ARCHDEACON HARPER'S HECENT SERMON.

Dominion, Volume 5, Issue 1322, 28 December 1911, Page 2

ARCHDEACON HARPER'S HECENT SERMON.

Iliink il h j.lniii Hi,. Ajrlidciicmi Weill, fur li...viinil hi!. HkliU ,\h ,1 "|iii,,|. "I Urn Chilivl.." 1,,. 1,, n/,,1,.,,.1 I'Kiiiii'l iliiiniii'iilil.y ii! |iij;|i ;n,,| ||~,V plni'iv,, iiukiii" Dm.-/! v.lio Inn-!! plciilv i,l iitmicy, a-. \v,.|| „,, 11,,,,., «!,„ \ lilVl . )iii|, ; "I , liiiii'!. Tlii! liiriiM. 1,, M .|| ~|. , mi1 ,i,f.,,.. lilro llltoxiriiliiiK drink lllll>l. lj|. (ilitniiiC'l 1 r<llll 11. kt'iil Miim-o, tlml 1,;,.s i 1.., ...xi;.!. oiitn n<llll Hi... |,(.,|,] ( , ~| ||,I K ,|,., 11(J ,. n ,1i,; r:(,uiilry. Tin, lii,ii,,i- triidin lim I,<.<;» liii'il, iinil fijuiiil i/nillv fit' lii.jug a (li-inor-''lmiiK mid iluxriiiliiiK lliiiii;. nml Hint limiik i<o, tlio "urifsU i,r l.lu. IMini.'li" 'iHKlil. lo lj(» ilwiil iiKiiin.sl. n|| |.|n,|. 1,.j,,| s In iiniiHjrnlit.v, mid nuylil. l<, I, P ||,« ",,,|. viun'fil giiai-,1" in Ui« liijlil. lint w ),,. ru mi! iniiny iif tlii'in? T|,<. hi-l/nv i,r lli<! niiii|iiii|!ji just cl</SC(I rrsvr;i!« llicii- stvtral |ius:ili«ii>.

All liiiMoui' lu tlii! I,l'avo mijii.st.br.-> (if Uiu (iosiKil (I dfrlinc l<, niiin'.. tlioni llfltelS, (.ll.i A)lll.-tlcK lllMlUfl»7.-.S IV-'illU called simply "MiinislerK," not [iricsi/) wliu rami .ill 11,,. l.uUfU, lioinljf, mid liuiiiljshulls thai worn lmrjVd ii(jaiiii,t llii'tn. The flay of rtßkoniiiK i« lo como yel. I dial It'll);!! Aix'lulcaoon HariKT lo pruvt! llio wino made l,y our l.unl wns inloxiuiitiiifr, or dial usihl at th« "LnM. ■Supper." John tlio .Un|ifi s l "drank neither w-ine nor slroiic drink, and was filled with Ihf! Holy (iliast evwi from )iis mollior's woMili." This wits the angels' ' to his mothnr n.uko 1.15), mid on (he occa.sion of his cirmnntition, llio child, John, wns dfclurcd in tlio lemplp I.') 1)0 till! 'J'rijjiliel: of the Highest anil l-'oßMMiiinor (>oo John, 7.27, whore our I/urd Himself sliilos "This is lie of whom it is written 'He-hold, 1 send My mos?nnger before thy I'aee, wliich hlia'll nrepixre the way. before tin:?"). Now, whpii (!od ordained llwt (lie fororiinner of His Holy Son was to drink neither wino ncr slronir drink, would il. not appear to be Himetliim; wnrtliy of tlio jiricsU of the Clumtli lo imitnti? in our own day. Dc«s not tlio finfnl flil.c of the world at lartjo rail for ovh'.v possible self-denial on the part of tho*; who ore sot apart for (ho holy ofiii-e nf (he ministry. And if the prions of the Church continue to hold aloof from the work of temporance in its fulnw. they will tempt the people to liiis-f rsist I horn altogether. To concltido. thp authority to manufacture and ?cll inlcxirnline drink with the pr/nnlp, and tlio same authority can withhold and refuse to renew the licenses which are by law temporary only. There is positively no injustice in this. The matter is in a nut-shell. The trade has prow 11 rich on thp very life of the victims of drink. The trade ha?, in a siMi"?, purchased Church's influence, at least in part, and nolitical power, as demonstrated over and over again, and new the people of New Zealand have taken i>» arms, never lo be laid down until. Church and Parliament, and all other hindrance shall bo*(rodden down, .nili! the manhood and womanhood of t New Zealand will demonstrate to tlio "world that they refuse to l>e slnvos.—l am, etc., niBEKNIAN. P.S.-Hr. Milliftan's letter does him pr«at credit.

I Sir,—Tour correspondents, "A Man in the Street" iiml T. 11. llilligim, aro only sei-aldiing. the surface of. things, and. as li'lricnd In Proles'unlisin in New Zcaliuid. iiermit me to point nut. Hint (lie worthy Archdeacon had a certain amount, of right on his side, .'.coins that the Noncviitorniist clergy, in their intemperate advocacy of No-Liccuso and National l'rohibition, ' have, endangered vastly the cause of Protestantism, All admit now tho moderation, of Archbishop Redwood's circular, which, coining at tho right 'moment, paved the position. So that from tho North Cape to tho Bluff during the next three years the worthy Archbishop will bo applauded, and tho other Protestant clerics will be condemned bv all true lovers of liberty, Of course, tho . Noneonforming clerics will say that they fought to gain a great moral. victory. But is there any such moral gain if the cause of Protestantism is lo bo hated in New Zealand? And that_it has ooinc- to. now, seeing that Calvinism is always repulsive. "A Man in tho Street" goes further, and says: "Cf this is Christianity I don't want it." The abolition of Christianity is not the issue at present, but purely Hie attitude of the Roman Catholic and Noneonfnrming No-License clerics. Against the latter, such nu'ii as Archdeacon Harper and Mr. Kennedy Elliot stood for individual freedom, and it is-because they have bsen wrongly condemned that I now raise the broader issue and contend that the Non.conforming and Anglican clerics, if they wish to preserve Protestantism here, must never again interfere with the NoLicense or National Prohibition questions.—l am, etc., • NEMO.

Sir,—ln reply to your correspondent l'air-play." on tho above, he says "he docs not want a long controversy on the subject." All right, "l'air-play," I think I will.finish you off with ono attempt; if you want auy more you shall liavo it. "lair-plny" wants to knew "why we object, to a clergyman speaking out his mind ? I think lie must be labouring under, a misapprehension. No sensible man objects to anything of the kind, but I would remind "l''nir-play" that what I do object to is "politics from tho pulpit," and all the twmldlo that "Fairplay" puts on papsr will not shake mo in my right to object. It hits often been the boast of tho Church of England that all political parties could make, themselves at homo under her, but it seems (hat this privilege is gone, as far as St Fetor.'?, Wellington, is concwneil. It semis to me there was a motive for this discourse; tho time was very opportune that the Archdeacon should" speak out. Why does he not como out into the open and express his views, instead of conlining his utterances lo tho pulpit? Judging from the language ho is wont to use, his address would bo iiitere.-Hng, as no doubt ho would let himself go on the public platform. "Fair-play's" cheap gibe at Uie. Kev. ,T. J. North and co. ilops not help his pause very much. Two bhicks do not uuiko a while. Ihouph !■ air-plays' side seems to be the lilavkosl. Jt seems to mo if Ihe No-I.ieeme parry lo ndvisu Ihtir followers to strike, out the top-line, surely (his aims at (he liplillimj of humanily; \vli E rea<! the Archdeacon s altihido makes for tlu> reverse. Again, "Fair-play" av.cuses mo of narrowmindeduess. Well. 1 may bo, though I was not aware of it, but luoit of us are Riven that way. even "Fair-play" and his Iriimd Hid ■'Archdeacon, and 1 enn assure "J'liir-play" Uiat I am wcilinj of what T do know. Pevliaps tho Archdoncon mov bo quite a dilYerent man to "l''air-pl;iy" wind: he was lo me, but then, perhaps, the Archdeacon resented a mere toyman, and a working man at that, having the impudence to call upon him. But I won't be guilty again. I think 'I'nir-play' and the Archdeacon will long remember Ihe election of mil.—l «m, etc., TIIOS. M. MILLIGAN. December 20.

Sir,—lTavinc; very carorully listened to the sermon nf Archdeacon Harper, which li'i(i raised so much controversy, .1. fail to sec why it lias rai-ed to much resentment m tlio Prohibilion camp. Tlio iin-pi-e-.-iou the sermon left in my mind was Ihat it would be well to remember Hint there were two sides lo every qncsliun, Ihat into our public life there'was creeping a (hat w.i.s delrimeutal to our moral welfare. Now, surely, the Kcv. Mr. DawMin and Co. will not deny Unit such is the can , . I gi'mit you, Sir, Unit (ho Pinhibitionists wero given an importunity by the Archdeacon nf con-si<U:i-nur whiit slmm they enntiibutcd lo that bitl<.me,s. Sir. as one wilh Hie Archdeacon and (ho R«v. Mr. Dnw.-on. in ll\o |wwcr and v'lory of the rhiirch, T si.v and know that Ilii, wretched Prohibilion riueslion is i-hmiir a liitlerne." aSiiin-,1 the cinircli Dial will take »eneralmns | n ovorenntr-. I.et me pivp one liishiiiee■-T i-iiiiM a score: A foiv before Hie recenl elcelion T ivms Wiilkinp iiloni; a certain slice! when tb*io approached .a certain vellknowD and roo-

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