A NAMELESS SECT

Otago Daily Times, Issue 17942, 22 May 1920, Page 15

A NAMELESS SECT

OBJECTION TO MHJTAEY TRAINING. LAD GRANTED EXEMPTION. gome time waa oocupied in the Police yesterday morning in the endeavour to determine the beliefs and organisation of % peculiarly vague sect, one of whose jnetobetß made application for exemption from attendance at parades on the. ground that any form of military. service was contrary to his religious beliefs. It appears that members of this body have previously been exempted during war time ,but the fact that it haa no name, no special creed or principles, and no acknowledged head ma<f» the position a somewhat difficult one to ueai with. Mr Bartholomew, S.M., presided on the bench, and Major Fraeer appeared for th© Defence Department! The applicant, Walter Ernest Scott, 18 years of age, was represented by Mr AspinalL Mr Aspinall said hia client belonged to i religious body that had already obtained exemption. They mot at Purakanni and also at Otokia. One of their boliefs was that taking up arms was contrary to the teaching of Christ _ '. • ■ ■ The applioant in evidenoe, said he hod known this body since last Labour' Day, and had become a member of it just before Christmas. He was baptised at a cor* vontion at Otokia just after Christmas. He attended their regular Wednesday and Sunday meetings at Mr Balone's house in Littleboume. His mother belonged to this body and had been baptised at the same time. They believed that the bearing of arms was contrary to the teaching of Christ, because they never found that He did anything of the kind. He had attended parades and drilled with the Senior Cadets before joining this body. To Major Fraser: He would objeot to joining the Ambulance. • _ He waited complete exemption. He did not want to do anything military. Majoi* Froser: You sfiy Christ did not join the army. He did not ride in railway trains or use the telephone. You don't use these either?-—Yes, I do. Major Fraser: In lieu of military training, would you do other work of benefit to the State?—lt ail depends what the work waa. When the position had been further explained to' him, Scott said 1 he would be quite willing to do the work required so long as it was not anything to do with the military. To the Magistrate lie stated that his father, who was a Presbyterian, did not care njuoh for him getting exemption. fie let him go to the meetings though he did not like the idea at first. Before joining this body he had gone to a Presbyterian Sunday school, and had attended the Central Mission frequently. Major Fraeer: Who is going to give the necessary assurance that you remain a member of the body?—lt rests with myself to give you that assurance. Replying again to his Worship, Soott said he did not think they had any written constitution. As for beliefs and principles, they looked in the Bible to see how it was done there.

Mr Bartholomew: But you can find iilmost anything you want in the Bible.— We follow Christ and by to do u He did.

Mr Bartholomew remarked that yon could not have a body without distinctive tenets or principles to which the members subscribed. That was the eesonse of a body. John Wilson M'Lrmg, an evangelist of this body for gome 20 years, said thov took no 7 sectarian name, and were joat followers of Christ. Their teachings were those that Jems iChriat laid down and practised. Witness was the overseer of their evangelists m New Zealand. They were in every English-speaking country in the, world and outside that too. They met annually for conferences in different countries. The evangeliata were aupported'by the voluntary contributions of those who received tbeir spiritual teaching. He . was quite satisfied the applicant was genuine and not merely seeking to avoid military service. As a body they objected to militarism. For constitution they bad nothing' but the teachings of the New Testament. Mr Bartholomew: But all churches hold to them.—There is_ a difference between practice and profession. Mr Bartholomew: I see. Yon practice and the others only profess!Witness went on to say that Christ and Hie apostles were the true interpreters of Scripture. They oould never think of Jesus Christ or Peter taking up arms, lie membership of the sect was about 1200 in New Zealand. Before th<j # war it would be about 700 or 800. This increase was a normal one, he would say. Tliey had 28 evangelists at the present time. Mr Bartholomew said that under the Defence Act the defendant was entitled to exemption if the magistrate was satisfied that military service was contrary to his beliefs. All he had to decide was whether the applicant's objection was in good faith. Scott was old enough to have developed a • religious conscience of his own, and appeared to be, quite honest in beliefs. The . Legislature was very tender, and made provision for such oases; but provision was also made for other _ work to be done in lieu of military trailing, and the Act said that if those obtaining exemption failed to do this work the exemption would be cancelled. The exemption applied for in this case would be granted