May, 1941
T H E K I N G ’ S B U S I N E S S
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hatred. As a God-lit lamp, Jewry never can be extinguished (cf. 1 Ki. 15:4). If Adolph Hitler wins the war, he will de mand a Europe without Jews. They will be banished from countries under Ger man domination. Hitler’s maniacal ha tred of the' Jews, already resulting in appalling suffering for a people who have added greatly to the development of old German culture, has as its objec tive the scattering of the Jews to some remote comer of the globe. But in spite of the bitter anti-Semitism' sweeping the world, the Jew will live on. The prophetic Scripture declares that cruel hands will never be able to extinguish this lamp. Prophecies, relating to the glorious future of a people whose tears and blood have been so freely shed when hatred toward them has arisen, will yet be fulfilled literally. In a coming day, the Jewish lamp, refilled by the hand of divine favor, is yet to illuminate the nations of the earth. The Lamp o f Missionary Activity Is Going Out The antichristian trinity of Nazism, Fascism, and Communism has evidently no room in its philosophy for the spread of the gospel among those in heathen darkness. In this connection, mission ary reports make sad reading. The rapid spread of war is resulting in the curtailment of missionary activities. Af ter years of steady brilliance, the mis sionary lamp seems to be going out. Pathetic reports come, telling of mis sion stations closing down, missionaries imprisoned, others back home with their work gone, and yet others held up in definitely, as the fields of their past or prospective labors are almost closed tigh t While limited space will not permit a wide survey of dislocation and aban donment, yet here are some sad facts that are sending lovers of missionary work to their knees in earnest inter cession that God will, in some way or other, turn the way of wicked men up side down. A revolutionary change is in process in Japan, where it would appear that the lamp of organized Christianity is, about to go out. According to the plan, foreign denominational churches are to give way to one national church, in which there are to be no foreign workers at all, and no dependence upon financial help from other countries. The executive committee of foreign missions of thtf Presbyterian Church in the United States— to name just one denomination — announces t h e w i t h- drawal of one hundred missionaries and their families from China, Japan, and Korea. Severe r e p r e s s i o n and gov ernment - enforced reorganization a r e likewise affecting the Salvation Army. In fact, from the Army’s headquarters in London comes word of the critical condition of their work in Japan, Den mark, Holland, and France. In 1922, the
Army had to leave Russia, and now it is having to strike its flag in Estonia and Latvia, seeing these countries are now under Russian control. Here are one or two paragraphs out of a letter from Japan which I was privileged to read: “We are wondering just how much longer we will be here and can hardly even hope that it will be later than April when the new gov ernment ruling and Religious Bill goes into e f f e c t . However, our times are in His hands, and He is able to do the impossible. So our eyes are unto Him and we are not in’ despair. With all of the anti forces and feelings, it is hard to witness for Christ, but the Lord is • our God. . . . With the new order of things and the new arrangement of the churches, there is hardly anything left for the missionary, and there seems to be almost a wholesale exodus. "The J a p a n Evangelistic Band, which is perhaps the oldest and largest independent mission [in this region], is closing its foreign side, and all of the missionaries are leav ing; some have just gone, and others leave this month and next and early in the New Y e a r . The Canadian branch of the Church of England will be d o i n g the same, and all foreigners will be leaving by April. Many others of the larger de nominations are finding It useless to try to continue. So pray for the church and Christianity, and espe cially for the ones who will become the leaders.” Missionary work in China, India, and Africa is also facing tremendous diffi culties as the result of the titanic strug gle among the nations. The evangelical lamp in Norway, Denmark, Holland, Poland, France, and Germany is not al lowed to shine very brightly. A report to hand describes the confiscation by the Spanish government of 110,000 copies of the Bible and portions of the Scriptures. Sent by the British and Foreign Bible Society, the books were ground up by the Spaniards to make cellulose, one of the materials most lacking in Spain. A well-known Baptist magazine, The Watchman-Examiner, has g i v e n the following excellent summary and appeal: “Christian missions confront the gravest crisis we have known. The sending countries are engaged in war, are prostrated by war, or are preparing for war. Economic stric tures prohibit or limit the disburse ment of funds in .European states. The largest field affected is the Dutch East Indies. Three hundred Dutch and two hundred German Protestant missionaries w e r e at work there when Holland was over run. A native Protestant Christian community of one and a half mil-
FROM A LONDON LETTER “ God’s promises do i n d e e d stand the strain of a t e n s i o n that breaks anything leu and anything else, and we praise Him again and again.”
lion souls still requires the watch- care of missionaries. A sacrificial effort of over seventy years’ mis sionary investment is at stake. An other field badly hit is Madagascar. More than four hundred thousand native Christians are mainly de pendent for nurture and leadership on sixty-six Norwegian and twenty- nine French missionaries. Norwe gian, Danish, Belgian, French, and German churches are no longer able to send funds to their missions. Swe dish, Finnish, and British churches are greatly restricted and cannot keep up the high level of support for missions their prewar commit ments call for. “The only sending country not impaired by war is the United States. American churches face an unprecedented challenge. The full weight of responsibility for the world missionary enterprise rests on the Christians of this country. Great Britain was proportionately the greatest missionary s e n d i n g country in the world before war broke out. Her vast interests in the gospel call for outside support or there must come a tragic let down. So will it be with the mis sionary efforts of all other sending countries. Help must be forthcom ing for them.” The Lamp of Christian Witness Is Going Out In the death struggle of democracy, the Christian testimony is imperiled. Under a true democracy, the Christian message is given full scope. The forces of tyranny, savagery, and godlessness are seriously impeding the furtherance of those Christian i d e a l s that have helped to make the nations gerat. Black-outs, air raids, and invasion perils have dislocated church and Sun day-school work. Air raids have taken a heavy toll on churches, possibly be cause of their conspicuous spires and buildings. Historic shrines are in ruins. Famous churches like Spurgeon’s Tab ernacle, the City Temple, and St. Paul’s have been damaged seriously. Within Greater L o n d o n , some four hundred Church of England places of worship are either destroyed or closed. A sim ilar number of Methodist churches are in ruins. [Continued on Page 198]
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