The Sun.
London, England, 1868-04-22 00:00:00

7HE IRISH-CHU.RCH.

- ,
A- spedial general meeting of the Fellows of Sion
College was held 'yesterday in the hall of the Col-
London-walt-;—the Principal, the Rev. W.
ROgers; rector of St. Botolph, Bishopsgate, in the
chair—for the purpose of considering the resolutions
of Mr. Gladstone on the Irish Church, now before
Parliament. The meeting was largely and influen-
tially attended by clergymen, the great majority
present being the rectors and vicars of the City and
metropolitan parishes.
The CHAIRMAN said he had called the meeting on
a requisition presented to him by 12 of the Fellows
of the College.
The Rev. Mr. LEE, rector of Stepney, said, as
one who had taken an active part in getting up the
requisition, he would take npon himself to open the
discussion. Their object was not to praise or con-
demn the Irish Church, but to consider certain re-
solutions respecting it now before Parliament, the
object of which was its disestablishment and disen-
dowment. He approached the question as a Liberal
in politics. He had always been a consistent sup-
porter of Mr. Gladstone, had always voted for
him at the University election, and thought the
University had sustained a great loss in reject-
ing him ; but he strongly opposed his present
policy. He objected to the Irish Church being
made the stepping stone to power of one party in
place of another. He considered Mr. Gladstone's
resolutions as destructive. They destroyed without
providing any plan for reconstruction. It was a
proposal for confiscation and robbery which edu-
cated Liberalism ought to reject. He begged leave
to move the following resolution :—" Thaf au
humble address be presented to her Majesty, pray-
ing that the revenue of the Irish Established Church
may be retained for spiritual uses, and that her
Majesty will be pleased to exercise her patronage
as heretofore until Parliament has sanctioned a bill
providing for the satisfactory appropriation of the
above revenues."

The Rev. W. SCOTT, rector of St. Olave's,
seconded the resolution, and in doing so he con-
demned the conduct of Mr. Disraeli in asserting
that there was a conspiracy existing against the
Irish Church between the Ritualists and the
Ronianists.

The Rev. Dr. WORTHINGTON said there could be
no question about the object of the Liberal party.
Having obtained the disestablishment and disen-
dowment of the Irish Church they would then at-
tack the Church of England. He, therefore, felt
bound to do all he could to support the Church in
Ireland against the mongrel majority of the House
of Commons.

The Rev. B. COWIE, of St. Lawrence, Jewry,
said the resolution before the meeting was too in-
definite. He should like to see a resolution ex-
pressly in favour of retaining the Established
Church in Ireland. Although belonging to the
High Church party, he was a firm upholder of the
principle of Church establishments. He was afraid
there was an intention to offer a bribe to the Irish
landlords to induce them to agree to the spoliation
of the Church.

The Rev. W. MITCHELL agreed with the pre-
vious speaker. He strongly condemned the con-
duct of the Roman Catholii clergy. He moved
the following amendment :—" That petitions be
sent, under the College seal, to her Majesty and to
both Houses of Parliament, praying them not to
sanction the disestablishment of the Irish Church."

The Rev. Mr. SINDON, of St. Paul's, Old-street,
seconded the amendment.

The Rev. W. H. MILMAN, of St. Faith's, could
not agree with either of the resolutions before the
meeting. - The Tory party did not support the
Church of Ireland because of the good it did, but
because it was an old institution. He was opposed
to the existence of the Established Church in
Ireland simply because it was impossible for it to
perform the duties of an Established Church by
attending to the religious wants of the poor of the
State. The poor in Ireland were, as a mass,
opposed to the teachings of the Irish Church.
He defended Mr. Gladstone from the attacks that
had been made upon him, and strongly condemned
the attempts making in some quarters to resuscitate
the dead horse of "No Popery I" It was an un-
worthy appeal to the prejudices of the people. All
their efforts could not save the Irish Church ; it
was doomed to fall from its own weakness.
The Rev. Mr. KIRBY thought they should not
dmtroy the Church in Ireland, but reform it where
abuses could be proved to exist.
The Rev. Mr. COKE, of Bethnal-green, said he
was prepared to vote for the amendment, but at the
same time considered there was a great reformation
required in the Irish Church. If this reformation
were not effected, he should be prepared to vote for
its disestablishment. He condemned the attacks
which some of the speakers had made upon the
Roman Catholic clergy.
The Rev. Mr. CUMMINGS did not cpusider the
abolition of the Irish Church would do any good to
Ireland.

The Rev. Mr. BARDSLEY said the statistics
which had been published respecting the Ir ish
Church were all of them untrue. lie looked upon
the Church in Ireland as a missionary Church, de-
serving their support.
The Rev. Mr. M'GATCIIEN, of Bethnal-green,
thought the disestablishment of the Irish Church
would prove one of the greatest blessings for real
Protestantism, and therefore he was prepared to
§upport its abolition.