The gospel messenger, Diocese of Central New York, Part 76

Author:
Publication date: 1905-1908
Publisher: Syracuse, N.Y. : Diocese of Central New York
Number of Pages: 708

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18 .- Friday, A. M., St. Paul's, Syracuse.

20 .- Sunday, A. M., Oneida.

20 .- Sunday, P. M., Durhamville.

January.

15 .- Friday, Evening, New Hartford.

17 .- Sunday, A. M., Trinity, Binghamton.

17 .- Sunday, P. M., Christ Church, Bingham- ton.

17 .- Sunday, Evening, Good Shepherd, Bing- hamton.

24 .- Sunday, A. M., Holy Cross, Utica.

24 .- Sunday, Evening, St. George's, Utica.

31 .- Sunday, A. M., Christ Church, Oswego.

31 .- Sunday, 3 P. M., Evangelists, Oswego,

31 .- Sunday, Evening, Fulton,

THE SECOND MISSIONARY DEPARTMENT.

On another page of this issue will be found a report of the primary meeting of the Second Missionary Department, which includes the five dioceses in the State of New York, two dioceses in New Jersey, and the Missionary District of Porto Rico. There were some expressions of surprise before the meeting that no arrangement had been made for addresses, &c., and a lurking suspicion that the real work of the Conference was going to fall into the hands of irresponsible parties, whom the people would not follow. But the meet- ing in New York on November 13th must have dispelled all that, for it proved to be merely a meeting for necessary organiza- tion, the adoption of a Constitution, elec- tion of officers, and deciding upon the method of work. A missionary Confer- ence is to be held each year between General Conventions, now in one city and now in another, the details of which will be arranged by the Executive Committee acting with the Bishop of the Diocese; and a business meeting will be arranged for at the same time. The fourth Tuesday in October is to be the first day of the annual Conference, and in 1909 it will be in our own Diocese, in the city of Utica.

It behoves us, then, in Central New York, to be looking forward to and preparing for that meeting. It will be an occasion intended for the Diocese, and not merely for the city where it takes place, and as many as possible of the Clergy and people of the Diocese should try to attend, to welcome the Bishops and delegates from the other Dioceses, and to show our interest in the great cause that it represents. Are we not really, as a Diocese, a trifle too indifferent in that great cause ? We have some fine missionary workers and givers in Central New York, especially among the women.

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but is it not time that the consciences of many of us need to be illuminated and quickened on the subject ? Are there not a large number of men who do not give, either directly or through their wives and daughters, any systematic, conscientious offerings to the extension of the Kingdom of God throughout the world ? And if the offerings do not come in regularly when the year comes around, what are the mis- sionaries to eat and wherewithal are they to be clothed during that year when the people omit to give? The need is a regular and constant one, and the giving is of little use unless it correspond to the need. People say, "There are so many calls,"-perhaps so, but in these luxurious days, when people spend money for so many unnecessary gratifications, all the way from an automobile down to a lump of chewing gum, it is well to ask ourselves, "Are we giving conscientiously ?" Let us not forget the Missionary Conference that is to be held in Utica, Tuesday, October 26th, 1909.

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STUDIES IN THE PRAYER BOOK.

It is really beautiful and highly in- structive to note, in pursuing this study of the Book of Common Prayer, how it provides for every religious need in every time of life, and what a lesson is contained in the order of its offices. The worship of God comes first, just as it does in the Lord's Own Prayer; a fact which teaches us the primary purpose and paramount duty in going to Church. Here we have Morning Prayer, with its invitation to come and sing unto the Lord, and worship Him in the beauty of holiness"-here, above all, we have the Holy Communion, or Eucharist, which means "Thanksgiv- ing," with its invitation to "lift up our hearts," to "give thanks unto our Lord God." Here is no prominence given to any man's part in the matter, whether he have a good voice, or is a fine preacher, or a man whom everybody loves-the pulpit and the sermon come in their proper place on one side, and the Altar of God stands

in the centre, emphasizing the fact that the Church is God's House, the House of Prayer, and that we go to it to worship Him, taking the sermon and the man that preaches it as important things that come in by the way. What a rebuke this is to the ungodly habit of staying away from Church because one does not like the Minister, or does not care for his sermons ! People who have learned the lesson of their Prayer Book never do that.

But after the office of worship in the Prayer Book come those that apply to the various stages and needs of every one's life. Holy Baptism for infancy-Catechism for childhood- Confirmation for youth-Matrimony for the mature years of such as desire it- Ministering by means of visitation to those that are sick, and even, when needed, to such as are in prison-Burial of the dead -Prayers for those that are at sea, for Thanksgiving day, for families, &c., &c. In this way the Church follows her chil- dren, or rather leads them every step in life, making provision that each step shall be taken in the faith and fear of God, so that the whole life may be sanctified. And what a lesson is here also concerning' the character of true religion. How plainly it says to us that religion is not for Sun- days only, not a thing that appears only in the Church, but goes with us every day from the cradle to the grave, guiding, warning, cheering and chiding us, and enabling us to accomplish the Bishop's prayer at the time of our Confirmation, if we will, that we may "daily increase in God's Holy Spirit more and more, until we come to His everlasting Kingdom." Surely it is a great privilege to have such a treasure, and we should be grateful for the possession of it, and try to make the best possible use of it.

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A lady residing in Utica, communicant of the Church, desires a position as com- panion attendant in a Church family. For reference address THE GOSPEL MESSEN- GER,

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THE GOSPEL

THE BIRTHDAY OF OUR LORD.

The whole Christian world celebrates the birth of our blessed Lord on the day which, in commemoration of that event, we have named Christmas Day-the twenty-fifth of December. And yet one can scarcely find a book or a review, or a newspaper article in which the date of our Lord's birth is alluded to, in which dis- credit is not thrown upon the Church tradition in this regard, and some other date assigned for which there is not a particle of evidence. The usual formula is to this effect: "The date of the birth of Christ is unknown, but it was certainly not December 25th, it was more probably in April, or May, or June," or whatever month strikes the writer's fancy-and every month in the year has struck the fancy of some writer. Hence it has come to pass, that while we all acquiesce in the celebration of our Lord's birth on Christ- mas Day, yet a great many are led to doubt that that is the day, and therefore it may be well to show-which can easily be done -that Scripture, while it does not name any date, yet gives indications from which we may safely and reasonably con- clude that it was about that time.

The Church tradition is that our Lord was born on the 25th of December. It is admitted that there is no direct way of proving this from Holy Scripture, because neither is the date itself mentioned in the Gospel, nor is there any date of that year from which we can infer it. But we learn from the Gospel according to St. Luke 3: 23, that the date of our Lord's baptism was very near the anniversary of His birth. "Jesus," it says, "began to be about thirty years of age," when He was baptized. There is, therefore, indirect evidence for the Church tradition, by counting back from the first Passover of our Lord's ministry to the time of His baptism, ac- cording to the narrative of St. John in the first and second chapters of his Gospel; because the same tradition which puts the birth of our Lord on December 25th puts His baptism on January 6th, and St. Luke's expression authorizes us to say that they were as near as that together. If then

we can account for the time between the baptism and the passover, that will be a corroboration of the tradition concerning the date of the birth, as well as that of the baptism.

Now the passover was determined by the full moon which came immediately after the vernal equinox (March 21st,) as Easter is with us. Let us assume that the year in which our Lord was baptized was, as some chronologers have calculated, A. D. 28. For that year the first day of the passover week is given as March 30. From January 6 to March 30 is 83 days, or if leap year is allowed for, 84 days. What is told us of our Lord's actions during those days ?

St. Luke 4: 1 says, 'And Jesus being full of the Holy Ghost, returned from Jordan, and was led in the Spirit into the wilderness, being tempted of the devil." The expression does not imply haste under excitement. First, "He returned," then He "was led," and was obedient to the leading. It might well be that the temptation began after a Sabbath, and ended just before a Sabbath, for it lasted, we are told, forty days, and six full weeks are forty-two days. No journeys would be taken on the Sabbath, and it is reason- able to allow forty-five days for the time between the day of the baptism and our Lord's return to "Bethabara beyond Jordan, where John was baptising," (St. John 1: 28). Let us for clearness put dates probable under this hypothesis to the times mentioned in or inferred from the Gospel narrative. Forty-five days from January 6 would bring us to February 20.

February 20 .- On this day St. John has his interview with the deputation of priests and Levites who had been sent from Jerusalem by the authorities to question who he was and why he baptized, and to whom he said, "There standeth One among you whom ye know not," (St. John. 1: 19- 28.)

February 21 .- "The next day John seeth Jesus coming unto him, and saith, Behold the Lamb of God, which taketh away the sin of the world." I infer, from the solemn and emphatic way in which the Evangelist twice speaks of this as the

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"record" of John, that it was said to the deputation from Jerusalem who had questioned him the day previous, that it was a part of the official answer to the official inquiry (ch. 1: 29-34.)

February 22 .- "Again the next day after, John stood, and two of his disciples, and looking upon Jesus as He walked, he saith, Behold the Lamb of God! And the two disciples heard him speak, and they followed Jesus," &c., v. 35-9), remaining with Him all that day from the tenth hour.

February 23 .- Andrew finds his brother Simon (St. Peter) and brings him to Jesus, (v. 40-3.) We cannot suppose that, leaving our Lord late in the evening, Andrew would come back with Peter that same evening. It is thought that as Andrew brought Peter, so St. John brought his brother James to our Lord at this time.

February 24 .- "The day following. Jesus would go forth into Galilee, and findeth Philip, and saith unto him, Follow Me," &c., (v. 43-51.) If Bethabara were the place where John baptized at the first, as seems probable from St. John 11: 40, and that were at the fords of the Jordan near Jericho, it would be a two or three days' journey from there to Nazareth, which was our Lord's home, and a still longer journey to Cana, where His first miracle was wrought. Jesus, therefore, begins, but does not finish his journey on this day. Philip brings Nathanael to Jesus.

February 25 .- Our Lord reaches Nazareth on the eve of the Sabbath. St. John does not mention this. His nar- rative pauses here; but it is most likely that He would spend the Sabbath at His own home.

February 26 .- The Sabbath at Nazareth.

February 27, 28 .- At Nazareth-in- vitation to the wedding. "And the third day there was a marriage in Cana of Galilee, and both Jesus was called and His disciples to the marriage," (ch. 2: 1.) I cannot think that this was the third day after that previously men-

tioned by St. John; rather it was the third day after some day which had fixed itself in St. John's mind at the time, either the Sabbath, or the day the invitation arrived ; for it is not probable that our Lord would have been informed of the wedding until He reached Nazareth.

March 1, 2 .- The marriage at Cana of Galilee, and our Lord's first miracle. If Dr. Edersheim is correct in saying that the marriage of a Jewish maiden always took place on a Wednesday, then March 2, according to the scheme we are following, is the probable date.

Now the passover, as we said, is given as March 30 for the year we are consider- ing. From March 2 to March 30 is exactly four weeks. Of this about one week, including a Sabbath, was taken up with the journey to Jerusalem. This leaves three weeks between the marriage at Cana and the beginning of the journey. All that St. John tells us of this short period is, that "after this," that is, after the wedding-an indefinite phrase, like "after this "at the beginning of chapter 5, or "after these things," in chapter 6- "After this, He went down to Capernaum, He and His mother, and His brethren, and His disciples, and they continued there not' many days." Our Lord may have remained in Cana several days as the guest of Nathanael, whose home was there; or he may have returned to Nazareth ; at any rate three weeks does not seem too long a time to put between the marriage at Cana, and the termination of the visit to Caper- naum.

This review of the Gospel history is intended to show that what is related in Holy Scripture, about the time spent by our Lord between His baptism and His going to Jerusalem to keep the passover, agrees with the tradition of the Church that He was baptized on the sixth of January. It does not prove it; it does not contradict it; but it does show it probable ; it corroborates the tradition, and that is all we can require of it. I do not say that all things happened on the days as given above, but they could have happened that way. I do not even say that

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the year 28 was the year of the baptism ; but if it were the year before, or the year after, or any other year, the adjustment would not be very different. I have simply given an illustration to show that the Church tradition agrees better with the story as gathered from St. Luke and St. John than any other could.

All that remains to be said is, that St. Luke's expression that, at the time of His baptism, "Jesus began to be about thirty years of age," is not meant to imply that there was any doubt whether He was twenty-nine, or thirty, or thirty-one years of age; the idiom means that the day of His baptism was about the time of his entering upon His thirtieth year; but not the very day. We may,therefore, without going into elaborate arguments with which chronologers have filled volumes pro and con on this subject, accept what has been here brought forward as in favor of the Church tradition that our Lord was born. on the twenty-fifth of December.

J. H E.

:0: PAROCHIAL NOTES.

ST. MARK'S, CLARKS MILLS .- The Rev. William Curtis White, Rector. A slate roof, recently finished at a cost of $325., adds greatly to the appearance of St. Mark's. Other improvements are planned for the near future. One of the features of the work at St. Mark's is the Men's Club, which meets in the Guild Room through the winter. The formal opening for this fall took place Tuesday evening, November 10th, when a goodly number of men listened to an interesting and valuable talk by Dr. Arthur R. Davis on "First Aid to the Injured." Refreshments were served, and the occasion augurs success for the winter's work.

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DIOCESAN ITEMS.

Grace Church, Elmira, which was formally opened by the Bishop two years ago last summer, the debt resting upon it having been paid, was duly consecrated on Wednesday, November 4th. We had ex- pected to print a full account of the service and to give cuts of both exterior and interior in this issue; but they were

not prepared in time, and we shall have to wait for them until next month.

It was recently ascertained that the residence of the missionary at the Onon- daga Reservation was out of repair, and that it was impossible to make it comfort- able in winter because of the crevices which admitted the cold air. The fact was brought to the knowledge of the President of the Fourth District Woman's Auxiliary, who at once communicated with the Bishop, and offered to contribute $25.00 from the ladies of that District towards the necessary expense of putting the house in order. The Archdeacon went im- mediately to the Reservation and con- tracted with a carpenter there to have the whole house covered with building paper and a new layer of clap-boards, a floor put on the attic above the sleeping rooms, and the outside painted with a priming coat, all for $182.00.

The work was begun at once and finished in a week's time, and the Missionary writes that he and his family are already enjoying the greater comfort of the house.

As this mission is one of the whole Diocese, and particularly cared for by the Woman's Auxiliary, the Bishop wrote to the Presidents of the other District stating the case, and they have all responded favor- ably. The Second District has pledged $50.00, and each of the others $25.00, leaving $32.00 to be provided. Possibly some individuals especially interested in the Onondagas will help to make up that deficit.

At the annual meeting of the trustees of the Shelter for Unprotected Girls, Syra- cuse, the Treasurer reported the receipts for the year ending September 30, 1908, as $7,523.99, and the expenditures, $7,423.23. A legacy of $1,000 was received from the estate of the late Mrs. Jacob Crouse.

There were fifty inmates in the house at the beginning and end of the year. thirty-five having been admitted and thirty-five discharged or paroled. This number is nearly equally divided between

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the two households of Faith Cottage and Hope Cottage. In the former are children under sixteen years of age, who are com- mitted to the care of the institution for pro- tection, training and education. Many of these are homeless and others were under improper guardianship.

In Hope Cottage are girls under eighteen years of age, engaged through the day in industrial classes and studying in an evening school under a teacher supplied by the Board of Education. When they leave the Shelter they are usually placed on probation in some situation where they can become self-supporting.

The Secretary read the latest report from the State Inspector, which places the institution in the first class, meaning that it shows practically no defects.

Gifts in money are gratefully acknowl- edged from Baltimore, Boston, Skaneat- eles, New York, Waterville, Utica, Atlan- tic City, Redwood, Christ Church, Guil- ford, St. Mark's and Grace Church, Syra- cuse.

In clothing from W. A. Branches in St. Peter's, Auburn; St. Paul's, Water- town; St. Thomas, Hamilton; St. Paul's, Waterloo; Christ Church, Manlius; Jun- ior, St. George's, Utica; St. Mark's Guild, Port Leyden ; St. Agnes Guild, Waterville; All Saint's, Syracuse; from the G. F. S. in Calvary and St. John's, Syracuse; Solvay Guild, Syracuse; Ladies' Society, New Woodstock.

The Superintendent desires to secure places in small towns or in the country for several young girls well trained in simple house-work.

Address-206 Roberts Ave., Syracuse.

The regular meetings of the Standing Committee between the 1st of December, 1908, and the next Diocesan Convention, will be as follows: Thursday, December 17, 2:30 p. m., Trinity Parish House, Utica; Thursday, March 12, 1909, 2:30 p. m., St. Paul's Church, Syracuse, and at the Diocesan Convention, Utica.

The Winter Canonical Examinations will be held in Trinity Parish House, Utica, Wednesday, December 16, at 10:30 a. m., and by the local Chaplains in Syra-

cuse and Binghamton as they may arrange.

The Summer Examinations by all the examiners together will be held in Trinity Parish House, Syracuse, Tuesday, Wed- nesday and Thursday, June 9, 10 and 11, beginning at 10:30 a. m., June 9th.

Private examinations may be arranged at any time by consulting the Chairman of the Board, Rev. John R. Harding, D.D., Trinity Rectory, Utica.

All communications connected with the Standing Committee should be sent to the Secretary, Rev. Edward H. Coley, Calvary Rectory, Utica, and all candidates for ex- aminations should apply to the chairman at least two weeks beforehand. By observ- ing these regulations a good deal of un- necessary trouble would be avoided.

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SYRACUSE ITEMS.

Dr. Earl E. Sperry, Professor in the University, and Prof. Henry H. Denham, principal . of the Business High School, have been appointed members of the Executive Committee of the Sunday School Institute. The programme for the coming winter and spring will be ready early in December. The speakers already engaged are as follows: Mr. William L. Widdemer, of the law firm of Stevens, Delaney & Widdermer, Albany, will speak at the Church of St. John the Divine, December 17th, on "Some Things about the Graded System." Mr. Widdemer comes from the Sunday School of All Saints' Cathedral, Albany. January 19th Archdeacon Cooke, of this Diocese, will speak on "The Religious Training of the Young." March 9th, Archdeacon Robert N. Meade, Secretary of the Pittsburgh Sunday School Institute, will speak at Trinity Church, on "The Diocese and the Sunday School." April 1st, the Rev. Francis C. Smith, Boonville, will speak at Grace Church on "The Course of Study." Other speakers will be announced later.

A session of the Lay Readers School, under the auspices of the St. Philip Society, was held in the Church of St. John the Divine November 12th. The Rev. James Empringham and the Rev.

a br

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Roy I. Murray were instructors. The next session will be held in January- date, place and instructor to be announced later.

At the annual meeting of the Syracuse As- sembly of the Brotherhood of St. Andrew, held on November 24th, at St. Paul's Church, the following were elected officers for the ensuing year: President, Earl C. Schmeiser ; Vice President, A. D. West, of Calvary; Secretary, Ford W. Sparrow, of the Church of St. John the Divine; Treasurer, Prof. Harry C. Mason, of Grace Church. The Rev. Walter E. Jones was re-elected Chaplain. Work will be begun at once for the Lenten services.

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GENERAL NEWS.

It will be remembered that the Church throughout our whole country has been divided by the General Convention into Missionary Departments, each of which is expected to have an annual Conference during the interim of the meetings of the Convention itself. The States of New York and New Jersey, with the island of Porto Rico, constitute the Second Depart- ment ; and the first meeting of that Depart- ment for the purpose of organization was held at Christ Church, New York, on Friday, November 13th.

The Holy Communion was celebrated at 10:30 a. m. by the Bishop of Albany, the Epistle being read by the Rev. G. W. Strong, Rector of the parish, and the Gospel by the Bishop of Central New York. A business meeting was held im- mediately after the service in the trancept of the Church, at which all the Bishops of the Department except the Coadjutor of Albany and a large number of the appointed delegates were present.

A constitution was adopted, the Bishop of Albany was elected President, the Rev. G. W. Strong, Recording Secretary, and Mr. William Jay Schieffelin Treasurer. It was thought unnecessary to elect a Department Secretary at this time, but Mr. Schieffelin was elected as

representative on the Board of Missions, and an Executive Committee of one from each diocese was appointed. The next annual Conference is to be held in Utica, the 4th Tuesday in October, 1909.

At another Convention of the Diocese of Washington, held on Thursday, November 12th, the Rev. Alfred Harding, D.D., Rector of St. Paul's Church in that city, was elected Bishop, and at once accepted the office. We congratulate the Diocese On thus securing a successor to the lamented Bishop Satterlee. Dr. Harding has been engaged in his present work for quite a number of years, and is much beloved and highly respected by all the people.

The Rt. Rev. Edward J. Knight, Mission- ary Bishop of Western Colorado, died of typhoid fever on November 15th. Bishop Knight had not been in office a year, hav- ing been elected at the General Convention of 1907 at Richmond, and consecrated on December 19th. He was a young man of great promise, and his death is a serious loss to the Church, especially in his own jurisdiction.

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PERSONALS.

The Rev. W. W. Bellinger, D.D., Rector of Grace Church, Utica, has been called to be Vicar of St. Agnes' Chapel, Trinity Parish, New York, and having accepted the call, he begins his work there the first of this month.

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The gospel messenger, Diocese of Central New York, Part 76

Author: Publication date: 1905-1908 Publisher: Syracuse, N.Y. : Diocese of Central New York Number of Pages: 708

Author:
Publication date: 1905-1908
Publisher: Syracuse, N.Y. : Diocese of Central New York
Number of Pages: 708