CHURCH-MAKING IN CHINA.

Dominion, Volume 6, Issue 1557, 28 September 1912, Page 9

CHURCH-MAKING IN CHINA.

A PEKING EXPERIMENT. Tho Chinese Christian.Church of Peking has adopted a constitution at an all-day conference at tile London Missionary Society's Mi-Shih Church. The.constitution has been sent Home, with a covering letter from Liu lisin Ting, chairman; Cheng Ching Yi, vice-chairman; and Wang Hus Ch'ing, corresponding secreta'ry, in the course of which they say:— "Wo arc, it must be said, yet in our babyhood in tho Gospel, and wo seek with humility and diligence for your advice and guidance. Wo have great hopes and expectations, and feel quite sure that these hopes of ours will not bo disappointed. Tho plan of this movement, as you will observe in tho constitution, is twofold. To promote, on tho one hand, the idea and practico of self-support and selfgovernment, and on tjlio other hand" to unite Christians in olio body irrespective of denomination or nationality.. To us, this is tho foundation upon which tho coming Chinese Church is to bo built." . Tho constitution is as follows:— I. Name.—Tho Chinese Christian Chntch of Peking. - , . 11. Object—To preach according to tho Word of God tho Gospel of Salvation. 111. Creed.—To-accept tho .Evangelical and Trinitarian Creeds of the recognised Protestant Churches. . IV. Nature.—To train the Chinese, to undertake their responsibilities as Christians. This Church to be irrespective of, denomination or of nationality., V. Government.—To adopt as far as is in keeping with Scriptural teaching, and Chinese custom, the existing rules and rites of the Peking Churches. - VI. Finante.—To be dependent upon tho regular contributions of all Church members, also special contributions from generous friends. VII. Foreign Missions.— I To pay. special attention to tho promotion of foreign missionary work besides homo missionary work. . • VIII. Work.—To "endeavour to promote all good' work of the following nature :— (a)_ Educational, (b) philanthropic', (c) social, (d) Church industries. IX. Members and Adherents.—To ' consist of the following:—(a) Chi'ao Tu: Those baptised in or transferred to' the Chinese Christian Church, (b) Ilui Yu: Members of other Churches helping in tho work of the Chineso Christian Church, (c) Chiao Lu: Adherents, (d) Huit Lu: Non-Christian friends helping in tho work of the Chinese Christian Church. X. Officers.—To be: (a) Preachers, viz., Chineso pastors, missionaries, and evangelists, (b) Elders: Those whose duty'will be the caring for tho spiritual welfare of tho Church, (c) Deacons: Who will be in charge of the business matters of the Church. XI. Church Council.—To consider all matters concerning, the Church, Chiao Yu ah'd ; -Hiii Yiionly'to be eligible for election. - XII. Advisory Boar,d.— Foreign missionaries from tho various missions to be invited to form an Advisory Board to tho Chineso Christian Church. . XIII. Amendments.—Any amendments of the above constitution ,to be made through the Church Council.

THE EDUCATION BILL. Tho Peking correspondent of the tondon "Daily Telegraph" states that there was a most interesting discussion on the introduction of the Educational Bill in the Advisory Council. Tho Bill deals with tlio meaning and advisability of continuing tho Confucian worship in the national schools, and the old and disputed question whether Confucianism really is a religion was raided. But the long debate only produced a negative result. Confucius was called a "national hero," and tho matter dropped. The. nowspapers resumed the attack, arguing that religious freedom does not- permit of the old observances, and that Christians cannot attend such schools. It is interesting to recall that this very question of the worship of ancestral tablets and Confucian tablets wrecked Roman ■ Catholicism ill China in the eighteenth century.\ Tho Jesuits were anxious to follow the Chinese ruling that tho practice was morelj; political, whilst the Dominicans, referring to Rome, obtained a Papal decree to tho effect that tho customs v;ero idolatrous. Soonpr or later Republican China must decide whether tho worship of Heaven, an' 'observance dating back to the iiiists of antiquity, is to bo abandoned, .as aleij. those other rites and ceremonies associated with the Emperors. Tho correspondent savs that he mentions these points particiilarlv becau.so they explain China and the Chineso problems better than reams of essays.