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Thursday, October 29, 1914. RALEIGH CHRISTIAN ADVOCATE. Page Five dence of faith and devotion, zeal and energy, and has made steady progress. This fact of itself strengthens the call upon our Mission to extend into wider areas that work by which our Japan ese Churches were first brought into existence and by the furtherance of which at this time the larger and more rapid growth of these Churches may be made possible. That these wider areas exist for mission enter prise is shown by the recent survey conducted by the Federation of Missions, the result of which was to ascertain that eighty per cent of the entire population of Japan, or forty-eight millions of peo ple, still remained unevangelized. The inadequacy of the Japanese Churches at their present stage of growth, the total Christian population being less than two hundred thousand, and of the Mis sions with their present strength and equipment, is deeply felt. The leaders of Christian work, whether Japanese or foreign missionaries, are of one mind as to the vital importance of reinforcing this field from the home Churches at this time. But the urgency of this matter is not determin ed wholly by questions of territory and popula tion. There are special conditions which give strength to the deep convictions we feel and to the obligation of our Mission to this field, and which point to the nature of the reinforcements needed. Among these conditions, mention may be made here of the increasing place of importance occu pied by Japan in the Far East and among the nations; the high standard of technical efficiency set by the nation in its educational system on the one hand and the materialism controlling the educational aim and permeating the minds of teachers and students on the other, alike render ing the endowment and better equipment of our schools and other institutions a matter of im perative importance; the perplexing problems arising out of the intellectual and social emanci pation of womanhood, with the growth of the fac tory population, largely recruited from among women and girls; the better access now open to the rural districts, to the numberless towns and villages, the doors of which are now open to the Christian preacher whose message is eagerly re ceived by the people; and, of greater concern than any other problem, the wide spread preva lence of irreligion and the downward moral trend, pervading Japanese society. The present Christian forces have been made to feel the need of reinforcement, in view of the general decline in the moral state of the country and in view of the new opportunity this condi tion has given, for the Christian Church to ren der a far reaching service to the nation. Appalling corruption has been discovered in a number of departments of the national administration and even in the headquarters of the leading Buddhist sect. These disclosures, and the low moral tone of society of which they are an unmistakable symptom, have become the subject of wide com ment throughout Japan, and the result has been a seriousness of mind and a consciousness of need which we have every reason to believe will lead to a better appreciation of Christianity as a reli gion of redemption. Prominent leaders in the Empire frankly point to the moral breakdown of the nation's secular program and are asking where a moral and religious force can be found sufficiently vital to arrest the downward trend, some of them going so far as to admit that this can be found in Christianity alone. Too great emphasis cannot be given to the fact that, we are confronted with an opportunity, in view of these things, such as has not existed since the country was opened; a far greater opportunity than that of the "eighties," being not only more pervasive, but different in character. The Chris tian religion was welcomed then as being good and desirable; it is lookeed upon with favor or sought now as being positively necessary and by many as the nation's only hope. Furthermore, a desolation of heart is felt by many in every local community who have lived these many years with out any form of faith and religion. A deep spirit ual hunger is experienced by others who would readily respond to the call, if only bidden to the great feast. The cry out of the deep of the nation's soul is a call to the vaster deep of Infinite love of which the people are without knowledge. Beauti ful indeed are the feet upon the mountains of Ja pan of those who at this hour in the nation's his tory bring good tidings to hearts and minds troubled with questions for which there is no answer except in the Gospel of Christ. The situation is such as to summon anew the interest of the Home Church in this great field. The momentus and solemn obligations of the hour, have been so felt by the Christian forces as to give rise to a National Evangelistic Campaign, which is opening the way for greater activity on the part of the Missions and Churches, and as to impel the Mission bodies to call for reinforce ments. Mission schools by all means should be strengthened, as a bulwark against materialism and skepticism, and for the formation of Christian character and the interpretation to the Japanese of those ideals on which alone a stable civilization can be founded. And the evangelistic force should be greatly increased in order that a nation-wide movement may be carried forward for the dissemination of the saving truths of the Gos pel. We confess that anxieties trouble us. Just at this time when the call is for a great advance in the Christian civilization of Japan, the clouds have thickened and overcast the sky in the home lands. Our prayer to God is that the great strug gle in Europe may not distract the attention of the Church or interfere with its unalterable pur pose to present Christ to those who need Him; but on the contrary that it will inspire to greater sacrifice and incite to a more relentless warfare against the powers of darkness and sin. After a careful survey of our field, we find that in order to strengthen the position of our Mission in response to immediate demands, the following reinforcements should be sent to us: 1. We desire to open twenty new stations for which resident missionaries are required. 2. We need twenty single ladies to be sent for direct evangelistic work. 3. Thirty new Church buildings are needed and a still greater number of Sunday-school chapels. 4. Large endowments for our schools are need ed, especially for our Kwansei Gakuin and the Hiroshima Girls School. Committee: S. H. WAINWRIGHT, J. C. C. NEWTON, S. E. HAGER, J. T. MEYERS, T. W. B. DEM ARE IS. A Sketch of The Life of Jerry McAuley NO. 3. C. B. Culbreth. One of the truest facts in history and at the same time one of the most inspiring is that a man's works live after him. The truly great man is not he that accomplishes the most in this life as we usually measure greatness. Life does not consist in the abundance of a man's labors any more than it consists in the abundance of the things which he possesses. A man's life will finally come to be judged by the quality of the service which he gave, not by the number of things which he did. The twenty-third Psalm is a thing taht will live forever. One man can well afford to give a whole life time to the accomplishment of a work that will have the quality of immortality which the twenty-third Psalm has. Truth may suffer re versals, may be smothered, hindered, but cannot be destroyed. What a holy ambition it is that kindles in a man's breast the purpose to focus the energies of his whole life and make the supreme sacrifice necessary to the accomplishment of one thing in life that shall live forever. Jerry McAuley's life and work in establishing the first rescue mission in the world where the drunkards, the thief, the outcast could come and find sympathy and the personal help which they needed so much, is a contribution to the world that will live. "Water Street Mission" itself may pass away; a cynical philosopher might say that even the spirit that prompted the men who estab lished it may pass from the world, but the quality of service which it has given, and is giving, and we hope will continue to give, in the very nature of the case will not and cannot pass, but remains and will remain as the monument to the spirit of benevolence begotten by love in the heart and life of Jerry McAuley. Surely "Water Street Mission" was a little grain of mustard seed that sprang up and offers protection and rest to thousands of God's lost and wandering ones. It's influence has not only been felt over our own land and country, but "Water Street Mission" is known the world over. The Irish drunkard, the Italian gambler, the heathen Chinaman, the American tramp, the lost woman and the street beggar have come to "Water Street Mission," thrown off their filthy rags of sin and have been clothed in the garments of righteous ness and peace. . . The following is typical of the kind of work that "Water .Street Mission" has done. At the close of the service one night the usual question was asked, namely, "Ts there one man here who would like to come to Chrisf ?" One man, a drunk en "bum," sitting on the back seat, raised his hand. One of. the mission workers had found the old drunkard the night before in a stale beer dive and invited him to come down to the mission. "Give me fifteen cents and I'll come." the old man said. The missionary gave him fifteen cents, which of course, was spent for whiskey, but the old man kept his word and was at the mission the following night. An invitation was then given, "If there are any needy souls, come up here." lie started, but was so drunk he fell to the floor. Ready hands helped him to the front. lie was a fearful looking object six feet four inches high, weighing 2 60 pounds, and had on only two gar ments, such as they were, an old pair of breeches tied around him with a piece of clothes line, and jumper, both too short, there being a wide space between the two where there was nothing but the bare skin." His testimony ever after this was, "I came in drunk and went out sober, and the best of it is, I've been sober ever since." "Scottie Bum," as the old man was called, was born in Glasgow, and was a drunkard from his youth up. He was imprisoned for drunkenness and after his release was sent to America. Drinking whiskey, tramping and beating his way on freight trains, he sank deeper and deeper in the mire. His first work after his conversion was carrying a hod. He 'afterwards joined a trade union and was honored by that organization by being elected a delegate several times and by serving as its faithful and trusted treasurer for more than seven years. He held an important position as superintendent of a great number of men and had the care of many houses. He married a Christian woman, saved his earnings and bought a home of his own. Instead of "Scottie Bum" he was known and loved for a number of years as Mr. J. C. Edwards. This is the kind of work that follows Jerry Mc Auley, whom the love of Jesus Christ redeemed from the slums of the depravity to which he had fallen. Prompt Responses to The Proposals Of The Old Saint Bishop W. A. Candler. Some days ago T published the proposal of a venerable mother in Israel to raise a "Woman's Fund" to aid young men desiring to attend our new University. She was able to give no moro than $2, but she gave that with hearty good will and accompanied the gift with warm words of faith and love. I am glad to say a number of good women have responded promptly to the pious proposal of the old saint. Contributions have come from devout hands in Louisiana, Georgia, Mississippi, Virginia, Tennessee, and Kentucky. While the amounts given have not been large, they have aggregated enough to give timely aid to a worthy young man in the School of Theology. Some contributions have come without the names of the donors, but with words of encour agement worth more than money. One writes: "Another nameless old sister wish ing to help the boys, sends you a money order for $10 for 'The Woman's Fund to Aid Young Men,' and with God's blessing hopes to do more for this cause." Another writes: "I so much admire the good lady's idea that I am going to join in her pro posal, and am sending you $10 in this letter for this purpose. I trust the Fund may grow rapidly, and T am sure it will, if the good women will give to it and take the same interest in it as she has done." In an unsigned letter are these words: "1 am sending you $1 with the prayer that more will be sent, and that the $2 of the old saint may be a nucleus for a great fund to aid young men. I am sending you the last dollar I have in my purse, but I believe God will provide for me with more. I have faith in His promises and believe the more I give, the more I have." The wife of a superannuated preacher writes: "I saw in the Christian Advocate that an aged lady had sent a contribution to help young preachers to finish their education at our new University, and I was so impressed by it that I decided to add my little mite to it. It is not much, but I am glad to give it." These are the consecrated offerings of God's poor children, and He will not fail to add His blessing to them. Our Lord has made the wid ow's mite to do a vast work of benevolence during these Christian centuries. Who can say what immense good He may bring out of the old saint's $2 and the gifts of these godly women who so promptly unite in further ing her proposal. Atlanta, Ga., October 13, 10 11. "Happiness is not perfect until it is shared." Max Muiler.
North Carolina Christian Advocate (Greensboro, N.C.)
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Oct. 29, 1914, edition 1
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