CHURCH NEWS AND NOTES.

Auckland Star, Volume XXXV, Issue 38, 13 February 1904, Page 2 (Supplement)

CHURCH NEWS AND NOTES.

A panel has been placed in StPaul's Cathedral, London, to the memory of Sir John Stainer, the celebrated musical composer and organist, of St. Paul's for many years. The panel was unveiled by Canon Scott-Holland. A life-?ize recumbent figure of the late Bishop Creighton. which had been placed in Peterborough Cathedral, was unveiled in December- A marble memorial :-lab, erected over Dr. Creighton's ■tomb in St. Paul's. London, was quietly dedicated some months ago by Canoff Scott-Holland (May 23). Th.-- Bishop of Southwark. early in De.vaiber last, dedicated, at Blaek■hsath. London, another of the houses of resiaenee for Grey Ladies. This is an Anglican Order, of which there are now six houses in full work, containing more than 50 ladies, who give their lives io \iors anions the poor, principally in Scud: London. Bi.-hct) Gallagher, -.vho has just re-turn,-d from a tour of the world, in a speech at Goulburn, New South Wales, describing his visk tc the Vatican said *}, the H^se^ 4 . OMjnpant of the Papal Lnair: '-Pius X. is a worthy successor ot tne great Pontiff who preceded him. If Lee XLU. was the Pontiff of the intellect, Pius is tiie Pontiff of the heart. If Leo appealed tc man's reason, Pius ■will capture, their ieelings, their sympathies, and their affection. Everything a.!,0:7T him breathes kindness, benevolence, lore for his people; and it would be almost impossible ior anyone, to nave tea minutes' conversation with him without departing a stronger aud better nan/

In. an article in the American ""Christian Endeavour World," Dγ- J. F. Cowan says that only 12 State Governors in the United States have no church connections; and that "new chnrche3 are being built throughout that country at the rate of one per hour." Sir George Williams published his Xew Year's Address for 1904 to members of the V.M.C.A., under the title of "God's Fellow-workers," early in December. The motto text selected by the National Council is: '"Five are labourers, together with God/ "We enter upon the new year full of hope," wrote Sir George. "The outlook is bright with promise. The V.M.C.A. affords a splendid field for labour. At no period, since its formation was it more needed than now. As an organisation, it is in every way adapted to meet the needs of young men. If we will but embrace the opportunities which are presented to us, our possibilities of usefulness are boundless." On December 14 the Lord Chief Justices Couri. at Wert Ham decided an appeal case of sreat importance in connection with the Passive Resistance movement against the education tax in England. The Passive Registers proposed the payment of tne rates, less the portion for the Education Act. This the officers refused, end they sought for a warrant to enforce the payment of the whole rate. Tne case was heard by tne Lord Chief Justice, Mr. Justice Lawrence, ana Mr. J ustice Kennedy, and the decision was that the form of the Statuti made it clear "that the magistrates were not to issue a warrant for the whole, when part was tendered.' 1 The decision has removed one of the weapons by which officials in many parts of England had tried to harass the passive resisters, by seeming distress warrants for the whole rate. In response to an invitation from four of the other Methodist bodies—the New Connexion, the Bible Christians, the United Methodist Free Churches, and the Reform Union—the last Wesleyan Conference of England appointed six ministers and six laymen to meet representatives of these denominations, '"to inquire concerning the constitutional, financial, and other conditions of various Methodist churches desiring union." The meeting took place, and in the English papers of the early part of December the results are published, which go to show "that however strong may be the feeling in certain quarters, and however desirable it may be that the parent body and its offshoots should unite, so as to form one powerful compact Methodist Church in Great Britain, the parties on either side are not likely for some time to come to make such concessions as to render this possible. An extraordinary advertisement recently appeared in a Cumberland (Eng.) paper, stating that a "preaching phonograph" is wanted for the Sparkbridge Wesleyan Chapel, with 52 records each to contain '"one distinct service." which includes the announcement of the hymns, the reading of the lessons, one long prayer and one short prayer, the Benediction, and a sermon. The phonograph is also to announce on 51 Sundays, '"Collection at the close of this service," and on the 52nd Sunday the announcement is to be slightly more complex: "A collection, love-feast, and renewal of tickets." On this special occasion, the sermon is, "if possible, to be of a superior quality." The British and Foreign Bible Society will be one hundred years old on March 7, 1904. It has already helped to translate and publish the Gospel in 370 languages of the world, spending about £4000 a year in the work of translation and revision alone. It has issued more than ISO million copies of the sacred scriptures, and at present employs 800 colporteurs to sell the scriptures, also 600 native Christian Bible-women, in the East, to read the sacred volume to those who cannot do it for themselves. Its friends propose, in connection with the centenary, to raise £250,000 additional, to extend the usefulness of the Society. The indemnity of £7000 exacted by the British Government from the Chinese Government as compensation for the murder of China inland missionaries at Cheng Choia has been declined by the China Inland Mission and by the Wesleyan Mission Board of London as "blood money." The death of Cardinal Herrero. Archbishop of Valencia, is announced in the home papers. It will be remembered that the Cardinal was seriously ill during the recent Conclave. He was born on the 20th January. 1523, and was raised to the Sacred College at the last Consistory held by Leo XIII: A special effort is being made to raise an additional £20,000 towards the Liverpool Cathedral Building Fund, before the King lays the foundation-stone, some time during the English spring-tide. I.'he Liverpool Cathedral, it is said, will bn the first built in the North of England for 700 years. It will be loftier than Westminster Abbey, and its twin towers, will be 250 ft. high. It has been decided to make ths trial of making only two voyages of this Melanesian Mission ship Southern Cross in a year instead of three. A great deal of money will be saved, and as boys will go to Norfolk Island for three, years at a time, instead of two, much time also will be gained. A new reason for going to church is given by Mr Joseph Shaylor, in "The Book Monthly."' Young authors in search for good titles, he says, if they follow carefully the readiag of the lessons and the hymns that are sung, will be sure before long to find what they want. We do not recommend church attendance on such grounds, but there is no doubt some of the most effective titles for Movels have been found in a familiar Bible phrase. A couple of generation's ago the practice would probably have been condemned as irreverent, and perhaps not without reason. Miss Braddon was one of the earliest offenders, and one of the worst, '"Strangers and Pilgrims." "One Thing Needful," "Golden Calf," "Thou Art the Man." are some of her titles, and also '•Just as I am." Two, at least, of those titles seem to transgress due bounds. Women novelists especially were early disposed to take titles from Scripture. Long ago our friend Miss Worboise chose "The House of Bondage,' , Mrs Amelia E. Barr has "Feet of Clay," Miss Rhoda Broughton "Cometh Lp as a Flower"—all quite unobjectionable. Anthony Trollope Las "An Eye for an Eye;"" Edmund Ya-tes (from the Prayer Book), "For Better for Worse;" Thamas Hardy "The Laodicean" and "Tie Well-Beloved." Mr Baring-Gould 50, years ago, a-s a young man of 20, published "The Path of the Just." Mr ■KiphKg took "Many Inventions" from I F.cclesiastes. Other recent titles drawn from Holy Writ will be in the minds of ! readers- Mr Shaylor found that nearly I .30 of the books published in one month lately had been named in this way.