The Henson Journals

[79]

Saturday, June 9th, 1928.

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A wet day with some delusive intervals of sunshine, and a conclusion in a violent thunderstorm.

I wrote to the Archbishop, thanking him for a copy of his tractate "The Prayer Book: our Hope & Meaning". It is charming in tone & temper, but very poor intellectually, & strangely uninspiring. But can an aged Opportunist, even though he be popular & saintly, inspire anybody?

An Ordination candidate, Usher, came to lunch – a ginger headed youth who has taken a 3rd class Theological "Honours" at Durham, & desires to be ordained in September.

Lionel & I motored to Hurworth, where I consecrated an addition to the churchyard. After having tea with Miss Forster, we went to Wynyard, where I preached to a congregation of choir members, men, girls, & boys, in the Chapel. It was the annual Festival of Country Choirs, & astonishingly well arranged. My sermon, which had been carefully prepared, suffered from the absence of a pulpit. I had to preach from the conductor's music stand, a frail structure! After the service we returned to Auckland.

James Parker Smith sent a piece of silver as a belated offering on the occasion of our silver wedding, and old Mr Snaith sent some horns of an Auckland Park deer!