The central Presbyterian. [volume] (Richmond, Va.) 1856-1908, 1875-11-10
PAPERS ADOPTED BY THE SYNOD OF
VIRGINIA.
Sac Paulo Presbytery

best to publish it ia full Cen. Pres.
! The Sac Paulo Presbytery reports to tb
: Synod of Virginia that it consists of fv
ministers and three churches, besides mum
Der of stations where presching is maintaine1
! with as much regkSify as the extent of th
field and the limsft ehamber Of the laborer
will admit.
The Rev. William LIE Conte was sent tt
labor in Pernambuco January Goth, 1875.
Died. Rev. William E. Emerson, July
23i, 1875.
, Report on Churches and Schools. Cam
pinas church-Received on examination, 10
received by letter, 2; total membership, 4S
aggregate Of youth under Bible instruction
in college during the year. 200; aggregate
of attendance on Sunday School, 30; con
tributed by congregation to defray church
expenses, $3.50, gold; contributed by con
gregation to build church, $3.50, gold.
Penha Uwch.-This church had no ex
istence two years ago. 1t reports as follows
Received on profession of faith, 8; tota
membership, (adult and infant,) SO; children
in Sunday School, s; men in night school,
10; contributed by congregation to defray
church expenses, $92 A, gold; the congre
CATION is ready to aid in building church tc
the amount of $500, gold.
HopeOeU Church, composed mainly oi
American settlers) Received on profession,
O; total adult membership about "a infant
membership supposed to be equal to that Of
the adult. The members of this church are
widely scattered; and in very unsettled
state, hence no exact report can be furnish.
ed as to its state and progress. Contributed
for Foreign Missions seventeen dollars and
fifty cents in gold.
Campinas Institute = (Collegio Interna-
tionaD Number of pupils in the College
and Mission School during the collegiate
year of 1874, was lat. Number of stu
dents in attendance during first session OF
present year was 1877. The attendance on
the present session is large and increasing.
WHY THE COLLEGE WAS EsTA BLIsHED.
Experience has demonstrated that no un-
varying rules can be laid down for the pros.
ecution of the foreign missionary work.
What is possible or proper to do in one
country will often be found unwise and i'm
practicable to attempt in another. The mis-
sionary has therefore to make himself ac-
quaintsd With thIAwants and tendencies Of
the people to whom he is sent, and to learn
what are the indications of Divine provi.
dence in regard to them. Soon after the
arrival of your missionaries in this field, it
was made plain to them that the time had
come when the friends of true religion should
plant school of Christian learning of high
grade. The need for such an institution
will be best understood by considering what
the Synod itself would do if all the universi-
ties, colleges and schools within its bounds
had the Word of God banished from them,
and there were enthroned in it's stead gross
superstition and bald infdelity, both COM
bining to make sincere belief in the Chris
tian religion almost an impossibility to the
youth educated in such schools. The insti.
tutions of learning in Brazil are in this sad
state, and the college at Campinas is de-
signed to aid in remedying this fearful evil,
and to stem the torrent of infdelity. 1t is
founded on the Bible, and seeks to impart
sound instruction, united with the inculcation
of the truths of the Gospel. 1t is not in
tended however that the school shall sup
plant, or in any sense make of secondary
consideration the divinely appointed means
of preaching Christ and Him crucifed for
the salvation of men. 1t is sought by this
institution to do for Brazil, on an humber
scale, what Hampden Sidney and Princeton
have been, and are still doing for religion and
Presbyterians in our own land. Brazil is now
crying aloud for teachers and preachers, and
this school is laboring to supply that want
To found school such as has been de.
scribed, and with the design of having the
country itself support it, it was essential tc
begin it on scale in some degree commen
surate with the work it had to do, and with
the expectations of those who were looking
to it as the means of saving their descendants
from the ruin which had overwhelmed them
selves. To have attempted less would have
been to insure the failure of the whole enter
prise. But it was foreseen that it was al
undertaking far beyond the resources of oul
Church, which in hsr-daep poverty could no
be expected to do much more than to senC
her representatives to their fields of Labor
and to sustain them and their families will
the necessities of life. What then was to b
done? The word of the Lord Jesus to hi
Church is, eff ye have faith as grain o
mustard seed, ye shall say unto this noun
tain, Remove hence to yonder place, and
: shall remove; and nothing shall be impossi
: BILE unto you" The work therefore was be
gun with nothing except faith in Him VIII
has said, " Whatsoever ye ask believing, y
shall receive" The whole cost of the mis-
sion property including the college was abou
forty thousand dollars in gold. But in tbi
t estimate is included much labor and expense
l of which no record was kept, as it was pei
Q formed by parties here on the ground. Tn
following is the amounts contributed by tn
Church and by private parties in the Unite
States.
The whole amount contributed by tn
= Church through the Committee of Foreig
g Missions for all purposes other than the sur
port of the missionaries and their familie
was $17,S55.44 gold. Note; this was th
value of the money when it reached Camp
= mas, and does not include the loss by e1
e change. 1t was expended as follows;
Paid for "a acres of land $4,000 90 golt
q To build two small houses for Mis-
sionary families, 1000 OO
For repairing house for girls school, $50 II
q Paid by the church for special work
i. OF building the College, 1896 q
Was earned and raised in Brazil by
the Mission for the erection of the
Il College, S572 81