WESLEYAN CHURCH, TEMUKA.

Temuka Leader, Issue 2088, 21 August 1890, Page 2

WESLEYAN CHURCH, TEMUKA.

JUBILEE CELEBRATION.

XHE lilSOTffß*. The Rev. J. S. Smalley'a lecture at the Wesleyan Church on Monday night, or rather the discursive narrative he g*ve of his journey through the Mediterranean and the Holy Land, proved very interesting, and it ,ifl to be regretted that so few availed themselves of the opportunity of hearing.it. Glancing briefly *t the pre, liminary part of the journey, he some length upon the beauties of the Colosseum it Rome, now almost in rami, but of which sufficient remained to m«ke it interesting to travellers of all nations and faiths. . Abont two-thirds; of the original wall is stillstahding, and the dens wherein were confined the animals that took part in the martyrdom' of Christians are still extant. The Vatican ie atill visited by millions annually,' and an interesting description was given of the religious observanceaof the many pilgrinia who.visited the sacred relics there. The first view of the Holy Land was the port of Jbppa, Here are, etill to be seen the houses of Dorcas and Simon the tanner. Around the town, which contains about (7000 people, are magnificent orange groves, diffusing a most delicious odour when in bloom. From Joppa to Jerusalem the journey, which lasted about nine hourß, was made by coach. The lecturer's entrance to Jerusalem was by the Jaffa I gate, and his first impressions were disappointing. The most interesting approach ! was by the Mount of Olives. The hotel accommodation was described, and that of the German hospice commended; on account of its cleanlinesß and cheapness. Under the direction of a guide, tho Church of trie Holy Sepulchre was visited, arid also the Mosque of Omar, believed to be built upon the'actual Bite of Solomon's Temple. This sacred enclosure occupies eight acres, and until recently was not open to Christian visitors. The "wailing" place of the Jews was described, and also the ceremony that took place there on the Sabbath, which i was described as an affectine: sight. The idea that the Jews were flocking to the

Holy Laod ; fr,om-all parts-pwas combated by the Bpeaker, who believed that there were not more than from fifteen.to twenty thousand Jew's in the country.' He was informed that the majority of these were supported by the contributions' of their countrymea in different parts of the world. The better class were the 'iertnans, who ; had dono much to improve the places on which tbey had settled. The lecturer made the acquaintance of a sect called the American Adventists, who believed in the immediate advent of (he Savieuri and in that faith were living. They were few in number, and had tbeir residence in a spacious building in view of Mount Olivet. The Dead Sea and the river Jordan we;e described, ; The former was 1300 ft. bolow the level of the Mediterranean, and intensely'salty. The spot where the Israelites crossed the Jordan was viewed"with interest, and also the ruins of ancient Jericho. < The lecturer, accompanied by an Arab guide, had made the journey from Jerusalem to Damascus, and gave a graphic description of Sbechem, Jacob's Well, the Plain of Eadraelori,.' Shunam, Endor, Nain, and other places of Scriptural interest. At Nazareth, whioh was described as a beautiful ; town, the house oHha Virgin Mary waa visited, and a trip made upon the Sea of Galilee. This part of the Hdiy Land was dwelt upon with evident interest, the speaker saying that he felt that around it lay a halo of glory. The return journey to ; Joppa was briefly touched upon, and the lecturer ooncluded with an expression of thanks-

giving tfyat he lived under, British rule, for the government in,,the, East was of a most tyrannous description. He expressed himself, however, convinced that it was impossible to visit the places described without receiving much moral strength. AFTBRKOON SBRTIOB. "

On Tuesday afternoon the Rev. W. Morley, secretary of the Wesleyan Conference, delivered an address in the church. There was only a moderate 'Wdance, the hour selected being far from con7 aaieDt - Th u e rev gentleman gentleman reviewed the history of the Wesleyan movement, drawing attention to its geeateftt apostles from Wesley to the present'day..' acEA itßiima. , In tha evening a tea meeting was held in the Social Hall. The attendance was large, and a very sociable and, hearty feeling prevailed. The repast was of ah unusually sumptuous character. It was the gift of Mrs Job. Brown, who entrusted the catering to Mr _T.'Barr. The several tables were presided 'over by Mesdames Job Brown, Wm. Holwell, Longston, Beaumont, and 1 Miss Brown.

IHB PUBLIC MEETIN« was held in the church, which was well filled. Mr Job Brown occupied the chair, and upon the rostrum with him were the Revs. Morley, Williams, and SmaMey, After devotional exercise, the chairman said'that the event which had called them together was one of great import and full ;of meaning. It was calculated to draw out their minds towards God, who had so eminently blessed them in the past, it was,aome twenty-six years since he had first' come to jTemuka. At that time there was no Methodist Church in the place. Georgetown was Iboked upon as the destined township, and there a Presbyterian service was conducted by the Rev. G.Barclay. He recalled ■those services with pleasure. In duo eefiisa he :met Mr T, White, now, of Mil ford, and they held the first Methodist service in his (the speaker's) sitting-room. Subsequently services were inaugurated at Geraldme, and first held in the late Mrs Maslm a A church was built there in dae time and S«ny ..profitable hours were time, ana ffceJ> spent. A small cllflro>~ nao "" . wards built at Temuks, #" [ "'* fire, caused by th.va^es of a drunken mac. It waß a very building, but it represented in those days a groat effort. When it was destroyed they found themselves £4O »n debt, and with no church. The man who destroyed the building was prosecuted and imprisoned for two year*. They were not dismayed, but held another meeting, and very soon had another church built. Mr Brown passed lightly over later events, which were familiar with his hearers, and concluded with a touching reference to several ot their ministers, especially referring to the late Mr Wills.

The choir sang an anthem, • How Holy [a (he Place !' ~

The Rev. J.'S. Smalley spoke briefly of the characteristice of the Wesleyan Church, which he described as an adaptive Church with no cast-iron constitution, but taking a little of., the beßt from all the Churches. The creed of John Wesley was a liberal, one, and the services of their Church were equally impressive, held either in the kitchen or ts cathedral. In the fntore women would probably take a leading part in it. In America they were already being ordained for the work, and there was much good they could do. The Jubilee movement w»s iu touch with the adaptive oharacter of the church. There was a very material enlargement, but he

regretted to Bay that in the[6ld country at all events there was not a ! corresponding spiritual enlargement. He spoke of the condition of the poor of London evident at the Queen's Jubilee, and Baid that there were many, there .worse off than serfs in the middle ages. Their conference had decided to endeavour to raise the sum of £15,000 for church extension, etc., and had sent the secretary, Mr Morley, to stir them up. He hoped, that their gifts would be given in a spirit of thankfulness for mercies enjoyed. A hymn was then sung and cards distributed," upon which might be written the amouats people desired to give. ; The Rev. Mr Williams considered the Jubilee movement a happy thing, as it reminded them that they were a counection. In 1818 Samuel Lee, the first

Wesleyan Missionary, accompanied Samuel Marisden, the Episcopal Missionary to the Bay of lilands, and from there the work had spread. Lee was the forerunner of a | noble band, amongst whom the speaker recalled Rev. Mr Turner, now called from his labors, but whose wife was still living, John Hobba, personally known to the speaker, James Watkins the ( first to plant Methodism in the South Island, John Whitely, James Wallacs, Buddie,

Butler, and many others. He gave a j graphic account of the landing of tl>e first j emigrants at Wellington and the service hold there by the Rev. San. Buller, and also spoke of the efforts of the Rev. Mr Richardson in Sooth Ctnterbury. Solo by Mrs Bans, «• Too Late! Ye cannot enter now." The Rev. Mr Morley apologised for the absence of Mr Manchester. • ■He (the speaker) would have been glad of his presence, as it would have shewn that the movement was'.'hot merely of the clergy but of laymen. The movement was not merely to raise money. The objects, as defined by the Conference, were—lst : To evoke gratitude to God for blessiogs received during the whole history of the Church, especially in New Zealand ; 2nd : To deepen the? spiritual life; 3rd: To

educate the young into a more thorough acquaintance with the doctrines of the Church. He wished to impress upon them that they were a ; Connecttip'nai Church. There were 450 congregations, 20,000 Sunday School scholars, and 50,000 worshippers are allied and nil interested in one great work. He referred to portions of their Church polity, speaking especially of the advantages of the itinerancy, of their ministry. Another good feature was the spirit of evangelism displayed. They never asked for more th»n a comfortable support, and therefore ihere wne a larger number of village churches. An oppor« tunity also was offared of employing lay preaohers, and this oniblod tbem to cover

a great scope of country and do a great deal of work, in all about 300 locil preachers were engaged in going about tho length and breadth of the land. They ought to think with gratitude of tha spread of fellowship and the care for the young in their schools. They had started in a atnflll way—for in Auckland tne first service had beeh held in % sawpit—but now thoy had plenty of churches. There was still, however, work to do. When he Game to the colony there were only 9 circuits; now there were 60,, with 80 ministers, and about 60,000 hearers. The conference now proposed to help forward the work by raising, £15,000, to be apportioned as follows :—(A). A special amount to be invested on behalf of the Home Mission and Church; [Extension Fund, the interest of which will be devoted to purely progressive work. (H.) The formation of a special branch of the Loan J''und, to be devoted to the relief of embarrassed trusts and the acquisition of sites. (C.) An increase of the.capital of the present Loan Fund to £IO,OOO as originally intended. Tue subscription could be extended over three years, if necessary, and the system of cards had been adopted in preference to a bouss-to-house canvass. Tbe speaker then made an eloquent appeal to his hearers to respond liberally and to give in a spirit of thankfulness, The choir then sang ' Abide with ine.' Mr Bntler moved a very hearty vote of thanks to Mrs Brown for the gift of the tea, and to Mr Brown for occupying tbe chair that evening. This was seconded by Mr Miles ana carried by acclamation. The Rev. Mr Bunn made a few remarks upon the objects of the Jubilee, after which Mr Brown returned thanks for the vote passed and moved a similar compliment to the speakers. ;-, /The meeting closed with the benediction.