CHURCH UNITY

Hokitika Guardian, 23 July 1930, Page 8

CHURCH UNITY

LAMBETH CGNFEUENCE. ARCHBISHOPS JULIUS'S SEEM ON CITHISTCHURCH, July 21, ; Deploring the division of Christ’s Church, into churches, Archbishop Julias, preaching last evening at St. Mark’s Church; Orpawa, besought all to pray for the guidance of the 300 Anglican Bishops who, at the Lambeth Conference, were now considering a proposal for uuity He took as his text the Epistle of St. Paul to the Ephesians, I, 22-23—“ And hath put all things under His feet and gave Him to be the head over all things to the Church, which i,s His body, the fulness of Him that filleth all in all.’’ This was the first definite statement of:the unity of the Church of God in the New Testament, Said the Archbishop. It Set forth the one holy Catholic. Church in which all professed to believe. Yet to-day it was very dif:fioult to believe in the unity of the .Church—a Church seemingly so divided. The Church which Christ left behind him was to be. the body of which He, invisible, was the head. Sacramentally, through the human agency of the Church, He made Himself known and ministered His grace The Church was the seen instrument by. which He operated oil the world. Yet it was not merely a visible thing: the great part of it was in the unseen. And because the vsible part of the Church was just the human side of the sacrament, therefore it was imperfect, sunken in shame in days gone by, and even to-day failing to fulfil the works of God, its head. No church c&rnld rid itself of the fact that it was in the family of God’s Church: the Church was there before the Disciples, and it would still remain' if all Christians died out. In its early days there were no rules for the organisation of the Church. It set itself to organise, however; for organisation was. essential to make vigorous and effective, the soul of; the Lord; Man could not. subsist by himself; the family was the lowest unity in society. The English people, self-centred as they were, found it difficult to realise the fellowship of mankind or of the Church. Yet a Christian cut off from the fellowship of the Church was as miserable a specimen as a man cut off from his fellowhumans, DIVISION OF THE CHURCHES. In the New Testament, 'there was written much about the churches, but very little about the Church. These churches were organised and had their little individual lives and community lives. Ry. and by, they were found united, consciously, or unconsciously, in fellowship in the great Church of Jesus Christ. Uor many centuries this uuity was wonderfully maintained. But then at last came division: the west, separated from the east without any due cause, the Reformation arose, and division arose between the Christians of : ’tlie north and the Christians of Latin origin. To-day there were many more churches, even in New Zealand. Yet people spoke their belief In the holy 'Catholic Church. Though that part of the Church which was on earth was divided and broken, one side often cursing the other, yet the Church of God still remain united to preach His word. What would be the completion of the Church? What would make it better? St Paul said that Christ was not complete because His body. . the Church was not complete. The Church had to attain God’s ideal for ft, just as Jesus Christ had to attain it. Suffering, said St. Paul, would win the Church of God. In work and suffering, struggle and reform—there only the Church was winning its success. PLEA FOR WIDER VISION. Until Christians took an interest m things that were far beyond them, they were only pitiful representations of the love of God. They should turn their attention far beyond New Zealand to the Lambeth Conference, which was now holding one of the most miomqntons meetings in the history of the Anglican Church. There wene gathered 300 Bishops of more than one colour; representing the United Kingdom, every country of the Empire, and America. The question had arisen in South Inuia whether there was any way in which the Churches of the world could be united; and this had been laid before the conference. If the conference accepted it, many would break from the Church, unable to agree with the decision ; if it was opposed, one of the greatest opportunities for unity might be lost. It was a desperately important question; and all should pray for the guidance and help of the Bishops who were now considering it.