The Henson Journals

[60]

Wednesday, June 4th, 1924.

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Prayers were read at 8.45 a.m. in the detached chapel in the classic style, built at the same time as the Palace. I wrote letters to the Archbishop of York about Knight's consecration: to Hudson Barker undertaking to officiate on September 1st at his marriage (the belated old idiot!); and to the Secretary of the Clergy Assistance Society commending Rust's application for a grant.

The Archbishop took me for a walk in the grounds, & from a rising place showed me a most beautiful view of the cathedral. It is placed on the wooded hill given to S. Patrick in A. D. 440. Behind it is the new Roman Catholic Cathedral, a pretentious building with two spires, which has a curiously exotick appearance. It the foreground rises the spire of the Presbyterian "cathedral". Thus the via media of Anglican Christianity is effectively symbolised! By descending a little we found a point at which a convenient tree blotted out the modern rivals, & showed S. Patrick's church in unchallenged possession of Armagh. This little town, with about 7000 inhabitants is sufficiently equipped with "places of worship". Besides the three "cathedrals", there is an Anglican Church, a Roman Church, a Methodist Chapel, & a meeting house of the Plymouth Brethren.

I preached to a large congregation in the Cathedral at 3 p.m. The service was choral sung by the members of choirs in the diocese mostly, so far as I could see, consisting of girls!

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However, they were creditably attentive, although the sermon must have been painfully dull. The Archbishop & some others expressed themselves flatterously, but I incline to think that my preaching days are over!

I wrote to the Mayor of Sunderland, who had the impudence to write to me about J. S. Brown, no doubt in view of the vacancy at Houghton–le–Spring.

We had a good deal of talk about serious subjects after dinner. The Archbishop agreed with my view that the apologia for Christianity lay in its character as the true dénouement of Theism, that Christ indicated the proper order of the argument when he said to the disciples: "Ye believe in God: believe also in me". We discussed Barnes's efforts to modernize theology, which D'Arcy was more inclined to think needed & useful than the rest of us. He holds that the religious beliefs of the people have been seriously shaken by the sudden and rapid dissemination of scientific knowledge & speculations, which have indeed been long known to the educated minority, but are startlingly novel to the religious public as a whole. Therefore, Barnes is fulfilling a much needed ministry, when he expounds as if they were perilous novelties, interpretations of the Bible which have for more than a generation been the assumptions of the schools and universities. A very large public is grateful to him for what to them appears his audacious courage.

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