[7] His profession of holiness soon brought him to conflict with the leaders in the church. Speaking of the period of 1875-80, Dr. Forney says in his History of the Church of God: "During several of these years the Eldership was contending against inroads of heresies advocated by D. S. Warner. It had finally to resort to the old remedy of excision in order to prevent the spread of the disease and restore the body to good health." [8] This trouble came up at the Eldership meeting the following September. "The Warner case was indirectly revived when the Committee on Resolutions adopted the following: 'That any minister of this body that may presume to preach the dogma of a second work for sanctification shall be deemed unsound in the theology of the Church of God, and should not hold an ecclesiastical relation as a minister in this Eldership.'"--From Dr. Forney's History of the Church of God. X NORTHERN INDIANA ELDERSHIP The pagan system of Freemasonry began to make inroads in the body of Christians known as the Indiana Eldership of the Church of God. A storm of opposition arose from some who were of the more spiritual element of the Church when a number of the members became affiliated with the Masonic Lodge. It appears that the main body of the Eldership did not object to secret societies, and the result of the agitation was that a number of ministers who stood for the opposition and refused to fellowship Freemasons were expelled from the Eldership and were denied a renewal of their licenses. Others left the body of their own accord. In consequence a new Eldership was formed called the Northern Indiana Eldership. Among those who constituted the original members of the new Eldership were Elders J. Martin, J. S. Shock, C. Clem, E. B. Bell, B. F. Bear, I. W. Lowman, and J. W. Ray. The new body came into possession of most of the church property and the best churches. They appointed a Board of Publication, which took steps to begin publishing a paper devoted to the interests of the cause for which they stood. Accordingly there appeared in January, 1878, the first number of the Herald of Gospel Freedom, a monthly periodical published from Wolcottville, Ind., at fifty cents a year. It stood for the promotion of gospel truth and freedom, opposition to all oathbound secret societies, Freemasonry in particular, and loyalty to God and conformity to his Word. I. W. Lowman was editor. At the Eldership meeting which convened at Beaver Dam on Oct. 5, 1878, and which was the third annual session, Brother Warner was voted a member. In his diary for October 5 appears this account of the proceedings: