THE PRESBYTERIAN ASSEMBLY.

Dominion, Volume 6, Issue 1602, 20 November 1912, Page 3

THE PRESBYTERIAN ASSEMBLY.

YESTERDAY'S PROCEEDINGS. The General Assembly of the Presbyterian Chinch of New Zealand resumed its sessions yesterday. Tho Moderator (tho Uev. A. presided. The report of the Theological College Committee wus furfhei" considered ' and finally adopted. There wns sonip considerable discussion on one clauso of t.Jic reeoninicndatioiis relating to the course of study prescribed for candidates for. the ministry. The courso did not include Latin, and several ministers urged that this would reduce the standard of culture hitherto regarded as essentia! to successful service in the ministry. Finally t.lio recommendation leaving Latin an optional and not a, compulsory subject was carried. THE RHODES SCHOLAR, A FULFILLED, PROPHECY The Kev. Professor Jlowitson introduced to the Moderator and to the Assembly Mr. P. P.- Miles, the Rhodes scholar-elect for this year, and the Assembly greeted Mr. Miles with hearty applause. Jlr. Hewitson sai<l that Mr. Miles had resided for four years in Knox. College. He had come up to the college as a member of thu Biblo Class of First Church, Invercargill, and when he came the leader of that Biblo. class had said to him (Mr. Hewitson): "You will find that ho will be a Rhodes scholar some day." • Mr. Miles was a man of unusual intellectual distinction.! One of the University professors had said that ht> questioned whether theru. had ever been an ablef man in Otago university, than Mr. Miles. But although he was able, and had a just estimate of himself, he was also modest, and very ready to take suggestions from those older than 'himself. He had mingled in all the college life while in residence at Knox' College, and his influence had been entirely wholesome. Tlie Moderator said he took great pleasure in. congratulating Mr. Miles upon his success. They all felt veix proud of him, and they hoped his future would be such'fls te make them still more proud. • Mr. Miles thanked tho Moderator, Professor Hewitson, and the. Assembly for expressions of . good will towards, him. He was sure that of nil the good lie had received in his university career, quite half of it came by his association with Knox , College. It was his firm belief that, it would very hard to find an institution better calculated to improve a I man mentally, morally, and physically. j HOME MISSIONARIES. < THE REGULATIONS AS TO STUDY. ' The Rev. T. Tait (Christchurch) presented the report of tho committee for the training of home missionaries. •' Following is a paragraph from tho re-, port:—Tho committee would again draw the attention of tho Assembly to -the. fact that many missionaries apply to the committee to have their status defined, and this having been done .we hear no. more of the/n, as they are never present for examination nor, so far as. we know, do.any stney. On looking over tltc minutebook we find the names of 12 such ; two of these, however, presented in the first year and s fai!ed, but have done no work since. We would submit that this is very unsatisfactory, and it is to be feared that the' missionaries who most need that course of study are those who are failing to comply with the. Assembly's regulations. Wo think tliat the time has come when, tlie.. Assembly will have to make it iC rule that no missionary who is failing to comply with tho regulations will be continued for more than years in the service of the Church'. Wo aro persuaded that if the Assembly was : aware of ' the lamentable lack of kno.wledgo' both' general and of the doctrine of thd faith'of, some of i these men it would talro measures to insist on wjth regulations in' respect' I '-'fri si r udy? l:! \Vo are further of opinion that tho nichn?' : 'tit present- employed toVget our missionaries to. acquire the knowledge ,that, will $t them for' tho work in which*-they- are :inadequato, 'and this ■conviction is forced upon us by, tile.. character of the papers 1 which .pass through our-hands-as-exam-iners, for while some of are good others are so poor that they point to .the necessity for some coaching of the men ill methods of study. ■ We would suggest the desirability of establishing'' summer schools at which short courses of lectures would be given, or a school of correspondence with this object; but in our judgment if our Church is to qualify these men intellectually for the work of tho rural ministrj ; ,; which is iri most cases tho work they are doing, then something more must' l>e/dono for them than the present regulations of Assembly provide for."' . Mr. Tait moved in accordance with tho recommendation of the- committee that tho Assembly declare Messrs. Ashton, G. Ireland, J. J. Leakey, S. Buchanan G. N. Ralph, H. Bloomfield, and G. P. Mitchell missionaries in full'standing, and declare that in future no missionary who is failing to comply with the Assembly's regulations in respect to study shall bo continued for more than two years in the servico of the Church. . • The Rev. P. B. Eraser, Home Mission ag&nt. seconded the motion. In defence or tho missionaries he said' that they were mostly sent , out into sparsely settled districts.'in which they had to travel about such a - great deal'that they had, very little timo or encouragement to study. This had led him to mako the suggestion on more than one occasion that there should be > set up some kind of training: correspondence "school for these missionaries. / The motion was carried. TEMPERANCE REFORM. 7 DEPUTATION TO THE PRIME ' MINISTER-. Tho Rev. A. Millar (Auckland) moved .the resolution of which lie- had previously, given notice: "That the Temperance Committee be authorised to wait as a deputation from the Assembly upon the Prime Minister to put before him tho changes iij the licensing law desired by the Assembly." ' . ■ • The motion was seconded by the Rev. ,G. Miller and carried. SELECTION OF MINISTERS. ' A. NEW SCHEME PROPOSED. The Rev. G. M'Donald (Mataura) moved the adoption of th© ropirt of the committee on ministerial tenure. The committee made the following recommendations:— 1. That a small central committee ■ be appointed to coiupilo lists of. ministers .eligible-: for a call in accordance with'tie regulations as hereinafter provided. 2. That-.five- district committees of supply, consisting of six members each, be appointed, the districts to !:e coterminous with the following groups of presbyteries: (a) Auckland and V.'aikato;' -(b) Taranald, Wanganui, and'Hawke's Bay;-(c) Wairarapa, Wellington, and Nelson; (d)JC'anterbury and Westland; (e) Otago and Southland. The presbyteries in each district, as specified above, shall .have equal representation on the district coninntt.ee. 3. The list of ministers eligible for a call shall include:—(a) All probationers of the Church, and qualified ministers of our owu Church who are without a chargc; (b) All 'ministers who have been seven years in their'present charges, unless they, 'notify the committee, to'have their names kept off the list; (c) Ministers who have beera five years in their present 'charges, ■who are desirous of a 'change, and. have forwarded their names to the central committee; (d) Ministers who have been less than five jears in. their present charges, but who have for some special reason received thb consent of their respective presbyteries to forward their natnbs to tho oommittee; (e) All placet! ministers in other recognised Presbyterian Churches who Apply.to have their'names placed on the list. , 4. That tho year of each minister's'induction to the charge in which he then is be inserted in the list of ministers iu tho Blue Book. 5. In tho case of a vacancy, unless tho congregation is prepared to call .ntmediately someone eligiblo in terms nf . tho preceding regulations, the District Sup-' ply. Committee concerned -shall prepare from tho list supplied by the Central Committee a short list of ministers whom they consider suitable for the vacancy under consideration, and shall send through tho Moderator of such vacant chargo apiwrated hv the Presbytery of the bounds.

one. of these names-down to the c ngregation, who shall, either immediately or after hearing him, take a voto !or or against addressing a call to .him. Should the vote show that tho.congregation is not prepared to proceed to a call, the committee shall send down the next nam© on the list, and so on until a settlement is effected. G. In choosing the list for any vacancy .the District Committee shall take into consideration:—(a) Length of service in present charge, preference being given when possible to such as have had the 1- ngest term; (b) fitness for tho vacant charge; (c) the naturo of the charge such minister already occupies. 7. In the event of a vacancy not being settled within twelve months "the Presbytery within whose bounds it is shall arrange a I visitation of the congregation, with a view to expediting a settlement. . 8. That Hip Presbytery within whose bounds a Tacancy exists shall see that the expenses of all pulpit supply arranged by the District Committee aro met as fully as possible by the. congregation. i 9. That it be an instruction to Moderators of vacant charges to. see.that, occasional Bupply be not such as the congregation may regard as eligible for a call. The Rev. A. Watson (Warepa) seconded the motion, and the report was adopted. TERRITORIAL CHAPLAINS. COMMITTEES TO BE ORGANISED. The Rev. A. B. Todd, supporting an overture from the Timaru Presbytery, moved, "That the Assembly appoint a standing Committee on chaplains' woik in the' Territorial Forces, such committee to report annually to the Assembly— the following to be members of the committee, the Rev. W. Sliirer (convener), Dr. Gibb, R. lnglis, J. M'Caw—and the Assembly instructs Presbyteries to appoint Presbytery committees, the wnveners of which shall bo corresponding members of the Assembly's committee. Tho Rev. D. Dutton seconded the motion, whicli was carried. ■ The Rev. D. Dutton moved: "That wherever necessary , institutes bo held in connection with camps,, and that chaplains secure, wherever necessary, assistance from Bible classes or students. The Rev. G.-Lindsay seconded the motion, and it was carried. IN MEMORIAM. Following the usual custom of the Assembly, the Committee on -Memorial Minutes submitted short biographies of n.in-isters-of the church who. had died during the year. The minutes were. all. approved, and they will in due course Iks incorporated in the records of the Assembly. The ministers mentioned were the Revs. W. Will, D. Borrie, R. Stewart, W. Hill Phillip, B. J. Wcstbro.ik, R, Telford, and J. Ross. The Assembly directed also that copies of, the minutes be sent to the relatives interested. NEW CENTURY FUND. NEED FOR MOIIE MONEY. Mr; J. G. W. Aitten presented tUe following report from the New,- Century Fund .Committee, and moved its adoption:— ' "Your committee has to report 1 that loans have been granted as follow.—Te liuiti, J!350; To Puke,' .£100; Scargil!, .£100; Nornianby, .£300; Denniston, .£100; Upper Ai-amoho, <£30.. Total, .£9BO. 'Grants in aid of the purchase of sites have been made to Otarere .£5 and Upper Aramoho .£lO. A deposit of .£lO has been: paid for tho purchase of a site at Weber, and ,£35 has been paid for a leasehold site at Otorohanga." Mr. Aitlcen urged that it was very necessary that'there should be more generous funds provided for the work which the committee ■ was required to do with them. The country was being settled rapr idly and there would be no possibility of supplying buildings in the out-districts unless tho committee had more money at its disposal. Tho Jlov. P. B. Frassr seconded the motion which was carricd. BAPTISM. : ' Sonib discussion wis provoked by' the' report of a committee which, submitted .a proposed foym;'of 'baptisma.l.certificate to be issued by ministers. It was alleged •that this'form Was capable of being interpreted; as .an endorsement of tho doctrine ofbaptismalregeneration;, taught by tho. Roman Critholi'cs arid by the High Anglicans, but not by-the Presbyterians. The;. Rev. P.: B. leaser moved as an amendment to the original niotion to adopt the report. He submitted a'form of certificate which was incapable of be. ing construed to inculcate any heretical doctrine, and moved that both forms be 'submitted to Presbyteries. The amendment was carried. SOCIAL SERVICE. The Rev. Andrew Cameron submitted the report of the Committee on Social. Service, and the reports of the three associations' in ' Wellington, Dunedin, ■ and Christchurch. Each of tho reports, -it was stated, 'showed that advance was being made all along the line. In Christchurch a home for children lmd been purchased and opened, and Wellington and Dunedin had crccted new homes during the year. • All tli-a associations had been liberally supported. Mr. J. P. Mills, Social Service Agent in Wellington, . addressed tho Assembly .on tho work of saving children. : The report-was adopted. SUSTENTATION FUND. The Rev. R. E. Davies (Ounedin) moved tho adoption of the report of the Sns-i rentation. Fund Committee. - He stated' .that .the equal dividend for Otago and Southland (where tho sustentation scheme is in operation) was .£221, and that the actual minimum stipend paid was.about ,£2lO. He suggested that thero ought to be a sustentation fund scheme for the ■ whole of New Zealand, and he hoped soon to sco something of the kind established. The Rev. /Robert Wood-seconded the motion. He said that . .£221 was the largest minimum' stipend paid in any section of the Presbyterian Church in the Southern Hemisphere. Ho believed entirely in the Sustenation Fund system. The report was adopted. THE COMING MISSION. . On the motion of Mr. A. N. Grinling (Dunedin), the Assembly expressed great' satisfaction at the prospective visit of Dr. Chapmau to the Dominion next year, and directed. that a copy of the rosc/lu r tion be forwarded-to Dr. Chapman. , The Assembly will condudo its deliberations to-day.