CURRENT SHORTCOMINGS

Chronicle (Levin), 7 October 1948, Page 10

CURRENT SHORTCOMINGS

Press Association)

Erils Of Putting God In Pigeon Hole v

(Per

AUCKLAND, Oct. 6. Only. by a return to an lionest belief in the true God and by the draving' together of all Christians and men of goodwill, can the present international and national problems be solved. This sumniarises the view expressed by the former Primate of New Zealand, Archbishop Averill, . when he was interviewed at his St.' Heliers Bay home on the eve of his 83rd birthday. • Hearty and vigorous and closely in toueh with local, national' and international affairs in spite of his failing eyesight, the Archbishop spoke with deep conviction of the evils that had resulted from mankind "putting God-in a pigeon-hole. " But having sobe.rly reviewed tlie the current shortcomings, his Grace took time to emphasise his faith in the soundness of the rising generation and in the basic goodness of man. He thought the present generation and their sons and daughters were as good as the people of any past period, that there was much to hope for in the world and that men Avere still at heert religious but did not realise tlie importance of witnessing to their religion in the international sphere. The Archbishop took the present shadow of atomic warfare as an example of tlie manner in whieh science had outrun the standard of international morality. He saw fear of atomic bombing as proof of the lack of fitness of the nations to liave the seeret of atomic power and said there was insufficient moral force today for any nation to have so terrible a weapon. "1 think the world is coneentrating on the future fof the atoiu bomb," his Grace said. "Russia's attitude depends very largely upon whether she has the seeret of the atom liomb and whether she i's in a position to make oue or even sometbing more terrible. There is no doubt that this dread weapon is hanging over the world like a dark shadoAV and everyliody realises that if there should be another war and atom bombs were i uscd it would mean the end oi civili'sation. ! "I have always felt that al- • tliougli- we liear a good deal of ; having an international committee of control, we want to go a bit deeper. Instcad of worrying about wlio has the bomli and who has not, why do we not devote all our time to outlawing war? 1 ' certainlv do not think it is riglit to use sucli a deadly weapon in | war and T was not happv about its use 011 Japan. I feel that if ihe ! nations, instead of talking about j reducing arrnaments, woulcT pull | together and outlaw war, they J would automatically outlaw Ihe i atom bomb and remove the greatest shadow of today. VTe might hope that the wonderful energy stored in the bomb could be used | for the good of mankind and not i for destruction." The need of the world was a revival of vital religion and by j that he did not mean anything sectarian but a religion to give man a moral standard in.