The Wheeling daily intelligencer. [volume] (Wheeling, W. Va.) 1865-1903, 1900-10-29
AN APPEAL
FOR PRAYER
FOR CHINA.
The Topic Of Discourse Yesterday at
the First Presbyterian
Church. X K.
BY REV. D. A. CUNNINGHAM.
Who Predicts That China Has q Fu-
turc Before Her That Will
Atone For the Past. 54

A large congregation yesterday morn
Ing yesterday morning at the First
Presbyterian church heard n thought
full discourseiby the pastor, Rev. D. A.
Cunningham. D. d.. whose topic was,
IAN Appeal for Prayer In Behalf of
China" DR.. Cunningham said:
Ny subject this morning is IAN APP
peal for Prayer in Behalf of China"
Our text Is full of encouragement In
behalf of the momentous subject. and
our pastors are requested to preach on
It. The Waterman upon the walls Of
Jerusalem are never to hold their place
or to restrain prayer, day nor night:
they are TO be importune and to keep
not silence, and give the Lord no rest.
until He establish, and until He make
the church praise in the earth.
a conference was held In the city Of
New York on the 21st of September, to
take into consideration the interests Of
Christian missions In China. The con-
ference was 80 deeply impressed with
the gravity OF the existing situation
that they determined to summon the
church to n week of prayer, and to
that end Issue joint letter appealing
for united intercession In behalf of that
unhappy land. and the overruling OF
the present crisis to the enlargement Of
the kingdom OF Jesus Christ. The week
beginning the 2Sth Of October, which Is
to-day, was chosen, and 1t Is earnestly
hoped that in all our public and family.
and private devotions, China will be re-
membered.
The passing century Is filed In with
stupendous events. Not in Europe and
America alone, but In dormant. torpid
Asia, commonly supposed to be still
sleeping the sleep of ages, have amaz-
ing occurrences broken In upon the
everlasting stupor. The changes In In
dla, the Sepoy mutiny, the Yni-pIng re-
bellion, the uprlse OF Japan, oil stir
the imagInation: but among all the
events that challenge attention In eth
er hemisphere. none loom up into more
startling prominence than those In the
vast empire OF China
We look with apprehension on what
may come. yet above our apprehension
there Is 4 recognition OF the fact that
over all, and guiding all, and holding
oil, Is the hand Of n Just. and wise and
loving and all-powerful God.
Now In making this appeal for pray
err. ! submit the following consldern-
lions:
First, foreign missions are of divine
authority and obligation, and the
church cannot divest herself OF respon.
sibllity for earnestly sustaining them.
There are mysteries In Gods provl-
dence to us ineXpllcublc, but the hea-
then are given TO Christ by an eternal
decree, and the great commission, Go
teach all nations" is unconditional. 1t
IS Gods own work. He has committed
Himself to 1t. and summoned vs. to be
cO-workers with Him. The privilege Is
ours. the responsibility is His. We
may trust Him to explain all mysteries
ard remove all difficulties in His own
time. Our present duty Is to go for
ward In His name and prosecute with
renewed vigOr the work He has already
so sgnally blessed.
The success and evidence of Gods
workings In this closing century have
been phenomenal. In China, but fifty
years ago, there were only six Protest.
ant Christians, yet at the beginning of
this year there were 100000 communi-
cants, besides scores of thousands who
accepted the Christian faith, although
they had not identified, themselves with
the Christian church, or who had lost
all faith In the idolatrous practices OF
their ancestors. and were moving to-
wards the Light Just before this per-
secutlon broke out. testimony was re-
ceived from many quarters that the in
terest shown by the Chinese In the gos-
10
brighter, than ever before. Now sud-
denly our hopes are temporarily cclips-
ed. operations are generally suspended,
and many converts have been slain by
their benighted countrymen. But moth
ing new has bcfallen US. The present
difficulties are slight in comparison
with those attending the greater perse-
cutions Of former days. that were over
ruled for larger blessing in the days
that followed.
The year 1900 marks an era In the his
tory OF Christian missions In the Chi
nese empire. Herod and PLATE have be-
come friends: the secret societies Of
China organized to overthrow the
present dynasty have allied themselves
with the re!gning government and the
combined forces are using every effort
to rid the country OF the hated foreign
er. The missionary Is bearing his full
share of the attack.
The Presbyterian church In the Uni
ted States OF America. through Its
board Of foreign missions. has large In
tcrests at stake. 1t maintains In China
twenty-five principal stations. 800 out
stations. lN~forelgn missionaries. 594
native helpers. 90 organized churches,
with ll.2lA communicates: 2t7 schools
and colleges, two printing presses, one
OF which. that Mt Shanghai. Is the lar
Gest mission press In the world. en-
pIoying 1856 workmen and Issuing last
year G7,G25. ESQ pages OF religious litcra-
tufr; sixteen hospitals and thirteen
WSpenEarics. which altogether treated
last year li3,49l patients. This Involves
an annual expenditure of SiSS,277. The
property interests are very large, In
,IuHlhf churches, chapels. schools, COL
iieEtS' hospitals, press buildings and res
'uemces Of missionaries.
We have no doubt that many letters
are now on their way which will give
IN iull detail the record OF these days
"heh the church In China IL being test
ed as by fire. We nre confident that
When the story is Nil told. the Presby-
ierlan church In the United States Will
nave no reason to be ashamed OF the
fLhsbytrrlhn church in China
IL " well for ug at ease In the home
.lnl 70 consider the grent losses incur
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