THE RELIGI OUS OUTLOOK

Nelson Evening Mail, Volume LXVI, 13 August 1932, Page 3

THE RELIGI OUS OUTLOOK

(Contributed*! The Preacher’s Prayer 1 do not ask ' That crowds may throng the temple, That standing room be ptriccd, I only ask that as I voice the message, They may see Christ! I do not ask For churchy pomp or pageant, Or music such as wealth alone can buy, ] only ask that as I voice the message, He may be nigh! I do not ask That men may sound my praises Or headlines spread my name abroad, I only pray that as I voice the message, Hearts may find God! I do not ask For earthly place, or laurel, Or of this world’s distinctions any part, I only ask when I have voiced the

message, Mv Saviour’s heart! —Bishop Ralph S. Cushman. Solitude and Worship “Everyone knows,” writes Peter F. Anson in “The Quest of Solitude,” “that for mental concentration upon a. given matter, a certain detachment from competing interests is necessary; you find it impossible to work out an abstruse mathematical problem with the children playing trains in the same room; even with the open score before you, how can you follow the intricate beauties of a Bach fugue if people sitting near you insist on chattering, even in an undertone?” “You may remember how, after the disaster to General Nobile’s airship, and the survivors lay out on the Polar ice tapping out their SOS on the portable wireless set, that Heaven, surely, had thrown down at their feet, the signals could not be heard aboard the parent ship at Svalbard unless every noise there were stilled; even the low hum of a running dynamp far below deck made reception impossible. The privacy of the chamber and the shut door arc not merely precautions against vainglory in seeking God’s face in prayer, but a necessary tranquility foi him to hear the answering voice. This is the fundamental reason of the quest of solitude; absence of worry, silence, a certain leisure even, are indispensable in greater or less degree for intimate communication with God.” f

Things are not what they Seem The ■moderator of the Free Church of Scotland (Presbyterian) in liis opening address at The assembly, said that notwithstanding the trials and difficulties through which the world was passing, the Kingdom of God was being slowly but surely, established ojv. the. earth, even although to the casital .observer the Church, like the nation,•seemed to have almost reached a state oof. bankruptcy. That a freer handling of the Bible was necessary for this enlightened race was the opinion expressed by many, said the moderator, but to tliis the best answer that could be given was the statement of Bishop'Ryle, who said: —“I believe that the want of our age ig not freer handling of the, Bible, but more reverent handling, move.humility, more patient 1 study and more prayer.”; Modern research was proving itself an ally to Scripture, as the spado of the excavator had brought most remarkable light, and confirmation to many statements in God’s Word which bad been formerly accepted with some misgiving. Dean Inge on Reunion Dr. Inge, dean of St. Paul’s, preaching in the cathedral on the reunion of the churches, said there was no reason, except the spirit of separation, why the various Free Church denominations should be, divided from each other or from the Church of England. So far as doctrine was concerned, they bad more than half forgotten the grounds which led to' their separate existence. “There

is a deep underlying unity both among ourselves and with the truly religious minds in other bodies,” added the dean. “11l the scholar’s library, Romanists, Anglicans, and Nonconformists stand peaceably side by side.” If the Church of England was to gather in the Protestant sects it must acquire a greater elasticity. Free Churchmen would not admit, that the commissions of their ministers were irregular or their sacraments invalid, nor that episcopacy was anything more than the most convenient or efficient form of church government, and if the Church of England took a stiff, uncompromising tohe on that question nothing could be done. “Reunion of the Reformed Churches is a hope of the future,” lie said. “I do not think any of us will live to see it. I have often given the communion to Nonconformists, and I am always glad to do so. Spiritual union is better than institutional reunion, and easier to get.” A Text for Each Day’s Meditation Sunday—“Be of good courage, and Ho shall strengthen your heart, all ye.

that hope in the Lord.” —Psalm 31: 24. “Behold, the eye of the Lord ia upon them that fear Him, upon them that h'op6 in Ilis mercy.”—Psalm 33: 18. Monday.—“ Thou art my hope, 0 Lord God. Thou art my trust from my youth. Let my mouth be filled with Thy praise, and with Thy honour all the day. I will hope continually, and will yet praise Thee more and more.” —Psalm 71: 5, 8 And 14. Tuesday. —“Happy is he that hath the God of Jacob for his help, whose hope is in tho Lord his God, Which made heaven, and earth, the sea, and all that therein is, which kecpeth truth for ever.”—Psalm 146: 5-0. Wednesday.—“ Blessed is the man that trustcth in the Lord, and whose hope the Lord is. For lie shall be as a tree planted by the waters, and that spreadetli out her toots by the river, and shall not see wlieii heat comcth, but her leaf shall he green.”—Jeremiah, 17: 7-8. Thursday.—" Therefore, being justified by faith we have peace with God through our Lord Jesus Christ. By Whom also we have access by faith into this grace wherein we stand, and rejoice in hope of the glory of God.” —Romans 5: 1-2. Friday. —“And not only so, but we glory in tribulation also; knowing that tribulation worketh patience, and patience, experience, and experience, hope. And hope maketh not ashamed, because the love of God is shed abroad

in our hearts by the Holy Ghost, Which is given unto us:” —-Romans 5: 3 to 5. Saturday.—“ Whatsoever things Were written for our learning, that we through patience and comfort of the Scriptures might have hope. Now the God of hope till you with all joy and hope in believing that ye may abound in hope, through the power of the llolv Ghost.”—Romans 15: 4 and 13.—1 L R'.'liiggeUS, in “A.G.W.”