CHURCH MANAGERS’ CONFERENCE AND INTEREST.

Southland Times, Issue 22040, 13 June 1933, Page 7

CHURCH MANAGERS’ CONFERENCE AND INTEREST.

To the Editor,

Sir—The conference of Church Managers recently held in Invercargill, was a great success from the organizers’ point of view. It was so well organized that there was hardly any need for the 200 church managers from all parts of the Southland Presbytery to have attended. I had prepared a short paper to read, maintaining that the charging of interest is at the bottom of all the church’s financial troubles, but was only allowed to read part of it. A certain minister objected, and I agreed not to proceed, rather than cause unpleasantness. I have been a church manager and a collector for over 30 years and am still going strong. I think the church managers have done wonderful work and have not failed to do whatever was asked of them. I cannot say the same of our ministers. The church has been endowed with lands and colleges built. They have had the world of learning to choose from as their teachers, and the adherents of the church have borne all the burden, so that the ministers could teach God’s Word to us. Here they are to-day asking for more funds, and not one word of comfort to us to help us to carry on. Twelve months ago last February, I went to one of our leading Invercargill churches. The preacher told us how the great thinkers and writers of the world were saying that world affairs were on the brink of a volcano, the politicians can do nothing, and that it only remained for the church to lift the world out of the danger. If it was near the brink of a volcano 18 months ago, it is nearer still to-day, and something is going to happen within the next few months that will change things for the worse and not for the better. Now, I consider nearly three-parts of our troubles to-day is due to our ministers, and not to our politicians, for it is the character of a people that make a government what it is. We. hear a lot to-day about economics. Did you ever hear a minister preach on God’s economic laws? They preach thousands of sermons and spend thousands of our money in telling us that we are not to take a little wine for our stomach’s sake, which the Bible really allows us to do. Now here is something that every time it is mentioned in the Bible is condemned as a great sin, except perhaps in one or two cases that do not apply. I mean the taking of interest on money lent. Through the breaking of that law the world to-day is suffering for the sins we have committed in the past, and are committing to-day. The secured debts of the world have slowly, but surely, increased by relentless ' compound interest, until the burden is too great for the world to bear. The taking of interest on money is most certainly not Christian, and it should be the duty of a Christian minister to preach to this effect. All the Fathers of the Christian Church condemned it. Lecky says that it was never permitted in England till the time of Henry VIII. If our Empire adopted the law of the Lord that no interest should be charged on money lent, our people would soon be immeasurably better off on the average. Wealth would be far more evenly distributed, trade would not languish and revive in cycles as at present, nor our cities be filled with unemployed. Here are a few. passages which show what God’s Law is on the subject of usury. Usury, by the way, does not mean extortionate interest. It means any interest at all:— Ex. xxii., 22/5: “If thou lend money to any of my people that is poor by thee, thou shalt not be to him as an usurer, neither shalt thou lay upon him usury.” Lev. xxv., 36/7: “Thou shalt not give him thy money upon usury, nor lend him thy victuals for increase.” Deut. xxviii., 19: “Thou shalt not lend upon usury to thy brother; usury of money, usury of victuals, usury of anything that is lent upon usury.” Proverbs xxviii., 8-9: “He that tumeth away his ear from hearing the law, even his prayer shall be an abomination.” (And it was usury the writer was speaking of). Luke vi., 35: “But love your enemies, and do good, and lend, hoping for nothing again, and your reward shall be great.” . This last passage shows that Christ endorsed all the passages I have just quoted. The governments of our Empire are converting their loans to a lower rate of interest, as they see it is the only hope. When they convert them still lower, no doubt we will be saved in the end. But what a shame that our church does not strengthen their hands when they are unconsciously fulfilling God’s laws in part. Nehemiah’s fifth chapter is all about usury. The Jews had mortgaged their lands to buy food during a famine and to pay tribute to Persia. The mortgagees were wealthy Jews. Nehemiah severely rebuked the moneylenders, who had the good grace not to

exact further interest Money is merely a token for an exchange of goods, but when it is made an article that can be bought and sold, we get all the evils which are with us to-day. God’s laws are perfect, and if we could get our mniisters to teach them to us, we would not need to trouble to try and understand the Douglas Credit Scheme or any other new-fangled idea. The world is waiting for the Economic Conference as it waited for Ottawa, and you know how far short of our expectations that came. The Hon. Adam Hamilton said the other day in Christchurch, that if the Economic Conference did not fix things there would be a crash. Men like him do not say such things without reason. I firmly believe that it is only through the teaching and preaching of God’s Laws that the world will rise again after it crashes. Could not the church managers’ conference ask our ministers to turn again, for why should we perish through their neglect?—l am, etc., D. McRAE.