THE CHURCHES

Dominion, Volume 1, Issue 224, 15 June 1908, Page 2

THE CHURCHES

SALVATIONIST SILVER JUBILEE. Yesterday was a great day with'the; Salvation Army. It was the twenty-fifth anniversary of the commencement of their work in this city, the twenty-sixth anniversary of Brigadier Albiston's acceptanco of his first; Army commission, and it saw the first of a series of special ".farewell" meetings to Brigadier and Mrs. Albiston and Major Duttou (Provincial Secretary); Brigadier Albiston leaves on Thursday to take up tho South Island command, and ■ Major Dutton leaves on tho same day to .rejoin the Limelight Department it Melbourne. '-. 1 The Vivian Street citadel was crowded last evening, when tho Brigadier and Major gavo Mid received farewell mossages. Major Stone (Eltham), and Staff-Captain Henry (Palmerston North), amongst others, x expressed the general appreciation of the departing 6fficcrs, and regret felt for their loss. Brigadier and Mrs. Albiston and Major Dutton spoke in reply. The Army singing , company sang.two hymns. . .

Another farewell meeting bo hold in tho Vivian Street citadel and one at Newtown to-morrow night. The final meeting of tho series will be hold on Wednesday, when the silver-jubilee of .the Army's .advent in this city will also be specially celebrated. ; Lieut.-Colonel Knight, the new Provincial Conimander, will arrive from Christchurch oil Friday morning. ... .;' • > PLAIN TALKS ON PUZZLING PROBLEMS, ii A' Brooklyn Baptist. Church last night tho Rev. Arthur Dewdney. concluded tho series of "Plain Talks on 'Puzzling Problems. ' _ Tho. addresses have proved most interesting, and have attracted largo gatherings, tho church; having been full cvory Sunday. Last night's address was a summing up of the whole, under the title' "Is There a Better?" The' Preacher said ho had tried to meet honestly and fairly the secularist objections to the Christian religion; lie had ondeavoured; to show that Jesus Christ had, a. real messago for the times, that the Gos-' pel threw light on the problems that were vexing the minds, of'thoughtful .men, in these days. Was there a better answer to these problems than that, Jesiisu gave? Was there'a better ideal of life than Jesus set before them ? a better' hope than".Jesus inspired ? This was the central question.-They might condemn -the-churches for many fail-' ings, and question the theologies they taught; but back of the churches and the theologies was Christ. Could they explain Him away? "The- mightiest' among the holy, .and the holiest, among tho, mighty," according to Jean.Paul.Richteiv The,common.method of the secularist was not to 'attempt to account for, Him. They spent their strength ,in assailing the outworks' of religioil; in creating straw men, which they demolished with a chuckle of triumph.. : Thoy could not explain Christ away. The real Christ 1 must have been then\, or he could hot have been portrayed as;in the'Gospel..Whence caine He? The only answer .that met the case was His own' declaration,: "I came forth from \God." The yearning cry of human hearts, .''Show us the Father," ; ,was met in' Him; In the Incarnation and d<ath of Jesus,' G6i shows Himself sharing the 'siiis' and woes of the world taking them up'into His .own ..heart. No 'better messago to a 'suffering world ctjuld ever be. spoken.. There was no better conception of human , relationship than. - the brotherhood He taught'. No force had wrought so much for .man's betterment as. His Gospel. .Across tliis curse ,of and the" enthralm'ent of environment : Ho tjirew the energy of-Divine grace.' To-the most degraded Ho brought delivering; power. The programme '-of; "Humanism" fails far below the ideal- : cf Jesus,.-and .as its programme falls short so does its power to realise ■ it. .'Th6 message 'of,: Jesus. Christ ..underand" lived 1 , ali'd.' preacKed through, the power He provided, w^s'the .world's last arid only hope.

ROMAN CATHOLIC NEWS.. . .V ,";The Rev. Fathor Schaefer, 'S.Mi, of. this city, has "been transferred' to ..St.. 'Mary's Roman Catholic parish, 'Christchurch. ■. From, a private letter the New Zealand "Tablet" loams that directly after his arrival in-Rome his Lordship . Bishop Verdon, of Dunedin, was .received in private audience by the Holy Father., The audience lasted about twenty-five minutes. His Lordship . was delighted with the kind and gracious niannor of his Holiness. Immediately after the Very Rev. Father Power, of fiaworaj and the ltev. Father M'Mullan,- of. Ranfurly, wero presented to the Holy, Father, who addressed kind and affectionate words.to them, and sent ihis blessing to their parishioners.. At the date of the communication (April 29) 'Bishop Verdon > was about, 'to proceed to Vichy for a short stay at that famous health refeort, after ■which' he was to. proceed to Ireland,' where ho'was to arrive about tho middle of, June. His Lordshipwas much improved, in health, and greatly rejuvenated'by the voyage. . Tho, Rome correspondent of tho English "Tablet" wrote, under date April 26:—"Mgr. Delany, Archbishop of llobart, and Mgr. '.Yerdoji,, Bishop of Dunedin,. were received in private and separate audience during tho week by.the Holy Father. His Holiness was freatlv pleased' with' their reports of the ( ourishing conditions of the Church not only in their own dioceses but throughout Oceania, and conversed with th'6m aboUt the expected .arrival of Cardinal Moran. Both prelates are staying at the Irish College, and will visit Ireland during'the. early part of the summer. Four other Bishops from Australia and New Zealand are at present on their way to Rome'for the ad limina visit." . '