CHURCH SERVICES.

Dominion, Volume 1, Issue 34, 4 November 1907, Page 6

CHURCH SERVICES.

-METHODIST. ANNIVERt(V;,;r vX'^-.; ;; -v. ;.:'..::■ , -, The annivorsary services of the Webb ■' Street Primitivo-.■Methodist Sunday School woro celebrated in the Town Hall yesterday , -•':!'«: .in : a. very -special manner. The festival '.;•■: -?.- hymns .sung by the children,- aided- by .an orchestra, of eighteen members, wore of an ■: ..-/unusuallyhilabornte character, arid the splendid ■•• -results achieved reflected ■ the greatest './.-.K credit.! oh the-conductor, Mr. E. Dawson. ■:*•■'<! ; At;,tho'evening service'the children sang -'■■:-: ''J no"less'.thin twelve hymns, including two J-;:.-, .action songs, which wore well performed by -.:..' the "smaller ,'boys : and -girls. Mrs. • Guii- '■■•'';'. ,'thorpe.sang a-solo'part, in one hymn- plcas- ->■'■<'*■ iiigly, and ; iirflriother Mr. P. Cutforth took J.-i.i. ..the'-solo'/ and was assisted in- a'quartette ''.''; part-by Misses Coltman and.Flanagan- and -V.'? , w: H. Thompson:' '■•' Miss Ellen Henderson '--was piani.ste and -Miss Phillips organist. '-~ r-Thoro was.a.fair attendance in. the morning, ",-.;.' - (.a.hpuii-.eight hundred people attended, iii the .afternoon, and iii the evening tho largo ....■ v ,; gallery .was filledj and ithoro, was not much ■<»'»-f*°Pm ,io. spare liv the -downstairs portion ;,,•;.-»«f;.the(hall. • .',.- \ -.•.- . .- ' .. './■■ ;■({ Mr. H. ,N.;; Holmes, general' secretary '^•jv>of,,- the- ' Wellington! Y.M.C.A., (gave an ad'■....,\.Xjdrcsjs j,,iii l -,tlie,,.morniiig v ,,and. ! ;tlro ..Rev. A. ./;; rDewdney .(Baptist), was .the preacher in the y.v//'afternoon! ;. At, tho evening servico: the ■ •'.!■'^llbv-.C. J. Dawson spoke on ,the Wessons to the life- of the ; prophet -.' ; ..whoso.',life',.showed, as.did so many vAL ,ejhor.;.l|ycs, .that, goodness;,is up.t ; necessarily ><■'■! divorced" from .greatness. / Ho traced ■ the ' [-secret of Samuel's greatness to his praying, I thoughtful mother, and his early cdnsefCration,.to God's,service, into which ho" cn- % gi'erod, evqii as.a , child, with heart and will JW ,,J[and sanctified, .intelligence. The responsi- ■-. '"'i."« bijitics .of parents in connection ''with, their '. jl",(chilclrcji's['moral'training 'did'not end when ;';;,V/''4hey;;S'ent : '.theni't6' the.'Siiriday Sthool.'- A ''. VJebjidy.':p£ ! ; Hannah's, treatment of' her' boy '< would give' them abundant ilessons to'Jipw,. 'to treaty their ~boys t ani\ girls. '.'■'■ 7,"f Ho f'Soiicitcd.tlie' cq-oppration, of -parents in ir/.'l.t'tlje'.worKo'f .'tli'o'.Sun'day'.'School,'arid! stated '']■',-■ (Hliat tjiej.Church's Earnest desire and obja.?t ;';./' />'ore toj. lielp the'children;:, of to-day to bo ' '■■•,';• i "the noble, nien arid' women of the , future. {»; l; ; 'Th'o : '.annivei-sary l ', tea and public, meeting ■' " \will take place in the 'arid j r fchurph, Wobb.•• Street, •',on Wednesday even...,!,,,,}.ing- \ -,The Rev! J. 'Flanagan', '.'the' English

"."'I "'evangelist, is expected to' be ,:, p.reseTit :;s.t v .A,the -/meeting. The, special,, 'anniversary <; (' (■ will be swig again '.next'. Sunday by : '": ■ .th'o children in the church,^" for' the' .benefit '~. .'.yof; older members of 7 the'cbngregatioii, who \\.Ji could. not get to> the. .Town" Hall.'. ""' '■■ ■'. 'v; '"■', "'.ST.' ' ; v.-i -..-...Last night, at, St. .John's. Presbyterian L)r,.,\ GibKdelivered the! concluding" Vα fi sermon -of i .a.'icqurs/d -on. "Certain, kinds.' 'of the Bible,'/- the;-.theme !of his discourse oh this occasion being "The ■i.t ■'■fool iwho.-i.isu't a. fool-rrfools,, for.; . Christ's .• vA*■'.■sako. , ';- .'.yliu-.the.;Biblc, folly: was,, liq ! said, almost always associated not with. ' defective intellectual -but with ,a defective or -,:', ; ; bad' character.,.>., The man .about whom ho :. ,to: spqak that,,eyening—the-: fool'for ■■•?>.y;| l GlirJst!s:sak&rr'was the;.absolute antithesis of , .'■ |ttliose-'who'hadl (figured in-previous'sermons.' /'■' ,V.;; STha.Apostlo Paul,.,.who had uttered.the words ;r".'.CT'hich' formed;..h.is I text,, had- given up all, ; ha , : SSworldly.' prospects, and '-ombarked. upon -j a / vi-ca'reer.-which-. brought him almost ; intojer- -. labour;iand: exposed him , /to hardships. ".-■i jißecausb .he,;'had- done \this;, .the sleek .men • taf-the" world had said, he .was a fool.- Paul's ■\.;i;iexample, had...been' followed; by great lurniir.c'J. bers. of;men and .women. ; He;,might, men- . tion that four medical .-students—one ■ of■ ' ..' .whom had had. a brilliant university career —had offered'themselves for service in th'o : .i-> emissions -belonging ■to their.r.Church in China; .<'.'..> VlAU'doubtless would,-if'they; chose, do well ■;, • in the practice of their profession,.,but ;they ;• .•''.!•:, ito preach.-tho Gospel to. the hea&M then .'for.ar salary, of .only: £200., a year. .»..■;'■ 'iWhatl.was. the-position ■nearer-home? ; It ' i>.-.,'lcould'. not.wbd douied-ithat.ithe burdon was

>L, ; . unequally shared. . .Indeed, it w,piild amaze .-• /'.Bomo- people, to know how much > time, , strength,-and.-energy numbers gavo > every ';-f.:, i .:.'i,T/0ek;,t0..-the. services'of-the.. Church. From til -the standpoint of o ;th > e.,,u.nb;elievers, ,)the .conduct of these folk was folly.- -As a matter i'act,- they;-wore not fools■ at all: they- '■ ;-,;.Y, ; ero;.tho wisest ;of the wise.' In Christ, £,'.•: i all. '".'< the -toil;and-hardship -.which 'His service in--1,,..;, ,v6lved.,y .What',. young men .-and" women ( . ~ /.»6S,pccia.lly, / reouiredj.was / a strong,, sheltering ' friend,'anclthey, could, not: be'happy if they • Wfiro not at; peace with' Him! That Christianity to .those'i who; honestly accepted its '■ .' .truths was a pearl, of, great price oven men Huxlej'iiad -admitted.;.,.' '■ On Dominion. "" 'VDay copies of a"-number'-of messages cony.oyjng greetings to the people of ■" New. ■'* 'Zealand 'had'appeared in the Dominion. ■ "■"'■' -Among l 'them 'he' had noticed one from the "■';;;•': Wfill-kr/own .actor,' Mr'.' Bland Holt,' wh'p ■'-■ wished''the. residents God-speed in the pur- - >iiit of ' happiness:•'] He (Dri'Gibb)- would '•'■•" /Ilike to ask. what was r roal happiness? '. In ; his opinion','' very fow/were really'happy at "'bottom.,' •'•'of ," their rhearts, and f ■•''.'■ they -, -were ' the-'.-men- : and- women who served Christ' 1 — who wero fools ■7 _~ for'.' Christ's, sake. In' conclusion, ho ap- '.'->'''■ pealed ■tq"_thdse prosont; espeeiajly the i.i»i. -young-/merrand' women, , to 'follow- Christ! ;V':--.',^iCREED.AND MODERN CRITICISM..' At St. Paul's Church'yestorday evening ;: -"; ( theKev.-T. 'H. Sprott,' M:A.;- an in-' f i'"''! v t6"resting ai:Tdress "on the teaching of tho. oirthc Person of _ Christ in. the light of-modern' biblical criticism. Mr. Sprott pointed out that some of tho problems that had' to' hi i considered at tho present day did not, present ; jhernselyes to pxir fathers, who, gencfaiJy speaking,-' believed that!the : very words of. the Gospels were dictated-'by ; the Holy Spirit. Such being the case, wliat',ever.the Scriptures stated as to.tho Person '■ I 'of Christ wasi naturally accepted .by them .<■ i without Aiuestibn.;;--Th,ere was no poing be-' ■,;,i,!.hind.,,suQh /statements. .During tho last '•:'di ■i' .60 years, ••howevor,, a new -'school of -.criticism : had arisen, and, for good or evil, the verbal J , ,>,i-.d'!ctation itheory ..of inspiration had ceased to '■;■ ■:..■.:■/ hold the, field.' The question had been raised ;. i -whether .Christ 'Himself claimed a unique' relationship with God, , or-whether,this was only the belief of his loving and enthusiastic ■' followers', whb'Mjelieving it themselves , as- •''■; 'Bilmeil that'Ho-also , believed , it, and finally :■'- placed their, own-"'thoughts .into His mouth. " • ■' 'In , this'way," some critics would explain the •.",.-"!'words in tho .Gospels which made Christ claim a uniquo'i relationship with God. The '■"■'' poiidulum-of-criticism, .-more- especially ''in ticrmany.at'nvst swung far from tho teaching - ! v of"the'.Apostles'. Creed 'about Christ,' but dur-' ■'■'■■•'■'; ing 'recent years the pcndulum had been "-.' ''-'"swinging back, and; as-Professor Sanday, of , -'Oxford', had pointed l out, truth was" , compel- '•"'' "ling critics" ,td'admit that Christ Himself be- '■'/?'■':' Sieved' , that" He-, was the Son of God' in ,'a ■• "unique sense. , In support of this; Mr.'Sprott' r l, " '•■; gave quotations from recent writings' of Har- .':;' ? 'nack ami Bousset. ''■ This was the general; i - "if not the universally accepted, result of sixty "■"'''■ years' minute and searching criticism of tho Gospels. Mr. Sprott Vent : dii't6 say-tHat,.liq :. could imagine it possible that tho disciples, of /..,..Christ might,have been,to ascertain extoiit . of illusion,, but he found it.impos'siblo " '..to"bclieVe'that.the. amazing lifo and teaching .., of:,our' Lord, .which associated with His unique personal (relationship with , . 'the Father, should be based on illusidn. }~ .Such an amazing illusion would bo unparal- :. \ ieled in the pitiful history of human error.

In making a plea for a largo collection'at >,he Primitive Methodist anniversary service '■ ?asfc'cveiiing; ; -tliu :; Ecv. J. Dinvson said that ■v. of it would go'., towards', the children's !canse, .-and, not one.-penny towards the .parv jon'sj.sjilarjr. , _Some j)cqvilc •had - a strong V.-"'" aversion- 'to"paying, tlie .parson's salary, not ,'that,.ho did .not,get .his, own salary;: they . neqd nqt bq.conqerncd oh his account. Still, ho wanted them to know that none of the - offering 'they'-we'ro 'goiiig to make would go J'""' i;'A' tli6''parson". ' ." ,