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Q Coloured covers/ Couverture de couleur n Coloured pages/ Pages da couleur I ~| Covers damaged/ I '' I Couverture endommagte □ Covers restored and/or laminated/ Couverture resUurea et/ou pelliculie D" Cover title missing/ titre de couverture manque □ Pages damaged/ Pages endommagees \ '? ;ss restored and/or laminated/ . . „.' ^'»q s restaurees et/ou pellicultes i' " Pages ^discoloured, stained or foxed/ L- . P <9es decolorees, tachetees ou piquees □ Coloured maps/ Caites giographiques en couleur □ Coloured ink (i.e. other than bli':..,..■ ■'•■.:,V ." '■:'■'■ 'T-- -' ;- v-ftf^V^-i- -^ , ■■-, - ^V ^tpNM^V ^43ifiMAtlt9im1^^^(^^ Vi^ ^HIMtTO #tr^8aa« BY ^ttSOKJi^ OP THSQ^I ^:'--^'>i-,-' ■■•;.;.,'■ ;:^^,"-'.:*^^ ■:.-,-V->4.yvt;f' ^./■- ''■./: -■■i''*^# Sj^;;-^^,'V^i.,^,;.; ■,,:-'^;'^.«. {-'^'^^f'S'^' UNITED CHURCH ARCHIVES tbe €buKb and 1t$ Olorkt M Hdarm Delivered at the opening of the 28th General A.ssembly of the Presbyterian Church in Ginadat Toronto, June Jlth, J902. HY THE m. R. I), mrm, d.d. TORONTO RETIRING MODERATOR. LPUBUSHED BY AUTHORITY OF THE GENERAIy ASSEMBIvY] I AN ADDRESS The General Assembly met in Ottawa last year under the shadow of a gieat sorrow. inlormation had just been received of the death r ' Dr. G. I^. Mac- Kay, our pioneer missionary in i''ormo^ a, v >se labors in that far distant island had been so fi ful. Soon after the Assembly closed its sessions, we were startled by the tidings of the sudden death of on '^ho had taken part in its deliberations, Dr. A. H ^ kay, of Crescent Street church, Montreal, ouft »e foremost preachers in the country. On the first Sa ffi of the new year, our congregations all over the . d. met to commemorate the Saviour's death, and o give expression to their gratitude to God for ^ goodness to us as a Church. On the day prcccdi that Sabbath, our heroic Superintendent Northwest missions, Dr. Robertson, who had done more than m.ost other men to build up the church, was called home. Two months later. Dr. Laing, of Dundas, the first convener of our West- ern Home Mission Committee, and one who had ri nd- ered signal service in manv di actions, was summoned to his reward: and, onlv the other dav we paid our last tribute to the memory of Principal Grant, whosr contagious optimism and magnetic personalitv madp him so great a power in tho Church and country, fr.d under whose direction and guidance Queen's Univer- sity has become a potent factor in the educational life of Canada. The number of deaths in the ministry has been ex- ceptionally large during the past year, — 22 in all — and in no preceding year have so many prominent men been removed. The Assembly will never a^ain feem the same to some of us. How solemn the thought suggested by the removal of these brethren, and how urgent the cal', to those of us who remain. t«> dili- gence and fidelity in the prosecution of the work com- mitted to our care. A perusal of the reports to be submitted to the Creneral Assembly affoids ground for deep humiliation and also for fervent gratitude. We have reason for gratitude to God that notwithstanding all our short- comings, and all our lack of fidelity, He has i33.834-oo 10 273,000.00 11 Large Endow't 10 355,000.00 9 94,915-00 15 199 46 1856,749-00 We believe it of the utmost importance that our Col- leges should be kept in close touch with the Church, and, for this as well as other reasons, it is not de- sirable that they should be wholly endowed. There is still room, however, for a considerable increase to the endowment of these institutions. The amount con- tributed by our peopL last year for the support of Colleges was $38,000. 10 Home Missions UNITED CHURCM ARCHIVES Home Mission ^'ork in all sections of the Dominion is most hopeful and encouraging. This is true oi the Eastern Provinces by the seai as well as of Quebec and Ontario, and especially true of the new provinces to the west of I^ake Superior. We have 78 Home Mission fields in the Eastern section of the Church, with '231 preaching stations; and 428 fields in the Western section of the Church, with 1,230 preaching stations. In connection with these fields, there are 16,474 families and 18,477 com- municants. Of the members 1,986 were received last year on confession of faith. We seek to reach not only our fellow-subjects of English speaking origin, but to give the gospel in their own tongue to all classes in the Dominion. We have missionaries among the Icelanders, Scandina '"ans, Germans, Norwegians, Swedes, Bohemians, Gali*. .s and Doukhobors, and mis- sion day schools among the Galicians. We have two trained missionarj' nurses at Atlin, B. C, sup- ported by a Committee of ladies in Toronto, to whom the Church owes a deep debt of gratitude. The contribu- tions of our people last year for Home Mission work were greatly in excess of any former year, amount- ing to |i22,73i, including l9,ooo raised by the Student's Missionary Societies in romiection with our colleges. These societies have rendered splendid ser- vice to the cause of Home Missions. Last year thev worked forty-one fields. A year ago, in view of the diminished revenue from Britain and the opening up of a large number of new fields, the committee of the Western Section resolved 11 to put forth a special eCort to secnre loo congela- tions or individuals to contribute I250 each, this be- injr the average sum required over and above the con- tributions of the people, for the support of a mission- ary. It is encouraging to report that this effort has met with such success that there are now upwards of 150 congregations and individuals who have each assumed the support of a Home Missionary^ Be- cause of this, the committee were enabled to respond to every application made last spring for missionaries, and while there is a scarcity of men so far as those trained in the Colleges of our own Church is con- cerned, rendering it necessary to send to the Old World for a number of missionaries wherewith to carry on the work, yet the committee report that, so far as known, there is not at present in the entire wide field committed to their care, a single district containing a settlement of a dozen Presbyterian families where there is not regularly maintained among them the ordinances of our Church. The large immigration into Manitoba and the Northwest Territories this year, and the prospects of a rapid increase in the population is likelv to tax the energies of our Church to their utmost extent for the next few years, which are really the crucial years in the history of the country. It is said that the Canadian Northwest can support a population of 50 millions. It contains 250,000,000 acres of wheat-producing land, — in other words, upwards of 1,500,000 farms of 160 acres each. Onlv two million acres are at present under cultiva- tion It is hoped that this General Assembly will devise liberal things for the prosecution of Home Mis- sion work all over the Dominion. 19 CHurcK and Manse Board It is difficult to overestimate the help which has been given to Home Mission work West cf Lake Su- perior by the Church and Manse Building Board, or- ganized through the instrumentality oi the late Dr. liobertso 1, and the money for which was largely col- lected by himself. I^ast year, by its help, 27 churches, 8 manses and 3 school houses were built; and since its inception, it has aided in the erection of 419 churches, 90 manses and 4 school buildings, the present value of which is ^603,835. The capital of the Fund now amounts to $107,520. FrencH Evangelization The mission work carried on among our French-speak- ing brethren, more especially in the Province of Que- bec, more than hoLis its own. There are 40 lields with 85 stations, at which the gospel is preaoh- ed by our missionaries in French. Connected with the*.^ are 86;; families and 1,108 communicants, of whom 144 were added last year. There is also a mission to the Italians in Montreal, in connection with which there is a Mission day school. At many points in the Province of Quebec our minister is the only representative of the Protestant Church, and in not a few of them, in addition to his labors among the French speaking community, he ministers to the scattered English speaking famiUes of the distri.-t In connection with the Presbyterian College, I\Jcnt- real, there is a French Professor for the training nf French missionaries. It is much to be .lesired that the number of men, both EngUsh and French, quaU- fied to conduct services in both languages, were great- ly increased. IS The educational work among the French-Canadians has ever been, not only interesting, but greatly bless- ed of God. At present there are 17 mission day schools supported by our Church. The v-entral mis- sion schools at Pointe-aux-Trembles have had a won- derful record during their history of more than half a century. Upwards of 5,000 young men and women have there received a liberal education, quulii}ing them to occupy prominent positions in professional life and in Christian service. In the session recently closed, there were 167 pupils, 30 of whom last winter professed their faith in Christ ai. a personal Saviour. Nearly all the missionaries now engaged in connection with the Board of French Evangelisation of our Church, had their early training and were brought to a knowledge of the truth, in the mission schools at Pointe-aux-Trembles. The amount contributed by our people last year to aid in this work, was f 26,926. Augmented CKar^es The Scheme of our Church which seeks to aid weak congregations to support their own pastors, has been crowned with success. At present there are 203 charges on the augmented list — 143 in the Western section and 60 in the Eastern. These enjoy the services of pastors regularly called by the people thembselves. In connection with these charges, there are 11,143 families and 19,501 communicants. Al- though in all cases the minimum salary of $750 per annum and manse has not been reached, yet it is be- lieved that our people generally are now taking a much more intelligent interest in this fund than form- erly, and, for the first time in its history, the West- u I ern section closed the year, alter the payment vi ail grail td, with a balance on hand ol l3,ooo. The total revenue of the year— Kast and Westr-was Ij2,i2i. The average grant given to these congregations to enable them to support their ministers is 1^150. The regulations for the administration of this Scheme have been framed with more than ordinary care, so that the charge cannot truly be brought against it ^hat it is a scheme for helping those who are unwilling to help themselves. It is necessary, before a congrega- tion can receive aid from this fund, that it contribute an average of >4.5o per communicant yearly, lor the support of ordinances. The average contribution lor stipend throughout the whole church, including its larger and wealthier as well as its poorer congrega- tions, is J4.79 per communicant. To require from augmented congregations a sum nearly equal to the average contributed by the church as a whole, seems almost a hardship. At any rate, it should remove the objection that the fund is helping those unwilling to. lie%) thettnselves. As a matter of fact, however, while the average contribution required is $4.50 ptr communicant, the augmented congregations actually contributed la»t year $6.80 per commimicant for the support of ordinances, or so per cent, in excess of the average contribution throughout the whole church. Since this scheme was organized upon its present bas- is, in the year 1833, it has helped to self-support 361 congregations. In other words, there are to-day in our church 361 self-supporting charges, some of whom have become strong and influential, because of the help got from this Fund, and without which many of them would still be on the mission list. Not only so. 15 but from these 361 churches, there was last year re- ceived, upon behalf of the Schemes of the Church, in- cluding the Century Fund, nearly 170,000. ror«ign Missions Notwithstanding the fact that last year our people gave |i8i,778 for Home Mission work (includ- ing Augmentation and French Evangelization) they contributed >i58,56i for the purpose of giving the gospel to the heathen. At the present time our church carries on Foreign Mission work in the New Hebrides, Trinidad, Demarara, Formosa, Korea, Honr an, India, and, at the last meeting of the Foreign Mis- sion Comcaittee, a missionary was appoL ted to Macao, in the Southern portion of China, the district from which nearly all the Chinese in Canada and on the American continent have come. The number of missionaries from Canada laboring in those fields, is 99, and associated with them are some 268 native pastors, teachers and workers. The report to be submitted to the Assembly is intensely interesting. It tells among other things, that each of the two oldest missionaries in Trinidad has a son laboring in the mission field; that there are 3,526 scholars attending the mission day schools on that island; that the number of commimicants is 801, of whom 117 were received into the fellowship of the church last year, and that the average contribution of the people is f6.49 per number In Efate there are 266 members out of a total population of 800, thirty-four having confessed Christ last year. The Christians on tkis Island contributed I25 to help I 1 I I in rebuildirg the Martyrs' Memorial Church in Br- romanga In Korea, the field seems to be white unto the harvest. The members in Mr. Foote's dis- trict have multiplied three fold in three years A large propot'.ion of them are working members, put- ting forth personal effort to try ^ lead others to the knowledge of the truth. Mr. Foote makes this sig- nificant remark, that he sees no necessity to ask the Foreign Mission Committee for money for any pur pose whatever outside the Missionary's personal needs. The native church wiH be a self-supporting one from the beginning. Mr. Gauld reports the baptism of 209 converts in Formosa during the year. In memory of the late Dr. G. L. MacKay, the native Christians have erected at their own expense, a MacKay Memorial Church. Mr. Thurlow Fraser has been appointed to this field to labor along with Mr. Gauld. In India there are 1,756 famine children in con- nection with our mission. A large number of these have been baptized on confession of faith, and 14 are in attendance on the Presbytery classes for the train^ ing of native evangelists. The attendance of pupils at Indore College is now 450 With the exception our, who go back this summer, all of our mission- i AfcS have returned to llonan. They were joyfully welcomed by the native Christians, none of whom suf- fered death, although they had to endure severe perse- cution. Wit:i one or two exceptions, all remained steadfast. In November last, soon after the mission- aries returned, the ordinance of the Lord's Supper was administered, when nearly 200 native Christians were present. V In addition to the work on the Foreign fields named, we seek to evangelke and to surround with gospel influences the Indians in out own Domjiion as well aa the Chinese who are settled ii. various parts of the country, and especially in many of our cities. At the present time, about 1,000 Chinese in Canada are under religious instruction, more particularly m Montreal (17 schools), Toronto (7 schools), Ottawa, Winnipeg, Calgary, Nelson, Vancouver and Victoria, and already a considerable number of these have open- ly confessed Christ, and a»e now in full membership with the church. . . In connection with our Foreign Mission work, splen- did service has been rendered by the women of the church. Perhaps no better organization exists any- where for mission work than these organizations in connection with the women of the Presbyterian Church in Canada. Last year, they raiseJ $65,000 and this represents but a small part of the service they are rendering. In all sections of the Church they have done, and are doing, much to excite inter- est and prayer and sjonpathy upon behalf of the work. The Woman's Missionary Society, whose headquarters are at Montreal, aid Home and French as well as Foreign Mission work. I hope the day is not far dis- tant when we shall have established in several of our larger cities homes or institutes for Deaconesses, or Bible women — ^for devoted Christian women, I care not by what particular name they are known — who shall spend their time and strength in minis- tering to the sick and the poor and the fallen, and in seeking to lead them to a better «.nd more Christ -like life. Are there not many of 18 i. the daughters in our Christiah .amilies leading at present comparative idle, profitk a lives who can 1)c got to spend their strength in the service of Christ and »>f their less iortiinate sisters? Although the history of the foreign mission work of c--.r Church is brief compared with that of oiher churches and other Missionary Societies, it ii a history for which we have reason for heartfelt gratitude. Who that is familiar with the record can fail to recognize the hand of God in the selection of the missionaries, and in taeir faithful and fruivM service, in the case of some of them—even to the death. Discouragements there doubtless have been, as was the case last year in the expulsion of our missionaries from Hona*. Obstacles, however, have only temporarily hindered, not hurt the work, just as in China, where there is again to-day an open door, a door wider open than has ever been known in that vast kingdom, and where there is a general ex- pectation upon behalf of the missionaries on the field, tttat the time for a glorious ingathering is come, when converts to the faith of Christ will gla'den alike the heart of the missionaries, and those supporting them in the home lands. Money^ Needed To maintain in efficiency the work of the Church in all its departments, money is needed. Com- paring ourselves with other churches, we are doing well in the matter of givirig. So far as I have been able to gather information, our Church stands, with one, or it may be two, exceptions, in the very fore- 19 Ij 1 Iront. not merely in --Pf -" -^[^, ^^S^ tJTe Canada or on this contmeut, but witn enure world over. ..nmnarine ourselves whtlp however, it is true that, comparuig «« wiTh'^therT tie onUibu^ions o^^^^^^^^ able, it is none the less true tnat many ^^ !J^ * ^i beginning to learn how to give^or the iunhe^^-^ ^^ the Lord's work. ^.^°^. /^'^ter ol giving. One Christian men regarding ^^^^^^1 wiU eWe the Lord savs "All 1 have is mine, and 1 wui give »•"'= ^V^ " ^ow iew ol us realize aright our stejard^hip that all we have and are,-our health, our strengtn, o abiUtv to earn money comes from uoa. Our giving should be systematic, not spasmodic It h^lH he according to the New Testament rule. As ^^ I „r/ ^roroeTs " not the continuance of the .ame Ihe Lord Pro'-P«"> °°^ / j^ the case with many, ff -So"::."- t^p. .»«•' "5 o" '-™« 20 law, and so, under the New Testament, every one should give, for giving is an act oi worship, in which every one should participate. Our giving should be as under the eye of Christ Let us lean upon His breast and seek to regulate our heart beats by His, and as we sometimes rise and look up into His loving face, we shall be constrained to say, "Yea, all I am and all I have is Thine." And we ministers and eld- ers should be ensamples in this, as well as in other graces. We should let our light shine here, and if only in this matter we are faithful, I believe that we would 30 stimulate the liberality of our people as to increase, beyond the most snaguine expectation, their givings for Christian work. And let me here say in passing, that while it is far better that men should en- joy the privilege of giving in their lifetime, and see the good accomplished by their beneficence, yet some are so situated as to be unable to give largely in their life- time. It is well, therefore, that such should make liberal bequests in their will, for Christian work. I go further than this, and think that every man whose heart beats true to Christ, should remember Him in his will. In arranging our affairs in view of death, we think of loved ones whom we expect to leave be- hind, and we make provision for their comfort and well-being. Shall we then forget Him to whom we owe all, and the cause for which He gave His life? I desire to make a practical suggestion that can easily be put into execution if onlv our ministers and sessions will co-operate. The suggestion is that in every congregation of our Church, we aim this year, at contributing an average of one cent per member, each day of the year, for the 21 schemes of the Chur^ ^^,^rthis%ru^n^Tf:: tion in the "hole Chiirch where «« ^^ r^^f Va/coCSd^rwi;.! nearly double the contributions of last year. seven cents per week distributed accordmg to the .ollowing table would ^^^^^^^^^^^^ _,^^^ Home Mission Fund ... Augmentation Fund ... 4 cent French Evangelization . A Colleges ... ... .•• ••; •• ;•• ^ Widows' & Orv^f-}".^/^^, ^ Aged & Infirm Muiisters 4 Assembly & Sundry F dj Foreign Mission Fund ..2% (( it II II II It II II II II 11 II II II 57»5oo 57.500 28,750 28,750 28,750 314,250 $803,000 we would thus have -P^^.J^^/,,^^^^^^ the benevolent funds of the Church and^ ^. J^^^^es be able to double the number o^ ^^ ^^^^^^^ under the French ^^^d coneregations from 203 to the number of augmented congrega .^ ^^^^ ^^^^^ 360; to oY^rts^^ef^^sM^-^^^^^ f^^ the North- numbers into ^ew Ontario, 1 missionaries west, and to double the «"^^/^^^ Utopian, or in the Foreign field. Is the /ngge ^^^^^ ^^^^t rather, I should say,s there any ^^^^ ^^^ of our being able P/^^^'^^f /« . mT d and of one heart ^^^^T/dTo'ir^Th: clurTh'Mislnary Sodety SeSfts'^s'sionary force in 12 years, and in that 22 period its receipts went up from one million to one million and a half dollars, and during the last 15 years the Society has never, on financial grounds, had to refuse any candidate who seemed to be called o{ God. Cannot the Presbyterian Church in Canada raise for its Missionary and Educational work one cent a day per member? Men VTanted Great as is the need of the Church of Christ for money wherewith to extend the interests of the Saviour's kingdori, a greater need is men,— men thoroughly consecrated to the service of Christ and willing to endure hardness as good soldiers, and to go wherever the Church may call them to proclaim the unsearch- able riches. Account for it as we may, it is an un- questioned fact that the number of men looking for- ward to the work of the ministry has greatly fallen off. In the University of Edinburgh, the num- ber in all the faculties is greatly reduced. Last year the number in Arts was 100 less than the preceding year; the rnmber in medicine had gone down from 2,- 000 to 1,368; in law, from 470 to 365, and in Divinity from 124 to 47. In Germany, cut of every 1,000 Protestant students, 206 had the ministry of the Church in view ten years ago. Now, only 102. In Princeton, there has been a large reduction in the num- ber of students both in the College and Theological Seminary. In our own Church there has been some falling off, although not nearly to so great an extent as in other laii'ls, yet, from the number of under- graduates in the several colleges in Canada, having the ministry of the Presbyterian Church in view, ther?^ is 23 almost certain to be a decrease in attendance in our Theological Colleges in the ne?; few years. Because of death, retirement from service and other causes, the number of our ministers is reduced by 48 every year. The number of students graduatmg from the various colleges of the Church last year was 46, a number insufficient to make good the loss sus- tained, leaving the Church without any men with which to take possession of new openings in the home 6eld or to increase the staff of missionaries abroad. Last vear, in order to meet the requirements of our Home' Mission work, upwards of 40 men were brought from the Motherlands. While many of these have rendered splendid service, it is not in the best interests of our work that we should be compelled to go abroad for men. Experience has abundantly shewn that the men best fitted for the mission field in Can- ada are the men who have been brought up m the homes of our own people, and whose training has been received in the Colleges of our own Church. At a meeting of the Foreign Mission Committee last month only 4 suitable candidates were available, where- as there is urgent need for 9, and the Committee were prepaied to appoint the full number. In les of great business prosperity, avenues are opeti many young men, at other times closed, and this v.«^ubtless is one cause of the lessened number of students for the ministry of the Church, and other professions. The abolition of the preparatory course in our Theologi- cal Seminaries has affected the number of students. Whatever the reason, it behooves us to put forth every cifiort to secure from our own families a greatly 24 increased number of men for the work of the ministry. This matter should rest heavily upon the hearts of our ministers, as well as upon the hearts of Christian parents. Whatever the influence exercised in other directions, godly parents can do more than all others to turn the hearts of thieir children to the great need of the Church and of the world of missionaries of the Cross, and it behooves ministers to keep this need prominently before their people. There is no way, in our judgment, t/ which the spiritual life of a con- gregation can be better gauged than by the number of men and women connected with it who are engaged in actual, personal service for Christ. When we find ^ congregation where the minister and only one or o others are working, we find one where spiritual X is at a low ebb. The computation has been made that only 15 per cent, of nominally Christian people are engaged in any kind of Christian work, and of these, a very J^rge proportion are women. How few men are there in our congregations who give much thought or time to the work of Christ. Our aim should be, every member a worker; every member a missionary. One of the most successful missions of modern days is the mission in Uganda. Ten years ago, there were only 300 baptized Christians; to-day there are 30,000. Ten years ago, only one church; to-day there are 700. Ten years ago, there wert only 20 native evangelists; to-day there are 2,000, every one of whom is supported by native Christians. You ask, what has been the means of this wondrous success? Under Jod, it is attributable to the fact that nearly every member of that church is a working member, not simply nominally connected with the 26 ir" !|j mission, but engaged in some definite p^sonal work for the Saviour. Were the 220,000 members ol the Presbyterian Church in Canada to-.iaylAemmded and actuated bv the same spirit, it would be difficult to over-estimate the transformation ^^^P^^^^^^^^^^^^^T. country; and this brings «s to notice the mam re quiremekt, the primary, essential requirement of our Church. A Fro.K BaptUm of tKc Sp«rit Needed The life and growth of all our schemes and of all our congregations depends on this. We have mach- Tnerv enlugh. WTiat is wanted is power-power from on high ^We sometimes see on large buildings the sin -A flat to let, with or without power." The fctric current is laid along the street and it is available for work if desired. ^o with the Church The Pentecostal power is available, is at hand, if real \Cvfst resources of electric power in the Falls of wheels of this whole continent, and, until a few years Lo it was nearly all wasted and lost. Have we not tf^av inside of the Church, and waiting to be u^ne^' to account, enough latent, --ed spmtua power,- sufficient for the evangelization not o this Do minion only, but of the whole world? All that 1. necessarv is a living connection; the baptism ot lire ?he Son from the Holy One-;;Unction,' -a word morrfamUiar to some of us in earlier years than now. 2ti a word difficult to define. It is something sympathetic, magnetic, human, but it is far more than this. It is supernatural, spiritual. Divine, God's own anointing, and when this really comes to the preacher; when the Spirit fills him and thrills him, those in the pew come to understand what this unction means, in "thoughts that breathe and words that burn." This is the great need of the Church, this unction from the Holy One. Our Colleges need it. Shall I say, it is tlie essential, primary thing they need, a sacred altar at which the torch of every student shall be kindled and the lip of every student touched with the living coal. This unction from the Holy One, the administrators of our Churchwork, our Secretaries and Superintendents, and Committees need. Shall I say, this is the primary, essential thing they need, that they may so administer the affairs of His kingdom that His blessing may ac- company their every act. This unction from the Holy One, our ministers need. It is the primary, essential thing for them. God often uses men who do not possess it, and that in various ways, but when it comes to the true inter- pretation of His own V/ord, the inspiration of the Spirit is needed. The Bible cannot possibly be under- stood aright by those who have no spiritual fellow- ship with its authors. The study of lexicon ard books of criticism, helpful as this is, may tend to weaken faith. To preach aright, the minister must live in communion with God. Not the use of gram mar or commentaries merely or mainly, but confer- ence with God in the '^loset. I care not how schol arly or cultured a man may be, he Cd,n only live in 27 the atmosphere of the New Testament as he lives in the atmosphere of prayer, and, brethren, I verily be- lieve, had we more of this unction— this anointing of the Holy One, there would be little complaint of the failure to attract by our ministrations, but, in place of that, there would be a longing, even upon the i-art of outsiders to come into close contact with men who had been in the secret place of the Most High. We all instinctively feel that the Foreign missionary must have this unction, this passion of the Christ-like love, but the minister at home needs it, and needs it equal- ly with the missionary abroad. He needs it that he mav have the right view of Christ and of his work; that he may educate the Church intelligently; that he may awaken the attention of the apathetic and lead them to realize that the very reason for the Church's existence is to bring the whole world to the feet of Christ. Oh, that the ministry of our Church were a Spirit-filled ministry, beholding the glory of God in the face of Jesus Christ, worshipping Him with the en- thusiasm of a whole-souled personal affection, and presenting Him as the only name under Heaven where- by men can be saved. Our elders and deacons and managers need this unc- tion. Our Christian parents, our Sabbath school teaciers, our whole membership needs it, this indwell- ing of the Spirit of God. What our Church, what the Church of Christ needs to-day is not simply or mainly a great increase in money gifts, not simply or mainlv a great increase in the number of men consecrating themselves to the gospel ministry, but a living mem- bership, every member a missionary — every member filled with the passion of the Christ-like love, telling 28 UNITED CHU«Crl ARCHIVES out by lip, and especially by life, the story of the cross. "^ The noblest band of missionaries our Church and country or any country, can possibly have,* are the men and women who profess to love Christ, livinif nu '^ /v^*^^°?' f.^^ ^^^ P""'^ ^^ holier and more Christ-like the life, the more wUl they shine as lijrhta in the world, holding forth the Word of Life. Truth lived IS a thousand fold more powerful than truth merely taught. You remember the incident told by Henry Drummond, of a young girl whose perfect grace of character was the wonder of every one who knew her. She wore upon her neck a locket which no one was ever permitted to open. One day, in a moment of unusual confidence, a companion was al- lowed to touch the spring and learned its secret. She saw written these words: "Whom, having not seen. I r: *t- ^M "^^^ *^® ®^^^®* °^ he*" beautiful life; and, what the Church needs to-day more than anything else IS men and women so indwelt by the Spirit o. God that every one with whom they come in contact Jesus^ ^°"s*^ained to realize that they have been with With Jesus! Yes, we remind you—we desire to re- mmd ourselves— of Him who came from the far dis- tant land m mercy for us, and what did He give for us.? Not silver or gold, for we were not redeemed with such corruptible things as these Sut He gave Himself, poured out the very blood otf His heart upon Calvary's cross, from love for you and me- and now, from yonder throne above, us His com- passionate eye ranges over the spiritually dead in our own homes, the gospel-hardened in our own land, and the morally degraded among the heathen, says to you and to me: "Love them as I have loved you." Thus HI speaks to every one of us here to-night, and we will each have something to say to Him. What shall it be? ''The love of Christ constraineth me, because I thus judge that if one died for all, then were all dead, and that He died for all that they who live should not henceforth live unto themselves, but unto Him who died for them and rose again." There is no life worth living but that of devotion to Him, and to the furtherance of His kingdom. l^et me seek to have the centre of mjr life shifted off self on to Him. Let me plan and give, and work and pray, assured of His presence, depending on His help, and confidently expecting the fulfilment of His promise. w .^. >: E^ '-■.*;- ■;>Vr r/' .'?,.-^-.;- ■ .''^v- ^V ^1. .t- ^^^?' *♦ t. ':^i\ r^- ^RM Gt^ rasoirtis^ ' ■■•'■'■ <-'.^;v - . '■».*•■ Canadia, intwwtforthesiad Ptini, thefopiof--. ■' n;_ij>|iitf i r-i ra ^> itl^fp be 0am ont of t»v pefspaal estate "withbtit atiy jdednc- ' V? ' • Hon ^hatevitf, atiid I dfrocttliat the receipt of the Treaiur^r of- , -^v^ «dd^ Puud shaj? ^onatittttie add be sufficient discharge :>>-^ ■^:^<:C- .; v^^ I t' >■% ' ' CHTTRCTB 1» CANAbA : " ..-;,'; -rsj:5?%r. Home Miasion Fun«I (Western aod Maiten*' Stctloos) ' ^':L€.4 ' ^^ ^ V Pofej^nMiwBon.PtmdHWwileniaiid Ka«tern SecflSna) '-V',? "^ •: 'i ; V 'Vidowir' tod Orpfraaa'-Fiittd {WeAtern ati4 Eastern Sectlens) ' / -■ > ; *Aged»odIfifirittM»tlst«rs'^Wid X ' ■' ■ »-^v; '^' C^rv^,';v»%nox college, Toronto • :: , t tJ-- :,:■■ 'V^^^a. .jiiailSpba Clause, WmqijieB- ':,»«'■ ■% .. - f ? . - ;y; < <^^v' : Where a fund h&d bttji an Eastern and "Astern Section^ 'j"* :-^*n««etitm f6r^whie^i^e>t|iiclrt^|nt^de4 should^ be ii^med ''"'-S . --■•-. J** yi€ ywU. ' '•■.";''■' ,.^:-,S"', -■.■ ■■■•r '.--'',-- •" '^.v- -.' *.;'>, v.. :■' - ^; "^i, - The Eastern Section inclndies. the.Maritinie I^ovktces aiid v'lt ' f>Newfpundlandi 7 The Western Section include* Quebec, Ontario. , S'^lA?V^»tobaj thfe IJofth-West Territortos. British Columbia and ../■-^:..^^e1fcul:o|^:Tej:0^. ■ ^ .-.-..- ■.^^ ^■^