The Stourbridge Observer, Cradley Heath, Halesowen & District Chronicle.
Stourbridge, West Midlands, England, 1869-02-06 00:00:00

,ne coldness of centuries to become stereotyped upon the
Church of England! That was the question before them.
Was God's kingdom to be set up or was it not? Was the
whole Church of Christ to say, 'Thy kingdom come? "
They could have no hesitation In giving all answer to these
questions. Those he addressed and he himself might the
before this struggle was over, or they might live it out, pray-
ing and fighting, and struggling, and loving their lord Jesua
more and more, hut they all knew there was not one of those
little children who could say "Thy kingdom come," who
would net leave some traces behind him when their suffer-
ings for the rising up of the kingdom of God in the land was
over. It was not a struggle between man and man,
or between one faction and another faction—it was
a struggle between God and his enemies. It had
always been the fact that the efforts of God's enemies
were not made by men professedly bound to reject Ilis
doctrines, but by those Who, in spite of their love for
Him, had become the unconscious instruments of His
enemies. It was against God that hands were now being
lifted up. How hard it was to love one's brethren in Christ
if they saw them with their eyes open to great realities
still resisting this great reaction of God's Church Those
people acted thus because there was a veil hanging over their
hearts which lie hoped time would draw away. Let them
recollect that thirty-six of the host of Israel were smitten by
their enemies. Del Joshua—did the pool to of Israel under -
value the issue? Did they say it was a simple defeat? Did
they say they did not mind or care for it? No ; Joshua rent
his clothes, and fell to the earth upon his face before the Ark
of the Lord, and cried out, "Oh, Lord, what shall I say
when Israel turneth their hacks before their enemies"
;Joshua vii., SP. It was a defeat of God's people. They
turned their backs before the enemies of God It was like
God being defeated. Though but thirty-six had fallen, still
they were of God's people, and therefore the heart of all
Israel was made sad—not for this small hiss, but for the
contradiction that seemed to have been involved in it.
Therefore, those who now heard him must not undervalue
this great liene, but they must take care not to overvalue
the actual injury which had been done to the Lord's Church.
Let them remember that God said to Joshua, "Get thee up;
wherefore Best thou thus upon thy face." God told him to
undo the mischief, to take outrage, and that., although he
he was quite right in not undervaluing the issue at stake,
yet he was wrong in overvaluing the loss Israel had sos-
tallied. But Israel was as far from being defeated that light
broke in ilium her, and from it came new life and new strength.
So he exhorted them not to overvalue the hies they had sus-
tained, but take it from God, wit., would raise them up iti his
own time. There was something to be done while theywaited.
God had sent them these troubles, not to discourage, but to
give them life. But there was faintheartedness amongst
themselves, and there were some outside them who turned
upon them and mocked them, and said, "Now you see you
are defeated—now you see you have lost this or that—you
must forsake the Ark which you thought was the Ark of God,
but which is an tinsate ship, which will destroy you." But
bo—under Jesus, thanks to him—they thought better than
that; wad yet there were those foist-hearted persons amongst
themselves who were ready either to echo the cry •rom with-
out, or to talk of Oils scheme or the other, all tending to the
one point, that they should abandon the Ark and the pos-
session God bath given to them. What dld Paul say of people
like this, when he rebuked them?' We have not re-
sisted unto blood striving against sin." Well his ;the
preacher's brethren had not yet "resisted unto blood."
When they were called upon to give their blood for Christ,
they might call it suffering; but when, in these days, the
weapons were padded with wadding, not loaded with lead,
were they to fly away the moment they touched theni, instead
of arming themselves with double strength, which would
"bringforth fruit with patience?" Were they piing to be faint-
hearted? No. Let the enemies of God and his Christ come
on. Let them come on consciously Sr unconsciously. They
were lighting a terrible warfare. Let them come on. Lets
darker defeat come upon us. Let their enemies trample
them in the mire of the earth: but, as long as Jesus was
with his Church, let them resolve to have the Church as their
hopes. It was their fortress—their battle geld; and only
when Christ called them forth out of this world of battles
would they be content to rest in peace:

At All Saints', Margaret-street, London, the " Iligh Cele-
bration" followed 10011 after the close of Morning Prayers,
in which the sermon was made to follow the prayer for the
Queen. The preacher, who crossed himself devoutly before
commencing, at the words " lathe name of the Father, Ac.,"
took as his subject the persecution of the Children of Israel
by Pharaoh, comparing the sufferings of the former with
those of the "Catholic Church "from the world at the present
time. "Now, as then, the powers of the earth," he observed
"seem bent on attacking the people of Got liefoie the
latter lies the great sea of the unknown future, as the Red
Sea lay before the Israelites ;" and he urged by a variety of
arguments the duty of defying the powers of the world
and of darkness. The sermon was followed by a hymn
and one or two prayers, and at the end of "Matins" the
priests and a large part of the congregation left the church.
After an interval of about ten minutes the former returned,
three of them dressed in " vestments," as is the cost, cm here,
and acting as priest, deacon, and suboleacun. Incense was
not used, and the candles stood as usual on the aVr, but
they were not lighted. The Nicene Creed was sung, with
the customary prostration or glenunexion at the words "and
was made inan.'"l he Creed over, ale Upton Richards
ascended the pulpit and delivered a short address, in the
course of winch he said that he was grieved and distressed
to tell his people that from and after that day lie should
discontinue the altar lights, and so obey this "abet unjust
judgment," throughout which no Christian could fall to
see that there was an intense desire to do despite to the
Churzh of God. Their consolation, however, was that
God was an avenging God, and would not tolerate
injustice for ever, but in his own good time would make the
cause of Himself and of truth to triumph. In protesting
strongly against this " wieked and unjust law," he would re-
mind them that St. Peter and St. Paul both exhorted their
readers to submission, even to injustice, for the sake of the
faith, and that Christ had left an an example of Buffering
wrongs patiently. During the administration of the Sacra-
ment, which followed, stringed instruments were played as
well as the organ. and neither the consecrated bread nor the
cup, so far as we could see, was unduly elevated.

At the church of St. Mary Magdalene, Munster-square,
which was one at the first to adopt both lighted altar-
candles and the vestments, as well as incense, when Ritual-
ism first became prominently before the public` both altar
lights and incense have been abandoned by the Incumbent,
Mr. Stuart. As the service at this church has hi harto owed
much of its attractiveness to lights and incense it was hi
their absence comparatively cold, and for a RittifiliSt church,
somewhat dull. For, though it is a church where extreme
doctrines are taught, there has been here, owing to a variety
of causes, an absence of ceremonial, such as bowings,
crossings and recroesings of celebrant and assistant priests,
genuflections, die. The six candles which stand on the altar,
and which used to be lighted at all services, and the two large
ones in front of the altar, which were formerly liahted after
the sermon and before the prayer for the Church mili-
tant, remained unlighted throughout the service. the
mixed chalice was used ; but there was no elevation of the
Sacrament in either kind, nor has it, as torus we know, ever
been customary at this chords to elevate the elements unduly.
The acolytes who hitherto have been present near the altar,
for the purpose of sprinkling incense, were lot there on Sun-
der; as their assistance was no longer required. In other
respects the service was the same as it has been for some
years past. The sermon, which was p; cached from the
Fifth Commandment, treated of the difficillty of obeying
earthly masters in heavenly matters. The acQii-tomed Vest-
ments were -corn; the number of communicants was small.