PRESRYTERIAN UNION.

Otago Witness, Issue 2298, 17 March 1898, Page 11

PRESRYTERIAN UNION.

ANTI-UNION MEETING AT OAMAEU. Oamaeu, March 9. A meeting was held in the Columba Church this evening tor the purpose of discussing the question whether the Peeebyterian churches of the north and south ehould unite. The meeting was fairly attended. The Rtv. W. Wright occupied the chair, and in opening the meeting said that when he went last to the synod in Dunedin he was disposed to | support union on certain line?, bat he had since siltered his opinion on the ground of illogicality regarding marriage with a deceased wife's sister, and he also wished to see the Otago \ Synod retained as an. ecclesiastical court and , retain control of local matters. There was also , the question of representation at the assembly, j He had come to the conclusion that union was pure sentimentality and would be expensive. The Rev. R. R. M. Sutherland said he was there at the invitation ol the commibteo wh ; ch had arranged the meeting. Nineteen years agj he had given a profession to the Duuedia P^esbytery to protect the constitution of the church, and he had promised to support its doctrines. A movement had arisen a few years ago to , extinguish the Church of Otago. He did not ' believe that the movement wa3 from the hearts ; of the people. The agitation was by a few members of the synod, and the members of tha ' church had been entirely ignored. Ib was now held that a majority of votes of synod could \ change any church doctrine without reference ' to the members. He referred to the deceased ! wife's sister question, in which the synod gave ' permission to celebrate sush marriages. Yeti the Confession of Faith rtmained unaltered. He said that such marriages were Godforbidden. The church was endowed with certain- property for the purpose of promulgating the Gospel, yet it might happen that in the course of years the church might become Unitarian, and the endowments would be taken by the church for the extension of that creed. He was in favour of union on three conditions — first, that the people desired it ; second, that it should be shown \ that God's work would be better done by a i united church ; third, that a basis might ba \ found thafc would be acceptable to both ! churches. He was opposed to the present scheme j because ib purposely and studiously ignored the j people. He* believed the union would be a j serious loss to the church, without bringing any , corresponding benefit to the Northern Church. He contended that the General Assembly held in any centre would be largely composed of members near that centre, and he believed that if the assembly- was held in Auckland only half a dozen would attend from the couth. The effect of that would be that the doctrines oE the church would be changeable according to the opinions of the majority. The Rev. P. S. Hay said that it was impossible to expect that the Christian Church could be un»l«r one roof, for there had been differences from tho earliest times. The churches did nob ' overlap, atd there was no necessity for union,

j Some of the ministers near Dunedin thought I they were too big for Obago, and were trying to ' hurry on unien without appealing to the , people. j Mr A. C. Begg contended that there waa union with the Northern Church, but the proposal was for an incorporating union, which he believed would be against the interests of the Southern Church. The scheme proposed to retain the Otago Synod, but *vith enfeebled powers. The elders who attended the synod obtained a good knowledge of the working of the church ; and the disposal of the funds, which was now a small malter in the synod, under union would be the principal. The result would be log-rolling, which would deteriorate the standard of the synod. Referring to the question of representation at the assembly, he pointed out that it was intended to pay the expenses of half the delegates. The result i would be that only those who could afford the | time and money would attend. Tfae effect would | hi what he called a bastard episcopacy. An acb Gf Parliament had been proposed which would i allow the doctrine of the church to be changed j possibly to Mormonism, yet that aob had not j been remitted to the presbyteries or sessions, ; and that was against the principles of Presby- , terianism. The Rev. W. Nichol addressed fche meeting, remarking oa what ho described as the extraordinary conduct of the moderator and con- , vener of the Union Committee at the last synod, '. and on the language expressed by the delegates J lately at Auckland, i No resolutions were adopted.