The Henson Journals

[98]

3rd Sunday in Lent, March 8th, 1931.

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More snow fell during the night, and it was very cold. The morning light disclosed a bleakly wintry aspect of the world.

I celebrated the Holy Communion in the Chapel at 8 a.m. We were but 6 communicants but, in this high concern, numbers count for nothing.

Somebody sent me "St Martin's Review" which opens with a denunciation of the Bishop of Durham for having "delivered a widely–quoted sermon on the subject" of Wireless. It refers to my sermon in the Temple, which contained an allusion to that subject, but was mainly concerned with graver matters. I suppose that S. Martin's regards itself as the demonstration of the religious value of B.B.C. The writer proceeds to contrast the Bishop of Durham with "Dr Hensley Henson himself, twenty or thirty years ago" when, apparently, he vanquished the Atheists in Victoria Park [Bethnal Green]:

"Those who knew Victoria Park in those days still speak with bated breath of his witness there & the fact that, after a time, there were none who would stay to stand up to him."

Well, well. Thus legend grows. It is 43 years since I [99] [symbol] contended with infidels in Victoria Park, & certainly I can recall nothing that justifies such an account of my performances. But this poor fiction is repeated, & with every repetition enlarged, until the tiny fraction of fact is completely submerged. The legend is designed to blacken the Bishop of Durham, not to glorify his earlier Incarnation!

The "Observer" writes very sourly about Ld Irwin's argument with Gandhi, which it regards as a complete triumph for the latter. It "damns with faint praise". I have grave & growing doubt about the matter myself.

Charles & I motored to Witton Park, where I confirmed 22 persons, of whom but 5 were boys, in the miserable little parish church. The benefice is vacant, for Birney took his departure last week. Pearson acted for him. There were no candidates from Escombe, & Hodgson never sent word. It is all very bad indeed: but only a proegustatis of our fate when "Labour" becomes everywhere dominant!

We motored to Sunderland in a snow–storm: & there I preached at Evensong in St Paul's, Hendon: Charles read the service. Considering the weather, there was a fair congregation, but the Church was not much more than half filled. After the service we returned to Auckland. Snow continued to fall, & the road was in a bad state.

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