CHURCH UNION

Wanganui Chronicle, Volume 75, Issue 42, 19 February 1932, Page 9

CHURCH UNION

METHODIST ATTITUDE. CHRISTCHURCH, Feb. 18. Declaring that the menace of a material and seeularistic age was a formidable challenge to the Christian Church to greater unity of spiritual aim and effort, the Rev. M. A. Rugby Pratt, in his presidential address this evening at the opening of the Methodist Conference in Christchurch, referred to the question of Church Union. Confronted by the influences that were leading people away from religion, all the churches, said the speaker, were feeling the need for closer fellowship and co-operation. They were being driven by necessity, but until they were drawn by desire, it was to le feared that any organic union was only a goal to be saluted from afar. Referring to the recently expressed desire of the Anglican Primate of New Zealand for “conversations,” along the lines of the resumed Lambeth “conversations” to which the Archbishop of Canterbury had invited the English Free Churches, Mr. Pratt said while such a gesture merited their courteous and sympathetic consideration, he feared the Lambeth Conference had itself already extinguished any gleaming possibility of union with the Free Churches, for the more remote and uncertain prospect of reunion with the Greek and Latin Churches. Furthermore, it was didicult to visualise uniou with the Anglican Church, while that church was itself so confused in regard to sacerdotal and evangelical practice, and so divided on vital principles of faith and order, as appeared from the controversy between tho High and Low Church fac tions in the Mother Church. Touching the question of re-ordina-tion, Mr. Pratt said that the Methodist Church, certain of the validity of its own orders, could not regard as acceptable any equivocal proposals to extend the commission of non-epis-copally ordained ministers by an episcopal ordination. It was also difficult to understand why Methodists, the spiritual validity of whose ministrations was recognised by Lambeth, should be excluded from the Sacrament of Unity at the Lord’s Table. While the Methodist Church was ever ready to co-operate with the Anglican Church in advancing the ideals of the Kingdom of God, he feared that the desire for re-union must remain disappointed until their mutual devotion to Jesus Christ was deep enough to show itself in a fellowship embracing not only faith, but also worship at the Lord’s Table. The question of union between the non-cpiscopal churches presented fewer problems, the difficulties being mainlv ot an administrative character, relating to trust funds and commitments tor missionary and philanthropic enterprises. If it was not possible in the immediate future to create in 'the Do minion a single church with unified control and a common creed, it might be possible for some of tho non-epis-copal churches-the Presbytifian and ongiegational Churches were alreadv wilh the mind o f the Methodist Church in the matter—to tormulate a basis of union to be consummated say, eight, or ten years hence. There was at least urgent need for appointed leaders of the various churches to get together and face rankly the stern issues of contemporary life. In a fraternal spirit lhev should make a critical and constructive survey of f ne religious needs of the Dominion, grapple courageous!v with problems arising from competition, overlapping, etc., and face squared the to which the survey might tead Meanwhile no feeling of panic Mnnl / i T 1 t 0 Parftlyse action - Many facts indicated the imminence of a great revival of religious faith. Let them cultivate a vital religious ex peneneo and a stripping faith in God. nnd continue to proclaim the Gospel of Jesus ns tho one hope of the world.