Newspaper Page Text
January 12, 1910. THE
shall be saved and shall find pasture."
A red alabaster band frames the mosaic,
and on It is carved, "I am the gate of
life. By me my members enter." Just
below this there is a cross set upon a
Bible, as if to indicate, "The doctrine of
this took is that of the cross." On another
column there is another mosaic,
with these words: "Him that confesseth
me before men him will I alsn nnnfpss
before my Father and the holy angels,"
and the figure Is that of the Saviour holding
a Bible in His hands. Above the
high altar in the apse is one that is
similar to that which is over the entrance,
except that the Bible is closed.
To the right of the altar is another with
the inscription: "I am the light of the
world."
Mary is often represented, but never as
"the mother of God," and never in the
act or attitude of blessing. She is invariably
a suppliant, and where she is described
it is as "the mother of the Divine
Son," nothing more. Even on the
tombs?as all readers of Ruskin know?
the decline of piety is marked indelibly,
and always with the Bible paramount,
nnri with the \t Q r\ An n o * ? *u "
???w* V??v i>t?uwnii? OUUVlUUiaiC IU 111C
Christ and to the Word, which is given
first prominence. Always and in all
places early Venice is the city o? the
Scriptures and of the Lion that has prevailed
to open its treasures to the fullfaithed.
All this in testimony to the past history
of Venice. What is its present condition?
It is very low. Of the 135,000
people less than 1,000 are identified with
the four evangelical churches,?the Waldensian,
Free Italian, American Methodist
and American Baptist. Of the 134,000,
some, the poorest and most ignorant,
are entirely dominated by the Latin
church. Many of the others are sunk into
complete indifference, but the rest, including
all of culture and refinement, education
and station, have entirely broken
away from the Church of Rome, and are
susceptible to all that argues for spiritual
freedom. It is therefore that we may
speak of the religious condition of Venice
as extremely hopeful. The teaching
In the public schools is to "obey the
pope in things spiritual and the king in
things temporal." Formerly priests were
among the teachers, but at present there
are none.
Latterly there has been an inclination
toward a hearty feeling for the Bible.
Some time ago the Secolo newspaper,
edited by Signor Sonzogne, published the
Bible, profusely Illustrated, In weekly
penny parts, and 50,000 copies were sold.
This Incident shows the manifest good
reception of the Scriptures. Added to it
are many others that might be noticed,
of emigrants returning with the Bibles or
Testaments in the vernacular, the incident
invariably awakening interest.
Those returning from the United States
who have become Protestants are reckoned
as among the best recruits to the
evangelical churches, and their return Is
sincerely welcomed, especially when
they come laden with Bibles. The Venetian,
like all Italians, loves the home
PRESBYTERIAN OF THE SOU1
land, and is especially proud of his Venice.
Imbued with a love for the Christ
revealed by his San Marco, and warm in
love for the Lion of the tribe of Judah,
it is he who "goes home" a missionary,
with a mission.
Is it not wise to equip him with a
supply, in hand, as well as in heart,
trusting God to revive the faith once
prized by the Queen o? the Adriatic?
W. H. Morse, M. D.
Hartford, Conn.
A VERY GREAT HELP TO SUNDAY
SCHOOL TEACHERS.
A. L. Phillips, D. D.
The time has come when an earnest
and progressive Sunday-school teacher
must carefully choose the helps which he
will use in the preparation and teaching
of the lesson. Besides his Earnest Worker
and Peloubet, or other elaborate commentary;
he will need a small but comprehensive
and usable help that can be
kept in the Pocket or may lie easily at
his elbow for occasional study. Thos.
Nelson & Sons have brought out an edition
of the Gospel of Matthew that ev
ery reacner snouid have for use during
the whole of 1910. It is entitled "Matthew,
or the Good News about the Son of
Abraham." It consists of the text of the
American Standard Version, bound in
limp cloth, three and a quarter by five
and a quarter inches in small but clear
type. The text has been analyzed and
topically arranged by Dr. W. W. White,
President of the Bible Teacher's Training
School in New York, one of the most
masterful modern teachers of the Bible;
and here is the little fore-word. "The
design of this volume is to aid the average
reader in grasping the thought of
the Evangelist. There is an orderly arrangement
of the material which it is the
purpose of the topics to disclose." Then
comes a brief topical analysis of the
book. This in turn is followed by the
fpvt oonoroio/l ??/?*!??? ??3
.?-i uiiu actuuus anu paragraphs
with very simple and helpful
headings, printed in black faced type to
distinguish them from the text Itself.
The purpose of the writer and the progress
of his thought are set forth with
great clearness and skill.
Teachers just must have this little
hook. It contains the pure Word of God
with just enough sign boards to show
clearly the way of thinking. The analysis
is as simple as it well can be made. It
is so small and light that it can be carried
about without inconvenience.. It
invites one to spend his strength and
time on the Word itself rather than on
man's explanation of it. It will enable
the average teacher to master the book
as a whole and be able to give some Intelligent
Idea of what the Holy Spirit
said about Jesus Christ through Matthew.
It costs just six cents postpaid, and can
be had from the Presbyterian Committee
of Publication, Richmond, Va., and Texarakana,
Ark.-Tex.
The world is growing better cotton,
corn, wheat, rice, fruits?religion?
rH 47
FIELD DAY AT THE JOHN WATKINS
ACADEMY, MOKPO, KOREA.
Today has been a great day at Mokpo.
For many days preparation had been
made for the annual FipM Day. An air
of expectation was abroad. Flags and
decorations were prepared by willing
hands. The school boys drilled for their
various parts, Finally the dajf arrived.
Beautiful and bright, just cool enough
to be bracing in the Autumn air, the sea
and the mountains at Mnknn ?
?i-vy ?*V1C Ullusually
beautiful it seemed?all the beautiful
gifts of our loving Heavenly Father
who satisfleth the desire o 1 every living
creature out of his inexhaustible
riches.
The boys and girls were in holiday attire.
The mayor of the city was present,
affable and democratic in his bearing.
Many invited guests were there to enjoy
the day, some having come from
Mokpo and some from the country
around.
The events consisted in races, relay
races, three-legged races, lantern races,
drills and many other exercises. The
medical students were there with bandages
and applications for any who might
need help. This was at their own sug
gesuon. L.ate In the day as the full harvest
moon rose over the Eastern Range
of Mountains the Victors received their
awards and turned homeward tired and
happy.
The whole arrangement and execution
were by the Koreans and showed their
ability to arrange and execute. They
are eager for the best to be had, friend- 9
ly, openhearted, and generous to the giving
away of the last morsel of food and
the last cash?tenth of a cent,?in their
pocket, these splendid people are ready
and waiting for the Gospel and love of
our Lord Je3us Christ to transform them
into a mighty power for Him to use in
His own all wise and loving ways. "Korea
for Christ" wholly and without reserve.
"A Million Souls for Jesus in Korea in
1910" is the Watchword. Pray daily that
it be accomplished. "Not by might nor
by power, but by my Spirit saith the
Lord of Hosts." Zechariah, 4:6.
Already daily united intercessory prayer
is on in Korean homes and churches.
Testaments and Gospels have been circulated
and plans are being made to issue
a large special edition of one of the Gos
pels, possibly a million copies to be used
far and wide. Pray that the Word of
God will enter every home in Korea this
year and be read and lived and preached,
as never before. Pray that every Christian
may be a worker, bringing at least
one soul every month to Christ. "The
harvest truly is plenteous but the labourers
are few. Pray ye therefore the
Lord of the harvest that He will send
forth labourers into His harvest." Matthew
9:37-38.
"Today if ye will hear HIb voice, harden
not your hearts." Hebrews 4:7, "Come
over into Macedonia and help us." Acts.
16:9.
Mokpo, Korea.