Congregational Treasurers — Please Note
That the Synod revert to the previous arrangement where Congregation Financial Statements be forwarded only to the Presbytery of the bounds.
Payment to Students for Supply—Congregational Treasurers Note
Synod decision — That the scale of payment to students revert to £3 per week plus expenses, leaving individual congregations to give more should they wish to do so. If any student should be in peculiar difficulty he should state his case to the Finance Committee who are asked to consider his case sympathetically.
Mission to the Jews Fund
It was decided at the recent meeting of Synod that the Mission to the Jews Fund should be merged with the Foreign Mission Fund, the new title of the Fund to be the Jewish and Foreign Missions Fund.
The Christian’s Great Interest by William Guthrie
In conjunction with the Banner of Truth Trust, London, this book has now been re-issued by the Publication Committee as a paperback and at 5/- per copy, post paid. Orders for one or a few should be sent, enclosing remittance to The Bookroom, Free Presbyterian Library, 160 Pitt Street, Glasgow, C.2, while larger orders should be addressed to Mr R. W. M. Mackenzie, C.A., 10 Beaufort Road, Inverness, Scotland.
(Rev.) Alexander Murray.
Copy for Free Presbyterian Magazine
We are very short of articles for the Free Presbyterian Magazine at the present time. We have sermons on hand, but not by our own present ministers. We would be greatly helped by ministers and other friends sending in edifying and interesting articles now.
China Mission Fund
The Reformation Translation Fellowship, formed twenty years ago, has as its express purpose the translation of reformed literature into the Chinese language. Its doctrinal basis is the Westminster Confession of Faith and it is worthy of the prayerful and practical support of all who have an interest in putting sound literature into the hands of Chinese speaking people.
Rev. Charles Chao, the Chinese Executive Secretary of the Fellowship addressed the Synod of our Church at Inverness in May 1967. In January 1968 he went to Formosa and set up the Far East Headquarters of the Fellowship in Taipei. After a visit to the U.S.A. during last summer he returned to Taipei in September along with his wife and two youngest daughters. His latest translations have been Dr J. I. Packer’s “Evangelism and the Sovereignty of God” and a new translation of the Westminster Confession of Faith, both of which were published in Hong Kong.
Our Church has generously supported this work for many years by giving annual grants from the China Mission Fund. This Fund is now exhausted and the increased grant given this year may have to be met from the Legacy Reserve Fund unless contributions to the China Mission Fund are forthcoming. We are making the need known and look to our people to support as they are able this good work among the Chinese. May we also be led to plead with the Lord that the doors of China now closed to the Gospel may soon be opened again and that densely populated but unhappy land delivered from the scourge of Communism.
Contributions may be sent to the General Treasurer of the Church and marked for the China Mission Fund. Owing to the limited supply of Annual Reports available it is not possible to
send them out with the Church Magazine this year, but the Secretary will be glad to forward a free copy to anyone who desires one, from Reformation Translation Fellowship, 78b Chiltern Street, London, WIM, IPS.
— D.B.M.
Church Extension Committee
The Synod at its meeting in May appointed a Church Extension Committee to seek to provide services for such as may desire them and who are not resident near a stated place of worship belonging to the Free Presbyterian Church. The Committee feel that there must be many who are placed in the providence of God in places where there are no services held by our Church. If such would send their names and addresses to the Clerk of the Committee every endeavour would be made to arrange services in places suitable to them. The Committee would also like to hear from relatives or friends of such as are placed in the above mentioned situation. They should send the names and addresses of such to the Committee so that services could be arranged for them also in a convenient place.
The Committee will be interested in receiving names and addresses from any part of the country in both Scotland and England.
The Committee would emphasise that the success of this venture will depend very much indeed upon the earnest and prayerful co-operation of our people in giving names and addresses. We exhort them to do their utmost to comply with the Committee’s request.
“Enlarge the place of thy tent and let them stretch forth the curtains of their habitations: spare not, lengthen thy cords and strengthen thy stakes: For thou shalt break forth on the right hand and on the left: and thy seed shall inherit the Gentiles, and make the desolate cities to be inhabited.” Is. 54, vs. 2 and 3.
Rev. D. A. Maclean, Clerk to the Committee,
F.P. Manse, Halkirk, Caithness.
Trinitarian Bible Society
Dear Mr Sinclair, — It was our intention to write to you just before the meeting of your Synod as in former years requesting you to convey our thanks to the ministers and delegates for the help which the Free Presbyterian Congregations have maintained so liberally throughout another year, but I am afraid that we did not manage to get this in the post to you in time. We shall be grateful if you will kindly find a small corner for this acknowledgment in your magazine.
We have been greatly blessed and encouraged during this year and we have been enabled to send out thousands more Bibles than in any previous year. In the providence of God the income
of the Society has also increased sufficiently to cover all the additional expenditure. — With warm regards, yours sincerely,
Terence H. Brown, Secretary.
Rev. H. R. Moshe Radcliff, Th.L.
At its meeting in May, the Synod accepted a recommendation from the Jewish and Foreign Missions Committee that Rev. M. Radcliff should be placed on its staff to carry out missionary work among Jews in Glasgow or elsewhere as the Lord may open doors.
Mr Radcliff was a minister in the Church of England, but left that Church as he felt convinced that no one could continue there and adhere to the principles of Reformed doctrine and practice. He then became Scottish representative of the Mildday Mission, which brought him into contact with our Glasgow congregation, as he was resident in that city.
Mr Radcliff made an extensive study of the Churches in Scotland and came to the conclusion that the Free Presbyterian Church was the one which adhered most closely to the principles of the Reformation to which he, himself, feels so attached. He, accordingly, approached the Committee who, after discussion and consideration, recommended that he should be placed on their staff for a year. During this year, Mr Radcliff hopes to move around the Church giving lectures on his work and becoming acquainted with our people. At the end of the year, if conditions are satisfactory to both sides, consideration will be given to inducting Mr Radcliff to work among the Jews as a Free Presbyterian minister.
The Committee hope that this door to preach the Gospel to the Jews by one of their own nationality has been opened by the Lord. We call upon the Lord’s people among us to bear Mr Radcliff and his ministry upon their spirits at a Throne of Grace.
“Brethren, my heart’s desire and prayer to God for Israel is, that they might be saved.” (Rom. 10, 1).
(Rev.) Donald MacLean, Clerk,
Jewish and Foreign Missions Committee.
The late Mr Alex. MacLeod, Elder, Vancouver
Rev. R. MacDonald, Vancouver, sends the following notice: “Passed away on the 4th June, 1969, in his 84th year, Alex. MacLeod, elder, in the Free Presbyterian Congregation, Vancouver. Mr MacLeod was born in Raasay and was a brother of the late Rev. James MacLeod, well known in the Church in Scotland and Canada. He is survived by his widow, a son and three daughters, to whom our sympathies go out.”
Rev. R. MacDonald intends (D.V.) to write an obituary of the late Mr Alex. MacLeod.