PULPIT VOICES.

Auckland Star, Volume LIX, Issue 226, 24 September 1928, Page 16

PULPIT VOICES.

IMPORTANT ANNIVERSARY.

SERVICES AT ST. MATTHEW’S. MEMORIES OF EARLY AUCKLAND. An event of special significance in the church life of Auckland yesterday was the celebration of the 75th anniversary of St. Matthew’s Church. Messages of eongratulatjon and goodwill were received during the week-end by the vicar, the Rev. Canon C. H. Grant Cowen, from all parts of the Dominion. A communion service was conducted by Archdeacon Mac Murray in the morning and a special children’s flower service was held in the afternoon, A thanksgiving service followed last evening. “The first St, Matthew’s Church was built when Queen Street was but a track and the waters of the harbour cam* up to Bhortland Street,” said Canon Grant Cowen, in tracing the history of the church last evening. The history of St. Matthew’s, he said, was practically the history of Auckland. The first vicar was the Rev. F. Thatcher and at that time there was only a very small schoolroom, which was totally inadequate for the needs of the church. A new church was built and this was now the parish hall. Twenty-three years had passed since the completion of the present chureh. Canon Cowen paid a tribute to th* memory of many splendid church mem* bers who had laboured faithfully during the past 75 years, and also spoke of the splendid service which was being rendered by parishioners of the present day. He recalled that Bishop Selwyn, before leaving for England, held his last service jn New Zealand in St. Matthew’s Church. Mention was made of many beautiful gifts which the church had been fortunate in receiving during the past nine years. These included a new communion table in Derbyshire alabaster and the installation of electric light, while as a memorial to those who gave their lives in the war the choir stalls, the clergy stall and bishop’s seat had been rebuilt in oak. A memorial tablet had also been erected.

Shortly, the speaker said, a new font in Derbyshire alabaster was to be installed in memory of the late Mr. J. W. Leigh, and tivo hymn boards carved in oak ware to be placed in the church in memory of the late Mrs. S. Andrews, Canon Cowen thanked the loyal and willing band of workers and urged parishioners to take courage in their service in order that those who came after might find the read a little easier and the burden lighter. Th* service concluded with an organ recital and choral singing,

“PATRIOTISM AND RELIGION.”

Preaching on the subject of “Patriotism and Religion” at the Pitt Street Methodist Chureh last evening, the Rev. L. B. Dalby said that in patriotism there often existed pride, selfishness and even considerations of money. Before the Kingdom of God could be established in the world it was necessary to get rid qf all that was evil in patriotism. The preacher said that thoughtful men and women throughout the world were gravely considering the question of patriotism, and they were trying to obtain the point of view of people in many lands. He suggested that some day it might be discovered that religion was the only element in life which would effectively put an end to all racial animosities, and that out of that discovery there might arise a “League of Religions.” Mr, Dajby quoted the remark of the late Earl Haig that “The business of the Christian Church is to make my business impossible.” The wisdom of that remark should be realised by everybody. He emphasised the conviction that more and more religion was coming to be realised as the only hope for the world.

CHRISTIAN SCIENCE CHURCH.

“Reality” was the subject of the les-son-serman in the Christian Science Church yesterday, the golden text being taken from Psalm cxix., 89-90: “For ever, O Lord, Thy word is settled in heaven. Thy faithfulness is unto all generations; Thou has established the earth, and it abideth,”

The citations, which comprised the les-son-sermon included the following from the Bible: “God that made the world and all things therein, seeing that He is Lord of heaven and earth, dwelleth not in temples made with hands; neither is worshipped with men’s hands, as though He needed anything, seeing He giveth to all life, and breath, and all things . . , For in Him we live, and move, and have our being; as certain also of your own poets have said, for we are also His offspring.” (Acts xvii., 24, 25, 28.) The citations also included the following passages from the Christian Science text book (“Science and Health, with Key to the Scriptures,” by Mary Baker Eddy): “To grasp the reality and order of being in its science, you must begin by reckoning God as the Divine Principle of all that really is,” (p. 275.)

SCHOOLS BASED ON RELIGION,

(From Qyr Own Correspondent.) HAMILTON, this day.

That the central purpose of life should be religious and moral was emphasised by Canon H. K. Archdall, headmaster of King’s College, Auckland, in a sermon at St. Peter’s Cathedral, Hamilton, on Sunday morning. The speaker stressed the importance of religion in education. Canon Arehdall said that religion was a vital thing, and he made mention of certain principles which Christian education was bound to uphold. True education must train the body, mind and spirit. Intellectual development might produce cleverness, but alone it could not produce wisdom.

Touching on the achievements of modern education, the speaker said that civilisation would never progress until all sides of the human need were developed uniformly. Importance should be attached to moral pow n r and courage, for the factor of final importance was character, It was not sufficient for education to aim at preparing citizens to earn their livelihood. The development of personality must be socially creative. Canon Archdall said that because education was primarily a spiritual thing, the Church was bound tu resist any suggestion that education was concerned merely with the outward and material side of life. It was vital that there should be schools baaed on religion to inspire all education- He did not consider that the introduction of the Bible into the schools would achieve this purpose, but held that tbs clergy must be permitted to teach the children the faith in which th§ir fathers had been trained.