LENTEN PASTORAL.

New Zealand Tablet, Volume XXXI, Issue 9, 26 February 1903, Page 4

LENTEN PASTORAL.

DIOCESE OF CHRISTCHURCH.

The following Lenten Pastoral has i> on issued by his Lordship the liight Ilev. Dr. Grimes, :*.,h>p of Christchurch • —

Dearly beloved brethren and children in Jesus Christ — The holy season of Lent, wheieon we me now entering, >s eminently a time of prayer and penance and mnitiluation. In our Pastoral of 1894 we addressed you, at some length, on the origin, the necessity and advantages of the salutary practice oi penance and mortification. This year we propose, with the blessing ol Cod, to speak to you on prayer, one of the greatest blessings bestowed upon us during our earthly pilgi image, but, at the same time, one of the gravest obligations inculcated by God Himself. Speaking to the people of old through the prophet Zacharias (xn 19) the Almighty says, ' I will pour out upon the home of David, and upon the inhabitants of .Teiusalem, the spirit of grace and of prayers' The sublime privilege of prayer is the unceasing occupation of the blessed m heaven, .whilst to those who, heie below, love to chei i<-h this holy exercise, it is a \ery foretaste and beginning of never ending glory. That it is a most solemn duty Holy Writ lurnishes abundant pi oofs Is it not written (Eccl. xvii , ' Make thy pi ayer before the ia< c ol the Lord ; ' again, ' let nothing hinder thee fiom praying always.' Does not the Apostle of the (JentiUs bid us 'Pray without ceasing, in all things give thanks for this is the will of God ' (I 'I hess v. 17-18) Prayer is a duty which Chiist Jesus, our Divine Master and Model, has Himself taught us how to fulfil.

i>Sv er rh^.^h PP H iVi i ege Wh , ich u Christ and H} s seemingly cherished above all others. Prayer is the only at^s^s o if r i o s c g-h n ?srse fast Sithd%S" ttnl L d £?m? m ° n high ' a " d< one of the f ve?y wSttSi • VoT,\ * othl ?S can su PPly its want, for it is <& k • h Jt V 0 not because you have not asked.' im- SS o ch + b +^ ng the worth and the obligation of prayer, it hPhnvL^ 6 a PP roach oi this holy seaton, during which «n«nl v\- • ° 11 PP ° Ur OUt more abundant praytrs and supplications, implore the light of the Holy Spirit, and l^rut F° f ° U , r ?° ar mother and Patrons/ whilst we ™LHn P£ ne^' aa le; c ourselves with the excellence, the Tintr fmon Vhl fa °' hty and pOWer ol ' P™^ l *- Whilst dwelling upon these as so many motives urging us to avail ourselves of this inestimable grace, w e g may enumerate the chief conditions of prayer, and briefly reply to some ?Ln ?> a - ny , ob J ect : lons raised against what should be the continual exercise of our lives. Excellence. nnf ,^f, i 9. Prayer? It js the uplifting of our minds and hearts to God, to adore, praise, and thank Him, and w£h blessings for soul and body. Prayer is that wondrous gift enabling us to soar above the things of time, to wing our flight far beyond the regions of earth and penetrate to the very throne of the Most High l hough still pilgrims here below, prayer enables us to bid farewell to the world, and hold fond intercourse with God forgetting earthly things, prayer makes us think of those that are eternal ; or, if we dwell upon those of time, it is with a view to those of eternity J rayor ip a golden chain uniting heaven to earth It is a mysterious ladder, whereby the creature ascends to the Creator. It is the very heart and foundation of religion. It is the cry of the human breast ; the breath of the yearning soul ; the true mark of the spiritual me ; the union of man with God. It were a great privilege, if the Almighty only allowed us to pray, but that He should command us is a still further proof of His infinite love. Few there are in the world who are admitted to the honor of an audience with their sovereign. I3y prayer we can all see and enjoy the immortal King of Kings, and mingle with the angelic hosts m blessing and praising God 'He knows how to live well, 1 says St. Augustine,' • who knows how to pray well.' Prayer is the great means we have of offering the Almighty the homage of our heartfelt love and gratitude. Prayer, say the Fathers of the Church, mingles us with the blessed in heaven. It raises us to their ranks, and makes us share their existence, their life, their greatness and wisdom Prayer is the secret source of all that is great and holy and noble and dignified ni life Hence, say& St. Gregory of Nyssa 'Of all things worthy of esteem, prayer is the most estimable.' The Necessity of Prayer. It is an article of our holy faith that without God's grace we can do absolutely nothing in the order of salvation. 'Without Ale,' our Saviour declares (John xv. 5) ' you can do nothing He does not say, remarks St. Augustine, 'you can only do a little or" not much but ' nothing.' We have, then, need of heaven's help to avoid evil and do good But of ourselves, the Apostle assures us, we cannot (.-von form a good thought. How then can we shun vice and prncti.se virtue? ]t is God who gives us the power by His grace Now this grace is obtained chiefly by pi aver 'Ask and you shall receive, seek and you shall find, knock and it shall be opened unto you ' (Mat vii 7) Whence our Blessed Lord bids us ' Pray always ' Christ Jesus lebukes His Apostles, declaring that they had not leceived because 'they had not asked,' and He gives them the iormal command 'to pi ay' He (Joes even more. To impress this solemn duty upon our minds and to encourage us to fulfil it, He, Himself does what 17e so strongly imposes upon us Was it not to impart to us a striking lesson that, during His inoital career, He so often flees the noise of the world, withdrawing to Mount Olivet, Mount Thabor, or some other solitary place, and there', ' spends the night in prayer *? ' Never does lie begin any impoitant act without prnvcr Is it not for our example and guidance that Ho gives up at a time forty days and forty nights to this holy exercise ? Prayer is as necessaiy to the soul as the root is to the tree, tTie foundation to a hou<-e. food and clothing to the human body Piavet is like the rampart to the besieged city . the buckler to the vvanioron the .field of battle. What can a defenceless city, unarmed soldiers, do agai?~>st w ell-armed fees 0 How, t> by prnver. can the Chnstian warrior repel the assaults of the flesh, which, Lluough weakness or instinct, would lain diag us down to the level of the brute? Wei c it not impossible without prayer to r< sist the s-naies of a corrupt world, which by its s-andaloi's delights, seeks 1 o ruin immortal souls' 7 llow without the weapon of prayer, can we repel the assaults of the devil, ' v ho ever goeth about seeking whom he n\iv c'mour ' (1 Peter v 8) You know dearly beloved biethren and children in Jesus Chiist, thai (Joel would have all nun to he saved. Now, he who wishes the end wishes the n.eans to i each that end. This lreans is mace, which, as we have already reminded you is granted only to piaver Prayer, then, is necessary for saUatum Smnors. therefore, are bound to pray. if they would bieak the galling chains of sm and tuin to Cod. lor it is by prayer that every conversion begnw. continues, end ends The iust are. in. like manner, bound to pray if they would continue to enjoy the gift of grace, since grace is granted only to

perseverance, which, in its turn, is granted only to prayer. Thus, the second motive urging us to pray is its necessity, the third is the

Facility Wherewith we Pray

To pray we need neither deep knowledge, health nor wealth, nor long and painful journeys. All we want is a right mind to understand the power of the Creator, and the poverty of the creature ; a heart to feel the goodness of our heavenly Father, and render Him love for love, with the desire that all men should revere His thrice holy name, allow themselves to be ruled by His infinite wisdom, and strive to fulfil his adorable will. Hence, Christ Jesus commands us to ' pray always and never grow weaiy of piayer.' He does not command us to fast always, to give alms, or to undertake long journeys. This were impossible But it is always in our power to lift up our minds and heart and soul to God, as if we would say, ' O Lord, my God, would that all nations would bless and serve Thee ! I beseech Thee strengthen me with the food of Thy grace. Take from me the burden of my iniquities, and preserve me from the assaults of my enemies ! ' Thus imbued with tho spirit of prayer, we can, despite our many occupations, always give ourselves up to this beautiful exercise. If the Spouse in tho Canticles can say, ' I sleep, but my heart watcheth,' we, too, may cry out, ' I sleep, but my heart prayeth.' No matter our occupation, whether reading or writing, directing or obeying others ; no matter whether absorbed in household or other seemingly engrossing 1 duties, our heart may be at prayer. Yes, dearly beloved in Christ, prayer is easy, very easy. Yet, strange to say, so great are the coldness and indifference of men, that not a few pass whole days and weeks, nay years, without offering up a prayer to God, their Creator and Redeemer. What are the paltry pretexts they bring forward as so many excuses lor their shameful ungrateful conduct ? ' I am so absorbed with my family or business affairs that I have hardly a moment to breathe and certainly no time to pray ; ' or 'I don't know how, I cannot, or I am wholly unworthy to pray.' What ! you have no time on awaking in the morning to thank God, who has preserved you from death during your sleep, and who, this \ery morning, has given you the strength to rise, strength which He has refused * to many, who, during this very night, were summoned before the dread tribunal of His judgment seat ? Could you not spare a few moments to kneel down in presence of that God, who every day bestows upon you so many blessings and preserves you from evils unnumbered ? You have no time ! Have you not time for everything else ? Do you not find time to eat and drink, to walk and talk and sleep, time for idle pleasures, time for sin, and yet you have no time for the great work of your eternal salvation ? Is it not written, ' Without faith it is impossible to please Cod '> ' Blessed is he that hopeth in the Lord ; ' ' He that loveth not abideth in death ; ' 'If any man lo\e not Christ Jesus, let him be anathema ; ' ' unless you do penance, you shall all perish ; ' ' Without Me you can do nothing *> ' Now, with all these well-known texts before your mind, could you not on awaking in the morning say ' O my God, I behove in Thee ! I believe that Thou are the truth itself. I hope in thee, because Thou are faithful to Thy promises I love Thee, because Thoii are infinitely worthy of all my love. I detest my sins. because they displease Thee, Lord. I am an ungrateful sinner, unworthy to appear before Thee. Ha^c mercy on me ' Watch over me this day ! Grant me Thy grace to avoid evil and do good l ' Ah ! when tempted to allege that you have no tinio to pray, recall the words of Christ Jesus, ' What will it profit a man if he gain the whole world and suffer the loss of "his immortal soul 9 '

One of the greatest kings of France, otic of her greatest statesmen and warriors, St. Louis, used to consecrate several hours in the day to

The Exercise of Prayer. When his courtiers dared reproach him with spending so much time therein, ' How strange are men,' he answered, 'my assiduity in prayer they reproach me with as a crime, yet they would not utter a word of rebuke were I to give up long hours to sports and games, to hunting or other pastimes. When he received from Baldwin, the Emperor of Constantinople, our Saviour's crown of thorns and other great relics he built within his palace in Paris a sumptuous shrine, since known as the Holy Chapel, to place them in as worthy a spot as possible. In that chapel ho went through his ordinary exercises of piety, often passing whole nights in prayer. Prostrate at the foot of the altar, his attitude was that of an angel before tho throne of the Most High But the time he devoted to prayer was by no means hurtful to the affairs of his kingdom or his people. ITe knew well that tho piety which would prevent the fulfilling of one's duty were but a false ill-directed piety, one wholly unworthy of the name. Do we not road of our own Alfred the Groat that he divided tho third part of every twenty-four hours into exercises of piety ? You all know how St. Patrick, tho glorious Apostle of Ireland, loved prayer. He taupht others to pray, but he himself outshone them all in this holy exercise. Wo road in tho beautiful office of his feast, that one hundred times throughout the day and one hundred times at niefht, yea, for long hours, he loved to pray with eyes and hands and heart uplifted to heaven. That ho daily recited the whole of the Psalter, with its 350 psalms and hymns and canticles and 200 prayers. That as an act of adoration to his God, 300 times a day he humbly bent his knee to the ground ; .while 700 times during the same space of time he used to arm himself with the salutary sign of tho cross. Did

?n rfS!^iis\ c ? onfessor *Bd a host of others find time to devote whole hours to the sublime practice of prarar and communing with the King of Kings ? Another will say < ITsiiow it* is a good thing to prll for those that reallv° SZl't'^iFF*''* 11 " & "^low of tira f I m-aver Sited *£ to^ r^-' Whoever said that ESS ii w-oX^a! be worried for words ; most easily sha 1 we find the language of the heart, which will go straight to thl Heart of Jesus. Does the sick man seek for elaborate ZZ^-> sp 7 c a a * to l" s Physician of his sufferings and infirmity? Is it not enough for the poor and needy to t^Xia^ffi ? their ™* * rich^S gus^a^r"' "S&,.' £*£* %* y^» pray and persevere n prayer. A great saint, a true-mas-ter of the spiritual life, reminds us that we must in prayer, seek the God of consolations, not the consolaX™ S °LL GG ° d These H e will give us in His own good time and as the reward of our perseverance in prayer. In this, as in all else, our Divine Lord gives us an example. When wearied in the Garden of Gethsemane ' be* ing in a very agony,' the Gospel tells us, 'He prayed

' Oh ! but I am ashamed to pray. I know that it 4s good to pray. Would that I could^but I £S too «£eat a sinner. How can 1 appear before God loaded as f am with so many grievous sins ? ' This, Indeed, is a terrible temptation, one which might well lead to the very brink oi despair. Do you not see that it is the devil, jealous of his prey who would fain keep you from approaching your merciful Saviour ? It is precisely because of you? miis that you hav P the greater need of prayer and pardon Go, then, with love, and, courage, and confidence and throw yourself at the feet of Jesus. Be assured He will hearken to your prayers. Has He not declared that Everyone that seeketh receiveth ' (Matt, viii., 8). Mark the word, everyone,' just and sinners. The last motive which should urge us to prayer is the ' power '

The ' Efficacy of Prayer.'

When prayer has all the required qualities— humility, attention, confidence, and perseverance—it is all powerful over the heart of God. So great is the power of prayer, that we may safely say that it is able to conquer the Unconquerable, to overcome the Almighty and iorce Him. m some sort, to be merciful in spite of'ffimseir Whence Tertullian calls prayer 'an almighty suppliant—' omnipotentia supplex,' St. Chrysostom goes so fur as to .say that ' prayer makes the word of man as powerful as that of God— Aye, even more powerful As powerful, for as God created all things by His only word so man has but to speak, to ask, and all is granted to him More powerful, so to say, for in commanding God is obeyed by creatures only, whereas, in virtue of prayer God, Almighty as He is, obeys the voice of His creature' man > Would you have examples in proof of this astounding assertion ? Turn to the inspired pages of Holy Writ, and you will find them at every step you take God is angry with two wicked cities, and He re-veals to Abraham that He will utterly destroy them. This holy patriarch entreats God to forgive the cities if there be 50 just within them. The Almighty complies with his request and hoark,ens to his prayer. He does the same when he askis for pardon if there be 40, or 30, or 20, or oven 10 At this prayer God promises to forgive the city for the sake of 10 just. Alas ! there were not found 10 iust and the prophet asks no further. If the sun goes down the enemies of the Israelites will escape defeat. But the leader of God's chosen people is resolved to crush them. He prays with outstretched arms, and the sun stands still, and the persecutors of the Hebrews were utterly routed.

The Jewish people laugh to scorn the commands of the God of their fathers. Samuel bends his knee in prayer before the Most High ; and lo ! the prevaricators aro humbled to the dust, and learn to fear the Lord and His prophet.

For three years and a-half the land is cursed, and receives no single drop of rain, every blade of grass is dried up. Famine threatens the inhabitants. At length clouds are seen in the heavens, rain falls in abundance, joy regains all hearts, and plenty returns to the land, lit was the prayer of the Prophet Elias that had brought down the scourge ; the prayer of the same prophot that averts the disaster. The Hebrew children, Ananias, Azarias, and Misael, are flung into a furnace heated seven times over. Why do the flames thereof become to them so much refreshing dew ? Is not

This Striking Miracle tho work of prayer ? Daniel is cast into the lions' den, what but prayer closes the jaws of the ravenous beasts ? Susannah is condemned to bo stoned as a faithless spouse. Is not her innocence made clear, and she herself saved from a shameful death by the power of prayer? Does not prayer keep Judith chaste in the midst of an army of men as lewd as they are hostile ? ' Yet a countless multitude of troops,' says St. Augustine, ' could not preserve Holophernes in the very midst of his army ' To deliver her native city from its deadly foes, Judith enters the enemy's camp and slays the tyrant Holophernes, and thus frees her nation and her people. What is it gives a feeble woman such supernatural strength nnd devotedness ? Naught but the weapon of prayer. By the fervent prayer, ' Jesus, Son of David, have pity on me,' does not the blind man regain his

sight ? By the prayer, ' Jesus, Master, have compassion on us, are not the 10 lepers healed ? ' Lord, if Thou wilt, Thou canst make me clean.' ' Lord only say the word, and my servant shall be healed.' No sooner are these prayers made, than the leper is cleansed of his leprosy and the centurion's servant servant healed of his palsy. Does not the prayer, ' O God, be merciful to me a sinner,' at once justify the poor publican ; whilst the prayer of the dying thief, ' Lord, remember me when Thou shalt have entered into Thy kingdom,' immediately assures him both pardon and Paradise ? Because the faithful united in prayer, sent up fervent supplications to the throne of God, in behalf of their Spiritual Head, St. Peter is freed from prison. Saul is changed into an apostle of election — Magdalen, from a public sinner bocomes a fervent penitent — thanks to the power of prayer. Whilst the Hebrews were battling against the Amalekites, Moses went to the top of a mountain, and there, on bended knees, his eyes and his arms stretched out towards heaven, he prayed to the God of armies. Their success increases or diminishes as Moses raises or lowers his arms. It Was not the warriors' weapons, but the prayer of Moses that won the victory (Exod. iii., 17). On another occasion Core, Dathan, and Abiron rose up against their divinely appointed leaders. The Almighty was angry with them for their ingratitude and that of the people whom they dragged with them in their revolt. The earth opened and a miraculous fire came forth, and swallowed in its devouring flames 14,000 of the unhappy Israelites. Seeing this, Moses bade the High Priest, Aaron, ' Take the golden censor and stand between the dying and the dead.' No sooner had the vioce of prayer and the smoke of incense ascended the everlasting hills than the vengeful flames were extinguished, and the plague ceased. Speaking of this wondrous event. 'Thy wiath did not long continue, says the wise man ' (Wisd. xviii., 20-22), ' for a blameless man made haste to pray for the people, bringing forth the shield af his ministry. Prayer and by incense, making supplications, withstood the wrath anil put an end to the calamity ; and he overcame, not by strength of body nor by force of arms, but with a word ho subdued Him that punished them.'

The sins of Jerusalem cried to heaven for vengeance. God's wrath is enkindled against the wicked city. To chastise it He pronounces its doom. Its inhabitants shall all pass beneath the point of the sword of the Chaldens. The fate of the wretched criminals is frightful to think of. But listen to the inspired penman — ' Go about through the streets of Jerusalem, says the Almighty to the prophet ' (Jer. v., 1) ' and see and consider and seek in the broad places thereof, if \ou can find a man that executeth judgment and seeketh faith and I will be merciful unto it.' When again a pestilence ravaged the land, David prayed, offering holocausts and peace offerings and the Lord became merciful to the land and the plague, was stayed from Israel ' (2 K. 24) The prayer of the prophet Jeremias with that of the TTiurh Priest Onias again frees Jerusalem from its enemies (2 Mac. xv). The Jewish nation is threatened with a general massacre from which they aic f i eed by the prayers of Esther and Mardoclnas. In a word, all spiritual fa\ors, all earthly ad\antages, aie due to the power of prayer.

If of old, under the law of fear, prayer was so powerful, what must now be its might that it is consecrated by

The Blood of Christ Jesus

Wo have said that prayer conquers the unconquerable and overcomes the Almighty. "Would you ha\e proof ot this startling assertion "> Turn to the opening pages ot the Bible, and you will there read how the Israelites offer incense to the golden calf, which they fall down and adore. God is about to destroy his idolatrous people, when Afoses beseeches the Almighty on their behalf. 'Let, Me alone, that I may destroy them,' was Cod's answer ' No, ioid.' Moses replied, 'I will not let Thee alone Let not Thy indignation be enkindled against Thy people lest the Egyptians say. He brought them out that lie might kill them ' 'J he Eternal is armed with the thundeibolts of heaven, but Moses is armed with the weapon 01 I'i-arer. ' And the Lord was appeased by the prayer of His' servant ' (Fxod. xxxii).

Ha\c we not the solemn promise of Jesus Christ as to the power ot prayer made with due dispositions "> Does Ho not emphatically declare (Matt, xxi . 22) ' All things whatsoever you shall ask m prayer, believing, you shall receive ' Arid again, ' Amen, amen, T say to you, if jo\i ask the Father any thing in My name, lie will gi\e it you.' To the examples recorded in Holy Writ let us add one taken fi oin the passages of ancient histoiy The Emperor Marcus Aurelius ha\ing crossed the Danube, suffered himself and his troops to be entangled in narrow defiles amidst the mountains of Bohemia Theie, surrounded by the enemy on all sides, they weie on the point of perishing from heat and hunger and thirst. The Emperor knew not how to save his army, and was on the point of yielding to despair. Happily, among his idolatrous troops there was a legion of Christian soldiers. The danger did but rekindle their faith In the grave emergency they cried out, ' Our only hope is in the power of pi aver Let us pray Falling -to the groung. they laid aside their arms, to lift up their hearts and hands to Him who rules the elements, and to whom they poured out fervent supplications. God heard and answeied their prayer. The sky, which till then ga^ c forth an unbearable heat, became covered with clouds, an abundant rain fell, refreshing the Romans, whereas hail and

&SW«2f XKin£ hh £ hh g ion/ henM " )rth knOWn<l " Our Life is a Constant Warfare, beginning with the cradle and ending only with th« Knst a'dS^f 1 ? GVer aimed gainst fur vitiated flesh cStTa^ st?f^ e thp nn f d the f deW Of eaven win descend Upon SI to t££ J? 1 K e Of ?US? U S P assions - The enemies of our salvation will be routed and we shall gain a jrlorioua T vie. next. m thiS W ° rld and a crown of^mmortlmty 7n tte Dearly beloved brethren and children in Jesus Christ, you will surely be glad to hear of the progress that la being made in the work of our Cathedral. Its beautiful white walls are risinjr rapidly The huge concrete floors of the galleries, are ' to sur? ound the whole of the sacred edifice— thus forming a unique feature unlike that of any other building in the ♦ £2y2 y - are l? ng sinco !n! n P osi tion. Hence, if we except the dome and two flanking towers, we may safely say fhtn h°fr^ h f a Yp the Cathedral walls reachedmore than half their full height, but that mare than half the entire work is now complete. Up to the present we have received and practically expended about £19,000. whilst the promised donaUons XfweKgh'SSl.O^S. 10^ am ° Unt tO th 6 ™*i*»nt .»« Surely no true friend of the g,reat undertaking would advise us to stop at this critical stage, when to stop would entail an expenditure of several thousand pounds besides gravely compromising our actual excellent contract, and inevitably damaging no little of the work alOn the contrary, would you not counsel us to make a supreme effort to carry on what will, we may reasonably suppose, become one of the chief monuments of the Greater Christchurch and a standing memorial of the faith and piety and noble generosity of our devoted clenrv and people, well-wishers and friends. This effort might be — 1. To implore those who have made promises to be good enough to fulfil them at once. 2. To urge those who have not yet given or promised to give, to give, and even those who have already given to be generous enough to give again. 3. To take up earnestly and preserve in keeping up the Sixpenny Weekly Collection, which we entreat our priests to carry out at once in every parish of the diocese. We trust that you will do all in your power to help us in some of the foregoing ways in this grave juncture, and so avert what, even if only temporarily, would be an awful disaster. Though it is the esrnest wish of the Holy Father, the illustrious Leo the 13th, that the work of the new Cathedral should be viewed by all, by bishop and priest and people as of paramount importance, though we and the devoted priest who so generously gives himself up to this great undertaking a.re untiring in our efforts in behalf of the same, far from us the thought to let other and important works be forgotten or omitted. Gladly do we. bless and encourage whatever is calculated to 'promote the greater glory of God and the good of souls throughout the diocese Since we gave ourselves most ungrudgingly to the task of collecting for this edifice, which should be as dear to all as to us, we have authorised the building of churches and schools and presbyteries. Since our advent amongst you the number of priests has almost been doubled ; *12 presbyteries have either been erected, enlarged, or secured. Nearly 30 churches, 14 schools, 17 residences for our devoted teaching Orders have been built or secured during the samo period. Six new parishes have been created, and several sites secured for churches to be erected in the near future. Hence, we are not conscious of having neglected any means of furthering the interests of religion in our midst. Amongst those means our future Cathedral should hold a prominent place. All should take a practical interest in its progress. One of the simplest and most effectual means of helping vis in this great work is to take up and carry" out the weekly collection of sixpence per head throughout the diocese. Who will not cheerfully make the sacrifice of this trifling amount every week for the sake of the noble cause "> Only the other day a poor widow, who gains her livelihood by the labor of her hands, came and offered us the savings of a lifetime, which she wished us to devote to the expense of the new building A farmer brought a fresh contribution as a thank offering to the Almighty for the blessings of the past and the present year. Who amongst us have not reason to be gratetul to the Most High for favors received in the past ? Who are not eager for favors, blessings to come 9 Let us then co-operate, and cheerfully, in this noble woik, being assured that God will never allow Himself to be outdone in generosity.

(Continued on page 29.)