KNOX CHURCH

New Zealand Herald, Volume LXXII, Issue 22142, 22 June 1935, Page 15

KNOX CHURCH

NOTABLE JUBILEE DUNEDIN CELEBRATIONS 75 YEARS OF PROGRESS SOME OUTSTANDING MINISTERS [by TELEGRAPH —OWN correspondent] DUNEDIN, Friday During the week-end the largest Presbyterian congregation in the Southern Hemisphere, that of Knox Church, Dunedin, will celebrate the 75th anniversary of its foundation. In 1860 Dunedin was still a year away from the excitement of the gold rush period, and the opening of a second Presbyterian church was an event which excited the liveliest interest in the Scottish community. Those two churches, First Church, which is about 12 years older, and Knox Church, have maintained their ascendant position in the religious life of the city. Knox Church, indeed, with its members drawn from the whole of the city and suburbs, may be regarded as Dunedin's representative church. 1

■The newly-formed congregation was extremely fortunate in the selection of its first minister, the Rev. D. M. Stuart, who later was known as Dr. Stuart. He was an ideal man for minister of a new church in a young country. Born of humble parents in tho Highlands of Scotland, he educated himself largely through his own efforts, studying at the universities of St. Andrew's and Edinburgh. He had an unusual degree of ability to meet on common terms with men of all classes and creeds. For many yeaxs he was a well-known figure in the mining camps and scattered settlements throughout Otago. Under his leadership Knox Church grew steadily. A little more than 10 years after it was opened, the wooden building became too small to accommodate the increasing congregation, and the present church, a stately gothic structure, was opened in 1876 at a cost of nearly £IB,OOO.

Dr. Stuart occupied the pulpit for 34 years, dying in harness. His successor, the Rev. William Hewitson, an Australian, in a few years came to be recognised as one of the outstanding ministers in the Presbyterian Church in New Zealand. In his 13 years ministry, "he built; soundly on the foundations laid by Dr. Stuart. He relinquished the position in 1908 to become master of Knox College, where he was known to university men from all parts of the Dominion. /

The third minister, the Rev. R. E. Davies, was also a man of notable scholastic attainments and after a ministry of 10 years he left to fill the chair of New Testament studies at Knox Theological Hail. Next came the Rev. Tulloch Yuille, from Australia, a brilliant preacher and great organiser, under whose leadership the- church attained a membership of 1350, while over 1000 young people were attached to it in the' various youth departments. When he resigned in 1928, great difficulty was experienced in obtaining a suitable man, and a call was eventually extended to the Rev. D. C. Herron, of St." David's, Auckland, the first New Zealand-born minister to occupy the pulpit. A graduate of Otago University, he also studied at Edinburgh University, and during the war was a popular padre with the New Zealand Forces on the Western Front, where he won the Military Cross. Mr. Herron occupies the pulpit to-day.

Knox Church, the congregation of which includes some of the city's bestknown men, raises annually from £4500 to £SOOO and maintains its own missionary, Dr. Harvie, in India. Two deaconesses and a nurse supervise the social side of the work in the 35 administrative districts of the church.