CATHEDRAL SERVICES

Press, Volume L, Issue 15016, 10 July 1914, Page 5

CATHEDRAL SERVICES

TO THE EDITOR OF "THE mESS."

Sir, —While I agree with your correspondent "Churchman." that the sermons at the Cathedral do - not tempt the thoughtful man to regular attou--dance at tho Cathedral services, surely it is rather cruel to refer to the fact in the public papers. One recalls on reading "Churchman's" letter the legend inscribed over the piauo in the Wild West dancing saloons: "Do not shoot the pianist; he is doing his best." Poor preaching in these days of hurried extempore utterances, is an evil very general, and very hard to mend, j The fact, however, that the Cathedral has not a staff of popular preachers ought not to blunt the edge of an apnea! to •Churchman" to support the Cathedra! service; for they are in themselves so beautiful as be a joy and inspiration to many* who i\o not care what thy preacher says. There must be many like myself who arc in no sense churchmen, who yet find in the Cathedral service*, rendered as they are in this town, an element ot -ivorshio. and spiritual rest which can Ik? found in no other way. a link, perhaos the c-ulv rensainii.g link, for many opus, with the devotional history of our race. Could not the authorities suppress the sermon in the ordiuary Sunday Cathedra!'services, or at any rate reserve it for the evening? One good sermon « week should surely be within the powers of any Cathedral stall. — Yours, etc.. „—-.„.. OXLOOKEK. TO THE KDITOK OK Ii THK VKP.SS." Sir —1 was interested in ••Churchman's' 1 letter of this mornings ••Press." He has summed up the nonattendance at our Cathedral in a nutshell, and 1 fully agree with what he saws. Our churches belong to the people, and the sooner our mshop and his clergy recognise that if people are to support the churches we must give the. people good, broad churchmen, good readers and speakers, and those appointed .to the. high positions should 1 stand out above their fellows. In reI gard to St. Michael's being better atI tended nowthan ever, he is not well up in the facts, or he would knoff (as 1 do) that during the sixteen ytars of Dr. AveriU's ministry the offertories and attendance were the highest on record, al<o tho number of communicants during the Easter of the "last year of his ministry was over five hundred. For Easter Sunday this year (1914) there were only 200. The church was supported by hundreds then, but now it is only dodging along (on large sums) given by one ,or two persons. Our Bishon has driven numbers of good old ehurchpeople out of the church rather than give us the services we were used to in our parish churches, and ho turned down the deputation of churchmen who waited on him with the petition of 600 communicants. It is not likely we will support the Cathedral or St. Michael's now. With regard to the Cathedral, the Sunday evening organ recitals should be stopped, as they help to keen people away, and if our clergy would only see that in this democratic country we want, not ornate services, but plain, simple ones, as th» early settlers had, it would all bo well. —-.Yours, etc.. XS OLD CHURCHMAN. July Bth. TO THE EDITOR OF "THE FHRSS." Sir, —Some- of your correspondents are very ungenerous in their references to the Cathedral preachers, besides missing the point raised by the Dean, viz., tho i cost of tho musical portion of the eervice. Our Cathedral is not the only church suffering from diminishing attendances: all Communions complain. What wo have to do is to see that the necessary means are provided for the Dean and Chapter to ' continue the maintenance of so excellent a vocal and instrumental setting to our morning and evening prayer as now obtains. Sermons ar'el only an incident in the service, and the elocutionary or other qualities of the Cathedral clergy need not bo discussed. —Yours, etc. ANGLICAN. July 9th.