AT THE ASSEMBLY

Evening Star, Issue 19408, 17 November 1926, Page 2

AT THE ASSEMBLY

THE MODERATOR AS PREACHER [By “A.A.B.”] WELLINGTON, November 15. At St. John’s yesterday morning the Moderator preached. His sermon was one of the most unconventional, quaint | yet powerful, probably ever uttered ! within that sacred building. He had ' no text, but quietly entered upon his discourse by remarking that, while some men made their environment, others were made by the same. In the church the former were_ ever gifts from the Almighty. Of their number were such as St; Paul. Of the latter were such as his associates, Silas and Timothy. The early was a missionary church. It was when the old heathen temples were changed into churches and Christianity became organised that foreign mission zeal was greatly abated and never revived remarkably until toi wards the close of the eighteenth ceni tury. The Middle Ages gave such as St. Patrick and Columba. The sixi teenth century gave such men as Cnl- ' vin and Knox; yet the real origin of world-wide propagation of the Christian faith was generally associated with the name of an obscure Baptist cobbler, Carey, who, under great difficulty, made Ins way as a missionary to India. About . the same time came the upspringing of 1 the British and Foreign Bifil© Society. After it came the founding of the London Missionary Society. Then in time came the church missionary organisai tion of the name. So, continued the Moderator, foreign ! missions took their rise not from the i church, but from individuals in the church. Morrison, the pioneer missionary of China, was brought vividly hej fore tho minds of. the largo congregation present. Debarred by the East I India Company from sailing by direct j route, he made his way to China via America. Two years’ struggle with the language over and cut off from preaching the gospel, he becomes interpreter to the very company which had refused him passage. A missionary and his wife from Aberdeen named Milne join Morrison. They enter upon a campaign of printing the Scriptures. Milne takes a Chinese workman named Liang Afe with him to Malacca, an expert in the manufacture of wooden blocks for printing. From his work he realises his nature, and, as another Bunyan’s pilgrim, only Chinese, seeks out a Buddhist priest, who gives counsel all in vain. Then he went to the missionary so closely associated with him for a long j time in his work, who pointed him to the way of peace, and Liang became

the first Chinese evangelist. But it was the elaboration of this poor Chinaman’s life-work and experience, his wonderful passing in the end, not unlike that of Elijah itself, a . telling reference to the martrydom of many Chinese in the Boxer riots, which made the discourse 'tell:ng. for it had a real personal thrust, and will not, readily be forgotten,