THE SUNDAY CIRCLE.

Otago Daily Times, Issue 19952, 20 November 1926, Page 5

THE SUNDAY CIRCLE.

RELIGIOUS READING FOR

THE HOME

A FRIEND UNFAILING. When surging seas of sorrows roll. And anguish deep goes o’er my soul, I seek Thy aid, and not in vain. Thou fcel’st for every human pain. When sad and wistfully I sigh For friends beloved no longer nigh. Do thou, O Lord, my comfort be. Who art a Friend of friends to me. When in temptation’s witching hour I fall beneath the tempter’s power, Thou leave’st not my soul to stray. But briug’st me back into the way. When evening shadows dim my sky, And youthful days have passed me by, If I have Thee all will be bright. At evening-time there shall be light. My wants I bring to Thee in prayer, I cast on Thee my every care; On Thee alone I can depend; A Friend unfailing to the end. —K. Lytle. A PRAYER. God grant us wisdom In these coming days. And eyes unsealed, That we clear visions see Of that new School that He Would have us build. To life’s ennoblement And His high ministry! THE PSALMS IN HISTORY. In the preface to his book on ‘'The Psalms in History and Biography,” the late Professor John Ker, D.D., of Edinburgh, has given some reasons for the use of thij Psalms in the services of praise, which will apeal to readers whatever their denominational affiliations. Dr Ker says: “There may be room for both Testaments —for the Song of Moses, and the Lamb —in the worship of earth as well as of heaven. But in the reaction towards hymns, let us not forget the songs of the ancient Church of God. Their language and modes of thought help us to the spiritual appreciation of the Old Testament, which is still for us the larger portion of God’s Word, even though it is not the clearest. This subdued light has its value. There are moods of musing, dubious wanderings under star-gleams, and longing for light in the night seasons, which suit the heart at times when it cannot open to the brightness of midday. And even when the day appears, as it often does in these Psalms, and the morning is spread upon the mountains, there is a freshness and gladsomeness about it when it comes with the dew of youth. “The Christian Church, at any one time, has probably members who belong to all the past periods of her existence; the night, the dawn, and the full daylight—nay, each member may have by turns all these season in himself. There should be songs to suit them all, and can we have them better than by taking those which have risen to God in the course of her lengthened history? Among these the Book of Psalms must always hold a foremost place. And there is this marked feature in them —that while they are full of the praise of God’s mercy, and laden with comfort, there are no sacred songs which exalt so highly the divine righteousness and purity, and impress so strongly the duties of uprightness and truth. We need songs to attemper our souls to these high attributes if we are to understand the Gospel and fulfil its precepts. Hence the Psalms formed the men who faced danger and did not quail before the multitude of spearmen, who did not worry under suffering, and were faithful unto death. Our worship may put on fairer forms, and there is no reason why it should not do so, with due regard to spirit and truth; but we shall grow up a feebler race than our fathers when we cease to sing their Psalms, and when we forget the order of worship the Psalmist has given: ‘Strength and beauty are in his sanctuary.’ ” PROSPECTS OF METHODIST UNION. Recent news from England is favourable to the prospects for union among the Methodist Churches of the Old Land. The Weslevan Methodists are the predominant party." The Primitive Methodists have long been in favour of union, and the United Methodists, as before, gave a large majority in favour of union at their recent Conference. But only two-thirds ot the Wesleyan Church had declared itself in favour of the principle of union. Accordingly the action of the Conference of the Wesleyan Methodist Church, which met in York during the week of July 11, was awaited with some anxiety. After a long and earnest debate a vote was taken on the question on July 15, and the Conference carried a resolution in favour of the union of the three churches, and recommending to the May Synods, as provisional legislation, the scheme of union drawn up by the United Committee. SCIENTIFIC PROOF OF RELIGIOUS TRUTH. On the Sunday which was covered by the meeting of the British Association for the Advancement of Science, the pulpits of the various Oxford Churches were filled by members of the association. Among the sermons delivered, two were specially notable. One of these was by Dean Inge, of St. Paul’s; the other was by a layman, Sir Oliver Lodge. Dean Inge referred to the relations between science and religion and stated that, while their methods were different, science and religion were engaged upon the same quest, both being searchers after truth. Sir Oliver Lodge, in a very striking address, delivered in Manchester College chapel, suggested, on the other hand, that, in the future, the methods off science and religion might not be so very different. In other words scientific methods will be applied in matters of religion. Take such questions, for example, as man’s survival after death or the existence of a being or beings higher than man. Science, hitherto, has had no sure answer for these questions. But Sir Oliver believes that we are getting answers. “If I am to make a guess,” said he, “I would say that whereas all through the nineteenth century and up to the present, we have been dealing chiefly with the material world, there now lies before us the discovery of the spiritual world.” The spiritual world is not a novelty in religion, but it is a novelty in science. Yet it will not be long, according to Sir Oliver, before such questions as those referred to will be considered scientifically and will begin to be answered. . ADVERTISING RELIGION. An advertising campaign to promote religion throughout the United States and several European countries will be inaugurated by the Rev. Charles Stelzle, of Now York, who was elected president of the Church Advertising Department of the Associated Advertising Clubs of the world at its convention recently hold in Philadelphia. Mr Stelzle was a deb -; 1 to the London Convention of the Associated Advertising Clubs two years ago, and at that time urged this plan in several conferences held in various parts of Europe. These campaigns are to bo promoted by the hundreds of local and district advertising clubs throughout the world, enlisting highgrade laymen of various denominations, who will work in co-operation with the ministers and churches. Religion will bo broadcast via the radio, the newspapers, and magazines, through the use of bill boards and posters, and through such other mediums as may be thought most effective. Advertising conferences are to be conducted for ministers and church workers, and newspaper editors and advertising men are to be made acquainted with the problems facing the Church, so that their coonerntion may be of the most practical character. BIBLE FOja SAVAGES. ISLANDERS WHO WERE CANNIBALS. Every six or seven weeks a fresh language is added to the list of more than £OO forms of human speech in vliich some portion of the Bible is printed b.y various agencies. In the last four months the British and Foreign Society has reduced six languages to writing for the first time, and has added a portion of the Scripture in these lan guages to its former total of 579 editions of the Bible in foreign tongues. Three of the languages for which an alphabet, vocabulary, and grammar have just been evolved are spoken by MidAfrican tribes, two by Papuans, and one bv the uncultured people until recentlv cannibalistic of Goaribari Island, in the Gulf of Papua. In addition, a form of phonetic script has been devised for the publication of St. Luke’s Gospel in the dialect of Chihli, China, while the complete Bible has just

been published for the first time in Esperanto. The translation has been done by Dr L. L. Zamenhoff, the inventor of Esperanto, and it has been compared with the Hebrew original by a revision committee. From the point of missionary achievement, the most important of the now printed languages is that of the fierce and numerous tribes of wild and painted v-bo inhabit the forbidden country of Go*ribari.