IDEALS OF ROTARY

Dominion, Volume 24, Issue 265, 5 August 1931, Page 5

IDEALS OF ROTARY

Archbishop Averill’s Views LINK WITH CHRISTIANITY Members of the Auckland Rotary Club, headed by their president, Mr. H. T. Goldie, attended a chureb parade at St. Mary’s Cathedral on Sunday evening. In extending a welcome to the members, Archbishop Averill said it was right and fitting that Rotarians, who sought to em phasiee the principles of goodwill and peace, should realise, and not be afraid of realising, that the principles for which they stood Were’ the principles of the Kingdom of God.

i “As a member of Rotary I am, of | course, aware that this great movement owes allegiance to no political party, programme or creed, but that is not to be I interpreted as implying that it has no connection with, or interest in, world politics or the fundamental principles of religion,” | said the Primate. “The principles of such a movement cannot possibly be di- ! vorced from moral standards and from Him from whom those moral standards ; proceed. “Rotary and similar movements always seem to me to emphassie the fact that religion cannot be railed off from the ordinary life and business and politics of the world. We cannot make a dividing line between the religious, so called, and the secular, so called, and imagine that a great gulf divides them. The principles of the Kingdom of God apply as much to the social, political, industrial and international life of the world as they do to what is called institutional religion.” The need for increased application of the Christian and Rotarian ideals of peace and goodwill at the present time was stressed by the archbishop. “Were we not told after the war by all the leading statesmen, as well as by our generals and admirals, that the 'peace of the world depended, not only upon victory .in wnr, but upon the increase of spiritual values and standards in the world?

“We are only too thankful for the Peace Pact, for the splendid work of the League of Nations and we are, I hope, deeply interested in the coming international disarmament conference in February next.

“But after all the only real foundation of lasting peace is increasing goodwill among the nations, and how can you get real, and not superficial, goodwill except by the power and acknowledgment of brotherhood in the one family of the one God and Father of all.” His Grace said he believed that what the world needed was more spiritual honesty and moral courage in getting down to bedrock. He considered Rotary, to be one of the great world movements of the present day for improving international relationships, but it had to have the courage to get down to the root of the matter and dare to be true to the vision which it saw and which it desired to harness.

“It is just because Rotary is making a very real contribution to world betterment and world peace that it has my sincere approval and support,” /concluded the archbishop.