SUNDAY ORGAN RECITALS.

Dominion, Volume 4, Issue 1186, 22 July 1911, Page 4

SUNDAY ORGAN RECITALS.

MINISTERS' ASSOCIATION PROTESTS. (By Telegraph—Press Association.! Christchurch, July 21. A deputation from Iho OhristchurcJj Ministers' Atfocintion is to wait on tho; Mayor to protest against the proposal 11 to hold Sunday organ recitals. The ? Rev. J. Mackenzie, president of fho Ministers' Association, stated that the >' view taken by the .Ministers' Association was that organ recitals as arranged were , practically a commercial proposal. What else could they bo when the City Council was going to pay so much a night for tho uso of the organ? If Iho precedent were set up, why should anyone in town bo prevented from holding concerts? Tho fact that tho recitals were being carried out by (he City Council did not alter tho case. It was not the present proposal that mattered fo much, but what was it going to lead to? 11 wag what illicit bo called a "Ihin end "f ili« wedge" policy. He was recently in one of the smaller towns in New Zcabml where there wove no fewer than Ihrw "picture shown" ov.-ry Sunday evening nftpr church, and he \v.i r - (riven to understand that messages had been sent to tho various ministers asking them to cut fheir sermons short h< as to le-t the pcoplo away. It was 11H a qncpMcn .-.f » protect ing the miiiidws'. own nitwits, ■' but a i|iu'st!on of upholding the eslahi lished law of the- laud and niainlainiii* ■ Sunday as a "tiny of rest." Of conrw, a a certain nmouivt of work was nooesvary, but the recognised custom had been to reduce it to a minimum on Funday. Tlio organ recitals in themselves were not ) what was objected to. Nil it wa- Ihe > lotting in of the commercial a , ami tions for Sunday entertainments. :. 1