DUNEDIN PRESBYTERY.

Otago Witness, Issue 3030, 10 April 1912, Page 4

DUNEDIN PRESBYTERY.

The monthly meeting of the Duncdin Presbytery was" held on the 2nd inst., and was presided over by che Rev. K. E. Davies, Moderator. The Charge Extension Committee recommended that £25 be given to the Ravensbourne people towards the mininster's stipend.-—The Moderator explained that this recommendation waa only for six months, and the sum mentioned was only a temporary gra>nt. The committee felt th.it the circumstances warranted that something should be done on behalf of the members of the church there. He thought that at the end of six months they would be able to see what the circumstances of the congregation were, and the question to be considered would be as to whether a, further grant should be made. The Rev. Mr Kilpatrick said he thought the matter should be gone into thoroughly, and two or three other members advocated the suspension of the question until the new minister was settled at Ravensbourne. The Moderator said that at the outset he took it for granted that most of the members understood the situation. He had gone carefully into the whole matter, and it appeared to him from the evidence gained with regard to the whole church that it was absolutely necessary that a strong man should be in charge of the Ravensbourne Church; in fact, the very beet man possible should be appointed. This opinion was shared by a number of other ministers, but they all felt that the financial position was a difficult one. There were two services to be conducted at St. Leonards, and this meant the appointment of an assistant at £2 a week, which meant £lO4 to bo found in addition to the stipend which the people had to raise. This would mean a great strain upon the congregation, lie thought the Presbytery should assist the Ravensbourne congregation, and thus enable it to call in a man fitted for the charge. The work could not be done by one man, and it would be a retrograde step for the people of St. Leonards to have to go back to afternoon services. There should bo a continuity of services at both olaces. He (the Moderator) had been told on the authority of an assistant that there were people in this parish who never darkened the door of a church, and there was a good deal of work to be done there. He was convinced that this was the best scope for home mission work that their Church couLd possibly imagine. He would bo sorry if the Presbytery did not agree to tho recommendation. A deputation consisting of Messrs

Crawley, Millar, and Carrington waited upon the Presbytery with a resolution carried by 90 per cent, of the Ravensbourne congregation that a call be made upon the Rev. Andrew Gray, of Gore, to fill the vacancy. In addressing the Presbytery, Mr Crawley asked that their application for temporary lassifctanoe be granted. He wa6 quite satisfied that in the near future they would have no difficulty whatever in meeting all their engagements. Messrs Millar and Carrington endorsed Mr Crawley's remarks, as did also Mr Davidson, a member of the Presbytery. The Moderator moved, and the Rev. Mr Aitken seconded —"That the call be sustained, and that arrangements for the induction ceremony to take place on May 9 be left in the hands of a committee co'isisting of the Moderator, the Clerk of the Presbytery, the Rev. A. Whyte, and Mr Davidson." The report of the Charge Extension Committee was also adopted. An application was received from the South Dunedin congregation for permission to raise a loan of £IOOO for the purpose of erecting a Sabbath School building.—Messrs M'Cracken and Kay waited upon the Presbytery, and urged that the building would not be a luxury, but an absolute necessity. It was pointed out to the deputation that as the ground upon which the money was to be raised was not vested in the Church there was no need to apply for permission, and that it was an act of courtesy on their part in bringing it before the meeting. A motion was carried giving the necessary permission, several members of the Presbytery enlarging upon the progressive and independent spirit of the South Dunedin congregation in endeavouring to help themselves. One member went so far as to say that the South Dunedin congregation was an object lesson to many of the other congregations. A letter was read from the Youth of the Church Committee, which stated that out of 33,000 young people of Bible Class age in the Presbyterian Churches of the Dominion only 11,000 were members of Bible classes or of Christian Endeavour Societies, or were Sunday School teachers. The attendance at these classes was decreasing, with the exception of one or two country districts.—This letter was referred to a committee, of which Mr Parton was appointed convener. On the motion of the Rev. A. M. FinLayeon, seconded by Mr P. G. Pryde. it was decided —" That application be made to the Synod for authority to sell the section recently purchased for a church at Warrington, and to apply the proceeds to the erection of a church on the site presented to the Presbytery, which site the Presbytery considers suitable."-—The plans and specifications of the new church were submitted, and were referred to a special committee, and it was decided to apply to the Presbytery for a grant for the erection of the building. A report was read on the Anderson's Bay Church, the committee appointed to go into the matter of this new church recommending that several alterations be effected to the plans of the proposed new structure. " They should start de novo,'' said the Rev. Mr Kinmont, " as the building suggested by the plans, to my mind, will not be worthy of Anderson's Bay." The meeting decided to send the plans back to the congregation, and also to ask the Synod to make a grant for the work, conditionaly upon fresh plans being approved of-