UNITED INTERCESSORY SERVICE.

Otago Daily Times, Issue 17067, 27 July 1917, Page 3

UNITED INTERCESSORY SERVICE.

The monthly united intercessory service W wei m the Trinity Methodist Church on Wednesday evening, there being a large congregation. The Rev. W. Hay conducted the opening exercises. The address was delivered by the Rev R 8. bray. Speaking from the third and fourth verses in the fortieth chapter of Isaiah, he spoke earnestly of the necessity for preparation for the reconstruction which must come after the war, and of the Church's responsibility in that respect. The responsibility, eaid the speaker, devolved on each individual member of the Church who must necessarily be guided by the teachings of his Master. In the speaker's opinion it was high time that the teachings of Jesus Christ should be faithfully applied to every detail of individual, civic, and national life. Science had remained a mystery to the average man, and the great need of the present day was for applied Christianity. There were two things which they should guard against in the present crisis—wrongly thinking that it was God who had caused the present turmoil, and eliminating from our thoughts the law of punishment for violations of the moral law Ihey were inhabitants of a moral universe and insurrection against its laws was followed by penalty ae euro as the breaking of phys.cal; law was followed by disease ine condition of Europe and Great Britain betore the fateful days of August, 1914 could not be considered with equanimity. The Church declared tho fatherhood of God and the brotherhood of man as fundamental truths, and yet Europe was even then preparing to assert hy forco of arms the doctrine that might was right, while their disregard of the sufferings and distress or the poor cr;ed aloud to heaven The minister referred to the conception held by mi- y e P s , of God « a > dnd W Being willing to help, but looking hopelessly on the present turmoil. He preferred the old ? he L°[ G ,9 d ' the Governor of the universe of which He was the Creator. The charter of reconstruction was found in their text When tae Church began to prepare the wav lor brod to bring peace and to establish righteousness, then would the glory of the • ord be revealed, and all flesh should see it, ); for the mouth of the Lord hath spoken After tho address some time was spent in intercessory prayer, and then a verse of the .National Anthem was eung.