News and Notes by Editor

International Tract and Missionary Society · Oakland, California · Jan 15, 1885

News and Notes.

By Editor

RELIGIOUS.

—The Persian Mission, under the care of the Presbyterian Board, embraces 1,800 communicants, of whom one-half have been added during the past ten years.

—During the fifteen years of his episcopate, the Bishop of Manchester, England, has consecrated one hundred and twenty-five churches. Last year he confirmed 16,000 candidates.

—The great Moscow cathedral, lately completed, has cost more than $11,000,000, and will accommodate 10,000 worshipers. It is said to be one of the most remarkable churches in Europe.

—Many clergymen appeared before the Connecticut Railroad Commissioners in Hartford, the other day, to advocate the restriction of Sunday traffic on the railroads of that State. The commissioners promised to give the petition their consideration.

—It is proposed to found a school in Chicago, capable of accommodating from 150 to 200 persons, for the purpose of training lay missionaries. It is understood that Mr. D. L. Moody is to be at the head of the institution, and to be assisted by a corps of teachers. A committee has been appointed to perfect the enterprise.

—The Bishop of Lichfield has lately declared, through a circular to his clergy, that a curate in deacon's orders is not licensed to preach. When called to preach, he must read a sermon out of a certain book prescribed in the circular. On one Sunday in each month, however, he may preach a written sermon of his own composition; but the manuscript of this, even, must be sent to the Bishop for examination. With such a process carried out to the letter, the church of England will soon succeed in producing a ministry of which she must needs be ashamed.

—Dr. McNeice, of Salt Lake City, has lately addressed the students of the Union Theological Seminary of New York, on the danger to this country from Mormonism. After reading a portion of Governor Murray's report of one year ago, the speaker advocated holding mass-meetings in the large cities, with the view of securing legislation that will stamp out the infamy. A public meeting has since been held in Farwell Hall, Chicago, in which resolutions protesting against the further toleration of the Mormon system within the limits of the United States were unanimously passed.

—Denver, Colorado, has at least one plucky preacher. Two or three months ago Rev. George P. Hays, a Presbyterian clergyman of that city, said in a public address to the citizens of Denver, that their sheriff was aiding and abetting thieves and robbers, and added that if he took exceptions to the statement, his courts were open to him. The next day the sheriff instituted suit for criminal libel, but upon learning that the doctor had damaging proof against him, he withdrew the suit. Quite a sensation was created at the time by the affair, but the plucky doctor won, and has since been in a measure instrumental in banishing professional gamblers from the city.

—The Watchman has been making some calculations, and finds that of church members who might be active in church, 37 per cent. attend regularly, 20 per cent. only occasionally, and 9 per cent. not at all. In Sunday-school work, 33 per cent. of the able-bodied church members are regularly engaged, and 54 per cent. take no part whatever. "Counting the regular and frequent attendants at prayer-meeting together, 37 per cent. are reasonably diligent, 30 per cent. are practically non-helpers, and 33 per cent. are absolutely non-attendants." It asks, "What do these things mean?" We think they mean that "the church" is an excellent field for missionary labor.

—According to the religious census of Russia, the established Greek Church numbers something over 65,000,000 members, out of the 100,000,000 or more inhabitants of the Empire. The sects, of which there are a multitude, embrace about 12,000,000 adherents; Roman Catholicism has 8,000,000; Protestantism, something over 3,000,000; the Armenian Church, about 2,000,000; Jews and Mohammedans, each about 3,000,000 adherents, and besides these there are about 2,000,000 heathen. During the past year, 10,812 converts were added to the State Church—namely, 4,796, who were formerly heathen, 3,295 from the sects, 1,027 Roman Catholics, 700 Protestants, 672 Jews, 410 Mohammedans, and 11 Armenian Christians.