The Pacific commercial advertiser. [volume] (Honolulu, Hawaiian Islands) 1885-1921, 1899-08-28
ISLAND OF MAUI
Rev. John M Lewis Re.
port of Mis- sion Work.
Some Native Pastors Seem to Have
Very Limited Conception Of
Their Scope of Work.


Rev. John NJ. Lewis on mission work
in the Island OF Maui TO the Hawaiian
Evangelical Association for the year
ending June, 1899:
When | was sent to this Island to
take up the work of the board my COM
mission was somewhat indefinite. DO
what YOU can" was the commission.
md your own way; get into the ma
tive work, but be careful not to offend
the native pastors by assuming author
ity not approved by the presbytery."
My work has been narrowed in it's
scope from two limitations-one of not
being proficient in the native tongue:
the other Of possessing no real authori-
ty commensurate with my supposed re-
lsponsibility. [ have however acted
upon the principle of doing what |
/ could and of gradually getting into the
native work. L have visited and held
services in nearly every native church
on Maui, in some more frequently than
in others. The field is too large. and
some churches are too inaccessible to
be visited as frequently as | should de-
! sire. [ have also preached at stated
intervals to the English congregations
at both Waikiki and Hama. And in
English to the students of East Maui
and Lahainafuna SeminarieS. In con-
junction with the native and English
work [ have conducted communion ser
vices, at regular intervals at both the
| japanese and various centerS of the
| Chinese missions. | have baptised
during the year, forty persons, ranging
in ages from babe four months old to
| a grey-haired man siXty-twO years of
age. | have received twenty-five into
| Christian fellowship. There is pros
Ipect of a number of the older students
| of the Lahainaluna Seminary uniting
with the church in the near future.
The native churches of Maui and
| MOlokai are, on the whole, holding
their own. No special aggressive work
has been done to bring new additions
into the churches. In some cases the
churches and the pastor seem to be too
well satisfied with present attachments
to bring to bear the power of the COS
| pei upon the unregenerated lives of
their own parish. And some pastors
seem to have very limited conception
| of their scope of work. The Sunday
sermon and two or three calls during
1.-The week on their own church mem berS
| is the supposed extent of their work,
while no effort in particular is made to
bring in the nOn-church-g going people
| into the church relations. Frequently
1.-The pastor is not found in his own par
Iish during the week, but is off some
where else doing other work. Attempts
have been made by your representative
| to enlarge the conception of pastors
duty through letters and visitatiOns,
and particularly by series of QueS
tions sent to each pastor to be an
Swered. The pastors, we believe, are
| gradually acquiring a broader view of
their work, and gradually learning
their true relation to the community
and of their duty to the whole parish.
The political prejudices, which hither-
to might have held people aloof from
the churches, are fast disappearing, so
THAT it gives the greater reason for the
pastor to exert his energies to induce
these non-church-going people to iden-
Itify themselves with church life. For
1.-The strong, earnest, faithful pastor
there is magnificent work along just
this line of aggressiveness. And there
are some indications, beneath the sur
face that a new and more active spirit
is beginning to manifest itself which
is a prophecy of better things Tor
Christ and the church
that must come to the earnest and
thoughtful pastor just now, is how to
reclaim the young people and keep those
already in the church, especially the
young men and women who are coming
out of our schools and Seminaries.
There is a large class of young people
growing up with whom the older pas
tors are not keeping pace in knowledge.
1t is a grave problem how these young
people are to be kept in the church
when the pulpit is not up to the mod
ern standard Of intelligence OF the ma
tive youth; and when the church SER
vices are still conducted in that life
less, stilted and sombre style which Is
soporific in its effect. Some OF the
pastors belong to the old regime ana
are Jealous of any change, and conSe-
uuently there is no freshness in church
life or in the presentation of the Cos
pei One church in particular is sur
fering from just this cause. Another
hindrance to the work Of the cnurch
which might be mentioned, IS the per
sistency with which some pastors hold
on to their pastOrates when they nave
long since lost their influence among
the people. There are few churches on
this Island that would profit by
change of pastors.
The church at Wailuku is at present
in a critical condition. 1t is now pas
torless. Though this field is, confess
sedly. a difficult one, yet with a strong,
able man the church could be brought
again to its former standing. In con-
nection with Wailuku the new pastor
should look after the two fields, ka-
hului and Waikapu. A revived interest
is manifesting itself among the people
of Kaupo. The matter of repairing
the church is being taken up by them.
The church is without a pastor. The
pastor at Kipahulu might make regu-
lar preaching appointments with these
people till a man be found TO give his |
whole time to this work.
The perpleXing question which con-
fronts our churches is the financial
one, and especially in the matter OF
IL IL I.TNrrr