RELIGIOUS ACTIVITY.

Dominion, Volume 1, Issue 158, 28 March 1908, Page 11

RELIGIOUS ACTIVITY.

A GREAT MISSIONARY YEAR. It has already . been announced that the directors of the London Missionary Society aro taking- steps to make the present year "a great missionary year." The year may ibo said to bogiri with Dr. R. Wnrdlaw Thompson's, accession to tho chairmanship of the Congregatignal 1 Union in May and his address from the chair at tho City Temple. In tho plan of campaign, prepared by 1 the Rev. A; M. 'Gardner, tho < organising secretary of the L.M.S., the arrangements which have already been made in connection, with the campaign are set forth. It is stated that the immediate'object of tho camp-ygn is "tho deepening of the missionary . spirit, which is simply Christ's own Spirit in our hearts." It' is further' stated,\ with emphasis, that "this is_ not a money-raising campaign; though'it js to' be hoped and expected that tho result will ; bo such an extension of missionary _ knowledge and' deepening of interest _in our 'Churches as. shall prompt a largo increase in their contributions .towards the maintenance and extension of the work, both at Home and abroad. The one object we have in view in this'campaign is to enlarge the hearts, to extend the horizon, to broaden the sympathies, and to deepen the lifo of 'the' members and adherents of the Churches." . Tho arrangements includo "The Orient- in Londpn," a great missionary exhibition under tho auspices of tho L.M.S;, tobe held'in tho Agricultural Hall. An army of about 15,000 stewards and other helpers is being trained in London and the Home counties to take charge' of the exhibition. This'army will not be ■ disbanded at the close, but kept in being : as' far as possible for' missionary service in the. years .to como.' NEW CATHEDRAL CITY. : Chelmsford is. to be the cathedral city for tho new. diocese of Essex. At .; a fuliy-at-tended .meeting of the executive, committee of tho Essex and Herts Bishopric Fund held in London on February 10, it was unanimously decided to recommend to the general committ-ee, to . bo: convened' at- tho "Church House on March 5, the selection of'Chelmsford.'. Tho'result of tho: voting .which--had been in progress throughout the county.'on tho matter during .tho. past two .months., was announced.',; Returns had been ■ received from 388 out of th0'.461 benefices. Of theso fivo refused to express:- an opinion. The remainder represented more, than a .million. of the 1,055,857 inhabitants of tho new diocese. I The voting'was a,s follows.. ; - Chelmsford'received th.e" first votes of 191 benefices," served by 25C_clergy,. with a united population of-120,657.'. Colchester .'.'received \the first votes of .101 benefices; served'-, by 121 clergy, with a . United i>opulation of 120,657- , • ■West. 'Hani 'received tho : first'-votes ;of ■sixty-three'benefices.'served by 119 clergy, with a united'-population of 321,677. ; Woodford, 'Barking, . Waltham : Abbey, ' ; and-.Thaxted 'received the first-, votes...of . 'twenty-eight-benefices between-!'them: . ;A . similar result was' arrived': at ; ' by- tho consideration of. the-subject by a number of public or , parochial meetings, -sixty-fivo of. which were in .favour of Chelmsford, _ forty in favour, of Colchester, 'and 'thirty-six in favour of West Ham.,, "V. . . MODERNISM' IN'GERMANY: The controversy to ,which the. Papal Encyclical regarding tho. dangers; >:of : what..is known as Modernism gayo-riso has-been revived ".(says' a'' Router ..message .of.'February ■:7)/.by; theiexcommunicatibn of Dr.-Schnitzer,. a weli-known professor of church history; and theological , lay. iat tho University;, of Munich; who published,'an- article on the' Encyclical, inv tho - ."Internationale Wochenschrift/'.Ja Berlin ."penodical: - ; . Tho; excommunication ■proijounccd.' b^-the]: Vatican. takes. .the form of a "sus'pensio ; a divinis," by which; Dr. Schnitzel- is; forbidden .to celebrate; lias's or. administer -the sacraments. Tho • Papal Nuncio iii Munich has also . formally' requested the Bavarian Government, to' .withdraw Dr. Schnitzcr's . authorisation to lecture, arid the Bishop of Augsburg has r prohibited tho theological. students: from attend-, ing the; professor's lectures'on the .p.ain of refusal of ordination. The action of the Bavarian Government is being awaited-with keen interest. Dr.' Scbnitzer is .well 'known' in connection with his investigations bearing on the lifo-and .writings of. Savonarola; .- :

. SELFISHNESS IN RELIGION.; ' : Addressing a mooting at. King's Lynn ill . support of V tho P.ui-Angljoan; Congress, ' the i Bishop of: Norwich deplored the parochialism prevalent among the clergy and laity. One , of the greatest • drawbacks . to the progress , of the causo of; the Church in England, ho "said, was that, they wero too parochial and too individualistic. They would dd' all they could' W. the work in-their'own parish, but refused to/tako.-'any part in tho effort to spread the cause throughput the world. Thoy wero: also too selfish in their religion, thinking only/about''tho salvation of their own souls.' ' ;'. ■ •; _' ■ . They did not /think about the souls of their friend?;, sa'id tho Bishop. : So . long as they felt, assured that their own 'soul "was ;saved, they..did'.not care about, any one elso. ' This was, a miserable'and contemptible "idea, • and brought religion down to individual selfishness/ Tho. man who wanted to go to Heaven alone, .'and be; thet'o by himself, was . not a.'genuine' Christian.■■ ■■ They must'not be .satisfied with -individualism in the Church. They must labour each for all, and all for each. ' - ■ . DISQUIETING STATISTICS. >, The statistics of the ■ Churches of tho' United States are almost as disquieting as the'recently published figures ; as to organised Christianity in the British. Islands. (3n this side of the Atlantic . (says the "Christian vWorld") it would almost seem as if ._. the_ Churches were at ■ a. > dead standstill; in America thero'is growth,;but it is not in proportion 'to thoVincrease of population, nor, !up to the average; of Ithe previous four years. .- The, net.gains .of all tho 'American denominations in 1907 aro set forth by Dr. H. K. Carroll (who had charge ;of the Government census of ; Churches: in 1890) as follows:— Ministers. Churches.'Communicants. 190 .....1707. 3276 ... 889,734 1904 3136. ... -2624 ... '898,857 ' 1905' .......'.; 2654 , ... 4112 ;.. 794,580 , 19064201 =.;. 1901. ... • 931,740< 1907 ;. 2301.\..; 4214 ... 627,546 It will bo n6ticcd\ that,' : whilo tho number of churches has increased boyond the ratio of the five' years, the proportionate increase of communicants has fallen by. over a quarter of a million.'. Roman Catholicism is still by far the largest single denomination'in the United States, with: over eleven million communicants; /Methodists,' with six millions; come second, Baptists third, Lutherans fourth, Presbyterians fifth and Episcopalians sixth. ' / J : ■ ; : "SPECIALISTS IN CONVERSION." A- correspondent of the "Fraternal/ 1 the organ of tho English Baptist' Ministers' Fraternal Union,'edited by Dr. .Newton' Marshall, offers a suggestion as'to tho causo of the recent, arrest in. the progress of the Churches.: Ho pdints'' : out. that during the ■ period of slackness there' has been oxtraordi- ' nary activity in.revivalism. A class of what : he calls: "specialists in conversion" has been callocf into existence, and "any Church do- ! siring; a quickening of its' life- can imme- ' diately apply, for the use of ono "or other of , tlieso experts." But he proceeds to' point out tho startling, fact that "the growth of indifference to religion in modern s6ciety synchronises with the development of the expert missioner and his. apparatus for. revival." . Commenting on these statements; the "Christian World" -says:—"Torreyism has'certainly failed to quicken tho life of-the Churches, and it is worth while 1 considering whether elaborately organised revivals may not: repel, far more people than they attract. Ministers like Mr. Charles Brown and Mr. Joseph Hocking havo' not hesitated- to-'.del clare -that they, will have nothing, to do with professional revivalists. They bold their own' missions . in - thejr own ■ ohurchcs' when they - find vtho .; conditions., and- atmosphere suitablo for a special effort in. the; direction ' of aggressive: evangelism. In America just now. The _ expert evangelist is- tinder: a cloud, and. ministers, are finding that quiet, steady, • earnest' work—without show or sensationalism ' —achieve far more good than the sparkling 1 rhstorio rf.the travelliiiji eDecdalist."-. Li

SOCIALISM AND RELIGION, r Mr. ; Richard Whiteing, , tho : well-Knowlt novelist, has an article in • the London;' 'Daily Mail" on "Socialism and Roligioni" "At present," ho says, "Socialists are content with tho discovery that all the existing creed* may, and oven must, lead to their platform. That is why you may seo almost every profession of faith represented at a Socialist gathering : ardent Anglicans and . Roman Catholics ; Freethinkers, Moral Persuasionists, Ethical Theorists,. and tho rest of them. All agreo in thinking that, whatever else theirY religion may mean, it must mean. this. M* own belief is that the movement is coming .to" a definite pronouncement.' I think that tho founders everywhere, the English schooi especially, find .that' Socialism'X as' a'inert, economic theory is absolutely inadequate. Td get its full' driving force .it njust' have a faith of its own.: ; Democracy is a religion, or. nothing, with its doctrine,, its .fo-rm,Vita ritual,. its : ceremonies, its cenobites, its gow ernmcat as a Church—above all, its organised sacrifice of the. altar, tho sacrifice atself. ' This is the deepest craving of human., nature. All attempts 'to rcconcilo man'» heroism, to his interests; have over failed.: His goodness must mako him smartf.... ..Thi< is what is coming Because this must Meantime I think many;of us are trying W reduce all religions to their common deno* minator of liberty, equality, arid 1 fraternity,, otherwise brotherly love. - It is perfectly certain that the masses are growing mors and more indifferent .to the. iiriago of tba founder of Christianity in His present setting. If He is to appeal to them'Ho mustj lay: aside His crown of jewels,, of modern symbolism-and resuriieHis crown 'of "thorns..

• "Ono day L ventured to call a Hyde Park: ' orator a Christian Socialist ,by . way of ! com< pliment, but'he flew into" a- great'rage* of that, sort, if,you pleased. Social*' ist Christian at tho best. Don't put th#' cart before the horse.' Ho meant' that tha Socialism • was the", touchstone,' ; not' thff ; Christianity, as they understand it in the 'Churches now. You could not a Socialist: without being a Christian, whether yotf knew it or not. You. might easily think, yourself, a Christian without being the'other- ■ thing, and tho Socialism was . tho root of tlw matter., ; Just that'and nothing more. 1 1 "Tho image of' tho Christ in the . popular mind- is- that .of bno, who ; came-to bringmore: happiness in this world to poor : mei> and women : beaten,in the.struggle—material' happiness.. ' .Do not. he in any . doubt about that—a' moro 'equal distribution. .of- right:) ■ down pounds, shillings, and: pence, the second loaf, in the cupboard, good' shoes and stockings. for all- tho children,; and the v Sunday,. . suit for all.- Tho attempt to ' substitute feast's.- fasts, and. festivals of the Church foi all -this, with elaborate, processions; willj" his"-.; torically, .1. feel;c6riyincedy mark the end'oß tho .'. presenti.' religious, system. " : Let - outAnglican; revivalists - just...try ; , ;to recogniser . how .a :poorj ; dim' creaturo,' born into. ever* •lasting without : volition o* •• vocatiorij 'stands;apart from.all.that,, and see ; nothing in, it but embroidered, garments and futilo excitements . about jQ.uinquagosima Sun- - day and other functions with long names that touch him no'- more than a birthday a* Courtl" . -..Y<; ' .;•„•' " * . JOTTINGS. , About £9000 of tho £47,000 needed to restore Solby Abbey remains 'to bo Bubscribed. With that sum tho building:can be r«tored, to. a condition such as it has not ■ enjoyed, since ;1690.' , / < ' br.-R.-'A. Torrey is :to become superintendent of - a'.new summer. Bible . Conference on the lines ■■' of Mr. Moody's famous .model at Northfield, .;and- the : work df'.Dr. Chapman, , at : Winona. The. site sdccted is,. Montrose,the 'country.seat-of-Susquehanna County.. . ': .Dr.. i'Porton,' - ;in'• a' '.recent' ' speech, nwintairicd' that-.tlie foreign missionaries occupied ai Higher platform'than the Homo teachers- of • _ .Christiamty.' ; He-also said-'that what -he had seen'at;tHe recent-Students-Missionary Con- . .ference./at -Liverpool- proved, to him that tho -. nieir'of. tho n'ext;'generation wore to bo of a ■ nobl?r,. c|ass 'than .ttheir. ,predecessorsT-more believing, -more eaniest, and''moro devoted/ ,i' At ■ almost ,every Presbytery meeting of tho United, Free Church 1 the,, question of paramount interest,-has been the of tho; dispossessed-:,-... congrega'tions , of' the'; Church; 1 '- The reports of the committees appointed to examine the. question aro for tha : most : partnow -,to ;hand, ' and considerable ' discussion was aroused, by. their: findings-.in many: iPresbivteries. r £60,000 of the sura aimed . at—£lso,ooo—has been already: collected, and: there is no doubt , that tha balance.will be speedily forthcoming.' -'• At a;meoting .of the committee- appointed |, by tho Presbyterian Church of Victoria. to - deal with the question of a timo' limit for • .pastorates, .'the; subject was discussed afcoon-' ? siderablo length, and two schemes, were ulti- (. mat6ly adopted, : one providing for. a'.change 1 in tho method of election of ministers; and * tho other for a certain time limit for tenure and transference. . The committee's proposed schemes' will, be "'submitted-to': the. General. Assembly, to be held in May next. : At present ministers aro personally indircted into at-| • charge,; and can remain, until they resign or, feel disposed to accept a call to another" ! trict.- - . .' . ' Tho Rev. Jamos Cregan, an Irish Congregational minister with a pefsuasivo power in the" pulpit and 1 ati attractive persdnality . as pastor, has in three years achieved whati y-. looked like the-, impossible ;in Manchesterhe has rostored Cavendish: Chapel to tho •level 'of prosperity as attained .under. Parker, forty years ago. He .left Belfast fot , Manchester three years ago, and ever.sinca ; his settlement' the prosperity of tho ChurcW has. been increasing. ■ There ,are now 46a 'church members and 860 seat-holdors—the liighest number recorded ,for . forty years. ', Last year eighty-four members" were > ad- '' mitted to the church. ' Tho buildings been renovated and the. ct>st promptly met. b

A Japanese paper has . published certain ' statistics.- compiled, by the ; : : Homo Affairs, which show.: the' Christian .-. population of Japan. The total number oi Christians'is given as 131,614, of which 56,636 are Roman Catholics and .14,643 jnem- . bers of the Greek Church. :■ The Church of ■ ' Christ' in Japan claims 15,228, tho.Episcopal , Church 12,586, the Congregational Churches 11,343..' - The greatest number-of Christiana; '' 'in any one' prefecture is' found in .Nagano Prefecture, vhere there are 33,819 Christians ! (26 per 1000):' Tho December number of the "Japan Evangelist" says that ."various, at-- ' tempts-. haVe been made, to form an, eclcctio , religion in Japan, and tho will o' the wisp is not without thoso who pursue it even at present." - - •>'• A. new batch of missionarieswill leave Sydney shortly in: connection with Methodist) • mission work in.the Islands.' Four are be- , ing sent to Fiji and one each to Samoa, the Solomon Group, and New Guinea. The rapid oxtension ;of, the work is calling for; much' largor and ttio more frequent expenditure of taoney, and ' a correspondingly.' greater in« crease inthe 'mission .staff..-. The 'steamoi. . Goorgo. Brown left Sydney last, Thursday.' week, and was to proceed . direct to New Britain. She took with her three new build* ings 'for that centre; Thenco she will pro- ; cood with''tho : returning teachers. .to Sanioa 1 ' and Fiji, whfere sho will; "tako;;on board volunteers for tho Solomon Islands, Now ■Guinea; and New Britain, receiving also othoi teachers as, may havo had permission to re. turn to' their homes. Upon landing there, 1 ■ tho vessel ; is.'to'.'; return' to Sydney, after an. absonce,'it" is''anticipated, of eight or nino months. . ; The Rov. F.. B.'Meyer is helping forward ' the. causo,of Sunday school reform during his . missionary crusades'; up' and down .tho" country.. At. Cardiff ~ recently, ho. • called thr Sunday.:school jsuperintendents 'in. tho congregation into, the "big . pow' - • and interro-. gated them as to the,methods used' in thei» schools and especially as to tho age at'Whlck ' they, lost most of :their scholars. :-. Then"h« advised them to • establish'. Sunday' school infor. .thoso scholars over the aga sf fifteen. Young'men and women would not, ho said, remain to be' biassed as '-'kiddies;'' and it'was the highest l wisdoiir to accommodate themselves, to young , people's, ideas iii the .rnattor of dividing tho schools. Tha reason why r tho children' wero drifting away - was because thoy work able to compare tin / up-to-date, teaching; of tho. pl'rmentary schcols with: the hundred-years-behind teaching in tho Sunday school.. It was only when thev brought their teaching up to presonWav - methods' that tho young people would remain.. Mr., Moyer. confessed Limsolf an oiithusiast -for Boys'; Brigades, and -dismissed the; notion that, they cultivato militarism-ag the criticism of pepploVwho do not'know.