THE METHODIST CHURCH.

Timaru Herald, Volume LXXXIX, Issue 13145, 29 November 1906, Page 5

THE METHODIST CHURCH.

CANTERBURY DISTRICT SYNOD.

The Financial Session, in which, both ministerial and lay members took part, commenced at 10.30 a.m. yesterday, after devotional opening. The chairman, Rev. H. Lee, in some opening remarks said there were several' important questions to be considered, that would take up all the time at their disposal. With regard to the position of circuits generally the outlook was hopeful. There had been no great advancement during the year, but on the other hand nothing to discourage them. The statistics to be laid before them would eihow eneourageing increase in the number of church members, of Sabbath School scholars (especially in average attendance)' and also in number, of adherents. Among the matters to be considered was one that had .come up again and again, having reference to alteration of -circuit boundaries. ? On this occasion the question would be confined within narrow limits, but some of the representations made were emphatic in their ternw. A proposal to alter the boundaries of the Durham Street and Christehurch City Circuits came up somewhat irregularly, inasmuch as the alteration had.already been carried out. There might ; be some reason for doing a thing and thettaeking'leave: to do it; it was lyi|lone in the case of erecting buildings .and?l s^ling 'land; . Tj'ut.' the- practice /-.w|as befser avoided. ' It' had not"been 'comuaon, howpver, ! : ;td ! alter boundaries without, the 'previous ' consent; of the Synod." ' Another subject that.would come before them in a somewhat hn ; egular: y-ay; was that ,pf !an conTerehce J for New Zeaiancl. He|hoped would- tje :Mly.?;cotipidered and' thoroughly ; thra:'hed irat.. chairman explained that some of the quarterly meetings ■ 'had been: misled byE the distribution of copies of an old, repotffc by & committee of Conference which ence did not adopt. How or by whop the. disfaibution'<was.. naade Jhe .did ndfc. .jbiidwi it that any members could introducej".but jitjmust be that; it did not come-.before : them as a reconimendation ; from...the . Conference. He hoped that in. the discussion both-,:ministers and' laymen wouidv'deal' with the subject fealmly, and give each other credit for] all sincerity. -He- believed that ithose-who iwere ladvtocatling'a separate Conference frincerely believed that it "would %% "for "the good" of the church, whilst, others saw many difficulties and:dangers,-in the w,ay. In conclusion the President wished the members a pleasant and profitable meeting, f : and antimated that tihis was the lasi^bcca- : sipnfon which he would preside over the Can|erbury Synod, hut he hoped "to take partisan many Synods, ,8s he intended to endjliis days in Canterbury (Applause.) The following was the "roll of lay representatives :—Christehurch,'Durham Street, 1 .Messrs J. J. Smith, and J. Gaarder; do. Mission, R. H. Turner and-T. T. Robson'; Christehurch South, W.palley, J ; Hsmmetf; St. Albans, J. Banks; Bapaaui, A. Hulston and F.Carr;- Lyttelton, J. 'S. Oliver; Springston, G. Trott, and R. Pitkin;; Taitapu, E. \B.: Perryman and F. Hubbard;, Leeston,': J. Barnett and W. Watson,; Kaiapoi, R; Evans and J, A. Clothier; Rahgiora, S. Ayres and T.' J. Burnett: Oxford—Malvern, 'D. HawlieY Tiniaru, E. Holdgate and T/.Smith;' "\jVaimatej :6. 'Manches'ter and A Bitohener ;"• Teinnka, J. W. Miles; Ashburton, J. Cray, M: Priest; Willoughby,''", W. W. Harding, J. Withell. District Secretary, of Church E. J. Smithy. trea#rer, of' Contingent Fund, J. C. Prudhoe; Building and Loan Fund, J. H. Blackwell. . Notices of motion for the afternoon .meeting being called for. Rev. S. Lawry gave notice to amove—" That Conference be recommended to request the General Conference to make provision for giving >to the Annual Conference of New Zealand an independent constitution, with full powers of legislation and control, of its connexilonal funds, under the name of! 'The Methodist Church of New Zealand.!," '■'. The motion goes on to -provide for" the establishment of a separate supernumerary, fund for the colony, for guarding against hasty legislation* for continuance *or the present of support of the New Zealand Conference to" "the 'Australasian . Foreign Mission Fund... V: ' The' Rev. Mr JPihfold, 4,^s;notice- of a motion on temperance. ■■■,..'■ : The regularfquestions ::w,ere7 then taken. l Ob the firstre districts takingmarried ministers, theJTaitapu.v : repre;entarive said they were prepared' to' fuifil'their obligation.

A long discussion in ok p'ace on the Rev. R. Clarke's, lei'imaiendatiom' that some step should be taken to extend the work in the Oxford —Malvern district, several members speaking upon it. Mention was made of a great dwindling of membership—at Malvern end from 73 to 37, and at Oxford from 49 to 14; and of the fact that there are eight mini.«teiv in the district, and only one Wesleyan; and of the prospect of an increase of population- from the cutting-up of large estates, suggesting an additional agent. (Explanatory of the falling off were offered, that the population had been reduced by the dying away of a pawmflling industry; and that itf was due to resentment for tie action of the Conference in amhlgamatirg Oxford and Malvern, without advice frcm either cuit of Synod.) ' ' : - ■ ■■'.. Proposal" was made and 1 " carried to- recommend the Conference to grant an addi : tional agent if the - December quarterly meeting decides to ask for one: and -it was resolved to relieve the district, of its obligation to take a married minister. Rev. S. J. Serpell read a report by him-

| self and hits, senior circuit steward, Mr E. I Holdgate, on an inquiry into the practicaI biiity of establishing ami agent in the FairHe district. They found that there were seven or eight Wesleyan families within a few miles of Fairlie, worshipping and working now with the Presbyterians. The possibilities of the district were bound'.ess, and the populatioon certain to increase. There were now 600 or 700 people living within three Fairlie. Some of the old Wesleyan families were iro favour of the church being represented there, the others were against it on account, of their small numbers. Under the circumstances, they could only recommend that an acre of land be bought in the township as a site, for future use, an acre being under ofi'er at £Bo—£s down ai:d the remainder im 3 or 5 years. Some questions wer& asked with regard to the surrounding .settlements, and the motion in favour of the purchase was approved, it being understood that the interest would be raised locally. The next formal question was whether the parsonage sanitary certificates had been received from newly appointed ministers. Some verbal replies were given, all satisfactory, while many members said the question was a useless one. Rev. S. Lawry moved that the conference be recommended to amend the form of question, making it an inquiry about sanitation instead of about certificates. . Rev. Mr Haslam moved that conic ■ .:■ 'e be recommended to drop the qvesicr. altogether as it was quite useless.—The amendment was negatived and Mr Lawry's motion carried. The report on the state of circuit funds showed that six circuits bad credit balances totalling £4B 2s 3d, and ten had debit balances totalling £270 5s lid Timaru was in the former, and Temuka and Waimate im the latter list.

In the report on the building' and loan fund, the following South Canterbury items were mentioned : —Sale of land lr 6p at Temuka, for £6O; sanction for enlargement of Temuka- parsonage; sanction for sale of present parsonage and grounds at Waimate, and for erection of new parsonage in brick at a cost of £1025. A new church, 30ft by 20ft, had been built at Waima.taitai, land £165, church £250: and 2 reads had been purchased at Gleniti as a- church site. Sanction had been given for .the erection of new Sundayschool at Timaru im brick, 90ft by 60ft, providing, besides other rooms, 12 class rooms, and an assemb'y hall, 60ft by 36ft, to seat 350 adults. The estimated cost was £2250; loan fund £700; no other debt. . The report on conncxional insurances showed that the risks held now amounted to £42,000, increase of £1675 during the year. Ministers' insurances were £2560. The annual report was read of the principal of Three Kings "Wesley College, where religion, the English language and industry are the principal " subjects." The conduct of the 27 pupi's had been exemplary: A large amountof industrial -workis done in "ooking after the property and cattle, there was no, room for idleness, an,d the boys hadVdone the work cheerfully arid well'. For work done out of " statute hours " a small.; payment 'is. made, and this, taught the boys. the ;: benefit,of personal industry; the pupil "ito earn more money must '.give up leisure, or play. r To those whose parents- were poor, this system, had beenj a help in procuring new clothes. Appeal was madef-for funds for- a tool house." "All good authorities," says the report, "agree that the Maori,can have no future unless he will take- to systematic • industry. The sphere in which he:is l to work is riot the city; 1 ' \Work in close, confinel- - and in competition with the keener and more will only kill him. He must go to the rural districts and mainly to. the .cultivation of the soil or the keeping of stock. ■ . No school comes so,'near the ideal training horiie for the Maori as ; "Three Kings:" - The ; report wai'adopted with am expression of sympathy. Areport by Mr.J.H. Simmonds, goverpor, on Prince Albert Theological College, Auckland, was read, and reoeived. A report on church buflding-loans showed that loans totalling £1206 15s lOd were current,'" arid £43 6s 6d was\due for arrears. Ariiong the loans current' were two of £lB7 10s arid £l3l 5s to Timaru. On resuming at. 2 p.m. the first business a question postponed from, the forenoon,.alterations of circuit boundaries. Mr J. J. Smith moved for sanction for at transfer of Opawa, arid Heathcote Valley frorii Ghristohurcli South to Durham street circuit, i Both circuits were desirousi of the change and/[had! agreed to the financial arrangements. It.was desired' to erect a church; in brick arid ston-e at Opawa, and tne immediate sanction of the Synod was desired, so that the building^'oould.be gone on. with..V:', ~- -,. ,;. : . ; .' ,;,■: , Rev. Mr Bewsbury, spoke in sjupport of the proposal, and Ms Smith moved "That the arrangements made between the Durham street and South: Christclitirch circuits whereby Opawa and. Heathcote -"Vol-. ley are to be included m Durham! street circuit he approved, and be forwarded to the conference' for record."—Tirisi was carried.

A second proposal from Durham street was that Belfast should be transferred to Papanui, and Marshlands be worked with Windsor and New Brighton. Mr Smith moved this. Protests were read from the Trustees of. the Belfast aadi Maßihiamds, churches condemning the. proposal; and suggesting as an alternative the forming of a hew circuity by combining Belfast, Marshlands and some other church. Rev. Mr Richards, Home missionary at Belfast,. said the latter arrangement would not answer, the churches being too weak. A prolonged discussion took place, during which, a number of suggestions were made for meeting the difficulty of supplying the needs of Belfast, objection being found to every one of them. Rev. Mr.. Griffin, strongly .opposed the• annexation of Belfast to Papanui, a circuit thjaifc was already too large. He thought the difficulty would-be solved shortly by a division of Papanui, and the formation of a new circuit for Riccarton, where there was a great deal of building going 0n.." ■ Rev- M. Bull proposed an amendment to refer the matter to a committee representing the D.urhlam street and Papanui j circuits. This was carried as against, M* I Smith's motion, and the latter was therefore lost, and the amendment was .then rejected, leaving things as they are. - - » The district' secretary, Mr Smith,' reported on- church property and liabilities. The total receipts for the year were' £4940,', as against £4858 last .year; total expenditure, £5383. an increase of £IOO. The credit- balance carried forward was £474, or £sl more than the year before. The total insurances of church properties in the district were ,£50,326,. an increase, of £2sl.'"' Mr" Smith remarked"; that . the active circuits appeared"to'have'beeii Ghristehurch South "and' Timaru. " A vote of thanks was passed to ! Mr Smith, with a recommendation to conference* to reappoint him as district secretary. The secretary, Rev. Mr Griffin, reported the receipts for the supernumerary fund—from circuits £290, from ministers £212; total £502. about the same as last year. The chairman said he had been requested to call the attention of members to ; the arrears of payment. Most of those who were in arrears were young members.

On tho motion of Rev. H. Bull th© following members of the building and loan fund committee for the ending your—the secretary, the superintendent ministers of the Durham* street. Christchurch South, and St- Albans, with Messrs J. H. Bluckwell, J. A. Flesher, R. W. England, J. Brown and A. F. Drayton. A discussion took place on tho proper time for closing the annual account of tho Home and Fohign Mission Funds, there year for this pin pose ended whether the ear for this purpose ended with September oi" with December. The chairman said the order of business fixed by conference for the Synod required the . bi......'3 sheet to be made out to 30th I >Se;>.j nber, and more than one. minister I said* that was impossible as they did not ] - .nake their effort" till alter September. j »;:.! the conference treasurer accepted money to the end of December. The chairman said they could only report to conference that the information on these heads was incomplete. The chairman indeed for suggestions for improving the Foreign Mission fund, and Kaiapoi's Young Ladies' Guild Auction sale, Vhieh raised a record amount, and two other like enterprises, were mentioned*. The receipts for the Home Mission* fund weie reported, and prospects where th« "effort" was noi complete, many repr&i ' sentatives saying they worked with a view to completing before the end of the year. In meet cases where the effort had been, made the sums raised wire in excess, in some cases considerably in exr-ens, of tlicc estimates of the conference. At 4.30 the business of tho Synod wattinterrupted by the reception oi. a deputation from the Council of the Churches of' Timaru, and the Rev. Mr. Seipe'l introduced the Rev. Messrs Hunt, Stinson, Cossum and Jackson. Tho chairman briefly welcomed the deputation, and the f Rev. A. E. Hunt welcomed the' Synod to Tiniatu and then gave an address cr the kindred work all the churches were doing, their denominational differences being merely superficial. They all used the same Bible, sang the same hymns, prayed in similar terms to the isame God, relied upon the same Saviour, fought against the satire evils, entertained the .>ame hopes, encountered tho same difficulties; beneath the varied garb of denomkationalism. there lived the same Christian man. fj

Rev. Mr Bellhouse replied for the Synod, and gave an address Hint interested hir brethren ax well as the vi.sibiis. Ho tool: occasion to refer to a ii.mark attributed to a New Zealand clergyman visiting Australia that New Zeu'and .was becoining a heathen nation, and he eriiphati- , cfil'y de'ried this. They should have inora faith .in-themselves and their churches than toindu'ge in pessimism of that scrt/ Thi'y were now laying .the foundations of a. r.ow nation, in a magnificent country, and, it) would not become them" to entertain: a. spirit of pessimism or despondency about, and gi'cat principle of "if© and- action. ,' ~ The .Synod then adjourned till 7.30 p.m..'.. '• On-resuming,. , ... •...;.- {■ The. report, on Home, .Missions expendi-i, l •Iture. ishowed a total of £124 10s. I'll© es-, Ttimated income for next year waif mad© out, 1 .total'£4sß 10s. : It was remarked that': the congregations should not. look npdii . this "estimate" as a limit; it ,was not »,', levy, or an; assessment; '• it > was Only njtt!*.i/' estimate on which- to fix/the* amount?j<);4 grants. Grants had exceeded' •i'the?ceipts and the fund would' debt at the end of the year. ■ '■ ''•' '■''■ i■','■> ,'■■ Some one drew,attention to*the-faot.that-;. 'Timaru "the great and important port 'town" was down for £30,. and little Kaiapoi for £35. And'the Kaiapoi. repres»n- ; taf.ive -en'arge^L; thei". difference by , to ; guarantee.jß4s. •• ' '„' ';' ;' On requests for ,aidJ;fi>omthe Home Missdcvh fund, the chairman spoke ot'th^^amdU,;, payments tc- some of their inissibneWiwhictt we're a disgrace to their' church; £IOO a year should be looked! upon as a mkririrum. • The first caee discussed.-.-,was :• Banks Peninsula, and £4O was 1 proposed- ..feW/Xto*,') commended. Rev.. Mr Qriffin frortii,pethi>S sonal knowledge, recommended 'gmngv ujrf.J the charge, but keeping Little•> River; and attafching it to Taitopu. This was objected as too -distant.. Rev, T. Bryant, the missionary there, supported Mr Griffin, and showed that the district was not worth > ■their keeping ; the people there: were Anklicahsrand Presbyteriaciii;^—Mr Blackwell : ■'• paid this* was-the s6rt of information! fchqy l ,; |yanted? } f6'' , gttide them, and they should Mve full report*'from all tHe home niisiipnaries. members spoke in l favour of keeping on the charge, and the . [chairman said it would be disastrous and .-discreditable ito give up the only home ,- mission station in Canterbury asking for a gra.ut. He thought they were needed there. S ,A grant.ofi £4owas recommended* , Mr Evans warned the Synod l that the ■ Presbyterians were taking the ground l from , under' their feet while ,they.slept, in tha.'■» Uiome mission field. (Hearj hear.) An-» :' other lay membe*' supported this *Btat«- , ment'; and two or three members said itwas true, or " heaivheured " it. Rev. Mr Haislam thought it a pity that , such remarks >:liould be made in public meeting, for publication ; land others said it was a eulogy on the Presbyterians, and if they were doing good work, anywhere, "God bless them."

A grant of £lO was made to Amberley. On applications for grants for circuits, £3O was renewed to Durham street, for '■• the Belfast Home mission. A request, for £25 for Taitapu, to assist the circuit 1 on faking a married man, after a long discussion, was granted by 23 to 17, conditionally on, the minister's stipend being not less than £l7O. A grant of £2O was made to assist the Metbven end of Ashburton. A short report was made on the Maori work at Raupaki. ' ; Qn the question whether any suggestion could be made for improving the fund, mention was made of a proposal of the Wanganui Synod to muse 1b per member. 'House-to-house canvass was recommended; also improved management of the. mission, meetings, and more liberal! distribution of information, and. a JBOtson to this effect) was proposed and carried. Rev. S. J^Serpellwas elected Tepresen- ; tative of the; Synodifwifch chairman :ex,. officio) oni the StationMg Committee-of the| conference. . .'. This result of two ballots was received with applause, and Mr Serpen returned thanks. Rev. T. N. Griffin \vas appointed substitute representative. , . , Th<-j general returns for thedwtrict wel|e presented. These showed--ChurchßS; and preaching places 118, parsonages 24,injn» inters and probationers 28,' Home aries and deaconesses. 5, local preachers 136, class leaders 19, members on on probation 82, jonior members 383, Chrwir; tian Endeavour Societies, senioi;,: tive members 542, do. junior' 10, active members 265, attendant* on publio > worship including Sunday school .■scholars ' 16,585, Sunday schools 69, teachers on • roll 585, average attendance 488, 'scholars ' oiv rolV 5324, average attendance '3778, books in libraries 12,070. Comparisons , with last year's figures show mcreases m • nearly all "cases. \ <-,".£«, on the returns were deferred till • to-day. '■,..,« At 9.45 p.m. the Synod adjourned till 9.30 a.m. to-day. There remain to be*. -dealt with three notices of motion —on independent conference, on independent jpoj*: nal,lond on temperance, and it M 'pS| < to complete the work of the morning.