WORK OF CHURCH

New Zealand Herald, Volume LXXIII, Issue 22579, 18 November 1936, Page 16

WORK OF CHURCH

NEED FOE EVANGELISM DECLINE IN ATTENDANCES f PRESBYTERIAN ASSEMBLY } BY TELEGRAPH —OWN CORRESPONDENT] ('IIKISTCH IJRCH, Tuesday "We are deeply coueerned in these days about the decline in church attendances, and in the lack ol influence of the Church upon the world. May the cause not he that, as a Church, wo have not been sufficiently definite and aggressive?" said the Itev. T. H. Hoscvcaro, in his address as moderator at the opening of the General Assembly of the Presbyterian Church in New Zealand, in St. Paul's Church this evening. There was a temptation to l>e satisfied if congregations paid their way, or did not decline more rapidly than the others, said Mr. Hosoveare. There was much, perhaps over much, organisation in Presbyterian church life. A\ hat with clubs, leagues, societies and so on, tho Church was kept busy, but it was in danger of losing sight ot the spiritual objective in its institutional activities. "Our real objective is evangelism," tho moderator added, "and if our church workers would direct their energies to that, m tho sense of winning tho outsiders to Christ and His Church, they would discover such a new zest in church work as would give us all a new life. The best defensive is always the offensive. A glance over the history of tho Christian Church will reveal that this is so."