THESCOPE OF HISSIOKS
Edited by Oran II. Smith Chairman, Dept, of Missions, Biola Bible College
Report from Kenya On-the-spot news of Mau Mau uprising and the work of evangelism in Africa A fter clearing customs at the Nairobi airport we were taken by mission aries of the A.I.M. to the Mayfield Rest Home for a delightful lunch with a large group who had come to greet us. It didn’t take us long to realize that the Mau Mau movement here in this colony was far from being sup pressed. Barbed wire entanglements and sand bag barricades along the route from the airport to the mission home gave the place an atmosphere of war. Nearly everyone carries arms at all times because no one ever knows where the next Mau Mau at tack will occur. It looked rather strange in this modem city to see even women with revolvers strapped on their hips. After lunch we drove through the National Park where we saw lions, giraffes and many other wild animals roaming about. Then we headed for the A.I.M. Headquarters Station at Kijabe, 35 miles away. Since this station is situated in the midst of the Kikuyu tribe, and the last five miles led through the wooded area of the Kikuyu reservation, we were all glad when we arrived safely a t. the gate 6f the mission. As it was dark when we arrived it was necessary to stop the car 50 yards from the guard station, blink the lights and then get out for iden tification. Failure to do this would bring immediate gun fire from the African police who keep watch night and day. There are 18 African police who guard the station, and the govern ment requires the male missionaries to be armed in case of a Mau Mau attack. When we were taken to the homes where we were to spend the night we were given instructions concerning the defense of the compound. Walk ing outside after dark is forbidden, and doors of the houses are kept locked. In the home where I am stay ing, steel bars protect the windows and steel doors close off one area of the house for a shelter in case of attack. The whole station is equipped with a system of alarms. In spite of this terrorizing Mau
Mau menace, the missionaries and even their children carry on as though nothing were wrong. The African church is stronger than it has ever been, and all of the people seem to have a real zeal for souls. On Sunday it was my privilege to preach to at least a thousand who had jammed the church building on the station. Most of these were Ki kuyu. Stone is being quarried for a new church building. The next day Dr. Talbot and I started on a tour of mission stations under the direction of Mr. Kenneth Downing. Our first stop being Ma- chakos where seven hundred students marched from their class rooms to a clearing where they could all greet us and sing for us in the Swahili tongue. It was a great thrill to meet Miss Geneva Kosher (B iola ’42 ) on her station at Kangundo, and to see how she conducts her Chapter Summary classes using several of the Kamba young men to assist! her. Passing through several road blocks, we finally arrived late that night, tired, dirty and hot at the A.I.M. station at Mulango. The cold water and clean beds looked good to us, but the sound of drums and whistles aroused the curiosity of Dr. Talbot. By midnight we came upon a native heathen dance which was held in a clearing in the light of a full moon. It was a horrible sight, and yet not without a bright side, for when we arrived, missionary Bill Davis stopped the commotion long enough to preach the gospel. They listened attentively, but said their time to believe in Jesus had not yet come; they were happy serving the devil. Although we re mained but a short time, we were told the dance would continue until day break. Again, in the midst of tl is pagan ism we saw the light of the gospel shining forth in the faces of several hundred students who gather at the mission station to study the Word of God. While we were in the Mulango area we had the privilege of hearing the gospel preached to some who had CONTINUED ►
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