DIOCESAN SYNOD.

Globe, Volume XXI, Issue 1674, 2 July 1879, Page 3

DIOCESAN SYNOD.

Tuesday, Judy 1. Tho adjourned meeting of the Synod (from the last special sitting on May 31st) was held on Tuesday afternoon. The Bight Rev. Bishop of Christchurch took tho chair at half-past four o’clock. The proceedings wore opened, as usual, ■with prayer, after which the minutes of the last sitting were read and confirmed.

The President read apologies fromTM||s»nt gentlemen from southern districts for npnattendaneo in consequence of the flooded impassable state of tho railway line ; also from Ur Wyatt on account of serious illness. A petition was presented from registered electors e£ Kaiapoi, in reference to alleged irregularities in the election of a synodsman at Kaiapoi. The charges were specified in order, and the petition concluded with a prayer that tho Synod would give tho facts disclosed their consideration, with, the view of vindicating the purity of such elections, and preventing tho appointment in future of a partisan as returning officer. A letter from the returning officer of Kaiapoi was also read in answer to the charges set forth. The Commission appointed by resolution of the Synod to consider tho question of financial regulations, reported as follows : Tho Commission are of opinion that a departure from tho principle of concurrent endowment recognised in the existing regulations is unadvisaHe, that the income of tho clergy should be derived as heretofore, irr part from the voluntary contributions of the people, and in part from the proceeds of endowments. The only alterations they deem necessary are anch as will tend to secure more adequate stipends, and greater regularity of payment, and toward securing this result they recommend the following additions and alterations in the financial regulations. (1.) The appointment of a Board of Assessors, whose duty it shall be to classify the several cures in the diocese, and to fix the minimum guarantee to be paid by each. (a.) That such Board shall consist of the Diocesan Treasurer, the Diocesan Secretary, and the Church Steward, their assessment to be submitted to the Standing Committee for approval before being enforced. (2) All cures in tho diocese to be divided into two classes. In the first class the local contributions to stipend to be larger, and the grants in aid smaller than in the second class. (3) The mimimum stipend for a Priest in sole charge to bo .£2BO, to bo increased to .£3OO as soon as funds will permit. (4) All parishes and parochial districts in the first class shall guarantee a sum of at least .£2lO, as tho local contributions to stipend, and all in the second class a minimum of .£2OO. AU local contributions guaranteed and paid, including excess of minimum, to bo paid by the Diocesan Treasurer to the clergy. But in order to provide for exceptional cases in the second class, such ns the districts which have hitherto been treated as sole charges but which cannot raise tie required minimum, it shall be left to the discretion of the assessors to determine what minimum amount such cures shall contribute, the deficiency between the amount of local contributions plus tho Church Property Trust grant and the minimum stipend required by regulation of Synod to be made up by grant from the Church Work Extension Fund. (5.) Parishes in the first class shall for the presort receive an annual grant from the Church Property Trust Fund of £4O, and those in the second class of £6O, tho minimum of £2BO per annum being made np, if necessary, by a grant from the Church Work Extension Fund. (6.) To prevent the local contributions to stipend from cures in the second class not being increased in proportion to the increasing means of such cures, the assessors shall annually supervise all guarantees sent in by cures in the second class, and shall, if they think fit, increase tho required minimum by such amount as they shall deem equitable, until tho guarantee reaches such a sum as to entitle the cure to rank in the first class; the grants in such cases to be proportionately diminished. (7.) Whenever a parish or parochial district shall fail to pay to the Diocesan Treasurer the full amount of the guaranteed local contributions at the date agreed upon with the Standing Committee, the Diocesan Secretary on behalf of the Standing Committee shall call the attention of the chnrch officers to such failure, and request thorn without delay to forward tho local contributions. (8.) If a written communication fails to secure immediate compliance with the financial regulations, the Archdeacon, accompanied by tho Diocesan Treasurer, shall at the request of the Standing Committee visit the cure and inquire into the causa of neglect, and give written notice to the vestry that unless all existing i abilities shall have been discharged within the expiration of two months, tho clergyman will be withdrawn. (9 ) All local contributions shall be paid in to the Diocesan Treasurer quarterly, on or before March 31st, June 30th, September 30th, and December 31st; and the Diocesan Treasurer shall pay the stipend of the clergy quarterly, within seven days from such dates. (10 ). Where the local contributions can only be got in half-yearly, the Standing Committee shall be authorised to permit such an arrangement, and to pay the usual quarterly grants to the incumbent. (11.) In very exceptional cases, where the Standing Committee are convinced that the circumstances of the parish or district prevent the payment of local contributions at tho time fixed in clause 9, the committee shall bo authorised to advance to the incumbent an amount equivalent to one quarter’s stipend, so far as they may have funds available for Lliat purpono, surlj amount'to be refunded by the parish or parochial district, at a date to be fixed by mutual arrangement between the parish or parochial district and the Standing Committee. In the event of the parish or parochial district failing to keep its engagements, the Bishop shall be recommended to withdraw tho clergyman n.nd not to make or provide for al ‘T re-appointment till the debt »o paid. (12.) All payments to Stipend Fund shall bo announced quarterly in tho Gazette of the diocese, and attention drawn to defaulting cures. (13.) AU clergymen who have ministered ten years in the diocese in solo charge, or as assistant curates, in any cure or cures, having been in priest’s orders during the whole period, shall receive £ls a year in addition to the ordinary grants. And all snch clergymen of twenty years’ standing oh all receive _ £3O in addition to tho usual grants, such additions to be made out .of the Church Property Trust fund. The commission recommend that when the Church Property Trust fund can afford it, the amounts be increased to £25 and £SO respectively. SPECIAL RECOMMENDATIONS. (1.) The commission recommend that Phillipstown be attached to St. John’s, and that a resident deacon curate be appointed, with an income of £2OO per annum. (2.) That Woodond, Flaxton, or Cuat be in like manner joined to Eangiora, and that a grant in aid of a curate’s stipend bo made. (3.) That no clergyman be appointed to any cure till it is proved that the district is thoroughly capable of providing tho regulated stipend. (4.) That no grant or loan in excess of £l5O bo made towards the erection of a parsonage unless the Standing Committee are satisfied that the cure will bo a permanent one. (5.) That the minimum stipend of an assistant curate bo £2OO per annum. Of this amount £IOO to be raised by the parish, and £6l to be granted from the Church Property Trust Fund, and £4O from the Church Work Extension Fund, (6.) That tho glebes attached to tbs various cures should be held by the incumbent or let for his benefit, in addition to the guarantee made by the parishioners, until such time as they are declared by the Synod to exceed a reasonable limit as to value. The commission also recommend that the standing committee bo instructed to obtain full information with respect to all glebes, and to lay it before the Synod at tho next meeting. (7.) That any additions to tho income of tho Church Property Estate bo devoted as far as possible, after present liabilities havo been provided for, to tho increase of the clergy stipend fund from £I9OO to tho amount of at least £3OOO per annum. (8.) That tho instructions for the guidance of ministers, churchwardens, and vestrymen, &c., and the financial regulations, bo printed and bound np together, and a copy presented to all vestrymen upon taking office. G. Cotterill, Chairman. Christ’s College, Juno 30th, 1870. The next business before tho Synod was tho reception of a Bill for declaring tho purposes for which certain lands are held in trust by the Church Property Trustees within the diocese of Christchurch. This Bill came before the Syn:d at its last sitting, and, after having been duly considered, a resolution was then passed—“ That tho skeleton form of the Bill be referred to the legal advisors of the Synod to be put in proper form, and bo then dealt with by tho standing committee before being sent up to the General Assembly.” Tho business of the Synod now was, by arrangement, made to consider the draft Bill as prepared by the legal advisers, and so printed. The Dean of Christchurch stated what bad been done during tho recess, namely, the carrying into effect of the resolution above quoted, and accorded a word of praise to tho solicitor who had prepared the draft measure, and who had found the task by no means an easy one. The Dean poiated out that there need be no difficulty in dealing with the question now, as, although the Bill had passed through the solicitor’s bands and come up to thorn in one sense as a new measure, it was for all that substantially the same Bill as the Synod had fully considered in committee, embodying the same views in fact as previously inserted in it. After some discussion, it was resolved that notice would have to be given in dealing with the matter.

i ' The Dean gar® notice of motion that the Church Property jSill in the form in which it -jjras proposed to submit it to Parliament, bo ■adopted by the Synod, and that the standing committee be authorised to take the necessary steps, for introducing the same into the Legislature j also, in order So' have another course open, ho gave notice of an alternative motion would ask leave to introduce the Bill in thecSynod. Mr Hamilton gave notice of motion that when the Bill came before the committee on the followingjday, he wouldmove—“ That the Synod go into committee,’’, and then they would hare the option of dealing with it, or simply adopting it ‘for submission to the Assembly as printed. Several other notices of motion having been given for the following day. The Synod adjourned at 5.40 p.m.