Evening star. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1854-1972, 1907-03-23
MISSIONS In ORIENT
ADDRESS OF BISHOP GAMBLER
BEFORE EPwoRTH LEAGUE.

A meeting Of the Epworth League Union
was held last night at the Mt. Vernon
Place M. e. Church South, 9th and
K streets northwest. Bishop w. A. Cand-
Ter of Atlanta, Ga, delivered an address.
The church was packed with members of
the league.
The bishops address embraced state
ment of the condition Of American and
other mission work in Japan, China and
Korea. He depicted life In the orient
and its bearing on the great religious
awakening now in progress. He said that
not since the work of evangeling the world
began-even in the days of the prophets
and forerunners of the Christian religion
did evangels address such large audiences,
nor have so many conversions to the faith
followed, as marked the results Of mis-
siOnaries the past year or two in the orient.
There was general turning Of the Chi
nese, he said, to adopt the western ctvtltza-
ton and with that civilization by necessity
came the religion of Christ which underiies
all the progress of our American life.
Bishop Gambler made an appeal to the
church to support this mission work. He
declared that 1t was not alone that money
was needed to prosecute the work, but that
there Is crying necessity for men ana
women to teach those orientals the lessons
of the Great Teacher. He embodied In his
remarks some practical and wholesome
suggestions to the church at home and de-
clared that there is too much proneness
on the part of the young ministers to get
established in the big cities while the coun-
languish for actual bright workers. In
China and Korea. he said. there is vast
and promising field for evangelistic work.
Personal Experiences.
The bishop recounted his personal ex-
periences in those countries and his descrp-
tons of the meetings at Seoul and other
cities in the Hermit kingdom were vivid
and embraced an account of the striking
characteristics of life there today. He
said the condition of the Koreans Is
notably pathetic. They are practically
without any religion. Deprived of their
political power and now under the domina-
ton of the japanese they were dispirited
and excited the pity and interest of Ameri-
Referring to the fact that in China there
is a widespread awakening to acquire the
western civilization Bishop Gambler de-
clared that in Toxic alone there are 1850
Chinese students studying the principles
and methods of western life. Today the
conditions are ripe for missionary work:
He contraSted the evangeliStic work and
possibilities of the early apostles with the
missionary workers of todya. For example,
he said that St Paul was thrown into
prison in very short time after preaching
in a foreign city, while he Cthe bishop
preached in many cities in both China and
Korea, where people of all classes fiocked
to hear him and high officials showed him
courtesy and consideration.
The bishop talked for fully an hour and
the large audience listened with rapt at
tention to his description of religious life
in the far east.
Prior to the regular service worker s
conference was held at o'clock in the
lecture room. Mr.. E. l.. Brown president
Of the Epworth League of Washington.
presided Rev. Balthis of Brightwood M.
E. Church South read the scriptures and
offered prayer. Rev. c. D. Bulla Of the
Alexandria, Va, NJ E. Church South and
Rev. P. w Jeffries of ST. Paul's II. E.
Church South delivered addresses on the
subject of Quiet Hour in the League
Service"