The central Presbyterian. [volume] (Richmond, Va.) 1856-1908, 1875-09-08


schools. When Brother Kalopothakes wrote
US that he had arranged to keep up our new
post here by sending Mr.. M. to it, | &C
knowledge that was afraid he had acted pre-
neutrality-suspicious. little too much excited
by the fact that the brother who had first
come here in our service had soon after gone
over to the service of society existing IN
his native country, Scotland which, though
in its name and constitution a missionary IN
stitution for the Jesos, and operating here
for many years in that capacity, had now
rather strangely taken him off our hands
giving larger salary to operate among
the Greeks.
But, now that l have been here, | am
thoroughly convinced that our friend X. did
Just the right thing, and not at all too soon, as
respects the employment of Brother NJ, now
that l know his antecedents. My personal
acquaintance with him (Mr. NJ covers in
deed but a short space of time, but | think
l know him already quite we'll; and re-
ioice that God has given us a native Greek
brother for our work at this most important
point, who seems to me to be so valuable
man, in his pleasant manners, and his intel
| ligence, piety, thorough acquaintance with
Scripture, sound doctrinal views, devotion to
his work, and good powers as an exposltor
and preacher. The work for the Greeks, l
need hardly tell you, must be carried on
mainly, and now more than ever, By Greeks.
Our most important office will be to aid in
bringing these men of the soil and blood and
language into the work and God is already
giving us one and another, as you will pre-.
8ently see farther.
But 1 want you to share with some of the
interest and qualification of the last two
Sabbaths spent here. Brother M. has
standing "Lord's Day" appointments (you
know they always use the name "Kyriake')
fora preaching service and for an afternoon
expository and practical Scripture exercise.
Things are but in their beginning, with
everything to diseountenance and oppose.
Hence he has seldom above twenty hearers;
often not more than six or eight. On these
last two Sundsys-Owing partly, no doubt,
to the fact that Brother K. was to preach
there were fully thirty present in the morn
ing and twenty or upwards in the afternoon.
1 am exceedingly glad to say that our brcth-
.ren, the preachers of the new evangelical
Greek church for we have two native preach
ers, you know, at Athens, and one here, be-
side one yet to be mentioned,) always give a
good part of their services to the readings of
. Scripture, with appropriate brief remarks,
expositOry and practical; the hearers being
; furnished with Bibles. / am glad that they
are taking such step back toward the
primitive character of preaching in the syn
agogues and Christian assemblies, and that
can assure you that this exercise seems to
excite the interest of those who attend; for
, all that are able to read look on and seem to
Give earnest attention. By making the SER
mon only of about a half hours length and
every part of the services brief, they bring
the whole within even shorter space than
we generally take up in our American
churches. Would it not, as to the relation
of the sermon and the Scripture reading, be
great Improvement for our ministers there
to I" get out of the old ruts" and Introduce
the same order of things? Will not God
honor His own word? And is He not teach
ing us something in the fact that the "Scrlp-
ture readings" form so favorite and so popu-
lar part of the operations of Mr.. Moody
and the recent western evangelists, "A
fact which gives me far greater faith of good
permanent results from their labors than
would otherwise cherish? But, to continue
about things here. That admirable map,
DR.. Riggs, (once assOcisted with us in'the
mission work, though at another station, In
Greece proper,) along with his fine general
Greek scholarship, has the ability of versify-
ing in the modern tongue; and he has pro-
duCed and printed at Constantinople col
lection of hymns and sacred songs, in which
he has turned into good Greek, with Won
derful literalness $50 to speak, and includ-
ing such favorite lyrics as There is foun-
tain, Rock of Ages" "Nearer to Thee,
" Even me-" sc Around the throne of God in
heaven, and even the little chorus, Come
to Jesus" and they are very popular among
the Greeks, young and old, who attend our
evangelical services.
% the first of the two Sundays that We
have spent here we introduced the singing
into the services, having the help of Mrs.
NJ, who has been at Athens, and her daugh,
ter, who was scholar of Miss Kyle's school
there, established by the "Woman's Mis-
sionary Union" of New York city, and
most valuable auxiliary to our mission Ope
rations in that city. The hymnology was
entered into with great zest on that Sunday,
as on the next one; and if you too, Brother
H., had been there and heard those hymns
sung in the beautiful language Of this people,
and heard the little congregation led in
prayer by voice familiar to US for these
more than thirty years, and then seen that
once boy scholar Of ours, Of Name, the de
spised Gailee of Greece, stand up and ex-
pound the Scriptures and then preach an