CHRISTIAN CONGREGATIONS

Evening Star, Issue 22199, 29 November 1935, Page 1

CHRISTIAN CONGREGATIONS

MEETING Of COUNCIL

The quarterly, meeting of the Duneiu Council of Christian Congregations was held in hirst Church Hall last evening. It was arranged to hold the usual Christinas morning service, and that the service would be at the Moray Place Congregational Church at 10.30 a.m. • . ' . ■ r ,„ League to Abolish Poverty.—ihe matter of correspondence from this body had been dealt with, and considered at length by the executive as arranged, and the executive now reported to the council “ although we had every sympathy with the objects desired, we could not agree that the method proposed—viz., a petition to the Crown, was the best way of attaining, the objective.” The executive therefore recommended that the council refuse its support to the proposed petition, Sunday Hours of Labour of Service Station Employees and Owners.—-The secretary reported that so far nothing had been obtained in the matter of support from the fetation Owners’ Association, though the’ matter had been taken up as a Dominion question, and would be gone into more fully at a subsequent meeting ofwthe trade. The chairman, the Rev, W. Allen Stevely, then extended a welcome to Mr H. W. Milner, the Dominion secretary of the Sudan United Mission, who was the guest of the evening, and who then addressed the meeting on the needs of the Sudan in general, and the work of the mission, of which he has first-hand knowledge from recent visits to the field. Air Milner reported that the mission was inaugurated at St. Andrew’s Session Hall, Edinburgh, in 1904. The mission was interdenominational, and claimed the support of all Christian people. The New Zealand Board was started as a result of the visit in 1911 of Dr Karl Kimiin. Mr Milner pointed out that Sir George Symes, the present Governor of the Sudan, was very sympathetic to the work of the Christian missions, and was pleased with the work accomplished by the missioners in the matter of education, medical, and evangelistic work throughout the vast territory of one million square miles. Some of the native churches had become self-support-ing, and now sent out their own evangelists, teachers, and dressers; the \york of first aid was most insistent. During the speaker’s recent visit a mother had walked 12 miles with her new-born fourteenth child so that the missioners could save it." all the others having died from want of care. This was typical of many, and the superstition of the natives was an awful thiug when they feared to go near a woman in extremis if she could not survive by her own efforts. Six new workers are now ready to depart for the field under the control of the S.U.M., and funds were nearly available also for this extra requirement. The prayerful support ot the public was asked on the third Tuesday in each month as a Dominion effort. On© tribe on the Valley of the Nile was still making human sacrifices, and a worker was now proceeding to work amongst this people. Seventy per cent, of the sickness of the people was due to tropica] ulcers. The speaker was accorded a warm vote of thanks for an instructive address, and the evening was brought to a close by a light supper. The season s. compliments were exchanged by chair and council. '