CURATE DISMISSED

New Zealand Times, Volume XLVI, Issue 10562, 13 April 1920, Page 5

CURATE DISMISSED

REV. GALBER EXPLAINS RESENTMENT AT SERMON. I'EH ri'ESS ASSOCIATION - . AUCKLAND, April 12. Following on the delivery of a sermon, dealing with Church reform, tho vestry of St. Sepulchre's, Auckland, recently asked for the resignation of the assistant curate (the Rev. Jasper Calder), and the rev. gentleman, while declining to relinquish tho position by Easter, as required, preached his farewell sermon last evening. Subsequent to the service, it is slated that a petition was drawn up by a number of tho congregation protesting against tho dismissal of the assistant curate, but this was withdrawn at the request of Mr Calder, who preferred to regard the incident as closed.

The Rev. Calder, who, it will be in membered, left St. Matthew's a fen months ago, after a petition had been sent to the Bishop praying that ho should be made the successor of the late vicar, took up engagement- as assistant curate of St. Sepulchre's in De. cember. REV. GENTLEMAN'S VERSION.

At the invitation of the reporter, tho Rev. Calder 'explained the circumstances leading up to last night's farewell sermon as follows : "I was engaged to go to St. Sepulchre's as assistant curate at a salary of £5 a. week from early December until April, when it was contemplated that I w-ould go to America. Everything went well until the Sunday just before Lent, when I preached a sermon urging that the clergy should take their congregations into their confidence in the matter of Church reform. On that occasion I delivered a straightout :md earnest address. A few days after this I was informed by tho vicar (the Rev.-W. A. Keay) that the vestry had decided to dispense with my services. The matter was referred to the Bishop, and both of three gentlemen informed mo that I must leave at once. I declined, and pointed out that tho vestry had no power to discharge me, and at the same time strenuously denying any disloyalty to_ the Church of England. After some discussion, the Bishop decided that the vestry had no power to dismiss me, and, incidentally, he admitted that the principles of the sermon were sound, 'but said that the criticism should have been voiced in tho Synod instead of in the pulpit.''