AMONG THE CHURCHES.

Southland Times, Issue 19389, 1 November 1924, Page 10

AMONG THE CHURCHES.

IN THE HOMELAND. FAMOUS SPEAKERS AND HISTORIC EDIFACES. Rev D. K. Fisher, of Lumsden, relating his visit to the churches, during his recent tcur of England and Scotland, writes:— occasionally on the Sabbath was I entirely free from special engagements so that opportunities of hearing dis tinguished preachers were very few. On weekdays, however, I found chances now and again* of attending services and of being a listener. AT ST. PAUL’S CATHEDRAL. “One of the first of these was that of attending at the great St. Paul’s, London. Here, in the afternoon, quite a number of people were gathered; the mest of these, to all appearances, like myself, strangers. The clergyman in charge read a scripture lesson, then delivered a short address, the subject of which I cannot now remark upon as any notes I took of the address have been lost, but the choir-boys, assisted by musical friends, rendered a very good programme. More than speaker cr singer, however, the historical surroundings and fine statuary impressed me deeply. Then, overhanging above us all, from roof, rafters, and mighty corridors, were the tattered and eloquent colours of army and navy units, commemorative of the brave deeds of brave men. t IN EDINBURGH. “As in the National Cathedral in London, so in the National Church of Scotland, St. Giles, Edinburgh, daily religious services are conducted. The day I was privileged to visit this magnificent Cathedral, there were but a few worshippers within its historic walls and the choir-boys present had apparently just dropped in for duty at the close of their ordinary school hours, for school bags and books lay on the chairs beside them. The officiating clergyman for the day, Rev Mr Thornton, was quite a young minister, but he conducted a full* dress service, read the lessons, then preached a very thoughtful sermon on the words: “As Paul reasoned of righteousness, temperance and judgment to come, Felix trembled and said, ‘Go thy way for this time ”. The preacher’s aim was to show that the governor, Felix, had not expected the strange Jewish Rabbi to speak before him on such subjects as these. There were matters affecting his morality, his daily life and conduct, whereas he looked for some information about the new religion of the notorious Nazarene, Jesus, the new Messiah. Perhaps, even more than that he looked for promises of money from the prisoner before him should the governor bring about his speedy release. To-day, the young preacher continued, there are some people like Felix: they come to chiurch, they will show some interest in Christianity at first, but when they discover that the Christian Church teaches a high morality, when Christianity goes to the heart of human life and action and declares for righteousness, selfcontrol, and coming judgment for men, these people turn away from it—Christianity for them, loses its attractiveness. They give it the go-by. Here, also, in this lofty and spacious building were many battered and torn flags suspended from wall and pillar, hovering over each new generation of worshippers like silent spirit-presences of bygone days, radiating all around them a halo of glory from the daring and the heroism of soldier and sailor-lad who gallantly died for duty, Homeland and God, in glory field or flood. SABBATH OBSERVANCE.

“In again, at St. George’s Parish Church, a special week-night meeting of an inter-denominational nature was held. Here, a prominent layman occupied the chair and declared again the object of such a cosmopolitan gathering to be an endeavour to obtain better observance of the Lord's Day. He remarked on the representative meeting before him and believed that nearly all the different branches of the Christian Church had delegates there. He considered we could not bring back the days of the old Scottish Sabbath, but should try to preserve what was best in that for our own time. In his opinion many people seemed to' have dropped public worship out of their programme for that day. He thanked the Prime Minister for the manner in which he had spoken out on this question at the opening of his Ministry. The Secretary for Scotland, who apologised for his absence from the meeting, stated in his note to the chairman, that the object of the meeting was one he had deeply at heart. Then there came a series of addresses and resolutions, one of the speakers in connection with which was Dr Norman McLean, who treated chiefly of the historical side, of the question and maintained that the people were being robbed of what was their alienable right to a day of rest and worship. Then the seconder to Dr McLean’s resolution, took up the position that the Church as a whole did not stress the need for the Sabbath and the worship of the Lord’s Day as it should. In support of his contention, he related that a case he knew of was that of a congregation who were plied Sunday after Sunday at the door of their place of worship by the newsboys and their papers. The minister of that congregation availed himself of a convenient opportunity and preached against the habit of members of his congregation becoming customers of the newsboys at their worship hours. After that Sabbath, the speaker declared, the newsboys got no more custom at that church door. Rev Mr Macneilage moved another resolution and spoke thereto.

He desired to set the declaration about the Sabbath as it stands in the Confession of Faith before the audience and to get the different churches to ponder it as thus set out. He emphasised the truth that Christ is the Lord of the Sabbath and no one else. In connection with the prevalence of foot and mouth disease in certain agricultural districts at that time, Mr Macneilage told the story of an old farm servant, who, when many were discussing where and when the dreaded disease might break out next, declared that the disease would not come near their farm because his master observed the Sabbath. And so far that farm had been immune. Another prominent speaker took up the attitude of one fighting for the Sabbath as a social necessity. We must re-think and re-state the question, both from the social and industrial point of view. The question of restriction of trade, in his opinion, was seriously involved in it. Altogether a very full and a very clear discussion took place, and ecclesiastical and political circles were to be duly acquainted with the nature of the series of resolutions carried and to be urged to act accordingly. CITY TEMPLE, LONDON.

“One other outstanding week-night service I had an opportunity of attending. This was held in the celebrated Citj’’ Temple Holbcrn Viaduct, London. Here the Rev Dr Norwood ministers, and ministers with great acceptance, so this noble edifice is kept as prominently before the public as when the famous Dr. Joseph Parker sounded forth his eloquent orations to a listening world. At the moment, Dr Norwood was absent on holiday, and a Dr Hough, of the United States is temporarily in charge. That night I had entered this beautiful and commodious church that I might hear and meet the Rev John McNeill from America, but still known to the populace and advertised wherever he travels, as the Scottish Evangelist. I had a slight acquaintance with John McNeill while he was a preacher in Edinburgh, and we had met in Dunedin over thirty years ago. At that later date Mr McNeill was engaged to conduct special evangelistic missions in several of the larger centres of our Dominion, and there are, doubtless, many who have a happy recollection of the missioner’s stay amongst us. That night he was preaching under the auspices of the Metropolitan Federation of the churches. He had just concluded a mission in another part of the great city and was to make this temple the centre of his further effort ' for a few days, then the mission at Wembley was to open. This was my first visit within the walls of this world-famed Christian

church. It stands in a prominent position in Holborn district and commands the attention of the passer by by its noble architectural outlines, its beautiful Corinthian pillars—two stories high—and its graceful and lofty steeple. Within, the building is a huge square, with galleries on three sides, numerous and lovely coloured windows, and quite roomy and comfortable seats. That particular evening the galleries were closed, but the floor of the church was well filled with a well-dressed and very expectant audience, of whom there seemed to be as many men as women present, some 500 people altogether. Mr McNeill started his, meeting pretty punctually at half-past seven o’clock, and after the singing of the hymn, “Rest of the Weary, Joy of the Sad,” the lesson was read and the text announced, “Behold I stand at the door and knock”— Rev. chap. 3. Ver. 20. Before entering upon his address, the speaker referred to of long ago, when the late Dr Parker, in view of a holiday he had been ordered to take, called upon him, then a young preacher in Edinburgh, to take charge of the week-day service here and keep it going until Dr Parker’s return. Mr McNeill declared that he was not sure whether he kept that Thursday meeting going, but he did his best to fill a position he regarded as a very high and honoured one. He could never forget the late Doctor’s kindness and consideration, nor the sympathetic attention accorded him by the Deacons of the City Temple at that time, one or two of whom he believed, were present at that meeting. Coming to his text and his subject for that night, the preacher stressed the fact that professing Christian people can be wrong. People pretend to be what they are not, and what they themselves are quite well aware they really are not. They were to save themselves from the Laodicean lukewarmness — neither cold nor hot. That state must be overcome, and can be overcome if the persons aflected would only bestir themselves. Do not take things easy. “Take it easy,” a teacher might say to Our Master, but He didn’t and He couldn’t, and so there was the cross for Him because He didn’t make it easy for Himself. Mr McNeill then drew attention to the nature of the “knocking.” The word used suggested a knock, knock, knocking—continuous action. Christi, anity can be viewed or known in its outwardness and its inwardness. The great Matthew Arnold called for its inwardness. The inward is Christ in a man—that is more than mere church attendance, or even membership. The thing must be in the heart, and a blood heat matter at that. The Laodiceans had lost sight of that truth and they were in a most miserable plight now. The crowd in a church might be all “well-spoken” and “well-doing,” and yet the Master might have to exhort them in words like these: — “You are all in your places, but I am left out.” Just the play of Hamlet with Hamlet left out. It is a wonder He does not walk away and leave us to ourselves, to our outwardness, but he doesn’t He stands and knocks. So we must get at the “lapsed” to our outwardness, but He doesn’t, He stands and knocks?So we must get at the “lapsed” in the church,. before we can do anything with the “lapsed” outside the church. It is the man in the seat before the man in the street, that Christ must be in possession of. “I will spue them out of my mouth.” How vulgar that is, some people would say. But Christ was in deadliest earnestness, and it was all or none. The vulgarity is here among professed “believers”—the “Little dapper, decent, dainty soul, that does not love Him.—that is the abominable vulgarity.” Play with anything you like, but don’t play with religion.” “I don’t deal in doctrinal discussions, I just say things, and brother, if I tramp upon your corns, just draw in your feet and let me by.” Again, the preacher declared, the door is a glass door, speaking in the language of to-day—you can see Him there. But a glass door will keep him out just as an iron or wooden one will. He will come in ff we open. John McNeill’s “asides” are fairly frequent, yet generally well to the point. As an illustration it might be mentioned that Mr McNeill made his own intimations about his mission and its aim. In speaking to the matter of collections on behalf of the Federation of Churches responsible for the financing of the effort, he cried, “You are all familiar with the words of Scripture: ‘The Lord loveth a cheerful giver’—now the word ‘cheerful’ means ‘mirthful’—in fact, we get our word ‘Hilarious* from it. The Lord loveth a hilarious giVer. Now, is there any man or woman in this audience, who has observed, at any time in the Church on a Sunday, when the minister has announced that the offering will be taken, any member there and then, get up to his feet and shout,

“Hallelujah, here’s the plate!” A hilarious give* indeed.” At the close of the meeting I had a shake of Mr McNeill’s hand and a few words of greeting with him. He still looks hale and hearty, sings lustily, and speaks out so as to be heard all over the building. He tells us he is now over seventy years of age, that he has been in his present charge in the United States for four years, and that is his longest pastorate in any church. I also had a short conversation with one of the venerable and active Deacons of the City Temple, who, amongst other things, stated that many of them were extremely sorry at the prospect of losing from London the Rev Lionel Fletcher. Mr Fletcher has recently arrived in New Zealand and has been inducted in Beresford Street Congregational Church, Auckland.