hord on his coastal plain circuit one hundred years earlier with the ease of travel in 1936.  He noted the consolidation of one room school houses and reminded readers that two bishops (Smith and Boaz) presided over the Texas Conferences.  One of his main arguments was that the reduction in the number of annual conferences would give addition appointment opportunities to the approximately 1000 ordained Methodist preachers in the five conferences of the MECS.   It is interesting to note that Nail did not include a cost-saving argument.  Conferences of 1936 did not have the large number of employees who now carry out conference programs. 

 

The reduction in conferences called for by Rev. Nail did not occur.  The boundaries of the conferences have basically remained relatively stable since 1910 when the Central Texas Conference was created from the southernmost portion of the Northwest Texas Conference. 

 

This Week in Texas Methodist History February 21

 

 

Student Pastors Carpool to Seminary amid World War II Gas Rationing,  February 1944

 

As the United States fought World War II, it was necessary to institute rationing of some basic supplies.  For food such as sugar and meat, civilians were issued ration booklets, and had to present stamps from those booklets to grocers in addition to paying for the food.  Tires were in especially short supply, and county boards were created to review applications for prospective purchasers of tires.  Their decisions were based on need and availability.  For example, doctors who made house calls were a higher priority than many others.  Tires at the time had inner tubes and many motorists learned how to make road side repairs with patch kits.  Gasoline consumers were assigned windshield decals indicating their need for the valuable fuel.   The phrase “Is this trip really necessary?” became popular in campaigns designed to save fuel, lubricants, and rubber for the armed forces. 

 

The Methodist tradition of circuit riding came under great strain as a result of the restrictions.  By the 1940s there was an increasing expectation that preachers would get a seminary education.  Seminary students would often serve churches.  The seminary at SMU (not yet named Perkins) enrolled students from the Texas, North Texas, Central Texas, and Oklahoma Conferences who would often travel to their circuits only on Saturday.  Spend Saturday night with a parishioner, and then be back in class during the week.   My father in 1943 served a five point circuit in Bowie County and did not have a car.  He rode a bus every Saturday morning, and when he got to DeKalb, he would find a church member to take him home that night and to church the next morning.  After the last service on Sunday night, he would get a ride back to DeKalb, catch a bus and be back in Dallas at the sun was coming up.

 

Seminary students in the Metroplex had other options, and in 1944 the Advocate reported on a six pastor car pool from the Central Texas Conference.  The student pastors were

J. B. Holt—Conference Director of Youth Work

Roy Felder---Benbrook

Wayne Reynolds—Mansfield

Ervin Gathings—Colleyville Circuit (five churches)

Nick Kupferle, Jr. -- Associate at Matthews Memorial, Fort Worth

James Cooper, --Ridgelea ( a new church he had organized the previous June).

 

The group must have had to get up very early in the morning in order to arrive at SMU by 8:00.  They scheduled their classes so they could arrive back in Fort Worth by the early afternoon so they could attend to church business, hospital visits, etc and possibly squeeze in some time for assigned homework before falling into bed exhausted.  Five of the six were married, but Felder was the only parent.  He and Mrs. Felder had a five month old daughter.  The student pastors  ranged in age from 21 to 29.  All six had B. A. degrees from Methodist colleges, five from Texas Wesleyan and one from McMurry. 

 

The seminary was well-aware of such arrangements and accommodated the student pastors by holding classes Tuesday through Friday.  In addition many of the professors came to the churches of their student pastors as guest preachers, giving them a break from weekly sermon preparation. 

 

 

 

 

 

This Week in Texas Methodist History  February 14

 

Southwestern Christian Advocate Reports on Lon Morris REW  February 16, 1939

 

Methodist colleges in Texas held annual Religious Emphasis Week as part of the regular program of the institution.  They were sometimes scholarly and consisted of lectures, but they were often revivals by a different name. 

 

The February 16 1939 issue of the Southwestern Christian Advocate contained two articles about the event recently held at Lon Morris College.  One article was by the revival preacher, Walter Rabb Willis of Fairfield.  He wrote about the warm reception he received upon his arrival on campus and noted that one “fine young man” consecrated himself to the call of the ministry.  Willis preached at both morning and afternoon services Monday through Friday and also talked to classes and social clubs.

 

The other Advocate article was written by a 17 year old freshman from Arp, John Wesley Hardt, my father.  This is the earliest published item I know of from my father’s career.  He also included the officers who had just been elected for the Spring semester.  He was president, and the Secretary was Martha Carson of Malakoff.  Four years later they would marry. 

 

Willis did not name the “fine young man” who made public his decision to enter the ministry, but family lore provides the name.  It was Burney Cope of Buffalo.  Burney later married Martha’s older sister, Sara Alice, so he was my uncle.  I wrote a tribute to him upon his death which may be found at

https://txmethhistory.blogspot.com/search?q=cope

 

This Week in Texas Methodist History  February 7

 

Texas Methodists Hold Events in Anticipation of Aldersgate Bicentennial   February 1938

 

Texas Methodists of previous eras have delighted in celebrating centennials and bicentennials.  In 1884 a grand celebration was held in Baltimore to celebrate the Christmas Conference of 1784 at which the MEC was founded.  In 1919 the Centenary Campaign conducted a massive fund raising effort to celebrate the centennial of the first officially appointed missionary.  In 1934 Texas Methodists met in San Antonio to celebrate the centennial of their perceived centennial of Texas Methodism in 1834.    Just two years later, the conferences met jointly in Houston to celebrate the Texas Centennial and tour the San Jacinto Battleground.  Just 2 years after that Texans participated in the denominational celebration of the bicentennial of John Wesley’s Aldersgate experience in 1738. 

The evening when Wesley’s heart was “strangely warmed” was seen as the real beginning of the Methodist movement even though formal organization took place decades later.

 

In early 1938, as soon as Advent observances were concluded, Methodist congregations began looking forward to the actual bicentennial which would occur in May.  Regional rallies were planned for Fort Worth on Feb. 23, Houston on Feb. 24, San Antonio Feb. 25, El Paso March 1, Amarillo March 3, Oklahoma City March 3m and Dallas March 4.   Although each was conference-wide, this was just the opening act for the big show that would occur in May. 

 

The Jacksonville District of the Texas Conference held an all day Aldersgate Rally in Palestine on January 27.  About a month later on Feb. 22, all the pastors in the district met at Jacksonville to report on what Aldersgate celebration plans were underway. 

 

Local churches also planned special events.  At Pasadena, Rev. Marvin Vance conducted a class meeting.  Class meetings had once been a requirement for Methodist membership, but had long since been discarded.  Participants of class meetings were instructed to consider the state of their soul and share publicly in the interest of seeping their spiritual life. 

 

At Kountze Rev. W. B. Moon packed up some of his laity on the last Sunday in January and held 5 services in one day in five of the circuit churches.  West Nona at 10:00;  Honey Island at 11:00; Warren at 2:30, Village Mills at 4:00; and back to Kountze at 7:45. 

 

Students at Methodist schools took part in the effort.  At Southwestern University the mandatory chapel services began programs on the life of John Wesley.  At Texas Wesleyan pre-ministerial students went to area churches including Arlington Heights, Boulevard, Riverside, and Forest Hill.  At the University of San Antonio, Marshall Steel of Highland Park in Dallas, came to preach tor Religious Emphasis Week.

 

The celebrations of 1934, 1936, and 1938 brought Methodists together across conference lines and helped create a since of common identity.  One expression of that identity was the Texas Methodist Foundation.