LONDON MISSIONARY SOCIETY

Otago Witness, Issue 3100, 13 August 1913, Page 81

LONDON MISSIONARY SOCIETY

OTAGO AUXILIARY

MISSION PROGRESS IN AFRICA

The annual meeting of the Otago Auxiliary of the London Missionary Society, held on July 51 in the Moray Place Congregational Church, was presided over by tno Rev. W. Saunders, who acted in the absence of the president (Mr P. Barr). There was a large attendance, and the vigorous and stirring address given by the Rev. Jonnson later in the evening was heard with evident keen appreciation that frequently found expression in. applause. The annual report and balance sheet were presented by Mr J. A. Wilkinson. The report stated, inter alia, that the year concluded had been on the whole a satisfactory one. In some respects the special interest of the two previous years had been lacking, but there were evidences on every hand that general interest in the affairs of the London Missionary Society had boon well maintained. The outstanding event of the year had been the Livingstone Centenary celebration, in which all the churches of their constituency had taken part. The report and balance sheet were adopted The Chairman took opportunity to make a striking statement regarding the finances of the Lonelon Missionary Society from information just received. This showed that last year’s deficit was £29,000. making a total deficiency of no less than £71,000. Since then a sum of £20,000 had been paid off, leaving a deficit of £51,000. An effort was now being made during the autumn in the Old Land to raise £IOO,OOO with which to extinguish the debt and provide a reserve fund. The following office-bearers were elected for the ensuing year : —President, Mr JH. Wilkinson; vice-president, Mr J. Herons; treasurer. Mr P. Barr; secretary, Mr C. J. Moody; secretary Watchers’ Band, Mrs Heighway; literature secretary, Miss Knight; committee —Ministers and superintendents ot bun-day senools, Misses B-gg, M’Dougall, and Knight, Mrs Woodward, and Mr J. A. Wilkinson. The Rev. Harry Johnson, who was very cordially received, said fie wanted to take them to what should be the most romantic as 'veil as the most interesting field in the world. Ho referred to Africa 'inis year being the centenary of Liv.ngsfone s b rtli Africa ought to be vividly photographeu before their eyes. Africa was above all a land of tragedy as well as of liietory and mystery-, li was a land of tragedy ; and they knew that the British were the first to start the terrible traffic in the bodies oi the native Africans. No fewer than 10,000,000 slaves had been taken away from Africa across the seas. Atr.ca was also a land of opportunity, and it was so to-day because oi that man who was born n a cottage in Biuntyre m.sl 100 years ago. Tile speaker had iiad it liom natives who knew Livingstone that he had literally staggered along the native tracks, leaving the mood marks of his wounded feet along ah the way. This man never dd a mean thing. That "ae what the natives declared, lie could astonish them with stories of the wondrous belt-denial and the astonishing Chnstkkentss of this man’s life. On two occasions ttie speaker had owed his life directly to tiie influence of Livingstone. He had gone into prohibited territory in safety because of the name and memory of L.yingstone. Thirty or 40 uplifted speare aimed at him once had been dropped when he was able to show that he was Livingstone s friend. Speaking ol the finances of the London Missionary Society the speaker quoted from the report the statement that tne society was compelled seriously to consider reduction of ns staff and restrict.on of its activities. He called that tragedy. It would mean calamity as well as tragedy if it were to occur, in the Old Country there was amazing apathy to this splendid opportunity in Africa. \\ hat was the causeol this awful deficit? Two or three factors were specially operating at Home just now. There was the idea now that all the heathen were safe in the keeping of the hands of a good Clod. Hut u was not a future hell they wanted to save the Africans from. It was a present hell. If they could have been with him in Africa they would know that these people were already in hell. Mr Johnson related vivid stories of tragedies that had come under ins notice and of horrible native customs illustrating the misery and unutterable degradation of lhc‘ heathen. Another cause of the apathy at Home was the idea engendered by a false reading of comparative religions that each relig on was good enough for its own followers. If they saw the savage as he was they would know that what ho had was not geod enough for him. They might have another skin and colour but in God they had a common Father ami in Christian people they ought to have brothers. A third reason for the apathy was that we were living so much upon the material plane that wo were losing ihe spiritual imagination to realise how dreadful were the conditions actually existing in heathen lands. Among these conditions tie spoke of infanticide, and the slave caravans. He raised a note of warning as to what would happen if this apathy continued, if there dared to be such a thing as a retreating from the field or a reducing of the already weakened staff that was carrying on the work out there. The existence of the home churches was bound up with the existence of their foreign missions. The relationship between the two was a real thing, and missions had saved the churches to-day. He had found that it was the foreign missions that had saved the faith of the churches. While the churches were asking if they iiad a Gospel, the foreign missionaries came along and told them of modern miracles, and of doings as wonderful as anything recorded in the Acts of Apostles. The question came, Was the Gospel they possessed worth carrying across the seas and proclaiming to the ends of the earth? lie stood there, as every missionary would be proud to stand, to tell them that it was well worth all the suffering and sacrifice and toil entailed, because of what they had seen. What the Gospel had done for our forefathers in Britain 17 or 18 centuries ago he had been witnessing it doing for 10 years in the heart of Africa. The Gospel was uplifting those degraded people by killing the dreadful customs to which he had referred. The old practh'-s of massacre at | the graves, and of human sacrifice before fetishes, were now only a matter <y' history ' ever an area as big as one of the islands of New Zealand. The slave trade, muti-

lation, and infanticide, so rampant when he first went there, were now entirely at an end over all that area. The Gospel, further, was permeating the whole spiritual and intellectual life of the natives. Christian missions were saving the souls of these African people, quite apart from touching them intellectually. This ho illustrated by striking stories of chang'd livfja among some of the lowest savage-/ ho had known. Ho told of a great oomi/ /.alon service at which 2000 natives sat dd /a fo partake of the Lord’s Supper. ThCw, ho said, were the droppings be£«f» a shower that was to come. We were living in an epochmaking ago. East and West were mooting to-day in freedom of intercourse never known before. The world was seething, and to-day it was asking us for goods,_ for literature, for civilisation, for the Bible, for the Gospel, for teachers. God had furnished the seed, and it was their part to scatter it. Would that God put in their hearts something of the great burden that was upon His heart for the heathen. Mr Johnson appealed for the special help they required on the highest ground of the Christian motive of loyalty and love to Christ. On the motion of Professor Gilray, a very hearty vote of thanks was accorded to Mr Johnson for his eloquent and inspiring address.