CHURCH UNION

Waikato Times, Volume 129, Issue 21584, 21 November 1941, Page 2

CHURCH UNION

/METHODIST SUPPORT PROGRESS OF NEGOTIATIONS (Special to Times) TE AROHA, Thursday A departmental report on the activities of a joint committee to consider a basis of union between the Presbyterian, Methodist and Congregational Churches of New Zealand, which had met recently in Christchurch, came before the South Auckland Methodist District Synod, sitting at Te Aroha. After discussion of the report the following resolutions were unanimously adopted by Synod:—(1) “That this Synod reaffirms its conviction that the trend toward union of the Churches is a movement of the Spirit of God in our day, and that the promoting of cooperation and unity among the Churches will consolidate the Christian testimony to the reality of God’s .Kingdom.” C2) “That this Synod gives thanks to God for the progress made in the conversations on Church union and recommends the conference to appoint a strong committee to continue the Conversations during 1942, the committee to report to November synods and to the conference.’’ Missionary Income In the concluding sessions of the Synod a variety of business was considered. Reports on youth work in the Dominion were presented, these being spoken to by Mr A. E. Bate (organiser for the district. Proposals for the closer co-ordination of the various phases of youth work were adopted and others referred back to the Youth Board for further consideration. Overseas missions income to date for the South Auckland district in the current year totalled £IOB4, an increase of over £3O. The women’s missionary auxiliaries in the district, numbering 13, had contributed £375. I’he Rev. L. A. Brooks was appointed district ministerial representative to the stationing committee oi the conference, meeting in Wel-

lington next February. Alter discussion of the question of ministerial stipends in relation to the rise in the cost of living it was decided that steps be taken to secure the observance of the conference provision for a minimum stipend of £275 for. ordained ministers, with correspondingly graded salaries for probationers and home missionaries. Appreciation was expressed of the work of the chairman of the district, the Rev. R. B. Tinsley (Hamilton), who will retire from that position next year.

An invitation to hold the next Synod at Thames was accepted. Chaplaincy Matters A report on the work of chaplains stated that with the change of policy regarding the territorial forces, the work of the chaplains had been greatly intensified. Now that the men were sent into camp for threemonthly periods, there was a growing feeling among the chaplains who had had experience of this work, as well as with the military authorities, that a chaplain should go into camp with the men for the full threemonthly period. Complaint was made of the lack of information reaching chaplains in camps relative to men entering from the Churches, and a strong appeal was made to ministers, home missionaries and officials to send to the chaplains information that would be adequate to enable them to locate Methodist men in camps where sometimes as many as 5000 men were in training.