RELIGIOUS ACTIVITY.

Dominion, Volume 3, Issue 764, 12 March 1910, Page 9

RELIGIOUS ACTIVITY.

DEFECTS OF CLERGY.; SOME PUNGENT CRITICISMS. A particularly pungent criticism of the clergy ]s given bythoßov.W. Hume Campbell principal of St. Christopher's College, Blackheath, London, to the "liecord. He was disappointed that the paper at the Islington Clerical' Meeting °n ihe .Ministry and its Modern Equipment was "little move than: a : list; of ologies which the often brain-jveary parish' priest ■ must study to be.' modern,"' ami says that nearly; twenty-four"years';'ex-perience of clerical unions-and-, societies has given him. a great :respect for.the in: tellectual stock-in-trado' ..of - the average vicar and curates. Then Mow's -his criticism "Yet when ' one' goes 1 .to'ihe' churches w here they minister, one hj&rs the .Bible read carefully; an ignorance, of-..the elementary -rules- of tortile f° mak4s,.ifc-„a torture to .l.i.Sieiir. semons.-rarelv -touch the real, springs of,..fcuman. donduct'or s low any. consciousness ;;that ''there are such springs, and that- they are within reach; w,lule tte htfndlftg'.aud teaching dtauira^^r: hiiss ; them<!st - ej ? , ar ®vW'-BP»% to a,vake. to' the fact that knpßMMas,.oiie';th'iiig:,arid,:slcill ■iwn no i equipment ..for ■ a' filled profession-can-be-imodern'-whicli" does .not .include the. most/careful' expert training rn, the'liow'ias well as the 'what' p-y ; our : .livin s .? -- At the. f„fl C^.Pageant rehearsals Mr. .Moss used to fly at clerical performers, snatch wordsi and actions fi'pm .them.and.express them j himself, while., the groups, of onlookers almost gasped- with astonishment at the effects produced,, by. a:man who knew his

"If a doctor,, a-barrister,- "a. musician Aorai! tried to practise' his. profession with an ignorance-of- its -technique such as is common -among .1:5 clergy,, ho would starve in a ...\»'e€k....;- , .'.QneL;often feels, as one .watches . the intelligent -faces of -our Mnsregations;''that, many, of.'.-thenr.niji'st b» tlnnlving: Jf.-L did not know or could not teach myself how io read and" preachbetter than that I would hold my tongue lor ever. •.. ; . B . 6 . clergy are martyrs'; rather, than culprits, for cur one opportunity of• learning the necessity of., skill : and of.beginning its exercise; was' before..ordination, when we . put ourselTcs'-in 'theshands" of "experts, whom we tf.tisted'; tb'.'teU/'us'; what- we should need;-but-instead-of being trained' to .skill, ology T%\is;ra v dded;'J6"6iogyV"uiitir wo came sncceed as teachers Jifl'are" 'fcnew' eiiongji;!' 1

THAT THANKSGIVING SERVICE

[ e "SOCIALISTS- AND - SABBATHn BHEAKERS." - sr.. It, , Th®. following -astounding ■-notice,--as HT le !! y ' n cable;.,.was,.issued./.in y 5? form of a- card - by a Plumstead vicar after the election in Great Britain:—"St. e J« hn , the Baptist' Church, Kobert Street, , y riunistead. Sunday,' January' 23; 1910.-: 1, SP" 11 ? 1 thanksgiving service -to Almighty' r tTOd for the. timely deliverance of. Woolj wich and Plumstead from the -hands of - c* j-Socialists and. Sabbath-breakers. ■Vi l' on fth Commandment. There will be four - celebrations-> of- -the -Holy ! Communion, ,at ;7 a-ni;, :8. a.m.,. mid-day, ' and after the .evening -service,'- All com--1 mumcants are earnestly -invited'.- The Te ! Deum will. be'' iised.' instead of ."the " tiro. ?f ss^" al an(1 T :F««essionaJ. t hymns',;' Le'wis ' -Thomas,.' Vicar." . One obvious con-; struction-. was. placed Vup'oii' .this.- notice by; everybody that a To,; Denm was to: b6 n"k ng fe 1 ' . the : def€it of : lfr - Will- Crooks, i , s ,,°P • promptly , intervened,' and stopped the. proposed;..jubilationy- and at a meeting of the'Jocal ..clergy..' the" vicar's action -was generally, condemned. He 3S.n'<j Says j 'i h i e r' 1VI !f quite ' misunderstood, and .that Mr.. Crooks was not in ' Sii t m A n f :• b , n . t; ' ?, n l3: his. "Socialist ..and-, sabbath-break l, ng iwsuppdrters. Eeaders> i of the notice, -as -given above,, may--judgo' ■' for themselves 1 thwwwth vof i planation:''Ori'r'the '.-'following' Su'ndiy - > -.morning' a . body;?of- ;MfeGrbots's ,;-ad-- ; nurers-' took ah inipressire. Wav of. protesting,, against; the .outrage; ; Some -130 members of. the Plumstead Radical Club each going straight from .'his' own home attended the service at St. John. the Baptist. They entered Quietly, and Fat ' in silence through' the-service until the : vicar began to. address the congregation. ' Then they ..rose together, put on .Mr. i -Crookss badge, and, silently walked out i ot the church. The vicar appears to have i summoned a good many plain-clothes 1 policemen, but there .:was-no - need- for ( them, and the,c|jatjc himself, admits.'that reverently fS ave !j"honourably' and (

WESTMINSTER CATHEDRAL.

SOON TO BE CONSECRATED. r^ii oo^6^ 011 .' °f the ne,v Boman Catholic Cathedral at -Westminster has been fixed for. June 28 of this yoai\ -This' ,'s£■, iuijdin'g : ; -is:;, free.'irom. debt, and-110 leader, of-money* has-any lien on thetabncr There; isstill a" de-" ficit of <£7000 in connection, with . the general building fund, but' 'provision has been made for this by means of a private S"i other, security, and-it is hoped that this deficit may bo made good before tlie actual day of consecration. The consecration. of ;the cathedral oit : «J,uiie.2S .is "n. C f ,°?A' next - d ?*- (states tiie" English lablet. J ). by a :s<?rtice .which, attended by eyerycircum.'Ttaice of ceremonial splendour, :shalL7nark-'tli« : dayVas' a national festivqfc-'-Higlf'arass rill'lie s, i n £ t 'tlie Archbishop -in the presence of the ivhole hierarchy .of. England. The sermon on-the Mcasion. will be preached •11 1S 0 P The occasion will .commemorate'.not;only, the consecration of WestminsteK-CatHedral,.but' also the sixtieth anniversary of >t-he-Restora-tion of, the -HiSrirohy," which occurs a few, weeks lateiv 'On' the"saUie*day fifteen years .ago the foundation stone of -the' cathedral was laid, while on the same day seventeen .years .-ago ''England was solemnly consecrated "to the Mother of God. ! A memorial to -the jate' Cardinal Manning lias just.been unveiled by the Most .#«•' Dr.' Bourne,/ Archbishop of .' West-', minster, over the- tomb. of the deceased prelate-in the-crypt.chapel -of. the cathedral. The effigy; MvhictdsMn . bronze,- represents the, late.Cardinal in a recumbent position, with head' bared to" allow of the fine lines of-the face' bein<f-done-full justice by 'the'sculptor,- Mr..: J.' Adariis-Acton.

ONvMIRACL'ES,

: '.THE .ATTITUtiiTtiFSCIENCE. ', At a meeting -of .the Victoria Institute, held at the- Koyal Society ' of Arts, Adclphi,' recently, Professor : H. Langliorne Orchard, read, the: Gunning " Prize Essay , for, 190!), the-subject of which was i .Attitude,,..of towards Miracles. ! From, fair .'and.-careful- examination,- he said, it migbt. be. conceded .that'.science affirmed the possibility of miracles. On the question of . whether, miracles are probable, Professor Langhorne pointed out that a phenomfehon might be very rare or unusual, viz., an eclipse or. a comet, and yet its occurrence might be r probable. A miracle, however,', was . more" than :an unusual occurrence—it ■ was -produced by the action of the.supernatural-,-and it wos contended that science-did not'reach to such action.. It might be replied - that, in the case contemplated, the action was expressed by some phenomenon in nature, and that science was competent to' take note of and report upon th.ft phenomenon. Science did not say that miracles were a priori improbable. As .to tho question' whether ■ mitaoles had actually occurred,. science answered in the affirmative. Among these events' 1 wero creation: of this' world of matter; i creation of living organisms and the character of Jesus'. Christ. The Bible miracles were no, mere accompaniments of the revelation, but were inseparably bound up with it;. A' very important feature in them was that they explained what was otherwise inexplicable. The Exodus of the Israelites' became unintelligible if the miracles said to have attended it did not really take place, and no explanation was (in such case) possible'of the memorial feast of th« Passover.

THE NEW EVANGELICALISM. thot tlio ' Islington clerical mechug-attracted the largest attendance in the eighty-two years "of its existence is a significant commentary . upon our recent remarks upon tiio rise of the ev i Hardly less significant isit that the subject for discussion should have been the relations of the sacred ministry to 1 the Church and its 2 ' t\ Sector of' Birmingham, t anon « -Peyton Thompson, went many, steps further than Islington has .been accustomed to when he claimed that thß dealings of the priest with-the individual soul.-may, - in certain circumstance's, ba incomplete and of little effect without - recourse- to - the restricted and clearly-.. defined .-use. of Confession- contemplated ' • • ,5' Prayer-book.. Canon - . himself openly makes-use of the system, . iinds that,; even „in an Evangelical environment, it meets ;a-: human need/ He admits ihat there- are dangers of mis-' understanding. But for a man to "open • his grief" in church to a "discreet' - and ' , learned, minister" is :one thing;.-to set up confessionals! and ; inculcate habitual Con* - fession is. quite another. We cannot go. far wrong .if we keep- within the foul- : . cprner.s •of the Prayer-book.—" Tha Guardian." ■ JOTTINGS. '' : Tjje • -Rev. ..-Thomas Spurgeon, ex-pastof , of • the Metropolitan .Tabernacle,, London,' and'formerly of New Zealand, has found • S' u .rl' wintei> at Paignton,: ' • .Jv., Devon, where he occupies-, himself with;.both writing and painting. Air.", is also editing "The Sword and . tno t jrowel. . : . T ' ; !? . ; of-Westminster:' * Lhapel,- ...seriously considering, ■ when. the. maibleft/ an- ' invitation' to Fifths . Avenue Presbyterian' Church, New York, , and, some ;of • his ;best friends entertain the view, that hp will accept the offer. Tips is 'the church which, previously gave • an-invitation ;to the Itev. J. H. Jowett.. -.. It is« stated that if-anv pulpit may- bio. said* v to influence - America it .is Fifth'' Avenue Presbyterian. Dr. Morgan would . »e- no experinient for. the Fifth Avenue.... people. ' He is-almost the only preacher. .. who has filled the church since Dr. .Tohn Hall''die(l. ,If Dr. Morgan should go to-: , America, London would possibly be re* conciled .'to'-his-loss if the Rev;. J. H. Jowett'could'bo. persuaded to succeed him ! at-Westminster Chapel. Dr. Morgan is .. also'considering the most urgent . invita- : tions for a year's, campaign in . India,' China', arid' Japan. and be is badly wanted in Australia. If. Fifth Avenue should fail to secure Dr. .Morgan after Mr. JWettV refusal,* it is; possible that the magnificent, church, which seats - 2500. people, ruay.be pulled .down and a. smaller building erected. ' - ■•. ....) 1 •; '

:-feeling prevails -in many- - Wesleyan-• ohUrohes ; "owing; to the. High "tidepf political .-passion which 'has' l : induced many ministers' to 'bring'party questions into the pulpit (states- the« "Christian World").' It r is estimated that some fif-> teen to twenty of Wesleyans are Conservatives.' •••'Competent observers think it* likely.' that some hundreds of members, may. secede. .. I)iV;F. -E.--Clark,' the founder of -,the Christian .-Endeavour.-Society has had'.an of ;the Emperor' of. ; .' Japan, on; presentation- by; the -American Ambassador. According to the American papers, " "Dr. Clark has- the- distinctions/of being the first • person to be received,'.by the Emperor, because of his prominence, ia Christian ; wx)rk." v-. >,

For: some ; time now General Booth has.' been fully-occupied every week-end with heavy engagements at -one*'or other of his provinciahVcentres. ..Then followed an extensive, 'tripr to ' Holland and Germany, seyeii towns( in the Netherlands, were to., bei visited. ; By the end of February, and then v|wasto. follow /-an .interesting cam* paign/in /Essen, the Kjupp town.\ , _ -.An important-meeting'of the executive::of- .the Church of Englaild'Men's Society was held . recently :the ' Archbishop " of York presiding. The report submitted by.' the;, secretaries showed ;that during the -. month- of.. .December i ninety-six new branches had. been registered at .Homei with two'federations for Harrow-on-the-Hill and Syston, in Leicestershire. • The branches have ;a!so bec,ll - tretfed TH66dore. A]delaidQj;r/| St;'-Paul's, 'Colombo; 'Orhffton 'and . AYilloughbV^ r St?>Barnabas, Otto-wla. - : lt " v

f ported-,that-the/ATchbishop of Canterbury 'lid consented, to b?.;.the;preacher. annual service -to .be held in v St -Paura > Cathedral on : May 4 a•■ • conference of. ,-.Federation of. Secretaries - .and delegates was'.also arranged- to • takoplace: that same day. .The arrangements for the nex.t- conference/ which is to,-be ~ held at Bristol-on October 19, were alsa' The . scheme for the 'election ot federation delegates was exhaustively discussed, ; and the final draft is 'to be '' brought up for-.the approval of the execu-tive-at.their next meeting.

.•;The Church'of Ireland. Auxiliary.'Fund /, closed its account for' last vear with the' : receipt of' ,£lo,ooo'■ .from a''-don6'r. v wK»',"' wishes.to be anonymous, This will' go : far ■towards enabling it to reach the <£250,009 ' aimed at when the fund was inaugurated ijve years ago. According to the most re- ' cently published statements it now standi (with interest) at-about ,£212,000. : , men do not see the blatant shallowness of such .ii book as 'God-and My ; Aeighl)oui', said, the Bishop of Loudon, speaking, last month, at . a. j-oung 'men's* iKSFiPV;;:.;*I2 : <mly.'mention: a book like' that, , lie added, "ais . a specimen' of a r ' number of .others.; I have, seen the faith of people killed; by . such, books:" '/How. .Young-man to answer. the argumerits,, put. forward bv such writers?.' .It ■' at . stfch times, that sympathv 'was ..< i lO6 ? 6 ?,- J ou ng'man did not want to T be told Believe . or, be damned." It was '■' ' for want of' sympathy that hundreds became .atheists. ■ "I often think that if : Jfc, Eradlaugh 'had- had someone, at the • right moment- of -his life, to sympathise with, liiln 'iii ..lys difficulties, fie mi*ht never at all. have .been the secularist -and' atheist' heiwas.'':' True sympathy, was w be found in the Church, which dreV them; into a brotherhood: The Churcnv. was not--an;; ecclesiastical, establishment !' kept up. for .itself—"Perish .the idea," the Bishop ..added. It ...was nothing unless ..-' -.the ■••living Christ-was up. and down an -the., hole.Tins, then,. was. the message of the hold out a hand to those troubled wjth' passion, doubt, and persecution- of-their religion. :

-;In ..reference -to the . new departur° in connection- with the foreign work deDart. ment ,of the the „a%Set .retary (Mr. J. J. \ irgo).- has-received-an intimation from- the. associations through- .?!¥ announcing their willingtil co-operafe 'in : tlife:' movement so that ■ the actual fact of-having a repre. .sentatne in India is - now. well assured. tWv:v r e i ic '?. n -'^ a H on ?l'- ; Committee of "V ■ 6 curre "t issue of- Association Men" a.retrospect. Therecord shows- -that the growth of tie movement,during the first ten years of the: century -exceeds the whole of the pre/ vious, half century." • • '*.-