NEW LEADERSHIP

Evening Post, Volume CXXIV, Issue 69, 18 September 1937, Page 13

NEW LEADERSHIP

IN PERPLEXED WORLD

SPIRITUAL REVOLUTION

(To the Editor.)

Sir—News from Europe is disquiet-1 ing. Is there any way out from the catastrophe that seems imminent? I I would like to point out that there isj a force at work—a force receiving ( greater loyalty and publicity in the Old Country than for many years past. ( I am confident, Sir, that there are great: numbers of people in this and other countries earnestly hoping for .lust some good news like this—the news of | the rebirth of Empire out of which a , new leadership will come for the { world. The call is one to new leader-j ship: a leadership that stakes everything on the fact that God has a plan for mankind, nations, individuals; a, leadership that sees in the ethic of Jesus Christ the only practical solution to our difficulties. The news that I have received from England concerns a number of New, Zealanders who have be£n among the thousands from all parts of the world with the Oxford Group in Oxford this summer. These include Misses j Evelyn Moore, Ursula Greenwood, i Mary Rice, and Messrs. W. Rainbow and Ifn Macphail from Hawke s Bay,] Miss Enid Middleton from Wellington, Miss Janet Willis from Marlon. Mrs. Coote from Nelson, and the Rev. Frank Willis from Auckland. This spiritual revolution has spread from Oxford to more than fifty countries and almost every nationality was represented there. From all parties, classes, and religious points of view', Ihey have been planning the building of a united Christian front across the world against the forces of materialism and moral rot One of their mam concerns has been the recognition of the home as the true foundation ot national life, and to see how changed homes can bring a new spirit into business, education, politics, and how that change can be brought _ about through facing and applying Christ s standards of absolute honesty, purity, unselfishness, and love, and through listening to God. , Leaders in industry, education, trie Church, and politics have visited Oxford during tliese days to discuss in this positive atmosphere of trust and good will a solution to the problems in their spheres. A coal owner and a miners 3 union secretary, meeting for the first time/declared that only here had they been able to find a basis for permanent co-operation between capital and labour. Mr. Chris Storey, owner of a fleet of oil tankers on the Atlantic coast of America, reported that during the recent shipping strike his fleet remained unaffected. He attributed this to the complete understanding and mutual trust which now exist between him and his men as the result of the change in his own lite. Representatives of the different nations have sketched their plans for national advance. Speakers from New Zealand stressed the importance of the part their country had to play together with Australia in the Pacific. The Scandinavian countries. Denmark, Norway Sweden, and Finland explained how they are building with other countries of the Oslo Pact, such as Holland, a Spiritual Oslo Front. When a team of over 1000 from many different countries, including most of the New Zealanders mentioned above, invaded Holland recently for the Oxford Group National Assembly, and audiences totalling 100,000 attended the meetings at Utrecht, the Rt. Hon. J. L. Mowinckel, present leader of the Liberal Party in Norway, sent the following message:—"lt is with the greatest joy that I greet the idea of laying the foundations of a Spiritual Oslo "Pact. In the present condition of the world with its great and dangerous antagonisms between the nations it is of the utmost importance that the spiritual links between countries be developed and strengthened. The Oslo States from their character, their international position, and their political mentality are especially qualified with united forces to keep the flame of the spirit high among men. Increasingly they are coming to realise that above the daily war for selfish and material interests there is something higher, richer, and greater than can be worked out in co-operation for the benefit of the whole human race.' Miglit r include also a letter printed in "The Times" (London), of Saturday, August 7, 1937, from Lords Salisbury and Davidson, the Rt. Hon. Ernest Brown (Minister of Labour), and Mr. J. W. Mackail:— THE CHRISTIAN FRONT. (To the Editor ot "The Times.") Sir,—The letters which have already appeared in "The Times" in regard to "The Christian Front" drew most proper attention to the disunity of aim and conflict of interest that now disturb all human life and relationships throughout the world, whether social, national, or international. That is surely today the greatest menace to modern civilisation. On one point all thoughtful people must be united. No effective unifying oi harmonising principle has yet been discovered in any system of social or political philosophy, or method of political organisation, or science of national .or international statecraft. Quite plainly human ingenuity and human intelligence have failed to find a remedy. It cannot be God's plan or purpose that no i-smedy should be found. He surely has one. The most urgent duty of every Christian is to try, under God's guidance, to find the remedy and then apply it with faith and unremitting intensity of purpose. We Have been deeply impressed with signs around us of the revival of conviction in this sense. We believe that many a humble Christian is striving by prayer and effort to help forward God's purpose and we thankfully recognise that men are banding themselves together to seek and to find the road to it. The Oxford Group is a notable example. This world-wide movement stands out as a challenge to the churches of today to be up and doing. The dominating motive which animates these efforts, whether in the gronn or elsewhere, is a pledge of loyalty to apply under God's guidance the spirit and principles, of Christ to individual conduct and to every department of' social and national and supernational life. These workers for Christ are striving in common with all the churches of Christendom, and in loyal co-operation with them, to drive home as a fundamental principle, that every one in every nation is in Christian duty bound, in all possible anrl practicable ways, to apply and insistently work for the general application of the principles of Christ not merely to his own Problems, but most especially to those of his community and nation, and of the nations of the world.

We write this letter to urge the crying need of mankind that this fundamental principle should be emphasised and insistently applied broadcast throughout this and other countries. What nations imperatively require is a development of the sense of personal responsibility to bring men and women and all administrations and Governments to a spirit of loyalty to God. This alone can unite a chaotic world. Yours faithfully, Salisbury. J. W. Mackail. Ernest Brown, Davidson.

I nm. etc,

MAURICE R. HODDER.