ANGLICAN CHURCH

Greymouth Evening Star, 16 June 1925, Page 5

ANGLICAN CHURCH

— BISHOP BARNES ANXIOUS.

(Australian and N.Z. Cable Association.)

LONDON, June 15.

Dr. Barnes, Anglican Bishop of Birmingham, preaching in AVestminster Abbey, delivered a remarkable sermon on “Catholicism and Christianity.” lie said that the present state of tho Cliurfh of England was causing grave anxietv. The Anglo-Catholics, lie usually belittled and derided th? value of Reformation doctrines, which doctrines they explicitly repudiated in their articles, in which they openly taught that this new Cath■•licism was essentially reactionary There was a decline in number and in th;; qualitv of the candidates for the Ministry “ H was a most serious problem. ‘ With their grave shortage of clergy, their parochial system was breaking down. The differences within their church were so acute that, in the lartm cities, their churches were becoming congregational, not parochial- ’As .the quality of their clergy declined, their outlook was becoming increasingly narrow. Bishop Barnes went on to declare that the best modern theological scholarship was ignored, Tho official committee had put forward non-contro-'-ersial proposals for a revision of the Prayer Book, but when these proposals reached the clergy, their desire to give a Catholic turn io the Prayer Book showed itself. “AA*o stand,” he said, “at the cross-roads. AVe have seen enough recently of tho situation within the church to bn gravely apprehensive ”