CHRISTIAN UNION.

Marlborough Express, Volume XLIII, Issue 59, 5 March 1909, Page 6

CHRISTIAN UNION.

BISHOP NELIGAN'S VIEWS

"COMPREHENSION. NOT COM-

PROMISE."

The Right Rev. Bishop Neligan, who returned from England last week, preached both morning and evening' in St. Mary's, Parnell, on Sunday last to large congregations. In the morning he based his discourse on the words, "Because of the House of the Lord our God, I will seek to do thee good"—Psalm cxsii. 9. The Bishop drew a comparison between the civil life of ancient Greece and the civil life of the British Empire, showing that the neglect of what religion they had was the cause of the former nation's downfall. Our own Empire, with its greater spiritual knowledge and truer faith, would run an even greater risk if we neglected the religion that was granted xis.

In the evening Bishop Neligan delivered an interesting address— explaining that he did not intend to preach a sermon in the ordinary acceptation of the term—on the subject of Christian Union. This matter was very fully discussed by the Lambeth Conference on the report of the Unity Committee, and some import? ant conclusions were arrived at, which, it is hoped, will clear the way for eventual interdenominational union. Prefacing his remarks with an account of the genesis and growth of the Lambeth Conference, -the Bishop said the question of Christian union was one of the most important in the world to-day, because of the

appalling waste of Christian effort that at present existed. He enumerated what had been laid down for the Church of England as the only basis of union—the acceptance of the Holy Scriptures, the ..Nicene Creed, the two Sacraments, and the historic episcopate —the latter adapted to the needs of local requirements. Christendom looked to the Anglican communion as a body which would eventually unite all the Christian bodies. The Church of England and the Anglican communion occupied a unique "position in connection with Christian unity. Learned divines in other denominations looked to the Church of England as the rallying point for union. He did not believe that Christian unity was going to be advanced one hair's breadth by people who held nebulous opinions, but it would be advanced very greatly by men and women who knew where they were, for that helped them to understand other people's opixiions. As Christians, they were not going to differ about non-essentials. One man liked to worship God one way, and another preferred a different way. Let us thank God we were not all built on the same model. And the union must be founded in Jesus Christ. They must aim at comprehension, not compromise. It vas not the fault of the Anglican communion that there were obstacles in the way of union at the present time, but he believed that with God's help these would be removed.

The Bishop touched on some of the broader aspects of the question, aiid then spoke more particularly on the prospects of union with the nonepiscopal denominations, remarking that the real difference between the Presbyterian and the Anglican Churches was the acceptance of the historic episcopate. He counselled Lis hearers to help as far as they could by avoiding what he termed "sectarian gossip," and to cherish a spirit of hopefulness. If they kept in view the great object to be gained, and cultivated the spirit of charity and love, those who came after them would be spared the sad spectacle of Christianity divided against itself.— New Zealand Herald.