Despite the prevalence of air-raid warnings there was a fair gathering on September 29. Pianoforte and vocal music were provided by Mr. Cecil Turner and Mr. G. C. Dowman. Lord Snell was the principal Guest.
The Chair was taken by Mr. Wallis Mansford…
We are holding this annual gathering at a very special period of great strain and anxiety. We cannot minimise the situation in which we are placed. This war is different from others preceding it. There was a time when war did not very much disturb an Englishman's feelings because it was fought by soldiers in somebody else's country. Now we are all in the line of battle, and you may realise what has happened when you find yourself deprived of tea on a Sunday afternoon because the enemy has temporarily cut off our means of boiling water.
We can stand a great deal, but if the Germans were to bomb Lord's cricket pitch or the Oval that would be unforgiveable. As it is, only our homes and our lives are being sacrificed, and the situation is of unprecedented anxiety. lt would seem as if civilisation as a whole has got a date with destiny. We are not merely observers but participants in the fight, with special duties we cannot avoid. First of all we are sentinels on guard be-tween the past and the future, for the treasure which has come down to us is the result of thousands of years of striving. If we are cowards, or yield before danger, we may sacrifice what may not be recovered for centuries, but it we endure, all may be preserved, and in our own good time we may add to the treasure.
We may take some satisfaction that we are not fighting for ourselves alone. We are mortal and, whether we wish it or not, we shall have to lay down our burden, but whatever sacrifices we may have to make, they are not selfish, because we are guardians for the future, and the way in which we bear ourselves may decide the fate of civilisation for generations yet to come.
You may ask why I place all these burdens upon you. We are a small, intellectual community, liking to pass judgments on other people's religions, politics and daily doings. But we have responsibilities which great Churches have not assumed—the responsibility to use that reason which binds us together to penetrate behind the deceiving facade of events in front of the real trouble. We are bound in this world of emotion and uncertainty when minds are swayed by all sorts of extraneous things to keep sober and have a balanced mind free from crude racial prejudices and hatreds. Our first duty therefore, requires us to keep reason alive and operative. We must see that we ourselves and our country shall not be swayed by mass emotions which are often so uncertain as to their goal. We must remind people in the hours of greatest excitement that after all it is not cannon which will in the end decide, but man's power to apply reason for noble ends and purposes.