MISSIONARY WORK.

Dominion, Volume 3, Issue 844, 16 June 1910, Page 5

MISSIONARY WORK.

WORLD CONFERENCE. By Telegraph—Press Association—Copyright. London, June U. At the World Missionary Conferenco in Edinburgh ■ there were picturesque scenes. Many of the, delegates speak in strange tongues and aro attired in strange dress. The chief duty of the conference is to discuss an important report of a committee which has been considering the details of work in the mission field; also the co-ordination of missionary efforts. THE CONFERENCE AND ITS AIMS. The world Missionary Conference (says an English paper), will prove one of the most important ovents—perhaps the most important event—of a year which bids fair to bo a memorable one. It is not too bold to say that tho conference will affect the whole future work of our missionary societies, and will thus exercise a direct influence not only upon■• the history of the Christian Church, but also upon tho civilisation of those lands in which missionary operations are carried on. No attempt will be made to gather together the largest body of delegates which has ever crowded the floor or the most brilliant collection of speakers which has ever distinguished the platform of a missionary, gathering. It is not by pomp and pageantry that it will seek to effect its purpose—not by mere force of numbers that it will try to leave its impress upon history. Distinguishing Traits. Threo traits stand out clearly as claiming attention—the cosmopolitan character of the conference, the comprehensiveness of its field of study, and the care and thoroughness of the preparation made for it beforehand. It stands, in fact, .for the application of a scientific method to missionary work, not superseding but reinforcing the old enthusiasm and devotion. Its cosmopolitanism canuot fail to strike any one who glances over the list of those who are already actively engaged in tho task of preparation. Though the majority are Britons, yet the United States is 'largely represented, and Canada, Prance, Germany, Norway, Sweden, and other countries contribute each its quota'. But this characteristic will be still more noticeable in tho body of eleven hundred delegates who will meet for the actual conference. A thousand of these will bo directly appointed by the various missionary societies—British and foreign—and will include not only a large number of misoionarics, but also many representatives of the Churches in the mission fields. The sphere of study is as wide as tho missionary interests. It includes all p?.rts of tho world where Christianity is propagated amongst non-Christian peoples, and all phases of such effort. Eight Commissions at Work. No pains have been spared to secure that the. work of the conference shall bo as effective as possible, and the work of preparation has been actively going forward since July, 190 S. Eight commissions have been appointed, each composed of some twenty members, and amongst these have been apportioned the main questions which are to be considered, as, for example, tho problem of tho relations which should exist between missions and Governments, that of the best preparation of missionaries both at Home and in the mission field, and so on. These commissions have been for some time experts all the world over on their respective subjects, and in. drawing up reports, which are to be in the hands of members of tho conference a month before they meet. The thorough discussion of these reports will form one of the main tasks of tho actual conference, and the result should be of great value as collecting the experience of over a century of missionary work and subecting it to a searching examination, not only by those who from Europe and America have directed missionary development, but' also by a really representative body of missionary leaders from all parts of the woj-ld. If the hopes which tho promoters of the conference are justified in entertaining aro to any degree fulfilled, t.he futuTe should teo an increase of oooperatioiv and co-ordination of work between different societies en-gaged in fho same field, greater consistency and uniformity of policy, and a more 6tatesmanlike grasp of tho great problems of tho missionary- enterprise. Good Results Expected. That the present time is an eminently suitablo one for such an undertaking caii scarcely be questioned. There lies behind us a body 01 experience large enough to bo really instructive, but not so great as to be unwieldy*. And boforo us lie some of the hardest problems men have ever been called on to face. The minis nrisiiij'from the clow contact of East and West, the development of a nore nationalism amongst many nou-Cliriytian-peoples, t.he awakening of China which the last few years have witnessed, tilie triumphant progress of 1.-ilam in man/ parts ol' Africa, the- growth of native Christian communities in illusion hinds which must be organised in Churches, lo some extent self-supporting nnd self-gov-erning—these and other questions demand the combined and deliberate thought ami acliftn of the ablest men who have'.studied the problems and faced the facts. In view of the magnitude of Klin interests involved and t.he urgency of tho present crisis Hie conference inny wmndcntly a]>. peal for the sympathetic interest of all who havi? at heart, tho welfare not only of the Christian cause, but of humanity,