Orders of the Day — Clause 1. — (Sunday Opening of Exhibi- Tions and Gardens.)

Part of the debate – in the House of Commons at 12:00 am on 7 December 1950.

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Photo of Mr Richard Acland Mr Richard Acland , Gravesend 12:00, 7 December 1950

With great respect, I am trying to put briefly some points about which I feel very strongly indeed, and I earnestly believe that, in a matter of not more than a minute or two, I can explain why, on grounds of nothing other than Christian evangelism, I believe it would be a great benefit to pass this quite modest Amendment. I should like to take up the exact point which the hon. Member for Louth made. It is certainly true that many social reforms came from such men as Lord Shaftesbury, but the fact borne in on the consciousness of innumerable people whose minds today are closed to Christian truth is that throughout Lord Shaftesbury's struggle he had very little support either from the bishops or the generality of church-goers in our land.

Therefore, I suggest that, in demonstrating once more to our people that almost the highest concern of churchgoers is with merely a matter of ceremonial observance, we are doing something which just closes one more bolt in the closed door of the closed mindedness which is obstructing the Christian truth from coming into the hearts and minds of scores of doubters and unbelievers in our land. I suggest that if those who went into the "No" Lobby only last week, and thereby showed how strong their own feelings are, would now make a concession to the people who have different views, they would do a great deal to show their concern with other things than just ceremonial observance.