Dr. Chavasse, the Bishop of Liverpool, greeted the Church Congress
at its opening meeting on Tuesday in a striking and dignified address. He dwelt with justifiable pride on the public spirit of the municipality and the civic virtue and munificence of Liverpool men, and applauded the foresight of his predecessor, Dr. Ryle, in deciding "to provide a living wage for his clergy and to plant more than forty churches in spiritually destitute parishes" before he put his hand to the erection of a Cathedral, the foundation-stone of which had been recently laid. Turning to the subjects of the programme, Dr. Chavasse, in view of the ever-accumulating results of Biblical research, vindicated the need of discussing the latest light thrown on the books of the Old Testament and the New. As regards such questions as Church reform and attendance, education, the supply of the ministry; Church work in the Colonies and in heathen lands, they were all still burning questions, which assumed different forms at different times, and must call for different treatment. A Church Congress could not legislate, but it could prepare for legislation by thoughtful, wise, candid, and timely discussion.
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