PARSON JAMES.

NZ Truth, Issue 56, 14 July 1906, Page 8

PARSON JAMES.

The Adulterous Clergyman Excommunicated.

" And Jesus Said : ' Whoever is Without Sin Among You* Let Him Cast the First Stone.'"

"So shall the vain, contentious world Their peaceful lives approve ; And wondering say, as they of old, 'See how these Christians love !'" Probably the last has been heard of the case of the Methodist Minister, T A. James, who ran away from Albany some two months ago with a buxom, juicy young servant girl and tried to lad his V'deah friends" and the wife . of his buzzum that he had been dr6wned fatally dead m Sydney harbor, by writing from Suva, en route to Vancouver, m a disguised hand, Riving particulars, as .the friend who was with James m the suppbsitious boat on the apocryphal occasion, when he metaphorically fell into the sea and was allegedly drowned, of his own "unknelled, uncoffined and unknown" decease. With true Christian spirit the Methodist Synod met at Perth last week and sat heavily on the chest of him. Being entirely without .sin themselves, the members vied with each other m heaving the one th brick. They took no account of the poor man's passions, long held m leash while he toiled m the vineyard and tried hard to. keep up a semblance of domestic love; the fires of which had doubtless lbni? died out, leaving only the hateful ashes of cold duty. All the brethren thought of was the -fear that their own office would be disparaged' and that they might, by making 'a scapegoat of their openly erring brother, whitewash themselves ; and remove the finger of scorn and' the eye of suspicion from their own vicinity. So they resolved 1. "That this synod, after considering all the evidence obtainable, . finds that Thomas Albert James has deserted his wife and family, forsaken his 'work, and brought disgrace to the Church ■•by ..his criminal conduct y and therefore suspends him until the .'conference expresses abhorrence pf'his i conduct/ and recom-. mends to the co n fe r^ nce ' that he be expelled from the -""ministry and menarbe'rship of our Church." 2. "Thai a circular lettet, con-^ taihing' a description of Thomas Albert ., James and a statement of his offences, be r prepared and sighed b*^ the. president and secretary- of • the conference; i and be posted to the president of each conference of- the ,Methodist Church m Canada and 'British. Columbia, and to -every bishop of the Methodist Episcopal Church m the United States of America, a photo of Thos. • A. James to accompany each letter." So that hot only is James an exile m. company with a woman w/.o can be no companion to an educated man, once tne heat of his crazy passion for her person dies down, and is t excommunicated from his preciduß church ; but his Ohristlike brethren, have determined to damn him all;- over the; United States of America, British Columbia and Canada. Verily, these Christians do love one another. It would be very interesting to know how many of those SynodicalWussleean wowsers who jumped with their flat feet on the runaway Lothario, have got an ugl^ little : skeleton (with long hair) m their own cupboards. .: Evidently the best thin?; 1 ex-parson James can do is to join the Mormons. An extra wife or two don't cul; ice m Utah and the condemnation of a narrow sect which would object to one of its clergy having a little affair with a nice girl, just because he happens to have a wife at home, would be a strong recommendation at SaltvLake City.