THE CHURCHES.

Press, Volume LVII, Issue 17295, 5 November 1921, Page 16

THE CHURCHES.

I VIEWS OF LEADERS. SERMONS' IN FREE CHURCH PULPITS. (from ottr own cobbbspondent.) LONDON, September 20. The Bishop of Peterborough, on the Lambeth Appeal: "Rome was not built in. a. day, nor ! perhaps will the reunion of Christendom be effected in a century. A year has passed since the bishops issued their appeal from the Lambeth Conference. It is natural to ask: "What has happened tince? To the enthusiast for reunion the year has been disappointing. The Lambeth Appeal has not 'caught on' in the way that probably some people expected. It has been received by other Churches with non-committal resolutions, and relegated to committees lor further investigation. No palpaole steps have as yet been taken in the matter of round table conferences officially arranged, though these may come before the year is over. All this, bowever, was inevitable. It was not desirable, even if it had been possible, for anv Church to make a definite pronouncement on the Lambeth _ Appeal. .... What is really disappointing is that there is at present little sign of willingness on the part of any Church to moderate positions more suited to the controversies of thirty or 81)0 years ago than to the needs of the modern world and the responsibility of Christendom. A cynic might be tempted to say that the Churches, so far from asking, 'How can we advance towards reunion?' ' are rather asking, 'How can be best preserve our separation P Not, 'How much can we give?' but, 'How much can we keep that is compatible with lip • service to the great lc'.al of reunion?' Nor, indeed, has the Anglican communion itself been exempt from this spirit. In the Church of England, as well as outside it, there are those who, before surveying the situation at large, are careful to 6oe that they are firmly entrenched in their old ecclesiastical positions. On the other hand, there has been a widespread appreciation of the fact of the Lambeth Appeal, and of the spirit which prompted it. Its ambassadors, archbishops, and others have been cordially received by the Church assemblies which as interpreters thev have visited. There is a universal admission of the scandal of the present disunion, and, there hss been" a large extension of informal discussions between ministers and others as to possible ways of reaching a better understanding. The Real Problem. "The issue of the appeal has, in fact, proved to be a wholesome acidtest of the momentum of each Church towards the goal in view. There has been a melancholy but useful exposure of the deadweight of inertia'which has to be faced when any definite project for reunion is promulgated. It has revealed the immensity of the number of Church members in every group who are content to leave things as they are, and to discharge their duty towards reunion by the use of pious phrases and the expression of hopes which at heart they have no desire to see fulfilled. Further, it has become evident that in great tracts of opinion in the Churches there has been no attempt to think out the meaning of reunion, and the lines on which, if all Christendom is to be involved, advance may wisely be made. This is only to say that the Churches, being themselves part of the nation, have been afflicted with that mental sluggishness and disinclination to hard thinking which is one of the war reactions from which the whole community has been suffering. The crucial question which must be faced and thought out by each Church before any real advance can be made, is: What kind of unity do we want? It-is widely agreed.that it must include large diversity, that there must be room for great groups within the reunited Church; it must be based on fundamental principle* rooted in the New Testament and in the life of the early Church. Broadly speaking, the choice must be made between two kinds of unity, a big federation or a big family circle. Are the Churches to be content with a federation which links them up to a certain point, but which leaves each_ practically in its present position, or do we want an organic unity, linked to the past through the historic order of Christendom, yet large enough, and capable of such living development as to include within its border all the main types of Christian experience? "It is comparatively easy to work for a pan-l'rptestant federation or for an exclusive 'Catholic' Church, and there are those who think that a permanent balance of power between Catholic and Protestant is the best solution. But neither of these groat types of thought and outlook can do without other. The real problem of .reunion is to connect them in such a way as to shed all that is -unchristian on both sides, and to combine both in a new and mighty growth. To combine historic order with spiritual liberty—this is the problem, and we dare not shirk it. But.first, hard thinking, and then spade work in all the Churches." Whatf Kind of Unity? The "JD'aily Telegraph" admits it is not surprised at the note of .pessimism, or sadness, that runs through the ■t3ishop % of Peterborough's review of the position. "Th e sad thing is that at present thoro is little sign on the part of any Church of a' willingness to change in a.ny respect, or even moderate, an attitude more suited to the past centuries than to the present n ° S -?-,-x thc world and the responsibility of Christian Churches towards that need. The question, 'How rar can we advance towards reunion"'is apparently p„t aside, or takes an entirely new form as, "How can we best preserve our separation ?' If we a cfc f O ,. reasons of this apathy, they stand out pretty obviously. There is the natural and somewhat intolerant conservatism tl C w ,rC fcS on , mat ?hed on the side of the lu-ee Churches by a kind of caution which sometimes comes nearer to suspicion. Besides,.the Church L suffering as all Europe fk suffering, from a ; certain mental sluggishness, and disinclination to hard thinking, which is ono of the reactions from the war. Thus, looking back over the past Year we can realise the deadweight of inertia ' SofiS^i te ******* as swn <* ™y definite-scheme for reunion is promulktr™ „f "r •- Churchm «» and all min. istera of religion must think out the kind of unity which is desirable. iL J? • 'l 6 a more or ess mechanical unity, a sort j «,« / ff der ? t,on , llnk, »g up with the Churches to n certain point, but' leaving each group practicallv as it tIL t "? W ° alnllnß at a different Kind of unity—a urge .family circle as ' it wore. Imk«d with the past, and yet cn.pabk,. of development sS as to brfng jritUm its boundaries all „he main iX« 0f Chr^ian faith and doctrine? of 5U T.,,' SOme fr "i tful idea ' of unity, we shall have to fall back on , the alternative of a permanent balance +!nf W^ betffesn P^ 0110 «»«i Protestant. Ihere are those who think that this is t&e only solution. But surely it is one of hopelessness rather than of ' progress. Plea for Closer Ties.

A congregation, numbering J2OO brethren, and including many overseas members of the craft who were attending tJhe Methodist Ecumenical Conferen «*> was present at a Masonic service at Wesley's Chapel. The preacher, the Bishop of Chelmsford, could not help wondering what the Church of Christ in Joihn Wesley's day would have thought if an English diocesan Bishop had preached from that pulpit. He

trusted his appearance there might be the beginning of a stronger and more Christ-like relationship between the great mother Church of England and those brethren in the faith who were assembled there. They had all one objective— they all wanted to build. But liow were they to build; as Masons P Some said, "Let us build a new world on fellowship," and others said, "On a League of Nations." If we want our League of Nations to be such a building as will stand the stress of time, it must be built on the rock of Christ. Other people said: "Let us build on the site of education." Who were supposed to be the best educated people m Europe" in 191-1 ? The Germans- And yet it culminated in the ''Hymn of Hate," the sinking of the Lusitania ami other outrages. If they did not have the right controlling power to move an educated man in the right way they only made him more dangerous by educating ihiin. There could be no peace in the world until tiie Prince of 1 Peace ruled. The root of the wholei' question was that, we must build on j Man. The key of the position was in the hand.S.*of the Christian rather than in the hands of the statesman. Bishop in Free Church Pulpit. "Is Christ only divine as Shakespeare is a divine poet, or was He a ieing higher than man who. condescended to become man:-'" asked Bishop "\Voildcn, •at Westminster .Chapel.- ilel'crring to the recent discussion at the Modern, Churchmen's Congress; he said: "If Ha was higher than -man there was no gcod : in explaining away one by one the at-' tributes which exalt His life above;;,the standard of"common men. His divinity was the motive' power of Christian reunion. When I invited I>r. Jowett to ! preach in Durham Cathedral I. received (hundreds of letters of protest and approval, but neither the one nor j the other wa6 of any account, for it • was my heart's desire that as we are one in' Jesus Christ,; so might we alll' be made one by inteiv communioi in the public worship of His Church. Now , is the time lor the leaders of the Church and of the Free Churches by conciliation to arrive at some.policy of inter-communion and so to rednion.' 1 hope that such an exchange of. pulpits as lias taken place between Dr. jowett' and myself may br-epme a natural incident in the history of the Church." A World-wide Church. Among ,the -fraternal delegates from other churches who attended the Ecumenical Methodist Conference, were the Bishop of Chelmsford, the Rev. It. C. Gillie (president of the National Free Church Council), Dr. Clifford and Dr. S. P. Cadman (representing the Union of Christian Churches of America). The Bishop of Chelmsford, who when in New Zealand was the Rev. J. E. Watts-Ditchfield, welcomed on behalf of the Church of England the great conference which Methodism was holding. The Church of England during the last year had opened her arms more widely, more lovingly, and more spontaneously to Nonconformity than she had ever done in her history. From the very circumstances connected with the history of Methodism they longed.more earnestly for union with Methodism than- with

s other churches because many Church s j people believed that John Wesley was the > greatest priest ever ordained in the I i Anglican communion. It was no exags | geration to say that the best to-day in - i the Church of England, the best in '> \ Nonconformity, could be traced back to 1 the great evangelical revival which was L' begun by the Wesleyans. Speaking of l , the Lambeth Conference, he said that "i there the bishoos were given a vision ■ I of a great Catholic Church, in which ' ' each group had a freedom of constituI tion and worship, and a freedom to work 1 out on its own lines the Best that was in • j it. Federation was not the aim. He I did not like the idea of Federation. He \'. wanted something closer, a living, or- ', gariic union. It was not merely a mat- ! ter of union lietwoen the Church of 1 : England and the Free Churches. The i vision was of a world-wide church. In I examining the problem of reunion it was i not wise to get down at once to details. ' They were not ready for them yet. Lot 1 them not hurrv the question. There was no short road to reunion. He did j not desire reunion in externals or out of expediency. What was said at the Lambeth Conference was not the last word, -hut at present, as a practical proposal, the Lambeth scheme held the field. Theory and Fact. / The flev. P. N. Waggett, at St. Mary's Cathedral, Edinburgh, during tlm spfrsion of the British Association. "We are met in the neighbourhood of < a great enterprise of science, and that reminds us of a double fact about our t common life. The war has taught us : that wealth is stuff, and that it is work , that makes stuff. We should be wast- , mg our time if we gave it no to to talk- : ing and theorising, and did not work and gather, make and carry, and distribute. Our recovery of prosperity de- , pends upon material thines. On the one 'hand civilisation is on affair of forcenrd ' stuff, but on the other it is an affair | ..of knowledge and insight. Science is systematised knowledge. I reverse the popular statement that "an ounce of fact is worth a ton of theory": I am quite sure that an ounce of theory is worth a ton of facts, if onlv because it takes manv tons of facts to mnke one ounce of theory. Knowledge throngh- . out the ages .has always been readv to minister to the practical work of life. Without abstract and high knowledge we shall fail in competition in the world ; in the most practical affairs. To illustrate mv point I recall an incident* wh''-h occurred in the hills of Mauritius. An internal combustion gas-engine refused to work, and the engineers were unable to set it rieht. There came a cadet from one of hi" MajciVs shins, and on learning, of the trouble, he immediately enquired what wns the altitude. On being informed, he pointed out that the pressure was wrong, and, turning a screw to alter ; the pressure, he set the engine going. | I do not know what reward was given : to the cadet, but there was ancther man who turned a 9?rew and sent in a ! bill for five guineas. The bill wr.s sent back for revision, amd the man promptly revised it thus: 'To fitting screw, s~j to knowing which screw to fit, £5. What applies to our common life also ■ applies to our spiritual life. During i the war we used to suppose that when

' we recovered freedom, justice, and a ' breathing 'space, and when we ' had saved the world' for democracy, everything would begin to go forward, Instead, we find a feeble and miserablemoral sense, a civilisation which is going to pieces before our eyes. The reason for such a state of things is that, while we trust the Christian toreros which we ought to trust, we do not also trust the Christian knowledge by which those forces are made effective unto salvation.'' The Eternal Problems. Father Bernard Vawjhan, in a sermon at Edinburgh,"pointed out that science, oliilosophy, and religion were sisters born of God, each being charged with a definite mission; and; bo long as each minded its own business no quarrel could arise between them. Hi likened them to. an underground surface and overhead railway all running on different planes, bo that there could be no real fear of collusion, each going slowly into the same terminus and hswisting one ancther. They thus formal a triple alliance for the fjood of mankind. It was the business of science to deal with phenomena, to find out jiivl present fm-ts; it was the aim of philosophy to investigate causes; whilst ' it was the dutv of religion to bring home to man his whence and his whither. When he asked science to tell him the origin of this planet, she said it was once" a ball of fire, tossed off a ball of fire larger still, and that as it gyrated round the bigger ball, rotating on its ax ; s, it gradually cooled and settled into the likeness and form of this earth on which'for the moment man lived. Philosophy said there wa* a- first .cause to account- for the cliain of events; and religion exclaimed, '1 believe in God, Creator of heaven'and earth.' Science knows nothing about its initial life; all she really knnwt. is that once the temperature of this earth was too hh'h for life, but that when it cooled dewn life appeared—whence, science cannot s.iy. Philosophy, when asked what she can contribute to the problem, savs she knows little ] about life in itself, and nothing about its origin except that some- cternnl Being endowed with-seli-.existenee must have stooped down on the' inorganic world and breathed into its siibtaiicu the breath of life. So life began to- ■ make its appearance on this planet. ' Religion te Is us that the Creator :<breathed into clay the breath of hie. and man became a living soul. I a,-;k science to tell me ,\vhen this earth i.; going to cease spinning on its axis. Scic-uce that it will gradually coo: dawn and become too cold to sup- . port life. But what I want to know from science is what it is that di'.'s. W.th tears wo watch the loiv'-drawu-nit procession moving to the c-metery: , but >is it man's body on:y, or his soul J also that is laid to rest m the grave? ! Science replies that, as neither stalnal, i mienscope", nor test-tube have yet di.v- ---! covcied tile human soul,' she knows njihnv' about it; her pr<;v:i;:c is U: nolo t>".encmena, not to teach psychology. " Philosophy declares there is something in man's nature which mark, him off from the rest of creation, and I reiigion, having heard the verdict ox botir about man's destiny, proclaims

, her belief in the resurrection of the body and lifo everlasting. I refuse to believe that man's final destiny is the ] dustbin, and not a starland where, : steeped in life, light and love, mnn, it ; found worthy, Khali partake of the beatitude of God everlasting.''

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