THE ANGLICAN MISSION AT HAMILTON.

Waikato Times, Volume XXV, Issue 2084, 14 November 1885, Page 2

THE ANGLICAN MISSION AT HAMILTON.

FilK sei vices on Thursday comiu 'need with holy communion at S. l'ob'i's Chinch at 7.30 a.m., the incumbent Ivung cclchiaut, assisted by the Kcv. X .T. Phillips Theie weie twenty-two communicants. At l^.l-*) a.m. an opoii an -emce foi men was held on the vicmt giound nor the Hamilton Hotel. About forty p-'isom wcio pio^cnt. The sji \ iv" was shoi t, Cii) sistmg simply of Hjinii r>l, Mis-ion Hymn book, and a shoit addie^s by the Missioucr. Mi Mason beg in by lofeiiing to the stoi v of Diogenes, who went about the stieets of Coiinth with . i lantci 11 looking for a man. No wondci he couldn't lind the soit of man ho w intcd, foi li<, had nevei .scon eithei C'lnistoi a Cluistian. He dwelt on the excellence of iiianliuess It was .1 grand thni'' to be a man, a grander thing to be an Englishman, but it was a much giander tiling to be a Chribtian num. His hearer--weietuen, ho was pioud to claim kuiahi]> with them as Englishmen, and prouder to feel th.it they weic heirs together of the same glorious hope, biotheisin the great umvei s.il family of the all lo\ ing Father of mankind. But the questions they ought to put to thciuselveb weio : wore they worthy of the gieat piivilcge** ; weie they grateful for their hciiUge, and weiethey endeavouiing to lead a Christian life. (Some men wme ash lined to bo Christians, but theie was nothing to be ashamed of. He could understand ,i man being ashamed of telling <i lie, of being a blackguaid, of com'iutting adulteiy, of being a libei tune, of scamping his w oik.— he ould undeistand a man being ashamed of many thing**, but ho could not understand how a ma.n could be ashamed of being a Christian . By " (Jlu isti.m' l he did not moan a man who went about with a long countenauct 1 , tinning up the whites of his eyes, and speaking tlnough his nnse, but a man who loved his (Jod and his neighbour, and did the will of his Father in Heaven. When he looked back o\ei the lecoid of hi-toiy and let-ngnised that the gioatest of men weie ( hiistuiis, he was not ashamed to be found in thun com p.inj'. The gieitest poet the woild ii.yd iv or scon, Shakspeio, w .i-> a, Cluisti m; thcgicttest (ji>nci il.md tictieini of modern turn--!, Wellington, was a f'hiistiun; the gu\itest ])lnloso])hci .uid .vsti iinnincr, Newton, w.»s a ( 'hi is.tio.ii ; the greatest financial and st.ite-sin.ln of the age, William Kwatt (Jladstoue, wis a Chiisti.in. They should not be ash lined to belong to such 11 gloiious compuiy as tint. Let them leinember th.it it was only in Christian countries that hospital-, and orphanages weie to be found. But it was not enough to piofess Christianity ; thej must live Christian lives. Byion was a Christian, but lie did not act up to the piinciples of his lebgion. He loved the things of this woild 111010 thin th» tilings of the woild to com**, and he lo\ed lnm-elf bettei than Hod. With'i ink, title, money, utd-evei ythmg that the heait could desii >, he got oil the lines and went astiay. He asked them to accept the I'm Me as a whole. If theie weie passages at winch they felt inclined to civil, Mich as that concerning li.iUiiti'-. us*-, or, Jonah and (ho whale, 111 (Jod s name pub them aside until such time a> th*y bad auived at a clever undei standing of the lost of (Jod's woid. In plain, earnest language, the Miwoner be sought Ins huircis to lead the life of Clnistiaiis, to be Cluistian men, not only m theoiy, but 111 piactice, concluding with a simple " (Jod bless you." In the afternoon, at 3 o'clock, Mi M.ison (Jtlntud an iildic-i to wmncu on " He idnig the Bible." Theie was a, good atten dance, including a number of the steinri se\. The missions contested Jlolv Wnt with the woiks of the human mind, pointing out that wheieas the lattci woio simply the thoughts and opinions of dead men, tho foimei was the voice of the c wi-hiing, era-pie-ent lind. Tins Bible was the foundation of then f.uth and then hope, but they found that sonic suit of guide, was necess.uy. They c mid not undeistand the book wholly, and it was not uullatlll.il tint this w.is so. Men h.id set out with the determination to oudeawnn to lnteipict the Bible themselves without refeicno to any guide, and the result wa*» that theie weie now some 3(>4 diffeient sects of piofossing Clnistiaiis. Tlioy weto soiuly in need of a guide, .mil the guide w.is to hand. It was the lliokof Common I'r.iyei. Ho icfiisod 1 ■ take any man's dictum conceining the intcipu'tation of Sciiptuie, but lie gladly a> cepted .1 quid.' which ie|)iest'nted the wisdom ot tu.> thoii .sandyoais. This guide was /uen them liy (iod, ni.iMimch .is the Oiuuh, winch 11,1*1 the bride of Chiisf, hid given it them. The missions then laid down a few simple mles for leading the woid ot (!od, insisting that it was not the quantity lead, but the uudei standing of what was ieid that confuiud a biMeht Ho adiivd his he.u (.•!■< to le.irl the Jiible 1 iglit tlnough, da\ by day, a httlo .it a tune. He .INO asked them to tiy the etFect of leading one of tio (r.ispoN— that of S Mark was the Mio't^t — at one sitting. They could not imigiue tlu ellect pioduced by reading the histoiy of that young and blameless life, and giaspiug the gieat lessons conveyed. At3.HO p.m. intoicjssory players weie said, and those weie followed at 3.4") by ov ening prayer. At t\m 7.30 service theie was, notwithstanding the rain, which fell heavily, a very good attendance. The Missionei piea'Jied horn the text "Blessed aie they that mom n,"' a plain practical distouisc on the advantages of putting full taint 111 (Jod. Yciteiday (Kiiday) theie weie nineteen communicants at the eaily seivice at 7.30. At 12 I") p.m. the second of the open-aii ■vldrebscs to nieiijwas delivered at the fame jilace as befoie. The service opened with the .singing of H\ urn .")!, in which t!-ie con giegatidii, numbeiing bi'tween ."iO and l>o, joined heiitily. Tho Missionei 's addiess was on "The hnnioi t ibty of the Soul." He based his argument on fie inhcicnt bubof of the luim.in mind 111 inuuoit ihfcy, and claim *d tint if the iloctnno v\a^ false, tho .scheme of ci cation v\as ineoinplote, siiico it was cloai that (iod's plan was to woik upw.uds fioiu the d ist of the 0 nth, tlnough 111. mini Ito oig.ttiisius, tlnough aui mals, and tlnough man up to (iod him self. Theb > !\ ji;i ished, lutui ned todiist ;\\>is mcoi pni.Uc.l with tho siiirwiindm jf ell tl>, passed i'ito t'n g: is-, and becime put of oth M l'\ ,iil' .'. >t nil-. I) i ( tlio soul, the " I csulil nit pr is'i \> bettei evidence of of the di-Unc f ioii I 't U. :i (h scjii dity of the sold ami t 1 ■ li 1 1\ < 111 M li«> adduced than that suppl X .(l o 'iv div I'j' d*) ing men, v hoso s ml-, weie lui^hti'st uid c!e nest at a moment wlu'i tlieir 'wili's. lie i| \>t which encased tliein, u**ie pinticiilyd id. The absolute pow 01 of vu'l li id ke-it mt> 1 .line in the boly long aft.'i tint lio.lv had ceiscd to live. He .'tin >iinc d th ton the following day (to-day) 110 v\ >uM c i>itimu> the s.iino bubject, giving sci iptu 1 uatianr foi tin) doctrine of tho inrnoit ility of the soul. At tho close of tho addiess, Mi Manning, a memboi of the " Conditional hnmoitdlity" connexion, aaked the Mi»■•ioner some questions, and Mr Mason promibed that tho objections would bo do lit with on tho follow ing day. Tn the afternoon at 3 o'clock Mr Mason gave the i-ccond of Ins addresses to women, followed by mteicesstny piayeis and evensong. Last night there was a crowded congiegallon at S. Petei's to hear tho Missioner. Aftei pi.iyei's and liyuius, Mi Mason pleached 011 tho subject of the ciucili\i"ii, dwelling on the lovo of (Jod to man, as exhibited in tho saciilico of His Son, and in tho iutoi cessions of that Son for sinnuis. The addiess was singulaily eloquent, and held the largo congiegation enchained foi inoie than lialf-au-hour. The lev. gentleman subsequently tf.ivo an "iiistiuction " fioni tho body of the chinch, taking for liis .subject the " Incarnation," and shedding much light in daik places. He again exhoi ted his heai'f".* 3 to cleave to the u hi% things" of religion, laying conlroveisial matteis aside, To day and Monday the luiud services will bo held, tho evening sorvioo to d.l 3' beginning 111 tin 1 opun air. To-inmrow, Sunday, there will be Holy Communion at 7.30 a in., iii'irning prayer and sermon at 11 1. 111., childienV scivice at 3 p.m , special address to men at 4 p.m , and evening pi.*yer and heimon at 7 p.m.

l'horLK should be careful to pull down the blindb when letiiintj. One night the entire fiie dopartmenb of Sin Fiancisoo was oalled out only to discover that the alarm was occasioned by the reflection from the liieplaeo on an old maid who Mas going to bed in a buit of red flanucl undeielothig, The Hamilton hmA ili-pot will be closed from | this afternoon till Wednesday next. Mr J. S. Kd^ecumbe hns lor s.ile a fir4-class f^rm on the Waipa and K iniwhiniwh i n\ors. lVndcrs for a numbrr of works are invited in our advertising Lolumni. A hrst-class romplnte fluur-mill at Helensulle ie advertised in another column to be let or leased. Tenders aru invited by th<> Assistant-Survoyor Goner.il (Mr Percy Smith), lor uorka in connocti^ with tlj« Al«WO(ir*.Hikutan^i ro»<J.