WAYBACK RELIGION

Auckland Star, Volume LXXI, Issue 11, 13 January 1940, Page 2 (Supplement)

WAYBACK RELIGION

rHE diaries which I have kept for a; ijumber of years past 1 have been 'little more than catalogues of events such as services, weddings, baptisms,' etc. : During the last few have been sorting, over f a few of these little volumes," tearing out unused pages and consigning the restto the waste-paper" basket. While so doing my memory has? been refreshed', and a number of amusing.' incidents in the life of a bush parson have been brought again ' to my remembrance. Tie few recollections which I shall ' now relate may not appear to have much bearing on the more serious : aspect of the subject with which it is my privilege to deal in'these'pages week i by week but, for those who are still enjoying' days of well earned ease, they will provide something in the nature of - holiday reading. A 'Shearer's Evensong ' Not in a vast cathedral,with its well • trained choir, and almost perfect rendering of the: service have, I'sensed much j of what is commonly, called spiritual j reality as when I was appointed to take an afternoon service in a shearing shed j not far from Cootam'undra, ' N.S.W/ ( It was a sweltering mid-summer day. My congregation was: made ,up of { shearers and rouseabputs. The manager f his wife, and a couple .of "gentleman" , jackaroos were perched, up' on one of. E the boards whereon the day before a c classer had been busy sorting the fleeces. One of the men had'a'concertina and j another' a mouth organ—they supplied , the music. The service began with; "Rock , of Ages" and my congregation of 23, c including two sheep. dogs (which kept j up a .well sustained , howl through each t of the three verses) sang with gusto. 1 The manager-.wanted .to : t'ake the dogs -y outside but I protested. One of theße ." dumb creatures had rendered a comfort- 1 in<* service to Lazarus as he sat on the doorstep and partook of the crumbs o which fell. from the rich mail's table, X so what right had we to rob these two < "blueys" of our companionship .during t Divine Service? Not a sound was heard t during the opening prayer save that of I my voice, and a few,crows cawing on \ the roof. None of the congregation knelt, v They.just sat crpss-iegged on jthe floor j

By the - V Rev. G. W. Chandler

with .heads bowed while I invoked the blessing of Almighty God upon our proceedings. It was a great service, and those shearers whose language is seldom of , the Sunday School variety, helpecj to make it so. I should like to think that after I (lie, I could spread my neeces acro3s the sky, And ho turning: the dark clouds inside out. Just llko a heavenly rouseabout. A Wedding The first wedding at which I officiated in the parish of Mount Morgan in Queensland was of a most unusual character. The prospective bridegroom had been to see me a few day 6 prior to the event. He was! a cotton -picker from Dawson Valley way. A big hornyhanded fellow who couldn't say the Lord's Prayer. His age was 43, while that of his "intended," as he called her, was only 17. A peculiar feeling crept over me when he imparted this information, but when ho assured mo that ho loved the girl and that she loved him, I agreed to proceed with the ceremony upon the day appointed. The hour arrived, ' and so did the happy couple. They were accompanied by a young woman with a baby in arms and the bride's father. My wife looked after the baby in the vicarage until after the ceremony. Although the bridegroom said "I blight thee my truth" instead of "I pljgfit thee my troth" in the betrothal, they were duly married. I kissed the bride as' she entered the vestry, wished them every happiness, and wrote their names against two crosses which they had previously made in the marriage register. Then, turning to the bridesmaid, I said, "now you had better collect your baby at the vicarage." "It's min.e," said the bride, i "and could you christen it while we are here?" This time it was about 200 miles west of Longreach in Central Queensland. I turned' up at the village pub late one Saturday afternoon, prepared to tako a service the following morning, •before. I returned to Parish Church where I was conducting a mission for the vicar, who' Was the immedate successor to the well-known Hulton Sams, the "fighting • parson."

"Say padre, could you marry a bloke here after the service to-morrow morn-ing,"-said a fellow »wlio, a few seconds before, had leaped from his horse and rushed breathlessly on to the verandah of the hotel. Subject to the necessary papers being completed I agreed to. oblige. The following morning after the service'which had 'been Holy Communion, the congregation remained seated. I had retired to the "vestry" which in this case was one of the Ixir parlours. Here I met the bridal party. The bridegroom and the best man were wearing riding breeches, while the bride was dressed in white with what appeared to be a window curtain over her head for a veil. "What about some <a

music," said the bride's father. "What liavo you got," I asked. "Well," said he, '•'the boss as tin old phonograph and a few records." "If you can find any mutable records that will do line," I udded. It was ail old gramophone of the big horn variety. ' This was placed . on a table in the far corner. The bride entered upon her father's arm to the tune of "Abide With Me." So far, so good. To my intenso horror, but not to the apparent discomfort of any of those present; the party retired .to the ~.'vestry" to the tunc and words of "Hallelujah, I'm a, Bum." If you arc shocked at reading this, you are not more shocked than I was at hearing : it. In spite, however, of these amusing 1 experiences, some of the most practical Christians I have met have been men and women of the great outback. Big , hearts, strong, hands, no frills, but, I ' trow, with as large a stake in the bless- i ings of divine love as any of us.