THE CHURCH

Evening Post, Volume CXXVII, Issue 40, 17 February 1939, Page 18

THE CHURCH

ITS SPECIAL SPHERE

UNTOUCHED BY RIVALS

ROAD TO SUCCESS

(Special to the "Evening Post.")

CHRISTCHURCH, February 16,

In his inaugural address to the annual Dominion conference of the Methodist Church, which opened at Christchurch last evening, the Rev. Angus Mcßean, president of the conference, took as his theme, "The Uncontested Province of the Church." He quoted with approval the words of Canon Barry, "The task of the Church is not to put forward an alternative to the schemes of statesmen as they try to find their way to a better order, but to inspire them to produce their own, and to supply that spiritual dynamic which can bring those schemes to victorious fulfilment." "It has become fashionable to talk about the lost provinces of the Church," said the president, and he agreed there were spheres in which she had" once supreme influence, where now her voice was almost silent. Politics, commerce, art, education, science were quoted; as well as the relief of poverty. In view of this some were asking, Is the Church then no longer a necessity? Has she become an irrelevancy in the modern world of culture and comfort? "The real province of the Church remains untouched by any of these changes. Many of the activities in which the Church was once engaged were in fact outside the Church's real province, and there are few who would wish to reclaim them. For example the functibns of the government of a nation can1 be discharged in better ways than by the Church. It is better that the State should look after the poor; better for the poor, for charity was always1 uncertain, arid usually meagre, and better, too, for the charitable, for the load is more evenly distributed. And a good system of State education is more to be desired than that the education of the people should be entirely in the hands of the Church. "When the Church enters upon any of these activities she has in all of them competitors, or helpers, or successors. But in the work which is peculiarly her own the position is entirely different. If she leaves her real work undone no one else will attempt it In her own sphere ,she stands alone. And the Church's task is so unique that it stands mountains high above every other project to which men can set their hands. It is nothing less than to bring God to men, and to bring men to God. Other organisations can do all those other things. They can even provide a religion: they can turn a political theory into a religion; or they can make a religion out of the better qualities of men and call it by the fine-sounding .name of humanism. But if the Church fails to bring God to men no one else will do it This, as you very well know, was Christ's chief work. There are tributary streams which flow from the main current of the Church's life, but always this one great purpose must be kept before us. "I am»not advocating any narrow and exclusively individualistic or other worldly conception of the Christian faith," continued the president, "for I believe that religion is as wide as life. I believe there is no realm of life in which Christ should not be enthroned. But this is to be accomplished by the work and influence of Christian men and women within these realms, rather than by the direct participation or control of the Church, We must draw our inspiration from religion and carry it with us into every sphere we enter. "Hike the sphere of politics. I believe in religion in | politics; only we can't push it in from outside; Christian men and women, j must, serve their Lord in politics, and their politics must be part of their (religion. It is not the business of the Church to make the politics of the country; but it is her business to make the politicians. i "The Church must help to instil into the mind* of youth the truth that life brings with it the obligation of service; that - the self-centred life, grasping always to get, and always grudging to give, is a" poor travesty of life. We must serve our age and our country. We want our youth to love their Church, and to work for her and for her Lord with all .their lovely enthusiasm and all their best powers. But they must be taught that it is an essential part of their religion to cultivate their talents and devote their gifts to some service for/ the community. It would be a scathing reproach upon the work we have been doing through the years if it really gave any "just cause for the idea that church work is fconfined to running the various organisatio. of the church. The Church's real work is to build Christian character and to train and inspire men and women for the service of God and their fellows in the home, in their every-day calling, and in the many-sided life of their community and their country. We have a 1 great heritage and a wonderful country, and we must help to make it plain that it is not in the totalitarian States only (States in which every last semblance ci personal choice, and liberty has been destroyed) that youth can be stirred up to enthusiastic devotion and service for their country. "In the real mission of the Church she has no competitors. If she does not give herself to her sublime and mighty task then it is left unattempted and undone. Is the Church fulfilling her mission? "It isn't a question of getting people to come to church, though that is difficult enough in these days of the weekend habit, the motor-car, and wireless. The question rather concerns what they find when they do come. Why do ■we ask them to come?- What is expected to happen in the church service? Are they to come in the expectancy -that they might hear a good sermon? There must be more. The people must not be spectators or listeners but worshippers."" Mr.. Mcßean went on to ask whether the congregations of the Church were bringing God to men. During the past year the Methodist Church had celebrated the bi-centenary of John Wesley's conversion and the birth of the Methodist revival. "What was it that had kept Wesley's heart afire till the age of eighty-eight? He never let the fire die down: every day he added fresh fuel. In his life of unexampled activity he always spent a full hour in solitary devotion at the beginning of each day and another at the close of the day. If we want to know anything of his experience then we must follow his plan. There are people in our churches who are trying to live on the memory of something that happened years ago. It can't be done. At the risk of being thought platitudinous, I again emphasise the necessity of cultivating the life of God in the soul through prayer and, the Scriptures. If I know anything about the spiritual life 'of the churches today I would say that failure to pray and neglect of Bible reading account for more weakness and want of splendid success than any other dozen things that could be named."