Newspaper Page Text
Sunrise on Our Mission Fields
Rev. Egbert W. Smfth.'D. -D. . '
The people who sat in darkness
saw a great light ami to those in the
region ami shadow of death light is
spriini up.
Ltatin America.
Though scarcely three years old,
the work in Southern Mexico, our
-Presbytery of the South" is grow
ing lustily. Ten new missionaries
have been added. To meet the ur
geut needs a band of native lay work
ers have been given suort courses in
the seminary and sent out to preach
and teach. All over the field last year
both conversions and contributions in
creased more than fifty per cent.
Our school in Cardenas, Cuba, the
largest Protestant school In the Island,
reports a year of phenomenal growth
and an enrollment of 609, the stu
dent body being limited only by the
dormitory space. Through a boy in
the fifth grade a whole family was
recently brought into the church. One
lady, an ardent "Dauguter of Mar>,
committed the unpardonable sin of
reading the Testament which her son
took home from school. As a result
she Is ndw one of the most joyful
new workers In the church, has
brought her mother, and she, too, is
now a member.
Our three Brazil Missions report
gratifying progress. An Increasing
number of young men are preparing
for the gospel ministry. The "After
noon Sunday School" of the Lavras
church has grown to be one of the
banner schools of Brazil and in and
around the town seven other schools
have sprung up In affiliation with it.
Japan.
In Japan the union of high mental
culture with a heathenism powerless
to supply spiritual needs creates a
situation which only the gospel can
meet. Some Japanese young men said
recently, "We have all been educated,
and we have no lack In that direction,
but we young men are looking for
something else. Our heads are full
but our souls are empty and barren."
"You need Jess," said Mr. Hassell.
"Yes," was the reply, "we believe we
need Him."
Our Golden Castle Girls' School at
Nagoya has broken all records by an
attendance of 263, with 212 new ap
plicants, of whom only 136 could be
received for lack of accommodations.
In Miss Dowd's school at Kochi fif
teen girls were baptized during the
year and through the gift of the
women of our church the prospect is
brightening for an adequate home for
this Christ-like work.
China.
A missionary says he Is continually
hearing "The longer we are in China,
the more thankful we are to be here."
One veteran declares that every suc
ceeding year of his has been the hap
piest. A lady missionary on fur
lough, when I accused her of being
anxious to get back to her work be
gan at once to wnep and sobbed out,
"Oh, Dr. Smith, I'm homesick for
China."
From every part of this great field
come notes of cheer. Kashing High
School has an enrollment of 280, with
a volunteer band for the ministry of
25, Talohow and Yencheng have new
Boys' School buildings. Hsuchoufu
Boys' School haB enrolled 166, break
ing all records, while many applicants
had to be refused. Chlnktang Boys'
School topped all records with 140 In
the fall term and 167 In the spring.
At this school during the last two
years there haje been over 100 pro
fessions of faith. From the Girls'
Schools come urgent pleas for larger
accommodations. The day schools
also are crowded and the cry is lack
of room.
One station reports that the num
ber of inquirers is larger than ever
before; another that the station la
dies have such access to native homes
that in more than 200 homes the
women and girls are being taught
while 500 are on the waiting list;
several others report their joy in
classes of old women who have be
lieved and been baptized this year,
after passing their seventieth, and
some their eightieth, birthday.
Native contributions tre steadily in
creasing, while the Sunday Schools,
especially the "Ragged" or "Heathen"
Sunday Schools of street children,
have grown "by leaps and bounds."
Yet thousands of villages are still
untouched by the gospel, and so des
perate is the need that the stations
are calling for an immediate increase
of 160 missionaries.
Korea.
The great revival continues with
unabated power. The best proof of
its permanent fruitfulness is its ac
companying pasBion for Christian edu
cation. In two years school attend
ance has increased from 3,000 to 12,*
000 and Sunday School attendance
from 12,000 to 30,000. These figures
are without precedent.
Writes one missionary, "Almost a
craze for Bible study has swept over
our church so that old members, and
even non-Christians, are using every
chance for such study."
Prom every field come reports of
churches filled to overflowing and new
groups springing up. We hear of men
giving up their homes for church
buildings, of elders giving their time
to preaching, of many revivals carried
on altogether by lay Christians.
Two years ago the schools were
calling loudly for more buildings.
These two years have seen the student
body grow from 3,000 to 12,000. Im
agine the present condition. It is a
tragedy that this wonderful work of
God should be crippled for lack of
accommodations, while the breakdown
of missionaries leaves critically Im
portant positions crying to be filled.
Africa.
In our African field the gifts for
last year nearly doubled those of the
year before. Native Christians who
tithe their increase of goats, chickens,
sheep, ducks , corn, millet, cassava,
etc., are increasing so rapidly that
the proportion of tlthers in the Af
rican Church promises soon to sur
pass that in the home Church. In
April a Progressive Three-Year Pro.
gram, covering all branches of Church
work, was enthusiastically adopted by
the Mission, with remarkable results
already appearing.
A native Woman's Auxiliary is sup
porting an evangelist In a neighboring
field. A church is supporting Its pas
tor and 83 outstatlon evangelists in
addition. Another has assumed en
tire support of one district of 30 vil
lages. Another reports a contribu
tion increase over last year of 160 per
cent with tlthers multiplying.
The entire educational work of the
Mission Is being thoroughly reorgan
ized to adapt It as perfectly as pos
sible to the physical, mental, and
spiritual needs of the people, to ef.
feet which the teaching force must
be greatly increased. There is a cry
ing rfeed of builders to erect the mis
sionary homes, tor which the ladies
have given so generously, while the
Mission's weakest point is its inability
to supervise properly its vast outsta*
tion work, from lack of missionary
evangelists.
Amazing Growth.
The following figures should excite
our gratitude to God:
1902: Missionaries 1GG, native
workers 132, schools 21, students
1,078, hospitals 1, receipts $164, 883;
1922: missionaries 4 63, native
workers, 3,406, schools 1,082, stu
dents 36,644, hospitals 17, receipts
$1,148,005.
During these twenty years our na
tive communicants, gathered in tue
face of every dithculty and from many
of the darkest places in tnc earth,
have grown from 5,191 to 44,834,
while thousands of others, tne fruits
of our work, have joined national
churches of their own and are no
longer reported by us, and a yet
larger number have gone to be witn
Christ.
The Present Situation.
The payment of the $1,498,500 as
signed by the Assembly to Foreign
Missions in the Progressive Program
will liquidate all mueotedness ana
furnish funds for neeueu expansion.
The receipts lor tue nrst nve
months of this year are $48,661 less
than lor the same period last year.
In the last twenty-seven months
the committee nas sent out no less
than 1U2 new missionaries and noyea
that the Church by it* gliU will au
thorize a yet Curtner increase. Will
it? The committee auu our over
worked missionaries are anxiously
waiting to see. Pray ye tnerefore
"Liord, what wilt Thou nave me to
do?"
Executive Committee of Foreign
Missions, Post Ottice liox 330, Nash
ville, Tenn.
THE SYNOD of VHUilNIA.
The Synod of Virginia triod a new
plan tor ltts meeting tills year, whicu
proved to be very satisfactory. It
xaet at Union Theological Seminary in
Richmond, and moat of the members
were entertained in the dormitories
of the Seminary and the Assembly
Training School. The Olnter Para
church was the host of the Synod, and
provided meals and made all other
neecssary arrangements for the com
fort of those who attended. Here,
after the Synod will be eel f -entertain
ing when it meets at the Seminary.
The most important matter that
came before the Synod was the mat
ter of establishing a Standard Wo
man's College. Mary Baldwin Semi
nary at Staunton, Lynchburg and
Roanoke each made an offer for the
college. The Mary Baldwin offer was
accepted. The trustees of that Insti
tution offered to give to the Synod
the complete plant of the Seminary.
The grounds and buildings are said
to be worth at least 1760,000, and
there Is an endowment of about $160,
000. The city of Staunton also prom
ised $100,000 for enlarging the In
stitution. The understanding with
the Synod Is that it shall establish a
standard, A grade college, and shall
secure an endowment of at least
9500,000. A board of. trustees, with
Dr. A. M. Fraser at its head, was
appointed to receive and take charge
of the institution.
One of the interestrng things aoout
the effort of the different cities to se
cure the location of the college was
the fact that the speakers represent
ing them were from almost all of the
larger denominations. Besides Pres
byterians, there were Baptists, Metho
dists, Episcopalians and Disciples all
pleading with the Presbyterian Synod
to locate the college in their city.
The Synod of West Virginia had a
strong delegation present to plead
with the Synod of Virginia that it
should urge some of the churches be
longing to this Synod, and yet lo
cated in West Virginia, to transfer
their membership to the Synod of
West Virginia. As there was no evi
dence that these churches desired to
make such a change, the request was
not granted.
Ever since the Synod of West Vir
ginia was organized the Synod of Vir
ginia has been making an appropria
tion, as there were a number of mis
in its home mission work, this amount
being decreased each year. Under this
agreement, the amount which would
have been paid next year would haw
been $1,000, but Synod promised that
for next year it would give $1,500.
Massanetta Springs Summer Bible
Conference was reported to have been
a great success during the past sum
mer. An offer was made by Hamp
den Sidney College to which this prop
erty had been given to turn it over
to the Synod and the offer was ac
cepted, and plans were made to make
this a permanent conference site.
Rev. Dr. E. M. Melvin presented
the Progressive Program in a clear
and forceful way, emphasizing the
fact that the Assembly's Stewardshiy
Committee did not intend to under
take to run the churches, as some
seem to fear. It is the servant of the
Assembly, and only makes suggestive
plans for the carrying out of the pro
gram adopted by the Assembly, but
he said that every Session had to de
cide for Itself whether or not the
plans should be put into operation
in the particular church.
Each of the departments of the
Church's work was given careful con
sideration. Foreign Mission work
stood out to the front in its presenta
tion, as there were k numDer of mis
sionaries present to make addresses,
and Dr. E. W. Smith told of his re
cent trip to Africa in a most interest*
ing manner. A native Korean and a
Philippino were also present. The
Korean made an interesting address.
The Home Mission work of the Sy
nod was shown to be in a very good
condition, under Rev. Dr. J. E. Book
er's leadership, except that the con
tributions during the past year were
not as large ar usuai .
Arrangements were made to loin
with the Executive Committee of Pub
lication in supporting a superintend
ent of Sunday school work for the Sy
nod. Rev. T. K. Currie has been se
cured for this office.*
The Synod was very much inter
ested in the new buildings being put
up for the Assembly's Training School
for Lay Workers, and heard Dr. F.
T. Mcfaden with pleasure as be pre
sented the work and claims of this
growing institution.
The opening sermon of Synod was
preached by Rev. Dr. J. O. Venable
(ft Norfolk at tho request of the last
moderator, Rev. Dr. J. H. Lacy, who
had left the bounds of the Synod. Rev.
Dr. T. C. Johnson was elected the new
moderator.