THE SUNDAY CIRCLE

Otago Daily Times, Issue 22356, 1 September 1934, Page 4

THE SUNDAY CIRCLE

RELIGIOUS READING FOR THE HOME PETITION. God, give me eight amid the tangled ways. The creeds that ebb and flow from man to man; . Clear eye* I beg, that I may fairly scan Thy truth unchanged amid their wildering maze , . Of cries and theories; their confusing days . . , , Of futile talk of Thine immortal plan So little guessed, their thought—so small a span Can never comprehend what angels praise. God of the sunlit peaks that pierce the Grant me to wonder with untroubled heart, Content to wonder not to question why; To love, and laugh, and, joyous, bear a part . In life’s high ritual —so at last to He Quiet under grasses when the skylarks —Gwendolyn L. M'Laren. PRAYER. Help us, O Lord, that we may continue in prayer and supplication, and not only draw nearer to Thy throne in brief moments long parted from each other by lives in strange contrast to the words of our petitions, but may be instant in prayer, so that all our lives shall indeed be offered up unto Thee and all our work be truly worship. Through Jesus Christ our Lord. Amen. SOME PEOPLE’S IDEA OF RELIGION Hexe is a thought for the week and a text for each day:- < ■ , Sunday.—A way to gain,—l Tim. vi, 5 '^Monday.— Commandments of men.— Titus i, 14. . Tuesday.—A form (denying the power thereof).—2 Tim. iii, 5. . Wednesday.—Profane and old wives fables. —1 Tim. iv, 7Thursday.—Persistent • wranghngs.—l Tim. vi, 5 (Weymouth). Friday.—Questionings and disputes of words. —1 Tim. vi, 4 (R.V.). Saturday.—The word of men (not the Word of God) —1 Thess. ii, 13. —Christian World. THE WAY OF CHRISTIAN SALAVATION. The Rev. A. D. Beldon, 8.D., of Whitefields, who was the special preacher and speaker at the annual meetings of Brecon Memorial College, addressed the students on “The Way of Christian Salvation.” There was, he said a good deal of confusion of thought in .the churches on the matter, and even ministers who had begun well ■ in their ministry fell back into sub-Christnan method* of conducting their own spiritual life, with disastrous effects upon their ministry. This wa 8 of Christnan salvation needs to be clearly defined or it can be easily and fatally missed. The great change is the one typical change of Christian conversion; it is not due to self effort, but is the result of a Divine deliverance. This is illustrated by the three great periods of Church history—the Apostolic age, the Reformation, and the Evangelical Revival. The Christian way of salvation is by an even more thorough surrender of the soul th God. It is not so much a conversion as a series of conversions. This i* the only j way out of sin and sorrow. THE RELIGIOUS LIFE. The dean of Rochester (Dr Francis Underhill) gave the address at the closi ing meeting of the session of the London Board of Ministers of the Baptist Church. | Speaking on “ Prayer and the Kingdom,” he divided the religious life into' three I sections —intellectual, institutional, and I devotional. The end of all religion was ; union with God through Christ in prayer, i To-day we needed to stress very strongly 1 the obligations of worship, and it was 1 needful to insist upon the duty of corporate worship. Thu* we could, by worship, bring heaven and earth nearer to eacn other. THE BIBLE IN SPAIN. The British and Foreign Bible Society had a prominent stand, in the decoration of which pictures and texts had been used freely, at the annual Spanish Book Fair at Madrid. The fair was opened by Senor Samper, the new Prime Minister, and other members of the Government. Senor Araujo, the society’s superintendent for Spain, was presnted to them, and presented each one with a Bible. “Large crowds of people,” says the Rev. W. H. Rainey (the society’s secretary for Western Europe), “watched the opening, and then clustered round the stands. From that moment there was no rest for the seven members of the society’s staff who were in charge. - By 7 o’clock sales had passed the 10,000 mark. If things go on as they have begun, extraordinary sales will be reached by the end of the 10 days the fair lasts. Last year’s figures for the whole fair were just only 17,0.00 and were considered extraordinary.” The popularity of the society’s stall has been recognised by the Spanish press, and it is now proverbial that the Bible is the best seller at the fair. CHANGING CHINA. Writing in the Christian Century, Mr Prank Rawlinson discusses China's attitude to the proposal that the nations agree not to send their military forces outside their own border, thus rendering them actually " defensive.” As the leaders of China see it, they are victims oi a violation of this very principle. All their military plans are, therefore, purely “ defensive.” All this, continues Mr Rawlinson, raises an acute problem for Christians interested in seeing China remain, or become, an effective factor in laying the foundations of world peace. Shall the Christians accept this latest intriguing peace proposal, admit the necessity of China’s “ defence ” militarism, and soft-pedal reference thereto until all nations have agreed to confine their military forces within their own borders? Or shall they continue to seek to arouse a church, apathetic under existing conditions, to its Christian responsibility in bringing about a peace that will make political militarisation a museum relic? This is a new angle on an old issue. "I should like to heair a group of Chinese Christians discuss it,” he concludes;

DIFFERENCES NOT LITTLE. Speaking on the question of Church union at the annual meetings of the Suffolk and Norfolk Strict Baptist Churches, the Rev. H. Bull, the retiring moderator, said they were being asked to sink their "Tittle differences” for the sake of union. These “little differences,” however, were not as insignificant as they seemed. To Strict Baptists they were matters of vital importance, and they must earnestly contend for the vital principles once delivered to the saints. These vital principles by which they stood, the moderator continued, were regeneration by the Holy Spirit: a confession of faith in the Lord Jesus Christ unto salvation, and obedience to His command by immersion in water. Upon such a confession was the only way of entrance into a church of New Testament order. The reports showed a total membership of 2198 (decrease 11), and 2118 Sunday scholars (increase 82). A LARGE FAMILY. Dr Barnardo’a Homes shelter the largest family in the world, for there are always about 8500 boys and girls _ and babies. On an average five new arrivals are welcomed daily. Many of these children are very frail and delicate on admission by virtue of their destitution. They were only admitted because they were destitute. And that means these children need feeding up with nourishing diet, that they may develop into strong and healthy citizens. This Barnardo Family requires over 25,000 meals a day. Its chief item is bread. Some 1600 loaves are baked daily by the lads in the model bakehouse at the Boys’ Garden City, hut these supply less than half the family. Another large item is milk, 1000 gallons a day being required.