WILL THE KISS OF A PURE YOUNG WOMAN CURE DRUNKENNESS?

NZ Truth, Issue 1108, 24 February 1927, Page 1

WILL THE KISS OF A PURE YOUNG WOMAN CURE DRUNKENNESS?

IT, is . rather a shame and "N.Z. Truth" well remembered the notable occasion on which it invested "1/9 for a good, evening's > sing - song and general spiritual stoush-up. If the Plu'tes of the Pentecostal institution 1 -- cannot ma- + „„:„11t,. „r>foV> .m their spiritual differences we shall re- ; luctantly be compelled to ask for a refund of our money. There is better use for it m gilt-edge stuff. \lt is just- questionable, t however, whether the split that has' now occurred will not be a good thing. To maintain that no one can worship the diety without resorting to dramatic gestures and wild, ribald screeching is sheer bunkum and legislation should be brought down — not so much to stifle spiritual worship as to encourage it and protect emotional women and- 8 grandmotherly men from themselves, i . It is a well-known fact that no matter what cult or what, new sect springs into being, it. has its followers. That is natural, due to the -general state of gullibility that characterizes mankind, but when women— in the sheer earnestness of the wild, physi-cally-draining frenzy: — are reduced to the border of imbecility, it is time to call a halt. CUT OUT THE DRAMA! The true, spirit of worship, is quiet, sublime earnestness with one's conscience, and nothing could be farther from the spirit of Christianity than mad frenzy and wild, strident gesticulation. , ' It is not fra*nkness so much as inconsiderate, blatant coarseness inspired by the erroneous belief that you are nearer to God when acting like a ■crank. ' '■::''■'■''•'- /• ■'■ ■■;. Although they arrogantly claim to preach and teach the four-square gospel, and make no bones about, calling everyone else wrong, "Truth" can show the huge discrepancy • betwixt profession and performance. • A search of the Scriptures reveals Innumerable injunctions that everything is to be done decently and m order; that all are. to be) m sympa-. thetic accord; that brethren are to dwell together m unity and that the appearance of evil is to be abstained from. When "JEruth" visited the Pentecos-

AMAZING THEORY PROVES POPULAR

Girl Goes Mad Under the Spell of Spiritual Frenzy

SECRET HISTORY OF THE PENTECOSTAL SPLIT

(From N "N.Z. Truth's" Special Wellington' Representative.)

AMONG those deeply devout and frenzied disciples of the Pentecostal four-square gospel, it would • appear that there are one or two square pegs m round holes. There has been a serious split m the Pentecostal plan]?. IT is notnice to think of such profound spiritual enthusiasm rur ** : — ~~~ ni'ng to waste simply because Pentecostal pleasantries supersed the divine spirit of compromise.

.tal altar of profound enthusiasm last Novemb v er, order seemed to be the 'last thing aimed at. • . „ • It was — well, enthusiasm first, gesture second '• and dramatics and raucousness third. -. . , It was a little hard to understand as being compatible with the sublimity of spiritual communion. . As for the matter of dwelling m accord, though, recent happenings have administered one below the : belt to the Apostolic directions. At a meeting held m. St. Thomas. Hall, Wellington (Pastor Roberts m the chair), there was an unusually dis--turbing scene during which the Rev. H. E. Wallis and Pastor Weston left the platform and the bear-garden. v v. They started a show on their, very own yin the concert There is nothing like enterprise. However, that little action was the basis of future entanglements. . A conference of Pentecostal churches was held m Christchurch m January last year. Prominent speakers were Brother Bruce and S. J. Cobb, and a resolution was jjut through to the effect that no -new branch should be started if a church already existed. However, Brother- Bruce had apparently lent considerable assistance m building' 29- Vivian- Street, Wellington, and, no doubt, feeling with Cobb and others that they were not having as much say m the concern as they should, he resolved to contravene

the Pentecostal resolution and launch out m another heaven-directing scheme. Thus Wellington came to have three four-square .gospel outfits— ' quite a lot. for a healthy-minded community. . But the qualms of conscience, working overtime, eventually induced the Bruce-Cobb faction to return m sack-

cloth and ashes to the Vivian Street fold.They were, of course, obliged to take a back seat until their repentance was proved— and this must have been prolonged and irksome — but eventually, the Bruce-Cobb combination, with the assistance Qf another unity . preacher, Brother Valdez, raised another tabernacle to the four-square creed. . There was still a fly m the spiritual ointment, the storm centreing around Brother -Harry Roberts, opinion being divided as to whether, he should be pastor or. not. , And ..themn — m the midst of. all this

barney — the Wallis-Weston faction lost cohesion and they divided themselves between -the Robertsites and the "Bruceites. It came to pass that the Rev.; Wallis pulled clean out . of the Pentecostal business and Pastor Weston became a Rpbertsite. r v * The latest development is that No. 29 Vivian Street and the show at Blenheim are alone able to call themselves the Pentecostal Church of New Zealand. ,; Bruce's crowd, jstill advertised healing meetings, and though Bruce was billed to speak on one occasion on the subject of divine healing, he was abliged to send ; , along an apology on account of the fact that he was iti bed with the mumps. Just here, It Is only fair to mention the name _of dry little. Masterton. The four-square/disciples resolved to inflict themselves upon that harmless town. . . ' TH I RD-DEGREE TEST The" ; howling; etc., attracted some drunks (m dry Masterton, too!), who were rapturously kissed by one of the young ladies. ' . i • She stated that, the kiss of a pure young woman might lead to the ' regeneration of the beerstained ones. The applicants for the cur;e increased. v , . For hours, and hours, men and women walked round a table shrieking out and working themselves up to a general ifrenzj' until finally one of the women had to be taken to a mental hospital. Wellington Pentecostal officials still have their- troubles. For instance, at the picnic; of the Pentecostal Church, held at Day's Bay recently, a hand suddenly engaged itself on the per-, son of Francis London Badger.

Presently young Badger ' found that the hand belonged to Robert .("Darky") Lawrence,, of Wellington South. It was at this stage that Brother George Clark blew along and asked Francis Badger why he had told lies to his father 1 concerting Lawrence. ' .-.. Young Badger stoutly asserted that what he had said was the truth, whereupon Lawrence— switching on the third degree idea— -invited the boy to peer earnestly into his eyes ;as a test of truthfulness. ..--. ■- ' ■ '" ■ • After this. exchange, 'of optical eagerness the. boy still affirmed that he had told the truth to his father., J Lawrence, so it was: stated m evidence m the- Magistrate's Court the other week, then called the young fellow "a stinking liar." Lawrence, by the way, is superintendent of the Sunday School at Miramar. Magistrate F. K. Hunt, whose welcome face was seen on the Wellington bench- again, heard the whole story. Francis gave an account of how "Darky" Lawrence gripped him and used the loving expression. . ' Brother Clark, who is an officebearer at 29 Vivian Street, did not agree with the previous witness. He considered that Lawrence only, had hold of Francis very gently while using the equivalent term for obnoxious prevaricator. TROUBLE OVER GIRL ■ The magistrate thought the matter trivial and dismissed the case — -charge of assault — but> intimated that he did not intend to grant costs, as Lawrence had no right to use such expressions to the boy. f Apparently, the whole /trouble arose over a girl, which- isn't trie - : first time m history that a woman , has caused a stir. "Darky" Lawrence claims to have brought, a young girl to the Lord. T° guard her from the wicked-snares hewent out with her a bit. Francis alleges that he saw. them arm m arm, arid being unable to reconcile this attitude with the generallyconceived method he told itiis father all about it. ,' - ( - , "Darky's" iwife, it is. stated, happens to be m England. -The matter came before the elders of the church, who, after examining a number of witnesses who had allegedly seen them arm m arm, decided that "Darky" .was inno,cent. When the |day comes for the hand-ing-out of tl|e spiritual bun the Pentecostal Churc^i of New Zealand, and of Wellington m particular, will no doubt be found to have graduated for the diploma— with honors.