MISSIONARY WORK,

Star (Christchurch), Issue 16641, 25 January 1922, Page 10

MISSIONARY WORK,

THE INDIAN MISSION FAREWELL TO MISS HENDERSON. A farewell seiwiee to Miss Alice Henderson, who will leave Christchurch this evening to return to her work in the Indian mission field, was conducted in Knox Church, iiealey Avenue, last evening. The Rev N. O. White (Moderator of the Christchurch Presbytery) presided over a large attendance. The Rev N. L. D. Webster gave an address from the fourteenth verse of the first chapter of St Paul’s Epistle to the Romans. “I am debtor.” He said that those words supplied the key t-o Paul’s life. "With missioners, as with Paul, nothing counted but the motive. Paul's debt was a debt all Christians shared. That which made Paul debtor made all Christians debtor* Debtors to Calvary were debtors to the whole world. The better the Christian, the bigger the debt. Christians went t > the heathen not out of pity, but because they owed the heathen a debt. Love of the heathen, however, was a secondary motive to missionaries; the great motive wn.i love of Christ. The real question for Christians in connection with foreign missions was: What was Christ worth to them ? To the people of China, Japan and India, Christians were called upon to preach the Gospel of a universal Christ from whose breast there shone the star of a universal empire. The Rev Dr Erwin, who addressed Miss Henderson, urged her to cultivate diligently a consciousness of the Divine Presence. He said that he was impressed with the way in which the Apostles realised the Master’s presence with them. Miss Henderson should be persuaded that Christ was in sympathy with her. £Jhe would be there with Christ, and must rely on Kim. There was no wider scope for Christian work than the spiritual conquest of India. 1 i was one of the kingdoms of the world that must be transformed into a Kingdom of God. It must be won for God. She must pin Iher faith on promises given. She had made heroic choices in regard to work in India. She was an encourages of many. Her devotion to the work and her intense and Christ-like love of the people of India spoke to the people of the Church here. The spirit she had shown was an inspiration to all. She might feel disappointed at the results of her appeals in the way of workers offering themselves, but he asked her not to feel discouraged. He assured her that she was honoured and that the people here appreciated what she was doing. The prayers of nil members of the Church would be with her.

At a gathering in the lecture room after the service, at which Airs Erwin (president of the Presbyteria! Association) presided, Mrs R. Malcolm presented Miss Henderson with a bouquet of flowers. Mrs Erwin, for the Prcsbyteriai Association, presented a collection of books, and, for the ladies of the church, a purse of money, and handed to Miss Henderson the collection at the service for use in the workMiss Henderson said that one of the difficulties of missionary work in India was learning the language or the dialects. Missionaries in the part in which she was stationed had to learn the dialect spoken by . the Hindu women, and the dialect of the village, as well as the grammar of the books. The insect and reptile pests were very disconcerting to missionaries at first, but fear of them, ; and of the plague and sn>allpox, disappeared after a time. In the face of all discomforts and dangers, she felt that she had been placed where God intended her to be. To that feeling she attributed the health she had enjoyed. As far as obtaining workers was concerned, things were looking brighter. More women than men were needed, as women could do evangelistic work amongst the Indian women, and could instruct the village classes. Missionary wjrk should be made more prominent amongst young people in their homes. The missionaries sent from Now Zealand were second to none. They stood the climate much better than Australian missionaries stood it. The gathering was closed by those present singing “ God be with you till we meet again.”