MISSION FOR MEN.

Timaru Herald, Volume XIIIC, Issue 14154, 14 March 1910, Page 6

MISSION FOR MEN.

NATIONAL. RESPONSIBILITY. j ! j., r ;pi:. Mary'a Church contained :i largo j , 'congregation at last evening's service, ■ j when the Rev, J±. ki. Woollcombe . piva.L-hcd a teni.on on "Imperial lie- , ajMjiJsibiiity." The livss portion of his 1 address dealt with l!io hit>tury of the u Jewish people as written in the Old £ Testament. This history, he said, dif- j , l'crcd very little from secular history, i the most important distinction being . that the Jewish historian, not only re- i i lated facts but also took readers be- I t hind the scenes and sot forth motives. 1 , .ytlie Jowa realised that they had a ! nfrent responsibility, and that to fulfill j j Llod's purpose the;- had need of na- ) ] cnal obedience. Very similar to the '■ ] losiiinn of tho Jews was that of the ' ] Anglo-Saxon race to-day. The history j . of this race showed that God had a); great purpose for the niititm, and that j ' lie had built it up !o fulfil His p'a.n. i Even the younger people must realise | , what a responsibility rested upon the j ■ British. Empire, when they thought of • the millions of heathen ' people that had been given into her charge by almighty God, who was using the great empire to bring those people to a knowledge of Himself. If Britain refused to carry out her responsibility they could foresee that hers would be the fntp of other nations which had also failed to fulfil God's purposes. These could only lie fulfilled if each individual realised his responsibility. Christ was making a great call on men to witness tn -the truth as it was in Himself, and Ho appealed to them to help in His work" Britain was looked up to ns the mother of nations : find it was for her to lead in spreading +?U'_ truth over the world. This meant? besides obedience to God that ■J <iyery individual must obey the Supremo will and do his part fearlessly. ADDRESS ON BROTHERHOOD. SERVICE v. SELFISHNESS. Quite otf the beaten track, and wholesome in its candour, was tho straight talk which the Rev. H. S. Woollcombe gave to a big meeting of m"u in the Theatre Royal last night, when ho dealt in a forceful way with the sins of the times, and uttered an earnest nlef). for true manliness and a great christian brotherhood. The Mayor (Mr James Crakde) presided, find with him on the stage were tho Rev. S. Treriee Adams, and a number | of office-bearers of St. 'Mary's Church. In a few appropriate words, Mr Craigie introduced the visitor, who, he exp!amod_ was a nephew if the late Captain Woollcombe. of Timaru. who was the first Magistrate in South Canterbury, and who. by reason of his kindly disposition and upright life, was familiarly known as "Daddy" Woollcombe. He was very pleased to wel- I come to Timaru. a nephew of this old ■ and rcspeeted pioneer, and to wish his ' mission every success. The Rev. H. S. Woollcombe. who has a very pleasant style of addressing an audit.nro, had not been speaking five inmulos bel'iir" he was on good terms with res: lis'euers. and thereafter was able tn .- - strong things in such a way as to flvU-. them home effectively, the les.-ni•• l lr . sought to impart. He made it plain that he is a ' [snort," and co Vr ,..,i „f j,; s illustrations were couched in horsey parlance, his favnurife sport evidently being a oross-coimtrv ride on a p;ood hunter. He made it, plain however, that he did not hrlievo in inert lying carried ! to o\-opss—ho lu'nto-! jl,.if if is in this cone.tov—-ml S! ,;/| jj pl lf ,„l,l 1, e OT ,l y the oil toerease the wheels of work. We shnnld know J !>M. IV e worn not flout into flic world for snort merely. but to wort: in .••>-■.■>. <-.< i .7,,, (tod so a-- to leave (ho w,,rld he+tor than we found it. Tn mmnatic; terms he declaims! against look.™- s _, m . either in tlie field of snort or ; u thf serious htu-inev.s of lif... The idea of paying n few nrofcsionnls to nlav a game while 3'0.00Q people looked on, ~ was absurd: and it wn- still more absurd tnnt_there should ]«? so mnnv lookerson in our civic and Christian life.

Many men would willingly stand by ( and criticise the work of ocuers, and it ! < never boomed to strike them that in- \ stead oi bein;; mere drones criticising j ihat ivhai otiiers were doing, they j should be up and doing themselves. Everyoua could give a shove in some , way. In the church, too much was . icl'u to the parsons. The liaty could and .snould do their share of the work, and ii they did there would be a marvellous limeivuca in the national life. A laynia'n could often say a word in season to one of his fellows, that could not be eil'ectiveiy said by "the man with the dog collar on." The duty of '. attendance t public worsiiip was also , insisted -on, Mr Woollcombe pointing out that it was most important that we should bear witness for God in this way. Speaking of manliness he made an appeal to all to be true men, to cultivte their higher nature, and never allow the lower nature to triumph over it, for when the animal nature got the upperhand, man placed himself on a level with the beas"tr. Drinking to excess and gambling were both strongly condemned, and he asked his hearers to think over the incontrovertible fact that the only pleasure in gambling was the taking of another man's money. Was that a desire fit for any true man |to be animated by? They all agreed I that they would like to see tie brotherhood of man a realised fact, yet everyone who gambled, fought against the very principle of brotherhood. "AVash your hands of it," he said, "and you will do more to stem this greatest of evils, than all the legislation ill the world." The blot of impurity on the nation was also dealt with, the speaker pointing his remarks on this head, by asking them to remember that every, fallen woman, was somebody's sister, or somebody's daughter. He explained that the Church of England Men's Society, ef which he is secretary, is a great Christian brotherhood with a membership now of 80,000, the memi bers being pledged to co-operate with one another in promoting the" Christ life. It was a..big movement and he wanted to see it encircling the world, for it welded together all classes in the best possible way. He sometimes feared that the Church of En eland would die of starch and respectability. ' Too. much attention was pai dto social coriclition. ajid one thins; which this great society did, was to break down such harriers, and to recognise that the man with £SO a year was just as good as the Johnny with £SOOO a year, and was entitled to just as warm a. welcome by his fellow worker*, for Christ. "If yon are a churchman, be a j churchman." Mr Woollcombe forcefully urged. "Whatever you are, help the church that you belong to, or be honest and say that you don't belong i to anything." I n conclusion he uttered a stirring peroration in which he drew a vivid word picture of the good s that would accrue if they would only he men, and by a world-wide federation encircle the earth with Christlike lives, j This was our plain duty, and selfishi ness was the only hindrance to carry- \ ing it out. The real meaning of life j was service. I Mr Woollcombe was several times anI plauded during the delivery of his adJ dress. '