The Henson Journals

[8]

13th Sunday after Trinity, September 14th, 1924.

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Almighty and merciful God, of whose only gift it cometh that thy faithful people do unto thee true and faithful service: Grant, we beseech thee, that we may so faithfully serve thee in this life, that we fail not finally to attain thy heavenly promises; through the merits of Jesus Christ our Lord.

Amen.

The Gospel for the day is the Parable of the Good Samaritan. Therein the Lord of all Christians teaches what in his vicar is the unum necessitarium of discipleship. This wrangling of Churches, this insistence on claims and names, this careful delimiting of ecclesiastical frontiers, is all beside the mark. He, the Lord and Master, ignores them all & fastens on one thing. "By this shall all men know that you are my disciples, if ye have love one for another". We all pretend to believe this, but we wrangle and taunt ourselves nonetheless. "He that loveth his neighbour has fulfilled the law" says St Paul. Yet it is full of melancholy suggestiveness that the author of the great hymn on the glories of Charity (1.Cor.Xiii) should have himself been the most controversial figure of the Apostolic Age.

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The morning, dark and damp to begin with, rapidly cleared, and led in a brilliant day. I celebrated the Holy Communion at 8 a.m. in the Chapel. We were 10 communicants including Mr Kőrsteiner and Ernest. Before starting I inserted a sentence into the sermon suggested by the Gospel for the day: "The Samaritan, not the priest or the levite, satisfied Christ's test of discipleship".

Ernest and I left the Castle at 9.20 a.m., and motored to Sunderland. Bishopwearmouth church was crowded, many not being able to obtain admission. The service was very impressive by the ardour & devotion of the people. My sermon took exactly 40 minutes in delivery, and was listened to closely throughout. We lunched at the Rectory, and then motored to Houghton–le–Spring where I instituted the new Rector, Watson. His predecessor, Bishop Knight, inducted him. A considerable number of the parishioners of St Margaret's arrived in motor–omnibuses, & the parishioners of Houghton–le–Spring turned out in good numbers. So the church was well–filled: & the service was impressive. We gave Budworth a lift back to the white gates, & got back to Auckland shortly before 5 p.m. By this time the brightest of the day had passed, & the weather had become wet and blustering. Now we must await the consequences: it is only certain that the Papists will "go for" the Bishop of Durham with their usual weapons

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