The central Presbyterian. [volume] (Richmond, Va.) 1856-1908, 1884-10-29
FOREIGN CHURCH NEWS.

The Presbyterian Church of England
ID taxing preliminary steps for the establishment
OF Presbyterian churches in the University
towns OF Oxford and Cambridge. The resident
population IN both of these cities is increasing
and the number of students from Scotland and
Ireland from Presbyterian families crows CON.
IInuaIiy. so that the need is becoming urgent.
Inc Presbytery of London is taking active
measures to secure the building of church in
each OF these University cities and is calling for
neip from all the Presbyterians of Great Britain
mo less than dozen years ago the
number of theological students in Prussia was so
small that hundreds of parishes were vacant
Inc urgent appeals of ecclesiastical authorities.
as well as the steady growth of conservative
te9uencies IN church circles, have had a remark
able effect In again swelling the ranks in the
theological depar tments of the universities At
the present time 1892 Prussian young men are
s.u9ylng theology; and of these all but Ala are
students at Prusslan universities About $50
candidates enter the ministry yearly but even
1nis number ls insufficient to supply the demand
ine eieVen provinces require about 400 new
pastOIs annually, while the schools, asylums,
ana the ike, call for over one hundred more.
None OF the Prussian theological faculties has
secured 80 large an increase as that of Greifs-
wald' which, in 1875, had but thirty students
but now has POP. According to the present
regulations. all theological students of Prussia
must spend three semesters, or half years. at
Prussian schools, the rest can be put In at anv
other German university.
-CHURcHEs IN letters. -The Hon.
the Rev: E. v Bligh, who is Kentish clerpv
man 20 ana one OF the leaders of the Prayer-book
revision Society, has written long letter to
the papers complaining that the Episcopal
Onurch ls held IN hard bondage by antiouated
ruorics. He thinks that the phraseolorv in
which the formularies of his Church are framed
is obsolete, and that the rubrics, as they now
stand are absurd anachronsms." Mr.. Bligh
tninAs 1t Is Just as foolish for the Church to
enter upon the conflicts of this age, clad in me-
di@yai armour, as it would be for England to
send forth her army and navy equipped after
the same fashion as the war ships of Nelson or
the mailed warriors of the Earl of Warwick
ne a PIeads for revision of the liturgy of the
established Church in harmony with the die
tates OF common sense and the palpable needs of
the times. Mr.. Bligh specially illustrates and
enforces his point by reference to the marriage
service which he condemns as coarse and in
aelcate' unreal and vicious. His own practice
ne tells u.s. ls to omit the opening exhortation
ana IN consequence of this he is asked to marry
good many people who would not other wise
5eeK ms services on these interesting occasions.
but his brother, who is " a strict rubricsan"-
and a type of the majority of the clergy
would not leave it out without an Act of
IA armament. The marriage service, in Mr.
blighs opinion, stands soreIy in need of revision
ana abbrevlation. But he also wants to know
why worshippers in his communion should be
compelled to do such "senseless acts - as re-
peatlng the Lords Prayer four or FIVE times in
one service; why the Collects for the day and
TOR the Queen should be said twice over; and
why two Creeds should be recited as confession
OF faith. And he asserts that, To create IN
necessarily either avowed opponents, or keen
critics, by insisting the retention of medieval
terms like ,damnation (condemnation) or
generation admission to Church privileges)
as to the spirit of Christian charity. "-ChTistian
Commonwealth