THE COMPREHENSIVENESS OF THE CHURCH [To the Editor of the
SPECTATOR.]
Sra,—It is very little consolation to the laity to be told, as Professor Helton has told us in your last issue, that the Church of England is comprehensive, if, as is too often the case, its bishops and clergy are not equally comprehensive, but use their position to promote the interests of some party within it.
What we want is parochial comprehensiveness, of such sort that whatever our views may be within the wide limits said to be allowable to Church people, and wherever we may be, we may find ourselves at home in the local church. If, for instance, an incumbent who has the Eucharist with the most elaborate ceremonial permissible by the law in the morning, would give us a simple Holy Communion service, equally permissible by the law, in the evening, he would be putting comprehensiveness into practice in a ',my which would be acceptable to large numbers of loyal churchmen, and would do much to bring about peace in the Church.—I am, Sir, &c.,
JOHN R. CLARK HALL.
15 Ashburnham Gardens, Eastbourne.
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