"I. The General Conference shall not alter, revoke, or change our Articles of Religion, nor establish any new standards or rules of doctrine contrary to our present ex- isting and established standards of doctrine.
"II. They shall not allow of niore than one ministerial representative for every fDurtcen niCTnljers of the Annual Conference, nor allow of a less niiniher than one for everv forty-live, nor more than two lav (U4eo;ates fur anv Auuna'l Conference; provided, nevertheless, fh.U when there shall be in any Annual Conference a finction of two thirds the number which shall be tixed for the ratio of rejiresenta- tiou, such Annual Conference shall be entitled to an ad- ditional delegate for such fraction ; and provided, also, that no Confeieuce shall be denied the privilege of one delegate.
" III. They shall not change or alter any part or rule of our goverunieut, so as to do away Episcopacy, or destroy
the plan of our itinerant general superiuteudeucy ; but may appoint a missionary bit^hop or superintendent for any of our foreign missions, limiting his jurisdiction to the same respectively.
" IV. They shall not revoke or change the General Rules of the united societies.
" V. They shall not do away the privileges of our min- isters or preachers of trial by a committee, and of an ap- . peal ; neither shall they do away the privileges of our members of trial before the society, or by a committee, and of an appeal.
"VI. They shall not appropriate the produce of the Book Concern, nor of the Charter Fund, to any purpose other than for the benefit of the travelling, supernumera- ry, superannuated, and worn-out preachers, tlieir wives, widows, and iliilrtrcn.
J'r<n-i,i,;l. 11' \i 1 theless, that upon the concurrent recom- mendaiion (4' ihice fourths of all the members of the sev- eral Annual Conferences who shall he present aiid vote on such recommendation, then a majority of i« o ihird^ of the General Conference sncceedinu' shall sullirt" to alter any of the above restrictions excepting the lust aitirle; and also, whenever such alteration or altiaation-^ shall have been first recommended by two thirds of tlie ( Jem ral Conference, so soon as three fourths of the nunibcrs of all the Annual Conferences shall have coni-tined as afore- said, such alteration or alterations shall take efl'ect."
These Restrictive Rules, together with the Articles ofRelir/ion and the General Rules [see jMETHODisji],are commonly held to be the Constitution of the Church. They make the General Conference supreme in author- ity', with entire supervision over all the interests and Avork of the denomination, and the bond of the whole connectional system. It elects the bishops and other general officers ; the bishops, who are its presiding offi- cers, but not members of tlie body, are subject to its direction, and answerable to it for their moral as well as official conduct.
2. The Judicial Conference is instituted for the trial of bishops who may be accused of wrong-doing, and of appeals of convicted members of an Annual Conference. The Annual Conferences severally elect annually seven '• Triers of Appeals." In case of an appeal, the triers from three Conferences contiguous to that whose deci- sion is apjiealed from, constitute the Judicial Conference, whose action is final, except that all decisions of ques- tions of law are reviewed by the General Conference. For the trial of an accused bishop, the triers from five neighboring Conferences are necessary.
3. The A ni.ual Conference is composed wholly of trav- elling preachers. It selects the place of its sessions, the bishops appointing the time, and presiding. It pos- sesses no legislative power: its functions are purely ad- ministrative. It holds the power of discipline over its own members, inquiring annually into the Christian character and ministerial efficiency of each by name. It gathers the ecclesiastical statistics of its several soci- eties, though its jurisdiction is over the ministers, rather than over the churches. The proceedings and action of this body, as recorded in its journal, are reviewed by the General Conference, to which it is subject.
4. The District Conference embraces the chiu-ches of a presiding elder's district, and is composed of the pas- tors, local preachers, exhorters, and one steward and Sunday-school superintendent from each pastoral charge. It licenses local preachers, recommends them to the An- nual Conference for orders or for admission on trial, and holds jurisdiction over them; it is also charged with a general supervision of the temporal and spiritual af- fairs of the district. Specifically, it inquires into the work of Sunday-schools, forms plans for the occupation of new fields within its territory, and promotes atten- tion to the charities of the Church.
5. The Quarterly Conference is limited to a single pas- toral charge, over which it exercises entire supervision, subject to the provisions of the Discipline. Its mem- bers are the pastor, local preachers, exhorters, stewards, and class-leaders, together with the trustees and Sun- day-school superintendent, if members of the Church. Besides the functions of the District Conference, which devolve upon it where no District Conference is held, it inquires carefully into the condition and work of every department of tlie local society.
METHODIST EPISC. CHURCH 172 METHODIST EPISC. CHUIiCH
G. The Leaders' and Stewards' Meetiiifj, presided over bv tlie pastor, and consisting; of all tlic class-leaders and stewards of his charge, is usually held moiitlily, for the purpose of inquiring after the sick, needy, and any that, by neglect of the means of grace or by incorrect life, may need the admonitions of good discipline. The meeting recommends jirobatiouers for reception into the Church, as also candidates for license to exhort or preach. See Leadeks' Meetings.