THE CRISIS IN THE CHURCH OF ENGLAND SIR,—The letter from
Mr. David Pumfrett, written in a somewhat pedagogic and would- be mediatorial strain, in its meanderings does not deal with the point at issue. No doubt the defence put up by the friends of Mr. Kensit, who, having passed away, is looked upon as a fair mark for detractors, is not palatable to certain people, but it must be remembered that the best way to have grievances redressed is to bring them into the light of day, although the operation may ruffle the sensibilities of interested, and guilty, persons. No doubt it is of some degree of interest to hear that Mr. Pumfrett has been to a Kensit meeting, and also attended a very High Anglo-Catholic service, and as a result cries a plague upon both their houses, but the matter in question is, do the clergy and laity of the Church of England carry out the pre- cepts of that body as enjoined in the Prayer- book, or do they in many cases openly flaunt defiance of fundamental regulations which are looked upon as binding upon all members of that Communion.
It is all very well for Mr. Pumfrett or any- one else to assert that ' the Church service is an aid to worship and every worshipper must surely know what kind of service helps him most ', but this artless pronouncement seems to overlook the fact that the com- pulsory service is contained in the Prayer- book aforesaid and that it is binding upon members of the Church. How many ' Kinds' of service are there ?
His remark about Presbyterianism seems
to be invidious. As one who, although a Churchman, is well acquainted with that form of worship, I would like to say that the Presbyterian service is, generally speaking, a model of devoutness, sincerity and dignity, and that the sermons haVe a quality far beyond that which obtains in the Anglican community.
Mr. Pumfrctt suggests in effect that the strivings of the dissentients in this matter do not accord with the mind of the Master. Are we not all aware that Christ Himself and His apostles, as narrated in the New Testament, dealt in suitably scathing language with those who in His own time overloaded their religion with meaningless ceremonial, and should not His present-day ardent followers place on record a revolt against pretentious pageantry, mummery, crossings, genuflections, prostrations, which mar public worship in so many of our churches in the present day.
No wonder that a cleric of the Roman Catholic Church, daring convention, attended a High Church ceremonial in an Anglican place of worship, and afterwards, no doubt with a twinkle in his eye, stated that he pre- ferred his own 'simple' service.—yours faithfully,
Lancaster Gale, W.2
W. JAMES
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