Bishop W. H. Miles (Colored Methodist Episcopal Church)

William H. Miles emerged as a steady shepherd in the hard years after the Civil War, when newly freed families were forming congregations, training pastors, and building a disciplined church life amid poverty, intimidation, and rapid social change. As a bishop of the Colored Methodist Episcopal Church (later Christian Methodist Episcopal), Miles carried a burden that was spiritual as much as organizational: guarding doctrine, encouraging holy living, and strengthening pastors who often traveled long distances to serve scattered societies.

March 20, 1873 Letter and Call for More Bishops

On March 20, 1873, Miles wrote to the church’s assembled leaders urging them to elect three additional bishops. At that time he was the only living bishop, and the expanding work could not be faithfully supervised by one man without leaving congregations underserved. His appeal reflected humility and practical wisdom—choosing the church’s spiritual care over personal control, and pressing for shared oversight so the growing body would not fray at its edges.

Order, Discipline, and Pastoral Care in a Postwar Era

Miles’s concern was not merely efficiency. He understood that scattered flocks need consistent teaching, accountable leadership, and prayerful visitation. Methodist discipline—class meetings, exhortation, and careful attention to the sacraments—required more than good intentions; it required leaders who could travel, counsel, correct, and encourage with regularity. In that sense, Miles’s request was an act of quiet heroism: a willingness to admit limits so that the people of God would be better served.

Biblical Pattern of Shared Leadership

His counsel echoed Scripture’s wisdom that God’s work is strengthened through trustworthy, distributed responsibility: “But select capable men from among the people—God-fearing, trustworthy men who hate dishonest gain” (Exodus 18:21). It also aligned with the New Testament call to watchful shepherding: “Be shepherds of God’s flock that is among you, watching over them… not out of compulsion, but because it is God’s will” (1 Peter 5:2).

Legacy

Miles’s March 1873 appeal stands as a model of stewardship, unity, and faith. By urging additional bishops, he sought to protect congregations, uphold discipline, and carry the gospel farther—“with order, prayer, and unity”—so that the church’s growth would be matched by spiritual depth and faithful care.