CONSECRATED.

Dominion, Volume 4, Issue 1111, 26 April 1911, Page 7

CONSECRATED.

ANGLICAN BISHOP OF AUCKLAND IMPRESSIVE CEREMONY. SERMON BY BISHOP OF WAIAPU. (By Telegraph.—Press Association.) Auckland, April 26. ■ An event of historic importance in the Anglican dioccso of Auckland took place this morning, when tho Venerable Archdeacon Owen Thomas Lloyd Crossley was solemnly consecrated to the office of bishop of this, the oldest, See in the province of Now Zealand.

Long before tho hour at >vliich the service was timed to commence Hie pic-. turcsquo, if unpretentious, Cathedral' Church of St. Jlary was filled with" a congregation of nearly a thousand per-! sons, representing all parts of the Diocoso of Auckland. Other religious do-,' nominations were represented by the Revs. G. Bond (Methodist), W. Trot- > tor (Presbyterian). A. North (Baptist),' S. Griffiths (Congregational), and Mr.' It. Lang (Church of Chrkt). A special combined choir of iibout 100 voices , took part in tho service, and Dr. W. , E. Thomas was organist. The litany ' was intoned by Canon Mac Murray' (Vicar of St. Mary's). Those taking part in tho procession with which the ceremony commenced were marshalled by tho Revs. J. R. > Burgoin and Mark Sulton. The procession was headed by tho choristers, some 30 in number, followed by the, male members of the united choir and tho clergy of the diocese. Then came the . two senior Maori ministers, the Revs. Wild to I'aa (Northern Wairoa) and Hono Tana Papahia (Maori Mission). ■ Next followed tho Warden of St. John's ■ Collego (tho Rev. J 5 . T. Williams), the Cathedral Chapter, consisting of Arch-' deacons Willis (Waikato), and Cole l (Taranaki), and Canon Mac Murray. Then came the bishops, headed by the' Bishop-elect, wearing his cassock and.j rochet and attended by • Archdeacon' Calder as chaplain, and followed by.' Bishop Williams, ex-Bishop of .Waiapu. (Canon Nelson, chaplain), Bishop Averill, of Waiapu (Rev. E. M. Cowie, chap-' lain), Bishop Mules, of Nelson (Canon Hoscldcn, chaplain), and tho actingPrimate (Bishop Julius, of Christchurch),, whoso chaplain, tho Rev. H.' A. Hawkins, bore the primatial cross.

The beautiful Communion service was conducted by tho Acting-Primate, as- ) sisted by tho other Bishops. Bishop Averill, who preached the sermon, took as his text Verses 11 and , 12 of Chapter 4 of St. Paul's Epistlo to the Ephosians (re- '■ vised version), "And Ho gave some to be apostles, and some prophets, { and somo evangelists, and some pastors i and teachers, for tho perfecting of the saints unto tho work of ministering i unto tho building up of tho Body of ! Christ." The preacher said that tho gifts of ministry were given to men | for the promotion of perfect peace and concord, and tho removal of obstacles that tended to disunion. In addressing the Bishop-elect, the preacher said that' ho would find in the dioceso a, growirtg ( population, many social problems; . a ! largo Maori population requiring i separate organisation, and frequent' difficulties in travelling. The preacher j also made an appropriate'reference to tho records ,of Bishops Selwyu, Cowie, . and Neligan. '■ . ■ After tlus singing oL the hymn, "Lord, Enthroned. in Heavenly Splen- '• dour," the Bishop-elect ,was presented i by tho Bishop of Nelson" and. Bishop j Williams to th'o ActingrPrimato, to 1 whom the oath of obedience was taken, i ■and , -tho eight questions , -prescribed in j 'th'd'Ordiiial were answered by tho uew ; Bishop in a loud'and clear voice. , Tho Bish.pp-clect, at tho prescribed portion of the service, put on the ' re- < mainder of his episcopal habit, and after the singing of the "Veni Creator ! Spiritus" ("Come, Holy Ghost,, Our Souls Inspire"), and the reciting of l the special prayer for grace, the cere- ; mony of the laying-on of hands on tho ( ' head of the elected prelate was per-. formed by tho four , Bishops. This solemn and striking coremonial was im- ] pressively carried out, and tho prtseil-[. tation of a Biblo to the' new Bishop was made' by the Acting-Primate and tho .pastoral staff, which was received from the Acting-Chancellor, was then presented. The Acting-Primate was assisted at tho Holy Communion by the newly-consecrated Bishop, ae well as J by tho other Bishops. j Tho remainder of tho service as ap-«i pointed was then gone through, being j terminated by tho singing of the hymn, j "Lord of tho Harvest." I

Another very largo congregation assembled at tho Cathedral tins evening when Bishop Crossley was formally enthroned. Tho Bishop, in tho course of} his sermon, paid a tribute to tho worki of his three predecessors in tho diocese! (Bishops Selwyn, Cowie, and Neligan). He raado a special reference to tho excellent work done by_ Bishop Selwyn in. spito of many legal hindrances in establishing the constitution of' tho Church in New Zealand on a satisfactory basis.. l In referring to tho work of tin's diocese,] he said that its linkage with Melanesia could never bo deserted, but, ho said, j "in its own black-blocks and Ne-vcr Never I lands surely some of the noblest toil of. your sons is being done, while the, Maori people are ever our test of God."' The offertory was in aid of the Huka-' rero Girls' School. '