CONGREGATIONAL UNION.

Evening Star, Issue 7447, 16 February 1888, Page 4

CONGREGATIONAL UNION.

A public meeting in connection with the above was held in the Moray place Church last evening. The Rev. J. E. Kelly presided, and there was a moderate attendance.

Mr JOHN MILNE, in the alisence of the retiring chairman (the Rev. W. J. Habens), introduced Mr Kelly's successor, The Rev. H. J. Lewis, who delivered an address on the "Responsibilities of Ileligious Democracies." He Baid they had deliberately accepted the democratic form of church life, and asked the question—" What were the distinctive responsibilities their democratic principles imposed upon them '! " The first responsibility rested on their ministers for the theology they taught. Theology at the present day had not assumed its final form—in fact it could not yet be said to have assumed any form at all, because if it had cast off the old shell it had not yet put on the new one. Hitherto it had been mainly destructive ; it had yet to be made constructive. That was a work to be done by the ministers of the church —to build up a living human constructive theology ; to cloth the old truths of the Gospel in forms which the fiercest fires of modern criticism will be unable to consume. If they did not do that, no one else would or could. They were not called to preach a gospel of negations or speculations, which was no gospel at all; but they were called to preach the gospel of strong convictions, of sweet ceitainties in forms which shall command the respect of thoughtful minds, so many of whom were drifting into doubt. Referring to the second point—the responsibility resting on the deacons for training the people to the exercise of liberality—he eulogised the voluntary system as a natural and necessary outcome of the Congregational ideal of the relationship in which every Chiistian stood to Christ, It was the best financial system in the world if this ideal were realised, but it became a precarious and perilous system if that ideal were lest sight of. Was not the very fact that in hard times like these no one could afford to give much the strongest of reasons why each should give according to his ability. A freat mistake had been maile in forgetting that the grace of liberality, like every other, required long and careful training. In fact there was no other fruit of the Spirit which required so much painstaking culture to bring to anything like maturity. There was no place where the old Adam clung so close and died so hard as the breeches pocket. If ministers must not touch this matter, it must be taken up by the deacons of the churches. In the third place, the responsibility rested on ail the members of every Christian Church to take an active interest in all its business affairs. This meant that indifference to church business was only another name for lack of Christian patriotism, and that the cowardice which prompted a man to stop away from a church meeting when unpleasant business was to be brought up bordered very hard on treason to Christ. The fourth point he touched upon was the responsibility resting on all for the share each contiibuted to sustaining the strength of the whole denomination. A danger Congregational churches were peculiarly liable to was that of sacrificing their denominational strength and influence to a spurious idea of independence. Isolation was independence ininus brains, enthusiasm, and influence. Whatever number of churches there were in a town whose individual influence was zero, their aggregate influence would only amount to zero. Lastly, the speaker touched upon the responsibility of a denomination to contribute its full share towards that Christianity of human society which was the common work of the whole Church. Between them and other Christian denominating there ought to be no more thought of jealousy than between the infantry and the cavalry. In conclusion he said; "May such power descend upon us that all who arc on the Lord's side may catch the thrill of our enthusiasm, so that through all the long fierce campaign our banners may wave salute to theirs, that the roll of our drums by day and tho gleam of our camp fires by night may remind them that the chariots of the Lord are 20,000, even thousands of saints ; that the rattle of our rifles may echo tho roar of their cannon, till at last the many battle cries are merged in the one cheer : ' Hallelujah, for the Lord God omnipotent reignetii; the kingdoms of this world are become the kingdoms of our God and of His Christ.'" [The address will be published in extcuno in our Saturday's supplement.]