PRESBYTERIAN MODERATOR

Dominion, Volume 11, Issue 258, 19 July 1918, Page 4

PRESBYTERIAN MODERATOR

HON. J. G. W. AITKEN ENTER- J TAINED. . J At the invitation of tho office-bearers of St. Andrew's Church, a largo number of the ministers and elders of the Weilington Presbyterian cburches, together ! with their wives, attended a "social" at ' St. Andrew's Hall on Tuesday evening to do honour to the Hon. J. G. W., 'Aitken, Moderator of the, Presbyterian ( General Assembly. Notwithstanding the ■ severe weather, visitors came from an : far afield as Khandallah and Lower Hurt to join in expressing their estomi for the principal guest of the evening. After the meeting had been open-id by the singing of the Doxology and p»ayfr, the Rev. S. Robertson Orr, in :i brief speech, welcomed the visitors, and staled that the objects of the gathering were to express pleasure nt the election of Mr. Aitken to the position of Moderator, and, incidentally, to 'afford that gentleman an opportunity of bringing fc-ivurd the need of the Elders' AfiS.wiation for additional lay preachers. M- Orr threw ! out a suggestion (hat a conference of laymen should bo held to consider how best tho churches can seiire the importunity provided by the war for enlarging their influence and usefulness. Mr. C. S. Falconer i'onv:y'!d to Mr. Aitken the congratulations of his fellow-office-bearers, and voiced their g-eat pleasure that he had been called to the highest office in the Presbyterian ('lunch in* New Zealand. Mr. Faki ler related many incidents to illustrate Mr. Aitken 6 great services to the Churn and tho community, and his words of appreciation met .with the hearty approval ot tho audience. Mr. Aitken, in reply, thanked those present for the expressions of good will extended to liirn, and stated that he bed onlv accepted the Moderatorship because there was no ministerial candid ite for tho Affice, and he was therefore faced with the unanimous wish of tho Ge.iwrai Assembly that he should occupy the position. Having done so, no has striven to discharge- tho duties mtoiled to the best of his ability, and would continuo to do so. Ho stressed tho valuable- work done by the Elders' Association in finding lay preachers to assist the ministers in suburban charges vlure services have to be carried on. Nt move than ono centre, and stated that the control 'and organisation of this work had for many years past been ably onrwd on by Mr' Armour Thompson, an elder of Sir. Andrew's Church. It was anticipated that additional preaching stationswould shortly bo opened in both island Bay and Seatoun charges, and lfl asked all those able to assist to hand in taeir names to Mr. Thompson. Mr. A-.vicn slated that recent statistics showed that in tho past ten years tho Presbyterian Church in New Zealand had incrwifed its communicant members by 16,000, the Sunday schools and nil other waiivhes ■ of tho Church work had likewise pi ogrcssed, except the Young Mens Bible Closses, which had fallen back to about tho level of ten years ago. flns ffJingolf was due to tho war, and ho thought tho Church should be proud that its young men had enlisted in such numbers. ' During the evening refreshments were handed round, and musical items gn en by Miss Jennings and Messrs. Gilmoro aiul Mao Donald, were mtersp irsed amongst tho speeches, Mr. Thomas presiding at the piano. Tho meeting closed 1 with the singing of the National An- ■ thorn and tho Benediction, pronounced by Mr. Aitken.