Untitled - Electric Scotland

1
857-59] SERVICES IN THEATRES 263
God s glory. Do what we will, some things, which, as indivi
duals, we do not like, cannot be stopped from working, and they
had better work under proper control. They may be blessed of
God ; if they are not of Him, they will come to 1
naught."
One such endeavour, neither authorised nor forbidden by
the Bishop, was the plan for utilising the London theatres
for Sunday evening services. At a Conference of Chris
tians of all Evangelical Denominations/ held November
22, 1859, Mr. Arthur Kinnaird named seven theatres, be
sides other public buildings, which were bpen to them, and
stated that
"
the Bishop of London was in cordial har
mony with them, and cared not whether Churchmen or
Nonconformists conducted the services." This, however,
was rashly spoken. The Bishop wrote, in answer to a
correspondent, that he had grave doubts as to the wisdom
of the movement, though he explained that his attitude
must for the time be one of watchful neutrality. These
services in theatres became, in 1860, the subject of pro
longed debate in the House of Lords, when the Bishop, in
answer to a widely-supported remonstrance or challenge
from Lord Dungannon, expressed his determination not
to interfere with an effort which, however irregular, had
undoubtedly been productive of much good. Lord
Shaftesbury, in a long and eloquent speech, described the
impressive and orderly character of the services which had
been held in the theatres each Sunday evening, in the
presence of immense multitudes of the poorest classes.
Bishop Tait followed :-
It had been supposed," he said, "that this was a public
movement which the heads of the Church were officially
sanctioning. The facts were altogether different. It was a
movement of certain private individuals, who, feeling deeply the
responsibility cast on them as Christian men, determined to try
1
Charge of 1858, pp. 89-91.