EARLY HISTORY.

Press, Volume LXVII, Issue 20302, 30 July 1931, Page 14

EARLY HISTORY.

THE CHURCH IN CANTERBURY. ADDRESS BY MR G. M. MACKENZIE. "The Church in Early Canterbury" was the subject of an address last; evening before the Canterbury brand* of the £Tew Zealand Historical Association. The speaker was Mr G. M. Mackenzie, who has been recently studying the Church history of Early Canterbury. Mr A. K. Anderson was in the chair.

Mr Mackenzie divided tho subject into two divisions, tho original scheme of the founders with its development, and, socondly, some details of the growth of the Churches after 1850. Original Scheme. "Canterbury, like its predecessor, Otago," said the speaker, "was a class settlement composed for the most part of members of the Church of England, who carried with them the doctrines and discipline of their national Church." When the Canterbury Settlement was mooted the English Church was passing through the critical period of tho Tractarian movement. The class settlement proposed bv tne Canterbury Association was a class settlement of two classes. This caused the Association to act against its own beliefs, and to hold within itself the seeds of destruction of its basic principles. change of attitude of the Association developed in the minds of the founders until they tacitly admitted that tho scheme was too narrow in conception. There was difficulty due to hostility between the Puseyites and the Ev.-ngelicals. Another disturbing element was in the presence of dissenters who watched with jealous eye any attempt at religious encroachment. , Reasons for Settlement. In spite of disintegrating elements, there wero these factors in favour of a class settlement in Canterbury. There was a better climate than in Otago. There was provision made for social and religious institutions, a feature that alone would cause many to migrate to Canterbury for the sake of education for_ their children, as well as for obtaining a more refined stato of society There was criticism of snobbery of tho early settlers. "Earp writes in 1853," quoted Mr Mackenzie: "The Canterbury emigrants consider themsclres rather a select circle, rather upper-crust- people. In fact, some say Canterbury is rather 'silver-forky' in character, rathor inclined to clip sheep ii: kid gloves." A Church Scheme. Tho Canterbury Papers give a clear j idea of the episcopal scheme for the i Cauterbury Settlement. The commit- j ice of tho Association contained . r )4 members, nineteen being clergy. The settlement was to be entirely Anglican with sufficient clergymen and a large educational system. The Association was to have a right of selection among all applicants for permission to emigrate. _ A big point was made by the Association of starting the scheme with a Bishop afc its head. Difficulty was found in selecting a Bishop. Another source of trouble vns found in the amount of land bought and the finan- j c-ial sido of the land question. j

Ideals Break Down. The third issue of the Canterbury Papers tells of further breaking down of tho original ideals'of tho Association. It was realised in this issuu tli.'it tho political authority of tho Church hat! vanished. Even purchase of land made no mention of the buyer's denomination. Much could bo and was overlooked in the selection of the applicants in spite of the parish priest's certificate. Tho scheme did make provision for other denominations. iho {position of tho Association was summarised by Lord Lyttelton in an address at Christchurch in 1868. Lord Lyttelton stated; "The leading principle on which the colony was founded' was self-reliance, self-regulation and eelr-developmeut. Many people thought tlio essential object was to found a Church of England colony. But it was never supposed that the Association would remain in existence after its work was done."

However " continued Mr Mackenzie, the scheme was not a failure Tt brought together a body of colonists second to none in intelligence. The number of university trained men was great, _ m spite of the fact that over one- third of the population of Cnntevf/UTA con Id not roji/J or write." The Early Church. The predominant Church was the Anglican, its adherents being 3225, or 89 per cent, of the population. Presbyteries came next with 291 adherents, and Methodists next With 196 members. The first death was of John Williams four days after landing, and the first plot mas opened in the Lyttelton cemetery for him by the Rev. Edward Buckle. The first church service was held on December 22nd in a warehouse in Norwich quay. One of the Immigration .Barracks was fitted up as a church in Lyttelton as soon as possible. An attempt was made to obtain selfgovernment of the Anglican Church in Canterbury. Legal status for this was obtained by the Eeligious, Charitable, and Educational Trusts Act, 1856. By a judgment of the Privy Council in 1865, tho anomaly of a self-governing Church being ruled by Bishops under Letters Patent was removed, and the Church in Canterbury progressed steadily on.

Matters improved in the educar tional line, Christ's College having been founded in 1855, and reaching a roll of 131 in two years. The first church, Holy Trinity, Lyttelton, had its foundation stone laid by John Godlev in 1852.

j Other Denominations. "The Roman Catholic Church," said Mr Mackenzie, "had the honour of being first in the field." In 1840 two priests arrived at Akaroa, and near Lyttelton the principal Maori chief and lis wife were enrolled as the first Catholic cachumens. In 1864 u church designed by Mountfort was built and remained as the pro-Catlicdral until 1904, when the present Cathedral was built. Tho Methodist Church was probably the next in the field. There were Metho- ; dists on the First Four Ships, possibly because they wore still regarded as a part of the Anglican Church. The first minister for any settled period wa: the ftev. W. Kirk, who spent nine months in Canterbury on his way to Otago. The Methodist Church consisted then of the "Wesleyan Church and other Methodist bodies. The Presbyterian Church was represented in Canterbury by members prior to ISSO, but in uo amalgamated form. They were disappointed at Otago being chosen as their settlement. In Canterbury the organisation of the Presbyterian Church was due to the Rev. John Moil* in 1853. The first Presbyterian Church was St. Andrew's, near the Public Hospital. The parish was one of 13,000 square miles, which the minister regularly covered on horseback. Other churches formed were the Congregational in 1864, and the Baptist Church, which held its first service at Rangiora in 1862. A Jewish Synagogue was consecrated in 1881 by" the Rev. Mr Zachariah, the Rabbi of Canterbury, and the Rev. Mr Van Staveren,of "Wellington- Solvation Army