RELIGIOUS.

New Zealand Mail, Issue 751, 23 July 1886, Page 6

RELIGIOUS.

EGYPTIAN MONOTHEISM.

Why did it depart and fade away ? This is a question difficult to answer. We only ! know of this ancient faith through these very remote and imperfect records, inscriptions and liturgies. These express its ideals and hopes and aspirations. Perhaps its followers lived according to their creed. No - doubt the revelation of Osiris was exceedingly vague and shadowy, and probably very soon converted into a sun-myth. How much of it was based on historic fact, no one I can say. What we know is that this ancient religion was much encumbered with symbolism, and filled with strange and wild conceits. It lacked the simplicity and humility and reality of Christianity. It did not contain the wonderful humanity and sympathy of the teachings of Galilee. It did not reveal God as a father. It came, too, to a people shut out from other races, who were trodden down under a relentless despotism and a most powerful hierarchy. • It lived longer than Christianity has yet done, but was not adapted to other races, perhaps from its language—hidden from the multitude—and the mystery thrown around its teachings. The spiritual monotheism | probably changed soon into pantheism, and | in later times degenerated into polytheism and idolatry. The Egyptian race never even I impressed the race of slaves under them—the Hebrews —with their most cherished belief—that in immortality. But no doubt

the spirituality of the priests touched the inind of Moses and aided his divine inspira- | tion.—C. Boring Brace, in New Princeton | Review for May.

Mr Sankey believes that the negro is as- ; auraing his proper place in the social scale of I the South. There were 5000 negroes at one of the Moody and Sankey meetings, and they listened with evident satisfaction. Brooklyn’s title to be called ‘ the City of Churches appears to be forfeited. Within ten years the population has increased 300,000 and the church facilities have not kept pace. Brooklyn now has only one ! place of worship to each 3000 people, a less proportion than any other city in the United ; States.

The Baptist Year Book for 1886 shows 1 that there are in the United States 28,953 ! regular Baptist churches, an increase of 354. j The number of ordained ministers is 16,191, j a loss of 487. The number of baptisms reported is 135,540 —100 more than in the prei vious year. The number of church members ■ is 2,572,238, a gain of 64,485. The number of communicants in the United

I States branch of the Presbyterian Church is 644,025, or about 1 in 80 of the population. If a church member represents two adherents beside him or herself, we as a denomination control about 4 per cent, of the population. It may be interesting to see how this is distributed. The States in - which there is enough Presbyterian element to form a Synod are the old Middle States, those of the Central West, and of the Pacific Coast, with Kentucky, Tennessee, and Texas of the Southern States. The ratio of : Presbyterian communicants connected with ; onr assembly in those States is as follows : Jiew Jersey, 1 in 23 ; Pennsylvania, 1 in 29 ;

New York, 1 in 36 ; Ohio, 1 in 45 ; Oregon, 1 in 45; Colorado, 1 in 50 ; Kansas, 1 in 62 ; Illinois, 1 in 66; Nebraska, 1 in 67 ; Indiana, 1 in 71 ; lowa, 1 in 73 ; Minnesota, 1 in 81 ; Michigan, 1 in 90 ; Wisconsin, 1 in 98 ; Missouri, 1 in 160 ; Kentucky, 1 in 250 ; Tennessee, 1 in 425 ; Texas, 1 in 880. It is easy to see where the Presbyterian home missionary is most needed.— Chicago Interior. In India there are four female missionaries to every million of women.

In 1789 the first Presbyterian congregation was formed in Montreal. There are now seventeen Presbyterian congregations in that city. By the agency of the * Free and Open Church Association,’ forty-six churches of the English Establishment were during the year 1885 made free. The statement was made in the House of Commons, in the recent debate on * Disestablishment of the Welsh Church,’ that only an eight of the population are members of the Anglican Church. On the Feast of St. Joseph, Bishop John Timoleon Raimondi officiated and preached in Chinese in the Cathedral at Hongkong, where fully six hundred Chinese Catholics received Holy Communion. At Lisbon, in Portugal, there is a Presbyterian Church with a substantial church building on a good site. It has a Portuguese school in connection with it. It has a prayer meeting, evangelistic meeting, and is doing good work. Nearly every evening in the Allahabad bazaar may be seen two blind Christains reading from the Hindoostanee New Testament, printed in raised letters, to a large audience of Hindoos and Mohammedans, who marvel at the strange sight.