THE BIBLE SOCIETY.

Temuka Leader, Issue 2479, 21 March 1893, Page 3

THE BIBLE SOCIETY.

On Friday evening last there was a meeting in the Presbyterian Church, Geraldine, to hear au address from the Kev. H. T. Eebjohns, M.A., on the present position of this world-wide missionary society. This was not the annual meeting, which will be held a little later on. Dr Fish was in the chair. The Rev. A. B. Todd conducted the devotional part of the meeting, and Miss McKenzie presided at the organ. Dr Fish gave brief expression to his deep interest in the society, and introduced Mr Robjohns, but had to leave, haviug been called away on a professional engagement. The representative of the society began j with some general statement as to the achievements of the society. Altogether \ 132 millions of volumes of Scripture had been sent out; four millions last year. In 1892 1,050,000 more were published tha'n in 1882, and with the same income. This means efficient economy. Thirteen thousand copies go out every day, or 1624 during an address of one hour's length. The Bible Society has now the Scripture in 304 languages. There were nine new ones last year, and 70 new editions are ever on the anvil. During the last four years the society has been passing through a severe crisis. It has suffered from its very catholicity, one Church after another being tempted to leave its support to the rest. Catholicity is its glory, but it has hindered. Then there is a phantom of an illusion, folk believing that there are great resources somewhere. No I From these causes, and from the immense increase of work, there have been four years of deficit, the total of which was £07,000. Fortunately this has been paid out of a fund that had beeu allowed to accumulate for an evil day like this. The question then arose, What to do l At first it was intended to take on no new work until the Churches rose to a sense of their responsibility. And yet new work was asked for in Fiji, the Solomon Islands, and in the New Hebrides I Thursday Island a fine strategic point for Bible-society workcould not be occupied. Then the Mohammedan world was open as never before, and the whole mission army was effecting on onward movement unparalleled in the history of the Church. That meant a louder demand than ever for Scriptures. The committee at length resolved to ask for £50,000 and to go on. Thirty thousand had already come in. Touching on Sweden, Norway, Denmark, Holland, Switzerland, attention was drawn specially to Germany, where out of 639,092 volumes published last year the Bible Society was responsible for §15,615. The rest of the Eolv Scripture prbyicled by tb.e' comparatively small Bible societies of Germany. On March 1,1892, was published a revised edition of Luther's Bible, The hjstory qf tjiat reyj spn was btfeify sketched, Fagsjn g\o &pyin, thirty yeajs' ago people wet'«? piui.'"- 3 into duugeofitt for .a"—- 1 -

reading the ; tne other day a Protestant Episcopal Church was opened in proud, Catholic, conservative Madrid. The part the Bible Society had taken in bringing about the change was described. Three hundred Bible-society placards adorn the walls of the railway stations. Bible-society meetings—one attended by 1000 people—have been held all over the paninsula. In connection with the depots are rooms for Bible study. The newspapers praise the work. The Madrid depot occupies a house once used by the Inquisition. The Seville doputs looks down on the square in which martyrs were burnt at the stake. China was referred to as that great pagan empire that existed 1000 years before Kome, and has continued a thousand years after its decline and fall. Bible-work is there carried on by Bibles and portions, in the ratio of one Bible to 50 portions—the latter giving general knowledge, creating an atmosphere and sometimes leading to conversion. This introducing of souls into the Kingdom of God now goes on not by adding one to one, but by a manifold multiplication* which increases

the rate every year. This is a mere outline of an address which was crowded with interesting facts. At the close the speaker showed a beautiful edition of the Old Testament in Hebrew, and the New Testament in Motu for New Guinea. Mr Moore proposed a vote of thanks to Mr Robjohns, and Mr Colin McKeuzie to Dr Fish. The benediction, pronounced by Mr Todd, closed a meetiong of great interest.