The Hawaiian gazette. [volume] (Honolulu [Oahu, Hawaii]) 1865-1918, 1909-06-04
CHINA OPPOSED
TO MISSIONARIES

zee is greet mlsahs 10 sup.oa.
ihat the Chinose government extends
any rrcat hoip 90 or appreciates the
cyangehstlc work - the Christian
missionary" stated Rev Dr. y. X.
shefneid. missionary. ~ Hankow.
china, before "a large number of ils.
tcn,rs in the Central Union parish
house. IA h. true 90 certain ex.
tent on the part 81 some Of the on.
cials, but on the other hand there is
much studied opposition on the part
OF the majority OF the officials to the
missionaries"
Or Sheffield was the main speaker
az last nights special missionary mass
meeting, held IN connection with the
annual meeting OF The Hawaiian
Evangelical Association. now In ses.
sion. He is one OF the foremos:
Protestant missionaries In china, hav-
ing spent large number Of years In
the mission field. fie is an authority
on things connected with the Chinese
missions, his familiarity with the Lam
guage being shown from the fact that
he is at the head OF committee at
work on retranslation of the Bible
into classical Chinese. the language OF
the educated Chinese, understood by
three hundred million people.
In the course OF his address last
night. in which he outlined briefly and
In a very interesting way the work
being carried on in China, he stated
that great progress had been made
there during the past nine years.
progress much greater than amy that
had been previously made. AT the
present time the Protestant missions
had an army of four thousand Chris
tian workers and two hudred thousand
Christian converts, while over half
million Chinese We're connected in
some way with the missions. This
was a large showing, but, I'm compar-
ison with the four hundred million
people of the Chinese Empire, the re-
suits We're as yet small. At present
the great work being done was in the
translation of the Bible into the
classical. the mandarin and the dia-
lectic languages OF the country.
Two hundred years ago the Roman
Catholic missionaries began their
work in China, but even up until
now they have not prepared a full
| translation of the Bible into Chinese.
This was the work of the Protestants,
who have made already several trans
lations and are now at work on a
retranslation that should stand with
out necessity for Improvement for the
next fifty years The work was CO.
ing on through the cooperation of the
British and Foreign Bible society, the
American Bible society and the Scotch
Bible society, each society sharing in
the work and the expense. The
speaker was at the head of the COM
mittee revising the classical transla-
tlon. a work which he hoped to see
completed II spared for the next eight
or ten years.
DR.. Sheffield spoke at length on the
great work the American missionaries
are doing in an educational way and
| told of the plans of the Universities
Of oxford and Cambridge to establish
university for China to be called the
University of Oxford and Cambridge.
This would probably be established at
Hankow
China Is awakened" said the
! speaker, in conclusion, "and The New
| China are the words on a million
| lips. But 1t is not a spiritual, not a
morally new China. 1t is a new
| China jealous of the work of the
Christian missionary, especially jeal-
Gus of the Christian educa tional work
The new government wants to hold
the affairs of education in its own
| hands. In matters OF externals there
has been great uplift in China, but
the moral and spiritual uplift must
come from the Christian church, for
which work we ask your encourage
ment, your prayers and your as.
| sistance,"
Following the address, the gist Of
| DR.. Sheffelds remarks were inter
preted into Hawaiian for the benefit of
the many Evangelical Association
delegates present unable to under
stand English.