PRESBYTERIAN GENERAL ASSEMBLY.

Taranaki Daily News, Volume XLVII, Issue 81883, 7 November 1906, Page 3

PRESBYTERIAN GENERAL ASSEMBLY.

Per Presu Association. Dunedin, November 6. The Presbyterian General Assembly Commenced its annual sitting to-day. The Rev. D. Borrie preached, and afterwards introduced the Moderatorelect, the Rev. G. B. Monro, who took his p'tace, and delivered an address. He referred to the losses the Church had sustained during the year. The subject of his address was "The Relations of Our Church to the Social and Civic Life of the Community." The speaker said: ''We must realise the conditions of society to-day 'and remember human nature is very much the same always and ev rywhere. We mun apply the Gospel to men as they live in the 20th century, and then we w.U find hearty response to our preaching and teaching." If they were indifferent to the social evils of the day, such as intemperance, gambling, impurity, industrial wrongs, Sabbath deviation and commercial immorality, they iirere preaching half the Gospel. The speaker defended the Church at some length, and contended it must take part in politics, not party politic for tft- pol'.ical parson was not generally a success. At the same time, there jwas a Christianity in politics, wEich must be ever brought before the public for only in that way could dishonourable things be banished. There ysne many question", but he would only mention three. One was the temperance quest on. and on this he expressed the belief that in a few years, poss'bly after next election, there would not be a single public house from the Bluff to the North .Cap«, tempting and drawing the morally weak into its vortex. Then gambling was an outstanding vice, and it must be their aim to stir up the moral enthusiasm of the influential men in the colony against it, and never scruple to expose and denounce Jill who countenanced it. Then there ,«ras the Church's relations to the ppium traffic, and they must speak oui fearlessly. He concluded by expiessing the hope that all their business might be ever ruled for greater un ty, and the extension of the Church, the deepening of her spiritual life, and the advancement of the JGlcry of God.