THE CHURCH'S AUTHORITY.

New Zealand Herald, Volume XLIX, Issue 14929, 29 February 1912, Page 4

THE CHURCH'S AUTHORITY.

Amongst the many thousands of readers of the Herald there must htivo been a good number who felt deeply interested in Mr. E. R. Hartley's assertion m your columns about Church authority. He said, " ... the so-called Church authority is a very human affair, entirely contrary to all the teachings of common sense." That appears to Mr. Hartley to bo so; but appearances deeeive him. To the jaundiced eye everything seems yellow, ■The sun appears to riso and set, but does not. It was thought "that there could be no antipodes, since men could not stand with their heads downwards like flics < n th) ceiling." It all seemed contrary to common sense. My friend Mr. Hartley will find as he wends his way through life bhnt comnion sense will often piny falselv for although it " may generally be trusted oil ordinary questions of conduct-, it is an unreliable judge of those exceptional cases which have, after all. th© greatest influence in moral development," Spiritual things lira spiritually discerned. They seem to be foolishness to tho man who functions only >11 the natural plane. They are a stumblingblock, a rock of offence to self-sufficient men whoso spiritual sense is dormant or is lestroyed. The colour-blind cannot iud-re if colours, nor is 0110 without a proper ear or distinguishing sounds a judge of music. Unless a man be a wiilinsr partaker of the Divine Nature, and in the obedience of '■•iit.ii loyally wills to do God's will, ho inlot judgo of His doctrine nor of the Divine :ociety called the Church. If the Church lad no authority chaos would result. Intead _of the Church being the mightiest organisation for good and for order in the vorld, it would, without authority, conduce inly to evil and disorder. It cannot bo maimed that Deity founded a society on >artn and left it without authority to do His vork in the regeneration of mankind. Socialists, if organised in a co-operative ommonweath, would find it to be a very ler.demonium if it were not based on sroper authority duly obeyed. The same pplies to oil civilised States. So it is with ho Christian society numbering three hunIred and eighty odd millions of souls- ! s contrary to the sacred Scriptures and to I he fundamental convictions and good sense ' f many millions of the most enlightened j nd the best of tho world's benefactors hrouchout nineteen centuries to deny, .is Ir. Hartley does, the Church's authority )ur Lord when on earth in the flesh chose welve poor working men to be Christian, astors and teachers, and He inspired and aught them "to know the mysteries of ho Kingdom of Heaven." He said: " All lower is given unto lie in heaven and in arth. Go ye, therefore, and teach all unions, baptising them in the name of the 'nther. and of the Son, and of the Holy (host: teaching them to observe all things -hatsoever I have commanded you; and i. I am with you alway, oven unto the end f the world." "He that heareth you lcareth Me, and he that despisoth you denisetli Me, and ho that despisoth Me desisf»th Him that, sent Me." Their authority was Divine; so is the hurch's authority now. Anything ordained y tho Church based on Holy Writ mem- i ©rs of the Church are bound to obey, .and here is no society on earth so guiding to j

the erring, helpful to th« , "*" to the f^^misai'a&Si so effectually secure Eri& ««■ * ha * «5 j the only true spirit of jurtw hood as the Church can Bltt . M friend of Socialist and '« all ,3".•*">?* inately^ek^worffi^^S?