Birmingham state herald. (Birmingham, Ala.) 1895-1897, 1896-05-21
GREAT CHURCHMEN SPEAK
TheYTell How the Gospel Has Made Japan
Great Among Nations
AND HAS AMOUNTED MEMCo's EYES
Some Practical Suggestions as TO Further.
ing the Great w ork-The General AS
sembly Will Formally Convene
This Morning.


At o'clock yesterday morning the
beautiful new Cumberland Presbyterian
church of the city was comfortably filled
with commissioners to the general as
sembly of the Cumberland Presbyterian
church and visiting members, the occa-
sion being a rally on the subject of mis-
sions, which is held annually on the day
before the meeting of the assembly Su-
perintendent Rev. ]. w. Laughlin of st.
Louis, Mo-, called the meeting to order,
and after the singing of an appropriate
song the meeting was opened with
prayer by Rev. J. A. Mcdonald of San
Antonio Tex.
The programmes for these rallies are
prepared by the board of missions, I'M
der whose direction they are held, and
as this board is constantly in touch with
the best thought and activity of the
church on these questions, it is reasona-
BILE to suppose that the names which they
present on programme of this charac-
ter is a guarantee that a feast of good
things Is in store for those who are for
tunate enough to attend a rally on mis-
sions. The present gathering was no ex-
ception.
Rev. P. M. Riley of jefferson, Tex, ap-
peared first on the programme, speaking
on the Holy Spirit in Missions" He
showed that this was the secret of the
success of the apostolic church and the
spirit of the founders of the Cumberland
Presbyterian church He pleaded for the
tarrying at the source of power until we
were endued from ON high.
AT the conclusion of this address Rev.
]. V. Stephens of Lebanon, Tenn, was
called upon, who led the prayer for an
outpouring of the Holy Spirit upon this
present meeting.
Rev. J. w. Caldwell of West Point,
Miss, then addressed the conference on
the
"Triumphs of Christianity in Japan.''
He said: 1t is not surprising that we,
the Cumberland Presbyterian church,
should feel a peculiar interest in Japan,
1t being the field of our greatest mission
ary endeavor But that an empire COM
paratively insignificant should in a quar-
ter of century come from obscurity and
startle the world with her progress causes
one to ask, What great principles have
brought to bear upon the nation to ac-
coAqt for these changed conditions?
in Japan, we must know her past condi-
tion, her present advancement, and then
be convinced that the gospel of Christ
through missionary effort has wrought
thlS change:
Perhaps most of you are familiar with
the conditions that prevailed in Japan
until the last quarter of CEN
tury. The government was an alb
solutism.- The broad conceptions
of liberty as we understand them were
unknown Only that freedom was en-
joyed which the whim of a despot might
grant. The masses Of the people were
serfs and few titled ones held them as
vassals. For centuries they made scarce
ly more progress in instruments of labor,
manufacture or commerce than the Chi
nese. They contributed almost nothing
to the business of the world, and strove
to exclude everything that the nations of
the world would have gladly sent them.
The means for broad intellectual train
ing were wanting. The home idea was
wanting. A plurality of wives was the
rule. Woman was degraded. AS to mo-
rality, the very idea was wanting. Inde-
cent exposure of the person and the most
immoral practices were open and fla
grant. Mothers sold their daughters to
lives of shame. The religion was Shinto
and Buddhism. The former, a species of
ancestral worship, didn't rise to the Dig
nifty of a system of morality. Buddhism
was a system of morality, the reward for
practicing which was extinction. They
believed in the transmigration of souls.
Both of these religions implied a general
pessimism. What must have been it's
depth, when that to be desired above all
things else was extinction? The Roman
Catholics entered this country about the
middle of the sixteenth century.
Within the next half century the devel-
opment of missions was almost unprece-
dented.
BY the latter part of the century there
were perhaps 100000 converts, among
which were many of the better classes
and a number of the mobiles. The change
from Buddhism to Romanism was made
easy.
The horrors of the inquisition obtained
at that time in Europe. The same spirit
and like methods were taken to the mis-
sion field. These cruel weapons, in con-
necton with the poorly disguised political
designs of that church, caused reaction
against Christianity.
For more than 200 years the very name
of Christian was hateful. So determined
were they to have no more of this religion
that they banished all foreigners except
a few Dutch. These were shut in upon
one small island, and their intercourse
with the outside world limited to one ves-
sci a year. All the larger vessels belong
ing to citizens of the empire were de-
stroyed, and if any Of the small fishing
vessels were driven out to sea the in
mates could never return, lest they should
again infest the country with the hated
faith.
For 200 years the outside world knew
practically nothing of this people, and
what they knew of the world percolated
through the Dutch colony. But through
these the wide-awake Japanese heard
enough of western civilization to awaken
an interest in that progress and to create
a thirst for more knowledge in regard
to 1t.
An American fleet entered Japan har-
Dor on July 8. 1858, and caused modifica-
tion of the laws of exclusion to the ex-
tent of allowing our ships to purchase
provisions In two ports. During this 200
VOC Pc the milk ado sIlpH in On1U
The head of the army was really ruler.
In 1868 revolution restored the emperor
to his position as real ruler. With this
revolution the era of progress begins In
earnest.
rectly to Christianity.
First, the serfs were freed. From ab-
solutism the government became con-