CHURCH REUNION

Waikato Times, Volume 96, Issue 15101, 23 November 1922, Page 8

CHURCH REUNION

PRESBYTERIAN DIFFICULTIES.

Rev. Dr. Andrew Harper was the chief speaker at a conference on reunion, held in St. James's Hall, Sydney. In his address he dealt with the duties and difficulties of Reunion from the'Presbyterian point of view. The necessity of reunion, Dr. Harper said, was beyond arguing. No one could look on the existing state of things and think it corresponded with the mind of Christ. It had arisen from the obstinate conservatism of the medieval Church, which had laid up explosive material in the minds of Christian men in every land. The thing they had learned recently to their surprise, was that their Lord had made use of all these varied Churches to carry on His work, and the war had thrust it upon them and made them ask whether they should be more scrupulous in recognising each other than He had been. The three, chief difficulties, from the Presbyterian standpoint, were the episcopacy, which, as now understood, was not a grave difficulty; ordination, which could, in his opinion, only be got over by the acceptance of nonepiscopal ordination as valid; and, thirdly, the existence of a sacerdotal section of the Church of. England, which had lately been expounding the creed of their Church in a sense Which the "Guardian" even could not sanction. That made a very grave difficulty to the other churches. • Dr. Harper proceeded to indicate how a modus vivendi might be found. Rev. P. A. Micklem quoted a letter he had just received from the Bishop of Salisbury (Archbishop Donaldson) formerly of Brisbane, in which he expressed the opinion that if Anglican bishops and clergymen were willing to submit to the Roman form of ordination with the view of satisfying Roman congregations, Presbyterians and the other non-episcopal churches should be willing to submit to the Anglican form of ordination to satisfy Anglican congregations.

Dr. Harper said he did not regard the cases as parallel ,as the Anglicans and Romans were both episcopally or-, dained, while the Presbyterians were not.

Mr. Micklem said he agreed that the form of the sacraments must be left to the individual conscience. The great thing was that they should all meet at the same altar. He did not suppose that many of the Churches would be prepared straight away to accept confirmation as one of the great ordinances, or a condition of church membership.