p roots in history, and cling passionately round the
individual. Convictions can only be modified or changed gradually, by
love and deeper spiritual learning. Bully or outrage a conviction, and
you double its strength. That is why argument seldom does aught but
harm. Argument is an attack upon another man's convictions, or
semi-convictions, and inevitably fails to do anything but stiffen them.
Inevitably therefore will hasty action by individuals or sections, for
instance in the Church of England, for which other sections are not
ready, throw these into suspicion and opposition. I speak of my own
Communion and say deliberately, that if at the moment, either an
individual, or a section--any section--of it goes galloping off, be its
zeal and hope never so pure and splendid, on private roads, the whole
desire for unity, and therefore the cause of unity, will be gravely
damaged.

For the whole Church of England--I think that can be truly said--has now
an unutterable desire for the joy of Unity; it is, further, convinced
that action must be taken; but it is by no means convinced that certain
actions--to take a concrete example, free interchange of pulpits with
Nonconformists--are as yet either helpful or right. If one part adopt
such a policy, hostilely and sectionally, it will simply throw others
into convinced opposition and retard the whole desire for decades.
Questions of deepest implication cannot be settled in haste. Before
approaching at all, we must find the right methods of approach. Quite
rightly, the American "World Conference for the consideration of
questions touching Faith and Order," paid, from the start, the utmost,
an uniquely scientific, attention to right method; their patience has
been lightning-swift in result. It did not even go so far as to say, "We
will confer, that is the right method"; it said, "We will learn how to
confer." It was a new and by no means easy exercise, but it has been
learned, and the English Conference mentioned above, "the landmark,"
arose by its inspiration and worked by its methods.

A wrong method of approach is equally well illustrated by the gathering
of Evangelical clergy at Cheltenham[15] early in the Spring. They
discussed to some purpose, and at the end of a few days had drawn out a
series of some dozen articles of principle and action. Some were
unexceptionable, others went beyond what either the Bishops or other
sections of the Church are yet ready to do. Such sectional