1077
THE KING’S BUSINESS
The London Society for promoting Christianity amongst the Jews, in its an nual report, speaks thus: “Our mission aries, during the past few months, are able to record in almost every instance unique opportunities. The Jews are more recep tive than they have ever been. The claims of the Lord to be their Lord and Master are being considered by large numbers. There is no longer that deep-seated, univer sal hatred of the Name of our blessed Lord and Master. The New Testament is being more widely read than ever. It seems as if the claims of our Lord to be Divine are occupying the attention of Jewry as at no previous time. Naturally, as a result, the missionary outlook could not be better. Our fathers and - fore fathers have prayed for this day, have worked for this day, and we have entered into their labors. It is our solemn responsi bility to use to the full the glorious opportunities fhUs procured, we believe, perpetually, by the labors of those who have gone before.” Rev. Dr. Griffis, the well-known mission ary, says: “Almost everything that is distinctive in the Roman Catholic form of Christianity is to be found in Buddhism: images, pictures, lights, altars, incense, vestments, masses, beads, wayside shrines, monasteries, nunneries, celibacy, fastings, vigils, retreats, pilgrimages, mendicant vows, shorn heads, orders, habits, uni forms, nuns, convents, purgatory, Saintly and priestly intercession ,1 indulgences, works of supererogation, pope, arch bishops, abbots, abbesses, monks, neophytes, relics and relic-worship, etc., etc.” The report of the All-India Scripture examination for 1914 informs us that about 25,000 were examined in a single morning in about 2,000 centers and through the medium of twenty-four languages. Since the Indian Sunday-School Union in augurated these examinations in 1896, over 261,000 pupils have been examined on six months’ prescribed Bible study.
It is blasphemy for the Church to say it has not money, said Rev. C. E. Scott at the Northfield Conference. Last year sev eral Protestant denominations in this coun try gave $7,500,000 for world evangeli zation. If 150,000,000 Christians had given a cent a day—and is it not disgraceful to talk about God’s passion in terms of cop per cents ?—three hundred sixty-five cents’ worth a year, the world over, then, last year, the Lord Jesus Christ would have had not $7,500,000 but $540,000,000 in ad dition. That is not even touching the fringe of the garment as compared with that which every Christian ought to do. Oh, no wonder the Church is barren of spiritual results, when, with open eyes, it goes forward against what God has said! Just think of it, $55,000,000 a day as a part of the expense of this war, given in support of those men contending 'on these thousands of miles of battle line, 14,500,000 men already hors de combat, many of them rotting on the battlefields, as against $7,500,000 for missions, given last year by several Protestant denominations. Think of $5,000,000,000 given for things which do not count,—candy, chewing gum, tobacco, intoxicating liquors, and the like! Then remember that while the Church has been making a million converts in the heathen world, 100 , 000,000 have gone down into Christless graves, and that, at the rate the Church is attacking the problem, you could build a bridge from the planet, Mars, to the moon sooner than you could evangelize the world! The centenary of the American Bible Society occurring this year is a note worthy occasion in the history of one of America’s greatest missionary agencies. The total number of volumes issued during the ninety-nine years past is 109,908,608. The. output of last-year is the largest in the Society’s history, amounting to 6,388,- 717 volumes. The greatest advance was in the foreign mission field. A World’s, Bible Congress will be held in connection with the Society’s centenary.
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