CHURCH FINANCE.

Waikato Times, Volume XXII, Issue 1873, 8 July 1884, Page 3

CHURCH FINANCE.

At the social meeting of church workers in connection with S. Andrew's Church, Cambridge, on the 30th June, Mr R. W. Dyer read the following paper on the above snbject, which, no doubt, will be of much interest to all engaged in church . work :—: — Whatever may be tho differencs in church views and church government, and however diveiae opinions may run on questions of high, low, or broad church doctrine — there i 3, at any late, one happy state in which most patishes in this diocese can make common cause —namely, that they are in debt. Questions of finance aie foi the most pait consideied dry and uninteresting, and I have felt some difhdenee on that account in bringing the subject of church finance under your notice. But even admitting this to be so, the question is one of para mount importance to all church people, and you w ill poi haps bear with me if I touch very briefly on the subject tonight The great want of money for all church work is a fact so widely known that one cannot help feeling some surpiise that the Dioccxui Synod has not coped with the diHiculty ere this. As far as I know, with the exception of the Home Mission Fund, the Synod does not trouble itself with the monetary wants of the diocese. Each patish i 3 allowed to fight for itself — if the people in it are wealthy, then the pansh is in comparatively easy circumstances ; if poor, church work is slow, and thedebtis always increasing. From what one heais on Home Mission Sundays, I believe I am correct in stating that the debt for church purposes is increasing annually, and that ths supply of money does not increase in proportion to the demands made upon it. Assuming this to be correct, it is indeed high time for church people to bestir themselves. Be cause the question is a big one and an Awkward one to handle, it is no reason that it should be avoided and the con eideracion of it put off as an unpleasant subject. On the contiary, it is the principal question to be considered. For whatever new scheme is staited in a parish, or whate\er branch of church work we may pay special attention to, we aie always brought to the same point — the money to carry on the woik. And what applies to individual paiishea applies with equal foice to the diocese as a whole. In this country, wheie theie are no church endowments, theie is often a great difficulty to know how to raise the necessary funds, and bazaais, entertainments, and the like, are lesoited to to supply the w ant. I shall not presume to decide whether this is desirable or not, but leave it for those who ate better able to form an opinion than myself, although one cannot help has ing one's own notion on the subject. And now comes the question, How is the difficulty of money laising to he met? and it is one that is a good deal easier to ask than to answer. It is, of comae, futile to hope that a general le^olution can be at once worked, and a sudden change take place. It will be after consideiable time and thought that Mint fesnn now to be confusion and unceitainty can be placed on a sound basis. But I think the case is by no means a hopeless one, and the sooner an attempt be made, even though it f..il at fiist, the better. To put the matter in colloquial pluase, there is too much of tl c "go-ahead," and not enough of " ptowdc foi-the rainy day " in most paiishes. I think theie is an advantage in having a small debt on a chinch, but eviryone knows the difference between a healthy business overdraft and being so far in with your banker that he is afiaidto push you. My own i lea of the matter is tins ■ That m each archdeacomy of the diocese it would be well to establish a fund quite independent of the Home Mission Fund, and that each parish 01 paiochial distiict in the aichdexconry should be requned to contribute a fi\(d pjr centage of the money raised annually towaids this fund It may be thought tli.it this is somewhat contiadictory, and tint this would bu only adding another to the many cilh that are alreidy made on parocln \l funds. Ido not think so. The effect would be this, that we should not have as now isolated instances of chinch piogicss, and otheis of rjtrogies&ion. If in some parishes piogie^s would be less rapid than at ptcscnt, I think this would be more than countei balanced b}' the fact that the progress made was unifoim and geneial tliioughout the diocese. As to what use the funds thus raised should be appliei', would of coui&e le a matter for after coi s deration But at any rate we could supplement fiom it any serious debt that might anse, and it would materially help new and struggling parishes, especially in a distiict like Waikato. And in couise of time this fund might form the nucleus of a church endowment fund for the pooiei paiishes in the aichdeacomy. Ido not see that this scheme would niteifere with the separate working of each parish, and be sides financial I think theie would be many other good lesults spi ing from it. It would biing both the cleigy and the laity of the Aichdeaconry oftener together, and make all moie familiar with what was going on in paiishes other than our own. It will help the poorer paiishes, and place, peihaps, a check on those who aie inclined to outrun their stiength. I bhall not add any thing to what I have ahcady said, as it is ne\er well to be pioliK on a dry subject, and I will now conclude a somewhat crude and sickly paper. lam sure that what I have said w ill be considered by mo&t impracticable, and others may think that I am needlessly alaimed at the state of chinch finance. Be that as it may, sooner or later theie will have to be a readjustment of chmch finance, and if by diawing attention to it one incurs adverse ciiticism, there is no haim done, and possibly some good gained. If tho present is premature for any radical change, it may be well to look forward to what may possibly take place bye-and-bye.