ANNUAL MEETING. 



7 



Rev. Dr. Irving, in moving the resolution, " That the Report 

 l)e received, and the thanks of the Members and Associates he 

 presented to the Council, Officers and Auditors for their efficient 

 conduct of the business of the Institute during the past year," 

 said — I do not know that the report calls for any special remarks, 

 except it be regretted that the number of Members and Associates 

 has not increased this year so much as we could have wished. 

 A year or two ago I was called upon to speak in this room on 

 <i similar subject and I expressed the hope that the falling 

 off of clerical members was only temporary ; and I would 

 venture to express the hope still that we shall have an increase in 

 the near future, and that the Society will have an increase of clerical 

 members ; for my studies, which try to stride the double horse of 

 .science and theology, have led me to feel very strongly that it 

 is mainly in the ranks of the clergy that the work of this Society 

 is likely to bear good fruit. Only within the last two or three weeks 

 the readers of the Guardian newspaper have probably noticed that 

 my unworthy name has appeared. In one case I had a severe 

 castigation administered to me by a brilliant writer on the 

 theological side, who has made himself to some extent acquainted 

 with science, because of the audacity on my part in venturing to 

 put in a postscript to a letter — an important letter bearing upon 

 Xew Testament Exegesis — uttering a warning to those who had 

 not been serious students of science against dealing too freely in 

 scientific phraseology, because I hold that the cause of truth is not 

 advanced in that way. The castigation I received at the first 

 moment seemed too funny, but of course the answer was very easy, 

 .and I have answered Canon MacColl. 



Several years ago I took an opportunity of writing to Dr. 

 Creighton, Bishop of London, a very strong letter on the great im- 

 portance of the clergy being trained so as to be in sympathy with the 

 forward movement and thought of this twentieth century, and he 

 entirely agreed with me ; but declared there was no energy to spare 

 for great intellectual issues for a man in his position. 



I venture to say it would be a good thing if all influential 

 members would try and induce more clergy into our ranks. They 

 have the ear of the public in a privileged way, and it is painful 

 to find preachers beginning to talk about science and dealing with 

 -scientific things when they are out of their depth. 



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