THE BISHOP OF LONDON.

Dominion, Volume 3, Issue 799, 23 April 1910, Page 9

THE BISHOP OF LONDON.

METHODS AS A MISSION ■ ; - The latest English Church papers contain interesting accounts, of the Lent mission of 1910 of the Bishop of London. The services have been quite as successful as those of previous years, and that;is saying .a-good deal. ''The bishop's' methods aro refreshingly simple, and quite unconventional,- and this, combined.with the great personal charm of-the man himself, is no doubt the. explanation for the great , congregations of all sorts and conditions of men which attended his mission service. Greater -London; and +he. serv".;es ,at Hornsoy may be taken, as an example. The first of the nien's meetings took place on Sunday afternoon (February 27). The seating accommodation was nominally about 1200, but long before the service commenced, every place was taken, and mert ■ .were standing 'in every available, corner. , . The bishop remained in the pulpit throughout the service. Tho subject of. his address , was ■'Christ in tho Home." He dealt with the spiritual side of marriage, aud tie duties and responsibilities of parents. Another great congregation assembled for the evening service, which took the form of intercession for.many human, wants,- thanksgivings,for;.needs: supplied, and, prayers answered; the bishop conducting the whole of it himself from the pulpit. .Many wellknown hymns were. sung. Before commencing "his address, the bishop answered a number of questions whioh had been sent to him during.the previous week relating to religious difficulties., ■•'.-' ' • \ ' • ■ ■ :

The-,bishop again preached on tho following Wednesday evening, to aeon-' gregation ■ which nearly, if not quite, equalled that of Sunday. After the opening prayer, a large number of intercessions —the cries .of distressed humanity—were .offered up, and these were followed by as many thanksgivings for answers to prayers and ills' remedied. Many questions were again answered, of which one may be given in order to indicate the bishop's methods.

A young man said; he had been tauglit that it was impossible for our. Lord to sin. If that was so, he thought it did away with tho force of temptation. . ' The bishop said that evidently the truth had been misrepresented to him. The point was that our Lord did not sini.but that the temptation was real, and the struggle to overcome was real also; otherwise there was no guide or help for man. He assuredly placed Himself on our level, and His will conformed, to the Father's will—"not my will, but Thino be done." This pointed to the great struggle that took place aud Ho did not fail. .