Connecticut western news., 1900-09-06
Once More on Missions.

Having been accused of uncn aritable- ness and fippsncy-two things which are far from . missionary spirit-A Woman Reader asks little space again in the peoples column.
 Far be it from me to criticize individ- ual conscience or have controversy over forms of worship. But there are some fundamental principles that we must start upon in missionary work. If "one religion is as good as another" or if it were true that mo matter what a man believes if he is only sincere" |" then there would certainly be no great motive for missionary effort The true missionary does ,t believe this; he be- lieves that nothing will lift the human race out of sin and misery but the gos- pei of Christ. In all countries without that, there is no knowledge of the love of God-the religion is only one of fear.
 The Buddhists, Shintoists and Confu- cisnists outnumber the whole of Christ endom by many millions-and the Greek church more than six times over but that does not prove that their be- lief is good. The mass of the people get no happiness from it-all ther {, prayers and offerings are to placate some indifferent deity or to buy of some spirit of evil. Now Christ came ito bring light into the world," to lift people out of the spirit of bondage. to reveal the love of the Father. What answer did He send to the queries of John the Baptist whether He was the expected Deliverer2 "Go tell John the thin; ye see and hear; the blind re- ceive sight, the lame walk. lepers are cleansed. unto the poor the gospel is preached" What had He said of Him. self at the beginning of His ministry s'The spirit of the Lord is upon me. 10 preach the O pei to the poor to set at liberty them that are bruised There is the keynote unto the poor;r 8 gospel of healing. of peace. of liberty without money and without price. The Jewish priests would not accept it. They wanted c son Of David on the throne, and their power increased while | Christ's constant teaching was that the spiritual state had nothing to do with the material. Give to Caesar his due, but "let him that would be greatest among you be as him that serveth. J Their church had become a political power as to tue leaders, and as to the people, had ''lsden them with bur. dens."
 The essence of Christianity is tbe brotherhooi of man, and liberty in the gospel. By their fruits we have a right | to judge a chur :h. as @ whole. and when liberty is not proclaimed to the captive, when ''the shepherds feed themselves and increase in power aud riches, we are justified in saying that vital Chris. tianity has gone. Wherever there ha, been a state church, the tendency wal to that condition, and the Greek church is but one example. Is there liberty ir Russia today where the Greek chur, ,t all read what the granddaughter o Victoria was compelled to say when sh. married the crown prince. It was no that enter the Greek church because i is my husbands communion. or th, church of the state, but I renouace al my former beliefs and acknowledg, that there is no true church but tn, Greek church. Have the humble, in dustrious students liberty under tha church today? They have been deliber stely persecuted, hated into prison driven into exile, because they differed from the Greek church and stood fo their liberty of conscience. Has th Jew any freedom or peace in Russia?
 The very fact that there are so man. denominations outside of state churche shows that there is liberty. But wher they begin ito bite and devour on, another" they are losing vital Chris tisnity. Had those who took the nam of Christ followed humbly in His steps remembered His words to Peter, Pu up thy sword within it's sheath" an that the kingdom of Heaven comet not with observation" the Christia world today would not be such q frst tion of the earth's population.
 A WOMAN READER.