METHODISTS UNITED.

Auckland Star, Volume LXIII, Issue 225, 22 September 1932, Page 5

METHODISTS UNITED.

THANKSGIVING SERVICE. COMPLETE REUNION. ' ADDRESS BY PRESIDENT. A special thanksgiving service in connection with the legal act of reunion of the Wesleyan, Primitive Methodists and United Methodist Churches, which took place in Rugby, England, last Tuesday, was held in the Beresford Street Congregational Church* last night.

The Rev. E. D. Patchett, who presided, said that it was a memorable event in history, and that Methodism now spoke with one voice.

The Rev. M. A. R. Pratt, president of the Methodist Conference, outlined the history of the Methodist movement and of the inspiration of John Wesley. He reminded the gathering that they, had a noble ancestry and traditions, and that this outstanding e'vent was a call to them to be worthy of them. It was a call to carry on the work of John Wesley. The Methodist Church was the largest Protestant Church in the world, and the largest Church, Protestant or otherwise, in the British Empire. The Methodist Church now embraced between 40,000,000 and 50,000,000 adherents in various parts of the world. The Rev. G. Frost, who also spoke, said to-day that the reunion in England, which had followed the complete reunion of the various branches of Methodism in the Dominion, was the outcome of conferences held in England in 1928, at which he had attended as New Zealand representative. Each of the three Churches, the Wesleyans, the United Methodists and the Primitive Methodists, held conferences, and at all three it was decided that there would be no reunion unless 75 per cent of the members were in favour of it; also, that if the suggestion to unite were carried, the reunion was to take place in 1932. At the Wesleyan conference exactly 75 per cent were in favour of reunion, and the United Methodists carried it by a majority vote of 95 per cent. In his address last night Mr. Frost said that the Methodists of to-day and to-morrow must be true to the primary principles of Methodism, which was religious experience in Christian character and evangelism in Christian work, and he urged those at the meeting to cultivate these.

Others who assisted at the service were the Revs. W. Walker, J. H. Ha slam and T. B. Wooloxall, and Mr. J. Voss, vice-president of the conference. The Rev. A. Mitchell sang a solo, and there was singing* by a choir under Professor Moor.