THE SUNDAY CIRCLE.

Otago Daily Times, Issue 17729, 13 September 1919, Page 5

THE SUNDAY CIRCLE.

RELIGIOUS READING FOR TEE HOME. SANCTUARY. I knelt, and Silence with enshrouding wings Drew me yet closer to God's mystic Heart, Pulsing- in all things; and the strident world Grew dim and distant with, her cLara'rous voice Hushed in the soundlessness of -voioeleaa peaoe. Far off, a gleaming altar, points of light Stabbing the tender gloom, a. rich-robed priest Off'ring God's Broken Body once again With prayer impassioned for a wandering world, Woary and btainod with blood, and full of grief Then musio leapt forth on the quiv-ring air, Soaring exultantly past arch and dome On silver pinions, floating into space, Bearing the echo of a pain-wrung world Into the halls of light beyond the Dawn. * knelt I knew the air was charged With mystic Presences I could not see Because of earth-born blindness, and because faith that is & flaming fir©, et here, it seemed that God and mnn must meet In tho still Sacrament of "Wine and Bread, Prayp 03 1 111 ) and on tho wings of Soaring triumphantly to heights unknown, Gocf g perchano3 t " c down-bent thought of On path of light, in union mystical. X raised my eyes, and 10, all tremulous, A winter sunbeam wrought of palest gold Hashed through the Eastern window, and it seemed , ™ . m 'racnlcru3. whereon ' might dawn , Vision Splendid to the pure in heart. As ages past H cam© to Galahad 'K • o not see the Holy Grail Doris S. Goodwin, in the Poetry Review. PRAYER. I™ thank Thee that Thou mat est all things new, even the old familiar things. And we beseech Thee that Thou wouldst clojie • with celestial light tho common task of our daily lives, that we may feel them to be as great as they ail ™, en jy® remember Who appoints them, and what He appoints them for. And now we pray for Thy blessing npon all that are in sorrow or trouble. Specially would made lonely by Thy sudden stroke, and any who t°i a y C?? 1 as if the light of life, was onmfnrf n ? P™y. The® to succour'and comfort all emcn spirits, to give grace and submission which is the parent of all peace. Through Jesus Christ our Lord. AienT

WHEN THE LIGHT IS LOW. It is the Lord Jesus Christ who is preenupently our fnend when the light is low it is Mis gracious pleasure to walk with us in tho morning and on through the hours of noon. But His friendship become 3 more intimate as daylight wanes and other lights go out one by one. He does not leave us whan our fires of i>hvsica.l vitality are burning low and when we are ofS the couriers of trade. No, His benign fellowship often stores the smouldenng fires of the body and makes them glow again. I have known men bow before Him.in physical and His vitalising conEfou to their' them rf that have liwn tT 6 a man to run a xace. He quickens our mortal bodies by His spirit that dwelleth in us. 7 *u is the Saviour when the light of hope is burning lowi Pei haps we iiave had a disappointing day. Business has siob gone well with us. We

morning under' a sky of xadianf expectation, and we return in the evening every gay colour and our spirits are clothed in grey despondency Christ ;s a great friend in the grey duli houw; He throws a new light over things. He gives new meanings to suocess and Ee ieta lis into the secrets of one of the days of the Son of Man." It was in this way that Ho transfigured Pau 1 3 impoverished life, so that he eLld rejoice a j U .possessed all things. And there is a still more perilous seasen, whea the fires of desire are burning low. Jinthusiasm is dying out, the bri E ]>t, impulse is fading. The Lord Jesus cfo£ not leave ua even when we do not desire thov P ffr^ D( +t' ° r frier s d3 So away when they und they are not desired, and ohev go away very soon, but the Saviour's desire tor us is too deep to be quenched by our repulses or neglects. "I have loved more than tliou hast loved thy sins." His love persists through our rebellions. It burns on through the wretched yeara of our indifference. Such is tho incomparable friend when our lights ere low.

A\GJLO-AMERICAN FRIENDSHIP Aiifcio-American friendship," said Dr Jowctt on .Thanksgiving Sunday morning in London, • would be sealed by the Lord uosus as one of the reconciling ministries of the world. The Bishop of Birmingham, preaching a little-way off for Dr Campbell C^ tchu KJi Church, said that in the fnendslup of Britain and America rests the sole nope of the world. Points of agreement, Dr Jowett went on, are far more numerous than our differences. What havo with our Am erican friends? j ,** e have a common spring of faiti. and devotion. Thoie who cross tho Atianuo do not stand by unfamiliar altars. They , themselves wonderfully at home. The cloven liosk is the common refuge and he sombre Cross is the common hope. .< H We T^ avo ' ommon modes of "worship. When I went from Carr's-lane, Binmngham, to Fifth-avenue Church, New York 1 wad profoundly ana tenderly stirred bv fh'e liymiis which had been chosen for my opening scrvics. The first was •'Jesus ; Thou Joy of loving hearts, Thou i< ount of life, Thou Light of men.'' Ihe second, " Josus_ shall reign where'er the sun Does his successive journeys rim " Tho tlurd. When I survey the wondrous Cross." And the fourth, 0 Lovo that wilt Dot let me go." I felt that worshippers at Carr's-lane aid liitn avenue were meeting together before the throne of God." (3) Our denominational varieties ax© th* tamo. A Congregationalist crossing tho Atlantic would not bo lik 3 a hermit-os.li who has lost his shell. Tho Congregational IIS waitnng for him. The Epi s S,paiian rted not oread the nervous strain of worshipping with tho Baptists. The Presbvteriaii will not be forced into the large' libofty of Methodism J This gently humor" ous passage was much enjoyed. (4) We are in one language. Here r> r Jowett quoted from memory an eloquent passage from one of John Bright's speecii FS aurmg tho Chtl War. " Eve.y you,.- f o {! g lr l-ought to read the spewhoi of John Bright. With a common Jangua.-e we have a common literature. Tho rvst thoughts of the two peoples are nourishing their life. (5) We have the Mins belief in representative government, tho same ideals of freedom Surely we are destined by the \l mignty to be vitally and indissolublv one We are to he one in defence of a righteouswllJ£h takes sis mandate from the Great .i I '' Throne; one in the guardianship .if the holv alters of Jtsus; one in the spirit of gracious and sacrificial fraternity, for ..10 welfare of mankind and tho evaiigelisation of the world. May God deepen a?id ostablish the friendship of America and Britain and in their unio.i may all the nations of tho earth bo blessed!"

AN UNFAIR "MOVIE" PICTURE Having spent some time in missionary •work in the Far East (says Mrs M. K. m New Y'ork Sun), I want to register a protest against the slur that is cast upon the work °f our foreign missionaries by David V/ark Uritiith in his picture "Broken Blossoms." i'no whole wretchcd tragedy of that piexui-o is designed, evidently to convey the impression that the ancient civilisation and religion of China arc much better and liner and stronger than the Christian civilisation and religion of the Occident. Deliberately Mr Griffith has contrasted an ideal Chinese twh vftth.a brutal degenerate cf the London -• ißiins; has shown that the Chinese are tender and gentle -with little children, while tho London prize-fighter is just the reverse. The fallacy of tliis presentation lies in the fjicfc tli3.tr while one such, isolated S 3 ? bo true it is plain that Mr Gnrhth \vou«d have us believe that it is typical—this unfair contrast between two races. As for his slur against the Christian missionaries, it is such that every Christian man and woman should rise in protest Tho religion of Buddha he.s left the 400,000.000 Chincsp people the most backward in the world: it is now after tho labour of self-sacrifirinc missionaries for hundreds of years that China is be<rinn-'ng to awake to her duties nnrl responsibilities. It is not fair or kind that such a picture as "Broken Blossoms" should bo nlloweel to distort and wrirn the truth. Tn the coast cities of China motion pictures are a verv r> r r>u!.ir form of entertainment: if Mr Griffith were to exhibit this untrue picture there it would be the Chine?© them- ' pelves who -would bo tho first to rccognisc its uniroA.