CHURCH TRUANTS

Southland Times, Issue 18965, 13 June 1923, Page 10

CHURCH TRUANTS

FINES FOR NON-ATTENDANCE. The canons and Constitution Ecclesiast. going to church was a servant named Isaac Walton. In 1864 he disobeyed his mist re..« when told to attend divine worship. In consequence he appeared before the magistrates, who imposed a fine of 9/9. The canons and Constitutions Ecclesiastical (1603) were published under Royal authority, with the object of compelling people to attend church. Their provisions made it clear that the churchwarden’s lot was an unenviable one. These were a few of his duties:— “They shall see that •'the Lord's Day be duly observed; they shall search ale-houses on Sundays, and if any persons are found therein during divine service they shall make them pay 3/4 and also 1/- for being absent from church: and the master of such ale-home shall forfeit 10/-. “ Churchwardens shall levy the forfeiture of 1/- a Sunday on the goods of persons who do not come to church. The churchwardens shall, on pain of the forfeiture of £2O, present at the sessions once a year the monthly absence from church of all recusants; also the names and ages of their children who are above nine years old, and the names of their servants. And if the party presented shall be convicted, the churchwardens shall be entitled to a reward of 40/-, to be levied on the recusant’s goods by warrant of the justices in session.”