The New Minister of Scots Church, Melbourne.

Auckland Star, Volume XVIII, Issue 65, 18 March 1887, Page 3

The New Minister of Scots Church, Melbourne.

V.vmous cable messages have lately appeared regarding tho Key. Dr. Lees, of St. Giles's, Edinburgh, who has been appointed to tho pastorate of Scots Church, Melbourne, and is shortly expected to arrive in the sister colony. It appears irom Home newspapers that Dr Loes created some sensation on Christmas Day last by holding a service—and a somewhat remarkable one — in his church at Edinburgh on that day. In commenting upon the service, the Key. Jacob Primmer said that " there was a conspiracy in their church to bring back the Pagan and Popish ceremonies denounced by the Reformers. On the previous day ho had gone to nee the Christmas performance in St. Giles's Cathedral. Here he saw images of saints ovor the west entrance, and a row of idols at tho north ot the communion table, and ho wished to know what right these had to bo in a Protestant church. Ho witnessed a procession of clergy, head«d by a man with a red and black coat, and carrying a baton with a burning bush on the top, which to him seemed to say that the introduction of these Popish practices was a burning shame. One of the two curates went to tho pulpit and read a liturgy, or rather he made a miserable attempt at intoning it, and the organ and choir joined in with thoir • Amens.' Then the Key. Dr. Lees got into the pulpit, and part of the congregation mumbled after him the Lord's .Prayer. He could not imagine that ho was in a Presbyterian Church. The preacher had to say something in defence of his observance of Christmas (which meant Christ's mass), which the apostles and tho early Christians knew nothing of, and which was only a heathen eaturnalia with a mw name, introdaced in the reign of Constantino, and his strongest argument was that 'the observance of this day empbusißcd the personality of Christ.' But the truth was that on that day there were more gluttony, drunkenness, immorality, outrages aud inarders than on any other day in the year, and therefore the observance of Christmas Day, instead of emphasising the personality of Christ, emphasised the personality of tho devil. Tho historic church of Old Greyfriars had been convetted into a ilower show tor the occasion, being ' profusely decorated with evergreens, holly, palms, and dark testoons.'