PLAN TO RAISE £300,000

Nelson Evening Mail, Volume LXXII, 22 December 1938, Page 9

PLAN TO RAISE £300,000

CENTENARY THANKSGIVING OFFERING PRESBYTERIAN CHURCH FUND AUCKLAND. 21st December. The Presbyterian Church of New Zealand at its annual assembly in November of last year adopted a plan to raise within three years £300.000 as its centenary thanksgiving offering. The fund has tis headquarters in Auckland and the scheme was launched throughout the Dominion in the early part of the year. Now. at the end of the year, a total of more than £167,000 in cash and promises has been reported from all the 21 presbyteries in the Dominion The Auckland Presbytery heads the list with a total of £23.015. followed closely by Dunedin Presbytery with £21.043 and Wellington Presbytery with £20.100

Amounts reported from other presbyteries, in geographical order, are: North Auckland, £3068; South Auckland. £3610; Waikato. £11,674; Bay of Plenty, £4580; Hawkes Bay, £7300; Taranaki, £5500; Wairarapa, £583; Wanganui, £9935; Nelson-Marlborough, | £2406; Westland. £33; Christchurch, £14.504: Ashburton, £3000; Timaru, £6145; Oamaru, £3760; Central Otago, I £800: Clutha. £5093; Mataura, £5428;

Southland, £15,889. Total. £167.466. The main objective of the fund is to remove the burden of about £200.000 of debt on church property throughout the Dominion, and in addition four sums of £25.000 are to be devoted to strengthening the mission enterprises of the church at home and abroad, to augmenting the stipends of ministers : and home missionaries, to strengthening the beneficiary funds for retired ministers and church workers, and for sites and buildings in newly-settled districts. The returns quoted are still far from complete and of 300 congregations of the church, there are still a number that have not yet actively taken up the scheme