RELIGIOUS ACTIVITY.

Dominion, Volume 5, Issue 1431, 4 May 1912, Page 9

RELIGIOUS ACTIVITY.

TEACHING THE CLERGY ELOCU- c TION. ' o IMPROVEMENT NEEDED. !! f, The Anglican Church newspaper, tho 1 : "Guardian," in a recent issue discusses ' the much-neglected question of elocution ; in regard to the clergy. And by tho c clergy, of course, is meant the ministers c of tlio Church of England. Tho subject c is of much more importance than may ! casually appear. It tlio preacher has a message he. should surety know how to i deliver it, and to deliver it in such a way taut his hearers sliull Know what he is { talKing about. This is not always the j case, and there aro many clergymen in ■ SyUnoy to-day whoso .message can only ( be guessed at,. lor very much of it to ( the person who is accustomed to his pecu- J liar tricks 61' utterance, is lost. Arch- , bishop Wright is*-a-notable exception, ( and his clear, incisive voice can be heard . practically anywhere in St. Andrew's \ Cathedral. This is ono reason, though, ( of course, not the principal cue, why he ; always draws a big congregation. "The Bishop of Carlisle (says the "Guar- | dian") told us the other day m tho North- > I eru Convocation that he would have or- j dinands selected and trained with a view not merely to tho message which they are . to deliver, but also to the effectiveness ; of the delivery. What could be moro , reasonable? Ctterancu after all is tu a I clergyman what his,'chisel is to tho sculp- ; tor, his burin to tho engraver. Why should not a good quality of utteraiico . be considered a. necessary part of the equipment of a priest? True, clerical utterance is not. nearly so bad as it is often represented to be. Perhaps it is . not a whit inferior on the average to tiiat of barristers, and it is certainly not much inferior to the utterance of reputable actors. It may, be true that, us one of our dramatic critics has put it, elocution has fled from the Church and law court and stage alike, to take refugo in tho more representative dissenting pulpits. B;it, ii so, it ought not to bo so.' The elocution of the clergy ought to aim at being more than tho equal of that of other professional men who work with tlio living voice, if it were only because the buildings in which the clergy speak ar» by tho necessities of tlicir structure less perfect auditoriu than law courts or theatres. A church which satisfied other approved demands must not bo expected as.'u matter of course tu exhibit first-rate acoustic properties. The elocution of the clergy is in the main not what it ought to be, nor what it reasonably might bo it* more attention were given to training. That attention will be given only when the importance of tho end to be achieved is moro fully and carefully considered. A priest whose utterance is adequate is at all points, and in his private as well as in his public administrations, vastly more efficient.than tho samo man would have been without this qualification. . . . The Divine message will, at any rate, not lose by his telling. ' "It is more profitable to ask how the clergy should bo trained and by whom and at what period in their preparation for their work. The training should embrace a systematic attempt to induco an easy untrammelled production of tlio voice, and so incidentally, to guard against the parson's whine or the clergyman's soro throat. It should comprise the correction of offensive provincialisms and faulty pronunciations. It should make sloppi110=3 and indistinctness impossible, and false stress, and the affectations _ which tend to caricature harder to acquire and easier to avoid. The leaching should not as a rule be given by professional elocutionists. These gentlemen have a tradition of their own, and an. ideal which in general dominates them. Tho stage lias supplied the tradition, and suggested the ideal, but there aro many reasons wliy what may be fit and proper behind the footlights may bo very much out of place in church.'" If tho training is to bo effective, it is added, (lie clergy must bo caught young and before bad habits in (speaking have been acquired and confirmed. A faulty production of voice, a false, constricted finality of tone, is likely to be accentuated by use.. "It is to bo hoped," the writer concludes, "that the day is not far distant when every college of examining chaplains will comprise one whoso special function it will l]e 10. direct the training of nrrfinamls in regard to voice production and reading, and whose_ certificate will ho as indispensable a preliminary to ordination as that of any other chaplain." THE NEW TESTAMENT. A FRESH REVISION. The question of a fresh revision of the New Testament is in the air (says a writer in the "Christian World"). A deputation has just presented a weighty memorial to the Arehbisiiup of Canterbury asking for a. corrected edition of the Authorised Version for use in tile public worship of the Church. At present tho Authorised Vernon is generally used, but iho Revised Version is gradually coming more and moro into use. Those who aro conscious of tlio literary beauty and value of the Authorised Version are concerned lest its splendid and impressive diction should bo lost to the coming generations. It has long been recognised that foolish grammatical pedantry over trifles spoilt the English of the Revised New Testament, and that the revision would have to be done over again. Tho question is. what is now to bo done. Sir Edward Clarke—who frankly admits ho has no qualifications of scholarship—lias produced a version of several books of tho New Testament by altering tlio Authorised Version where lie considers tho Revised Version makes a material correction. This version he uses in reading the, lessons in church. But (something genuinely scholarly and nibro authoritative is needed. ■ At tho Primate'.? suggestion, a Greek and an English scholar have set to work to prepare as a specimen book a new version of the Epistle to tho Hebrews. That is belter. But surely if, the proposed new' version is to supplant the Revised New Testament,- it should bo prepared on a rather broader basis. Half-a-dozen to a down scholars, chosen simply for their competence without any reference to their ecclesiastical connections,- with one or two at least qualified, to jmlge as to the literary style of the English translation, would do the work 'in a much more permanent way. CATHOLIC SOCIAL GUILD. ITS ATTITUDE TO PROBLEMS OF THE DAY. \ An interesting address on the aims,of the Catholic Social Guild was delivered by Dr. Keating, tho Roman Catholic Bishop of Nottingham at a meeting in London on 31 arch 20. In tlio course of his address, Dr. Keating.said:-"We recognise clearly that economic and industrial problems can only bo solved by thoso who possess expert knowledge, and that the remedies can only be applied Ny those who possess political power. We mako no protest against giving tho primary place iu such disputes (o 'economic principles. But we do protest against the explicit or-implicit assumption I hat no other considerations whatsoever are adiiii.oibli'. For experience proves that human passion will obtrude itself; and the more discussion is limited to the baro moni'v aspect the baser and the fiercer is iho ji'arlv spirit enkindled. Love, patriotism, even religion itself, will at times blind the judgment and sway Hie will. Yet these, even in their wildest excesses, exhibit a strain of nobler feeling. IHs 'flu- narrowing lust iif gold' which, havond all oilier appetites, hardens tho heart and perverts the character. "Two roa>ons have led me to empnp.sise these thoughts; r n>r , because it is idle io speak of Catholic, suciul action unless we recognise that it is sui generis —a distinctive element in social life; and, secondly, because we look for success in our work to co-operation with the everMureasing bodv of public opinion which shares' oiiV views as to the ethical side of lb.! question. I pa-s on to consider now we can bring our inlluencc lo bear must effectively. It is Generally agreed that circumstances forbid the organisation in England ' of a ■Catholic party similar to the German Centre party.' But what we cannot effect as a party our unity iu Fn.ilh_ will enable us to do, still more surely, and perhaps on « larger scale, -;(s members, of all parties. i)ur policy is to make ourselves übiquitous.' There arc tew -doors which aro closed against us, and Catholic action njoaas promptitude in ny.ffiUiaj ojiifelya^,

of every open door and fearlessness , in delivering our commission. We rejoice, therefore, (o see Catholics in nil departments of public Hie—in politics, in municipal government, in trade unions, in friendly societies, in nil manner of unoliicial benevolent enterprises, ns well as in journalism and literature, which offer unique opportunities tor guiding and forming public opinion. That being our plan of campaign, it. is dearly necessary that adequate Iraiirinc should bo provided for these who seek to serve the Church in public life. The Catholic Social Guild seems to have been providentially conceived to meet that imperative need. Tho enthusiasm with which it has been taken up, tho multiplication of study circles, tho eager demand for literature, lecturers, and other sources of information, prove that tho Catholic Social Guild is an indispensable link in our organisation, and that the ranks of social workers will rapidiv fill if we oifer them Hie weapons anrt dri'll required to make them effective soldiers. . . . Tho Guild accepts unreservedly tho sentiments expressed by Cardinal Newman, as tho outcome of his wide historical knowledge and keen insight, namely, that over and above the attribute of infallibility which attaches to tho doctrinal decisions of tho Chair ci' Peter a gift of sagacity has in every ago characterised its occupants; so that we may be sure that what the Popo determines is the very measure or the very policy expedient for the Church at that moment. So far the Guild considers itself bound and binds its members. But outside these limits it makes no attempt to dogmatise or prosehtise. To do so would be contrary to 'its declared object. Its purpose is not to advocate one point of view or to espouse the exclusive interests of one class; not to 'turn Catholic Tories into Catholic Liberals or to undeVniine tho allegiance of a Catholic trade unionist; but to train it? members to test every point of view and the interests of every class by discussion v;itli those united to us by the bond of common Faith.'

RELIGIOUS LIFE IN GERMANY, NEED OP A NEW IDEALISM. To the "Homilolic Review" for March Professor Eucken contributes a very interesting article on ''Religious Conditions in Germany." The Roman Catholics—a little more than one-third of the population—include a large proportion of the working classes in certain districts, and so the Centre party gets its power at elections. There is a tendency on the part of some Catholics to work with Conservative .Protestants in practical social amelioration, though the party that refuses to co-operate has been recently gaining ground. The broad progressive movement of culture is mainly Protestant, yet there is increasing intellectual activity among Catholics. German Protestantism, Dr. Eucken. points out, unites the two streams of the religious Reformation of Luther and of German humanism". These two streams, (hough the State Church keeps them externally and nominally one, are really divergent in their outlook on tho world and on life, and so German Protestantism ■has "great spiritual breadth-and! ceaseless activity, but, at the same time, much spiritual struggle. Both wings are united against Catholicism, but with difficulty unite in orthodox labours; for, whilst one is theologically conservative, the other desires a liberal type of Christianity, and insists on the Tight and necessity of further development. Tho conservative tendency prevails in official circles and among the nobility; the liberal tendency is marked in tho cities, among the educated middle-classes, and especially gains ground in tho universities whero historical criticism, and not philosophy, as formerly, wins the minds of modern type. Tho result of the divergence of those two tendencies is that a growing number of persons demand complete separation of Church and State. . At the same time religious and ecclesiastical conditions in Germany arc exposed to special peril through tho antagonism of Social Democracy to Christianity. Social Democracy, in expecting all salvation to come through the improve-ment-of material conditions,- alienates ilSelf from religion. Its antagonism to tho present form of Government involves it in antagonism against tho Church' allied to the State, and so against Christianity. The wliolo secular character of modern culture has strengthened tho position of Socialism and .naturalism, and made them much more dangerous. Yet Dr. Eucken evidently believes this materialism will not satisfy tho German people, but that n now idealism will win them back to religion, and that the eternal elements of Christianity will awaken to a new activity, for "a longing for religion, for a religion of tho wliolo and inward man, is deep-rooted in the German character." REV, DAVID FQTHERINGHANU NEW ENGLISH PRESBYTERIAN MODERATOR. The Rev. David Fotheringham, J.P., who was for more than forty years minister of St. John's Church, Tottenham, is to lie tho Moderator of the English Presbyterian Synod, which meets in London on Monday next. If the nomination conies as a surprise to any, remarks tho "British Weekly," tho real surprise is not that Mr. Fotheringham has now been called to tho highest honour which his church can confer upon him, but that he has not been' called sooner. Born in Ecrl'arshiro nearly eighty-two years ago, and educated at tho University of Edinburgh, ho entered tho London College of the Presbyterian Church in 1859, following his minister, tho younger, Dr. Thomas M'Orio, when he camo south to fill a chair in tho small and struggling college of the Church in Queen Square. The young student, caught the inspiration of the time, and imbibed a strong conviction which ho" has never lost hold of, that Presbyterianisin hail a great nlaco to till in the religious life of England. Mr. Fotheringham's first charge was at Glanton, in Northumberland, where ho was ordained in ISCa. Ho laboured hard and successfully (hero for six years in building up a broken-down.' congregation. In ISM ho was called to London, and undertook a still more difficult piece of work in nursing into strength and stability tho young congregation at Tottenham. He succeeded in building up thero a strong and healthy congregation, the varied vork of which "ho carried on with vigour and success for forty-one years. Besides a church and manse, day schools were erected during his ministry, for he brought with him from the North a Scotsman's love cf education. He worked hard for the Church's College, and was one of tho founders of her Sustcutatio'n Fund, as well as her servant on innumerable committees. Mr. Fotheringham was the recipient of u.any honours at the close of his Loudon minis-' trv in February, 1905, and again at his ministerial jubilee in August, 1909.

In spite of tho burden of his 83 years, General Booth onrries on his work with vigour and enthusiasm. According, to tho "H'fir Cry," during - his recent visit to Holland iio addressed meetings each (Injur the week, travelling from ono town to o.iiothcr, spending a day in each place. At Amsterdam "crowds awaited and cheered the General—inside the station, outside the station, in the square, in tho streets, The ".Men and the Koligion .Movement" is said to be sweeping over the United States, and the result is tho closer coming together of capital and labour, mid the great emphasis on the social teachings cf Christ. Speaking at liostou (U.S.A.), with regard to tho campaign in that city, the Rev. Herbert A. Manchester, D.D., said:—"'l'hc and the lieligion Forward Movement' lias shown tho greater possibility of service to men t-f the churches; it has outlined more effective organisation; it has pointed out definite duties; it lias inspired men with greater readiness to act; it has filled ministers with new hope; best of all, it betokens a new zeal ami activity in nil linns of religious work." In a pastoral letter to the Catholics of New South AVaies, Archbishop Kelly gives the following statistics of tho archdioceseof Kviliioy.-fiUlricts, 7G; churches, 102; secular priests, 12.3; religious priests, 7(1; religious brothers, 123; nuns, 1-133; ecclesiastical seminaries, 3; boarding srliools (girls'), 2(i; superior day school?, _52; primary schools, 2J3; charitable institutions, :i2; 'children in Catholic schools, '.tt.'ffl; Catholic population, about .75,000. Tho foreign mission commits of the rresbvleiiiiii ClmreJi has tfivn inslnictions for thooractiou of a new cliuroh at Mnlo, New hebrides, io rcphuv U,o rise destroyed by a hurricane in tin month i-f ja.vj.iry. . -i