YOUTH OF THE CHURCH

Sun (Auckland), Volume IV, Issue 1008, 26 June 1930, Page 20

YOUTH OF THE CHURCH

INTER-DENOMINATIONAL COUNCIL FORMED

A SIGNIFICANT MOVEMENT At the latter end of last year a meeting of young men convened by Mr. R. Gordine and Mr. Cyril French, a student for the Presbyterian ministry and a prominent Presbyterian Bible Class mar, was held to consider the possibility of forming some sort of a federation between the various denominational young men’s Bible class movements in Auckland. A series of preliminary meetings resulted in the outline of a draft constitution which was submitted to the various movements concerned and approved by them. At a representative meeting held in March last the following officers were elected: — President, Mr. W. Birss, 8.A., Anglican Bible class leader; vice-president, Mr. George Jackson, Congregational minister; secretary, Mr. Robert Blayney, Methodist; treasurer, Mr. R. W. Gordine, Presbyterian; executive member, Air. T. M. Wilson, Baptist. The affiliation of the movements represented by the officers was secured and it was resolved to tackle this year the question of leadership training. It was recognised that it would be wiser to focus attention on one particular aspect of the work which the various Bible Class Unions were seeking to foster, rather than spread the activities of the council over too wide a field. The Rev. George Jackson was invited to give a series of seven fortnightly lectures on “Some Practical Problem?; of Leadership.” each lecture to be followed by a discussion. A syllabus of subjects was submitted to the Easter Camps of the various Bible class movements and as a result a promising number of enrolments was secured. NEED FOR UNITED WORK Three of the seven lectures have now been held and the keen interest manifested indicates not only that there is need and scope for such united work, but. what is even more significant, that the problems of effective leadership are almost identical in each of the various denominational Bible class movements. No attempt is made to minimise or break down the distinct denominational witness or purpose, but in a very striking way there is to be seen a closer approach to fellowship and Christian comradeship on the part of men who becaues of the nature of their religious associations have not hitherto been given an opportunity of realising how closely identical are both the opportunities for and the obstacles to effective Christian work among the young men of the various denominational church groups. Those who are involved in the work of the council are seeking to keep their minds open and sensitive to the vital currents of the Divine Spirit in the development of this movement for closer federation between the various Bible class groups and are anxious neither to force any advance for which those who are associated with it are not yet prepared, nor to foster an organisation which will in any sense cramp the life of the movement concerned.