WESLEYAN NATIVE CHURCH.

New Zealander, Volume 3, Issue 190, 25 March 1848, Page 2

WESLEYAN NATIVE CHURCH.

A Cinmgti has been erecteil near th« Council Chamber, by the Wesleyans, for the use of the Natives who may be working in this neighbourhood, or occasionally visiting Auckland Cor ihn purposfs of comit crce. It is a neat building, with windows in the Gothic sfyfc of. iirchitecufe, quite an ornament tothn locality in whicii it ftands, nn<l capable of accommodating two hundred persons. It is the first Native Church that has been erected in the Cnpitnl. It was opewed for Ilmne worship List Sabbath, when two Sermons were preached on the occasion, that in the morning by the Rev. John Wh'tcley, of Ka»bin, from John iii, 16: nnd that in the evening by the Rev. T. Buddie, from Matthew xviii, 19 und'^O. The Lord's Supper was alto administered to about sixty Native oomniunicrfrits. A nuvnbeir of the natives from Manukau attended the ae,rviceß. A collection was made to assist in defraying the expenses ot the. building— though small, it ii t\ pleasing fcatme, and a step in advance. We trust that tbo benevolent object proposed by the Wesleyuti Mi sion in the erection of this Church wilt be fully realiied ; that it w ill become the resort of num brri of the [natives who arc accustomed to crowd our streets the live long Sabbath, to the great annoyance of those who reverence the Day of the Lord and would enjoy its rest and quiet, a» well as to their own demoralization and injury. It appears to us that Sabbath profanation is sadly on the increase in thin settlement, and Divine Worship ia ncglrcted to an alarming extent ; and the nntiven ore following the example of their belter instructed neigh, hours, they collect in the stieets of our city in largo numbers fiom the road-gangs, and spend the Sabbath, in idleness without attending Divine Worship at all ; and many are to be aren on, SabbutU evening carrying nway the provisions they have purchased, as bread, i flour, potatoes, &c. What a falling ofl is this from the Sabbath customs at the native village ! At lurnitj I not a potatoe would be pared, or a piece of wood ! chopped on the Lord's Day, hut all piepared the o'ay before, all \yoi |c suspended, and the public worship of God, the Sabbath School, and reading the Scriptures, attended by almost every mai:, woman, and child in thu village, so that the whole place wean a solemn aspect, and duxpita of yourself you feel that at least it is a day of rest. What a contrast does our professedly Chriutmn Ci y lircHtnt— the band of the military playing marlial »ir» ou the way to the House of Gud— public -livusta o^cn,

shops half open, proui ions and wares sold, Europeans selling, natives buying, some drunk and reeling, and others at native halca. What a disgrace to us ! What a barrier U thrown in the way of native pi ogress in civilization and morality ; what insult is offered to heaven! How justly may God be p'ovoked with vi and punish for our sin ! The consequences may be most serious. If by our example, our buying and gelling on the Lord'i Day, wo practically deny the obligation of the Sabbath, in rain *M their teachers by precept enforce it. If we tempt them to profane it we lead them back to heathenism. Where there is no Sabbath there is no Christianity. Where there is no Sabbath there will he no worihip of God ; and if they arc encouraged to profane the Lord's Day and neglect Hit worship, they will soon throw off all the restraint that their profession of Christianity has imposed, and the consequences to the colony may be very sad at no ,1 s tant period. We are glad to know thathe Missionaries in the neighbourhood regularly visit the encampments at Mount Itemuera, &c. and hold Divine service with the few natives wlo remain, which is but a very small portion ; and we have often been p'eased to tee and hear cf some of (he native teachers from the Wesleyan Native Institution preaching to and praying with their countrymen in the market place, at the barracks and other parts of the town ; but oujht not the Government to be vigilant in watching over the morals of thoie it detains in our locali yby employment ? Government act* not a puental part if it brings lars;e bodies of natives to its aid in road making, and other public works, and leaves them to be demora'ized without employing any preventive measurei. If they come to our help na labourers, have they not a claim on our care and protection in reference to their moral* ? Could not the Government require that a'l who are employed on the public works shall attend Divine Service on the Sabbath Day at their respective places of worship ? And could not the authorities stop the Sunday drinking aud Sunday trading amongst them by punishing the Europeans, and dimu-sing fiom the works the natives who may be found guilty of such conduct ? Have we any law on the subject ? If we have why not enforce it ? We hare been led to these remarks by constantly •eeing what we consider as an alarming evil, which if not stopped in time may continue to increase, till the advancement in civilization and morals of the interesting tribes around us be impeded for many year« if not ren dered utterly impracticable ; and we hope that all purtie* will exert themselves to bring about, and establish a better state of things in reference to the due pbservance o! the Sabbath Day.