14 AUGUST 1942, Page 12

Sut,—" Soldier" has received a sharp rap on his tin

hat from Merton College, Oxford, and perhaps he deserved it, for " casuals" are a great weakness to the Church. But let him not be discouraged, for the text remains, " He that is not against us is for us," and some, even among the clergy, sympathise with his perplexities. So long as our services belong to the sixteenth-century and our doctrinal statements to the fourth and fifth, it is not for the Church to throw all the blame for nonconformity on the laity. But " Soldier " would be in a stronger position if he would associate himself with those who are trying to free the Church from the dead hand of the past and join actively in the movement which seeks to bring the Christian religion into vital relationship with modern know- ledge and modern aspirations. That is work which can only be done