OTHER PEOPLE’S IDEAS

Wairarapa Times-Age, 28 July 1942, Page 4

OTHER PEOPLE’S IDEAS

A NEW ST. MATTHEW’S (To the Editor.) Sir, —I have read with considerable interest the letters appearing in your columns from N.J.B. and Anne Fletcher re the above. The design of St. Paul’s, Wellington, has no special architectural appeal to me when compared with say All Saints’, Kilbirnie, or St! Mary’s, Karori. I sincerely hope that wise counsels will prevail when it comes to design and material for the new church. For anyone to try and justify building a church of wood in the twentieth century is beyond my comprehension. It is possible to build a steel-framed brick church that will stand up to any earthquake or if preferred a steel-framed reinforced concrete 'building, the extra cost being more than compensated for because of low upkeep, no painting, etc., which, spread over a number of years in the case of a large building, runs into thousands of pounds. Brick has been used as a building material right down the ages and it seems illogical to me that this material should be condemned because of bad workmanship, as disclosed by the recent earthquake. I wish to congratulate Archdeacon Rich and his parishioners on their determination to go right ahead with an appeal for /funds to erect a new church, which I trust will be as worthy of Masterton as the sacred edifice just destroyed. No doubt there are many in the Wairarapa who would like to contribute and have their sons’ names recorded on the foundation stone as having played their part in the titanic struggle at present going on to uphold all that is sacred in human life —Yours, etc L. HOUGH. Wellington, July 27. SELECTION OF SITES (To the Editor.) Sir, —I trust you will allow me to speak to the letter of Mrs Anne Fletcher re St. Matthew’s Church. With regard to her wish to have the church facing Queen Street, I certainly do not agree with her proposal, and will give a couple of instances in Wellington of a contrary move. For instance, the management of St. Andrew’s Church had a splendid site on Lambton Quay, not far from Plimmer’s Steps. In the course of time the site became very valuable, and a most tempting offer was made for it and the managers gladly accepted it. They then bought a nice site on Wellington Terrace and built a fine, roomy church thereon. Having surplus cash in hand, I believe they upholstered all the pews. Then another body, the Congregationalists, of Woodward Street —by the by this street was named after much respected Jonas Woodward, who with Mr W. Knowles and Mr Joseph Burns, were prominent lights of this church, sold the property and built a comfortable church and schoolroom in Upper Bowen Street. These two churches are as well filled now, if not better, than in the vacatedsites. Now, Sir, your correspondent desires to abolish the buildings that occupy the Queen Street sites, so as to have the new church there, whereas the present site is much better. It is away from the noise and bustle of Queen Street, which brings in a considerable amount of funds to help the church. Also it allows those going to church in their cars a more favourable opportunty to place their cars away from the busy main street. I would ask your lady correspondent to quietly consider the points I have here indicated. I hope the Vestry will attain their objective.—Yours, etc., MARK MAXTON, J.P. Greytown, July 25.

St. MATTHEW’S OR CHARITY (To the Editor.) Sir,—Your correspondent Mr W. A. Wardell surely does not do his Christian charity justice when he says, inter alia, “surely God does not need these wenderful buildings, or ordinary moitals dressed in scarlet, purple and golden robes in order to pass on His when on the othei hand God sees “puny men in plus fours” wending their way to the links all oblivious of the command to meet Him in His House of Prayer instead; whilst his “life and death war” leaves one cold unless its final issue is going to prove better than the last one, and finds “all of us” relatively poor , and, like our pioneer ancestors, again living together in real comradeship less socially and financially apart—l am, etc., N.J.B. Masterton, July 28, , /