By John and Angela Magee. Part of a series of articles on the History of Emmanuel Church in Salisbury.
The work of the Sabbath School was overshadowed by the lack of a Superintendent. Mr. C. Lodge had retired from this position on 24 January, 1967. It became a matter of prevailing concern and prayer for the church throughout 1967 that a new Superintendent would be found. It was eventually agreed to move the Sabbath School class to the morning for a three month trial period, with the expectation that extra help might be forthcoming from some, and that more children might be encouraged to come along. It was hoped that help might be secured from Mr. and Mrs. D. Shergold, Mrs. T. Warman, Miss D. Roberts and Mr. O. French. Transport arrangements for the children had to be carefully planned. A happy resolution to all these concerns was obtained when Mr. French took on the task of new Superintendent some months later. He rendered an excellent service to the church in this capacity but felt constrained to resign from the work in 1969 due to other pressing commitments.
The Treasurer brought a faithful Statement of the church's Accounts to the members at each meeting and this reflected not only the different expenses incurred by the church but also its giving to particular causes and the amount received into the church. The church for a time experienced a degree of strain on its finances and had hoped that a minimum of £100 a month in givings would help, but this hoped for target had not been reached in 1967. The Pastor's "personal expenses" were generously increased from £4-6-8 to £8-13-4 per month (giving him a monthly salary of £47-13-4) at the proposal of the Church Council; members, therefore, were asked to give prayerful consideration to the relieving this financial strain.
The financial statement for the end of 1967 was as below:
A missionary weekend was held from 11-13 November, 1967. The speakers on this occasion were representatives from particular organisations supported by the church. Meetings were held on the Saturday, on the Sabbath, and on the Monday evening. It was also agreed to cover the travelling expenses of all the speakers who came.
Those represented were as follows:
The money received at the missionary weekend was then distributed to the following causes:
The seal of the Holy Spirit in conversion was evidenced once again in the hearts of those who professed faith in the Lord Jesus. This resulted in several baptisms occurring in this year. Among those that applied to the Pastor for baptism were Miss Lynda Herbert, Miss Margaret Child, Peter Pike, John Reynolds, David Maderia, and John Halsey. As the church was still without its own baptistry, request was made to Shrewton Baptist Church to use their baptistry. This was kindly granted, and these baptisms took place in June, July, August and September.
A particular encouragement to the church was when Rev. B. Butler and his wife requested to join in membership. They had been worshipping at Emmanuel for a number of months and were greatly blessed with the fellowship. Their stay, however, was brief as they left the following year to go to the United States. The esteem in which they were held by the brethren at Emmanuel Church was expressed by a generous financial gift on their departure.
The church rejoiced once again at the services of thanksgiving held for the safe arrival of four babies during 1967.
The ministry of Mr. Frank Farley from Weston-Super-Mare was considered a means of spiritual refreshing at the Pastor's first anniversary service held on 1 March.
Stella Nott, a student at Moorland's Bible College, wrote to the Pastor seeking membership at Emmanuel Church. This was granted. She had hoped to work with the Salma India and General Mission Society, but anticipated a brief interlude before this would happen. A valedictory service was held for her on Sabbath 22 September, 1968, prior to her departure to East Pakistan (this had not been her first place of choice to work) with the Ceylon and India General Mission. The church assured her of their prayerful interest in this work and sought to give financial help to her on a regular basis. The practical needs for Miss Nott travelling to East Pakistan were identified by a "wants list" which was put up in the in the church building and assisted the members to make suitable choices to help her prepare. The missionary services of Miss Nott were brought to a premature end towards the end of 1969 due to her unresolved health problems.
The church was strengthened both numerically and spiritually as several others joined themselves to the body of believers.
Don Summers of The Evangelistic Association led an outreach ministry at the City Hall and Emmanuel Church joined with other local churches in proclaiming the Gospel.1
Although the Pastor's ministry was appreciated by the members, an occasional reminder was necessary to try to improve attendance at the mid-week Bible study, which seemed to be the most poorly attended meeting.
The purchase of four convector heaters at £3 each was welcomed by many and assured those who struggled with the lack of heat in the church building that the following winter would not bring the same problems.
At the annual review of the Pastor's stipend it was agreed to increase his expenses' allowance by £1.
At the Church Members' Meeting which was held on 12 November, 1968, Mr. Lewis Halsey had brought to the members' attention that the church was supporting, albeit intermittently, twenty-two different organisations. It was proposed that this number be reduced to six and that a voting paper with all twenty-two organisations on it be made available for each member to select their six preferred societies. By the next church meeting, held the following February, the six societies to which the church would give support was agreed. These were as follows:
Overseas Missionary Fellowship
Part of the work of the church involved the upkeep of the premises, and, as with old buildings, regular repairs were needed. Because of the initial link with the Maundrel Hall the Trust that existed there was often willing to assist in the maintenance of Emmanuel Church. In 1968 they gave a generous gift of £150 to help repair the floor of the Wesley Hall upstairs. This gift also relieved some of the burden of payment for the ancillary rooms downstairs. Once again the trustees of the Truman Memorial Trust were invited to inspect the work done.
Mr. P. King retired as Treasurer of the Church Council after many years of faithful service and was succeed by Mr. L. Wick, who continued the excellent work of maintaining a reliable, financial church record. Offerings for the first ten months of 1968 averaged £85, again falling short of the desired target of £100 a month. This set a greater responsibility upon the members to see how they could give more generously to the needs of the church and so spare it from financial difficulties. However, in the providence of God, an individual was constrained to give generously to the church and this proved a blessed means of relieving these financial concerns. Despite the attention drawn to financial needs, it was encouraging to note that when a Fellowship Sunday was held by the church on 30 June, an offering was collected for F.I.E.C. which amounted to £7-0-2.
At the Council Meeting held 9 April, 1968, the need for a Minute Secretary was discussed and it was eventually agreed by the Church Council that Mr. Lewis Halsey should take on this position. This he did very faithfully, relieving the burden of others, which allowed meetings to be conducted with greater ease.
Arthur Gove was welcomed back into the pulpit at Emmanuel Church once again when he took the Pastor's Anniversary Service in 1968.
The Lord's Day Observance Society expected to hold an outdoor meeting in Salisbury during 1968 and in the event of inclement weather had approached Emmanuel Church for the use of their premises. This was warmly assented to, as the love of the Lord's Day was, and continues to be, a distinctive mark of Emmanuel Church.
Noise in the gallery proved a source of distraction for some and it was considered necessary to close the gallery for a time in the hope that more might sit in the main body of the church building. This, however, proved counter-productive, and as many of those in the gallery were young people from Salisbury, numbers dropped for a while. Alternative means to addressing the noise problem had to be considered as no one wanted to see the loss of attendance in the young people.
Another departure from the church in 1968 necessitated the Church Council spending considerable time in discussion over the matter. Miss Mullin, who had been the church organist, was leaving the district and she would no longer be in attendance at the services. Mr. Dudley Luke, whose music skills had been known to many, was initially considered, but on reflection by the Pastor it was considered best not to approach him to take up this vacancy (although occasionally he was called upon to help). Eventually, the Pastor had secured Mr. Paul Kirby to play at the Sabbath evening services and Mr. Wheeler agreed to come when necessary. Miss Pearl Philips was also approached for her assistance here. That three replacements were necessary for Miss Mullin must surely have been a testimony to her commitment and skill!
Pastor Lawes encouraged seasons of prayer among the membership prior to significant events such as before a missionary event, or, as in the winter of 1968, he proposed a week of prayer in various members' homes prior to beginning the church's outreach work.
The practice of "vestry meetings" was an integral, albeit infrequent, event in the church and usually occurred when individuals applied for baptism or church membership. The Pastor would then conduct a series of meetings with the people concerned in the vestry room of the church building, hence the derivation of its name! A need for such meetings was anticipated in the near future as a number of people had expressed interest in attendance. Regrettably, the interest of some waned and as there remained only one interested candidate, Miss Susan Bridge, the "vestry meetings" had to be postponed.
A winter programme for Sabbath evenings was discussed and consisted of the following:
A Bible Week was proposed for the Spring of 1969 with various topics being discussed and the opportunity to ask questions given also. The Pastor hoped that various departments of the church would contribute to this week of talks.
An extraordinary Council Meeting was called after the morning service on Sabbath 18 September. Two matters needed attention. Mrs. G.H. Lodge had proffered her resignation as Missionary Secretary. She was succeeded by Mrs. N. Halsey. Reasons for this resignation were not documented but thanks to Mrs. Lodge for her faithful service was recorded.
The second matter arising at this meeting was the administration of Scripture Union material among the youth groups. Although an agreement was reached on this matter it was not put into effect by some and necessitated further discussion and action at a later meeting. The necessity of this extraordinary meeting was not made clear but perhaps it was pre-empted by the sudden resignation of the Missionary Secretary. However, conflicting opinions prevailed for some time regarding the use of the Scripture Union material and this may in turn explain the calling of this meeting!
It was considered by Church Council that an invitation should be extended by the church to encourage the students at the training college of Sarum St. Michael to come along to Emmanuel Church. When the church met for a members' meeting in February 1969 it was concluded that the students at the college should be invited to a social evening on the second Sabbath in the first term of their academic year. This practice proved favourable with some of the students who started attending Emmanuel Church more regularly.
The Pastor felt obliged to decline an invitation from the Salisbury branch of the British and Foreign Bible Society to have a church member on their committee because the committee chose to meet on a Monday morning and no suitable person seemed free at that time. It was, however, possible for Mr. Lawes, when approached by the Rector of St. Paul's Church, to attend a meeting of the Church Pastoral Aid Society as a "good will gesture" from Emmanuel Church.
At the end of 1968, the church, under the direction of the Church Council, needed to vote for another deacon from among the membership. Although the voting did take place it was declared to be invalid due to the fact that constitutional procedures had not been adhered to. It was not until the Annual General Meeting of March 1970 that Owen French and C.W. Lodge were eventually appointed to the diaconate.
The closing of another decade gave members at Emmanuel Church opportunities in many unexpected areas of change to demonstrate their growth in faith and dependence upon the Lord. Some changes experienced in 1969 were received as tokens of encouragement while others presented the church with greater challenges to contemplate a new way forward.
Mrs. Joy Warman stepped in to relieve Mr. French as the Sabbath School Superintendent and received assistance from Miss D. Roberts. The continuity of excellence in this work was appreciated by all. By the middle of June, fifteen new names had been passed on to Mrs. Warman as potential Sabbath School candidates. This was as a result of an open-air mission for children held by the Lord's Day Observance Society at Fisherton Meadows in the Salisbury area earlier in the year. The children's hearts were ripe for instruction in the Truth and every encouragement to have them attend was required. Both Mr. and Mrs. Lawes had been able to support the work of the Society at this meeting.
With so many activities occupying the time and energy of the church members, Mr. Lawes became increasingly convinced of the need for a Prayer Secretary. Such a person would regularly bring before the church the prayer needs of all the ministries and missionary causes of the Lord's work connected with Emmanuel Church. Miss D. Roberts was appointed to this new task.
Changes also took place in the lives of some of the individual church members as marriage covenants were entered into. On 5 July, 1969, Miss Barbara Rowlands married Mr. Melville Moody and on 29 July of the same year Miss Susan Bridge and Mr. Owen French were united in marriage.
At the Council Meeting held on 11 February, 1969, Pastor Lawes submitted a letter expressing his wish to retire at the end of his four year term of office. The anticipated end to his pastorate was February 1970, but a special request was made to extend this time until the following May to facilitate an easier move. The matter was brought to the membership at the following week's Annual General Meeting, where termination of office was granted, although, not surprisingly, with much regret.
While a year was still left for Mr. Lawes to fulfil his pastorate he remained persuaded of the need to advance the cause of Christ in the city of Salisbury. His passion for the spiritual needs of the unconverted seldom waned and every occasion was seized to proclaim the Gospel. He proposed to the church that 1969 should be a year in which the prayers and efforts of the Lord's people should be focused upon planning for a mission which he eventually called "Mission Seventy". This was scheduled to take place on 1-8 February, 1970. To facilitate the success of this work Mr. Lawes encouraged as much involvement of the membership as was possible. Help was required for visitation, planning and publicity, counselling, the running of a bookstall, stewarding, and many other practical matters. All were reminded of the on-going need for fervent prayer to seek the assistance of God in all that had to be organised.
Each evening meeting was preceded by an hour of prayer. Mr. David Shepperd and Mr. Don Evans accepted the invitations to preach at the meetings and many felt that the preached Word was apposite to the needs of those who listened and that the preaching was attended with the power of God. When the church gathered to reflect upon this mission the united opinion was that God had blessed this work and effected change in the lives of many. In particular, the professed conversion of a Mr. Alexander (who was a member of staff at the Old Manor Hospital, Salisbury) gave much cause for rejoicing.
Fellowship with like-minded evangelical causes in 1969 was seen as tokens of blessing as bonds were strengthened with The Keswick Fellowship, Salisbury Plain Christian Fellowship, City Challenge, Scripture Union, and Damerham Y.F.C., Romsey.
Rev. Alan Gibson, at the request of Mr. Lawes, came to the church in 1969 to explain to the members proposed constitutional changes that the F.I.E.C. were hoping to effect. As a result of this meeting Emmanuel Church as a body voted in favour of the proposed constitutional changes to the F.I.E.C. These changes may be summed up as follows:
Opinions may vary as to whether such constitutional changes should have been allowed and whether they were consistent with the aims of the Fellowship's founder, Poole-Connor. The desired outcome of strengthening the cause of independent churches was never achieved as further changes in the Fellowship became so inconsistent with Scripture that many churches were eventually compelled to withdraw their support.
Attention within the Church Council was now turned to the need of having a new pastor to replace Mr. Lawes as soon as possible after his retirement. The Church Council were concerned that all they could offer a new pastor financially, was a stipend of £10 per week plus £2 expenses and that this might act as a deterrent to some. Although it was known that Mr. and Mrs. Lawes were to leave for Northamptonshire in May 1970, believers still sought to join the church to be united with this body of Christians, and for those that felt discouraged at the absence of a pastor they could rejoice that the Lord was still adding to their number. Three extraordinary Church Members' Meetings were called for five applications to join the church during these early months of change.
A Farewell Service was held for Mr. and Mrs. Lawes on 1 June, 1970. Their departure from Emmanuel Church afforded the members the opportunity to be exceedingly thankful to God for how Mr. Lawes had firmly established the work of Emmanuel Church upon Gospel principles.
Throughout the following months men were invited to preach at Emmanuel Church with a view to being called to the pastorate. Preaching was undertaken by Messrs. Locke, Word, Norman and Fraser, but the members of the church felt none of these men were suitable. Mr. Malcolm Watts was also invited to preach at Emmanuel Church during 1970.
1 In this history our intention is to faithfully report the facts. The church, as now committed to the Reformed Faith, would not be in agreement with the doctrines and practices of some of the organisations formerly supported.