I We witnessed a Mohammedan parade which was a good ■example of another kind of fanaticism. The young men in a i ' r e n z y stripped to their waists and beat their breasts until he blood flowed down to show their devotion to Mohammed. | It was a great pleasure to visit the oldest Protestant church %n India with which Henry Martyn was associated, and also Ithe church in which William Carey preached and baptized. ■As I stood in the pulpit where the great “father of mod- jern missions” had delivered his gospel messages, I felt that |I was indeed on holy ground. I saw a letter in Carey’s own Biand and his translations of the Word of God into forty {languages and dialects. What a foundation he laid for the ■nissionary enterprise! I It was in this same William Carey Church that about two ■hundred missionaries and Christian workers gathered that ■evening to greet us. The address of welcome was delivered fby Mrs. Griffith who attended Biola during Dr. Torrey’s days; ■she has a fine school in Calcutta. ■ The next night about one thousand young people assembled ■for a Youth for Christ open air meeting. I preached on First ■Timothy 1:15, and at the close of the service about thirty ■young people made decisions for Christ, among whom were some Hindus. The night before a prayer meeting had been ■held until midnight which explained the victory we experi enced. Benares, the Sacred City ■ Next day we flew to Benares, the most sacred of all the ■cities of India. What a sight met our eyes! This city has a Population of 400,000, all Hindus of the most fanatical sect, ¿but since we arrived on a holy day, the city was teeming ■vith many more thousands of pilgrims. A Hindu attempts at least once in his lifetime to make a pilgrimage to a sacred ■river to wash away his own sins and to cast therein the #&shes of his dead. The Hindus worship everything: trees, land rivers, and snakes, and all living things. Buddhism has ■also been incorporated to some extent, since they hold similar ■beliefs. I It happened that while we were there, a celebration was ■taking place on the occasion of the arrival of several of the ■bones of Buddha. So tens of thousands were gathered in the ■temple grounds for this great event. We saw governors, Prime ministers and the maharajah himself in a great pro fession. The sacred relics, encased in a gold container, were ■borne on an elephant’s back. Buddhists even from far-distant ■Tibet were present. I But it was the sight of the multitudes at the sacred Ganges Stiver that I shall never forget. We hired a little boat to get a Pood view of everything. It surpasses description. Imagine thou sands of people bedecked with flowers which had been dedicated ■ o the gods, turning their eyes to the sun in sort of a trance as ■they entered the filthy waters in an attempt to wash away their ■sins and to find peace of heart! We saw the bodies of the Head carried to the burning ghats, clad in white cloth, im- ■mersed in the river, and then placed on the wooden pyres, land burned. Then the ashes, together with charred parts of She bodies, were tossed right into the water where the living »vent on with their futile ablutions. ^ 1 We beheld holy men of all varieties. We noted one in par ticular who was rolling along the road toward the river. He id made his way in this manner for many miles, and when e photographed him, he was in a state of exhaustion. But :ter a little rest, he continued his quest for peace of heart. |How we longed to be able to tell him of One who said, [‘Come unto Me . . . and I will give you rest!” Everywhere we encountered the untouchables, the outcasts, the lowest caste from which no one can rise to a higher plane. These people who do all the menial tasks of India are most pitiable; there’s not much Christian work among them. Altogether, our visit to Benares was a never-to-be-forgotten experience. We who have been born in a Christian land should thank God every day of our lives for the mercy that saved us from being reared in such superstition and spiritual night. J A N U A R Y , 1 9 5 0
A “holy” man of India.
Champa and the Lepers As if the sight of the wretched pilgrims at Benares were not enough, we flew to Champa to see hundreds of lepers begging to be taken into the leprosarium. But alas! only a small percentage of those who come can be admitted. One morning I stood with Mr. Jantzen as these needy souls came for treatment—some with terrible sores, others with toes, legs, hands, and even eyes eaten away by this horrible disease. A number prostrated themselves on the ground as they pleaded to be taken in. My heart ached for I knew that the hospital was already overflowing with over 500 patients. This missionary said to me, “ This is our heartbreak. Morning after morning we have to shake our heads and say, ‘Sorry, no more room.’ ” “ But,” I protested, “ Can’t anything be done to relieve their pain?” “ Oh, yes,” he explained, “ they will all be treated, but daily care, food and continuous treat ment are necessary to really effect a cure, or arrest the disease.” If this one sight of such misery so tugged at my heartstrings that I felt I could bear no more, what must be the strain on the missionaries like the Jantzens, the Claassens, the Duerksens, the Majors, and others, who spend years min istering to them? These noble workers are all former students of Biola. All of these lepers have the gospel preached to them, and some are very bright Christians. I believe the most touching sight I saw was that of lepers putting their stumps of hands together and singing, “ Thank you, Lord, for saving my soul.” We have so many blessings for which we never thank God, or scarcely ever give a thought, but these saved lepers are grateful to Him. In addition to the work among the lepers, there is a church and a school at Champa where it was my joy to preach. How I enjoyed fellowship with all the missionaries there and every other place! I wish that time permitted me Rage Seven
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