The sun. [volume] (New York [N.Y.]) 1833-1916, 1910-03-20


esting 81 American missionary enter
prises, the mission To the Syrians which
radiates from Beirut. are set down most
entsrtainingly 10y the Rev Or. HENRY
Harris JEssUP in the two large volumes
u Fiftv-thres Years m Syria (Fieming IL.
Revell Company. These are made up in
large part oi selections from the diaries
which the author kept during all that time.
with the observations and comments
from the experience of later years. hut
DIR. Jessup begins with full account Of
the work Il his predecessors. 81 that his
book IL a complete history of the Beirut
mission. Al the end the results are given
in tabular form: meanwhile the reader
will laarn all about the ieVeiupment 1t the
schools. 81 the printing preSs, OF the hos
pitai- ana II what the author naturally
regards as the crown ct the ediiice. the
Syrian Protestant College He will learn
also q the efforts to keep the American
Board. the churches and laymen inter
s.-ted IN the mission. aud &C the forms In
which assistance came Apart from the
missionary interest. however. ~ that IN thu
events IL half century an a strange and
picturesque land OF which the author was
an eyewitness. With ell his evangelistlc
ferVor DIR Je~sup retained his American
shrewdness and keen sense 81 humor
and amusing or touching anecdotes wall
he found ON almost every page
Immediately after ms ordination DR.
Jessup started from Boston with several
companions ON a sailing vessel bound for
smyrna he was intended for Antioch by
the Board of Foreign Missions. but was di-
fs.A ghaN tnN
three years have ia sgd and have never
been in Antioch he began on his arrival
To study Arabic. "A language about which =
fellow missionary who agOni1ed over the
Arabic quit urals once IN a letter asked
me: DO you really think that a man who
speaks easily these awful cultural sounds
can enter the kingdom Of Cod Within
a year Dr Jes-up preached his first Arabic
sermon IN Trpoli. the station 10 which
he was assigned lie was greatly com
plimentsd. but did not DARE 10 gue>s that
he had been understood and put OF
preaching another for three months
4 still keep that first sermon IS a cur
osity. but could not be hired To preach 10
again exactly AZ Il IN written for love OF
money He kept on. however. tall 1T
- now much easier for me to preach IA
Arabic than in English IL was the
spoken Arabic. however. which the people
he addressed could understand. that Dr
Jessup used and not the literary Arabic.
He did not stay long in TripOh. but was
transferred 10 Beirut which Was his
headquarters during all the years Of h.s
stay In syria Tnpoh aid not seem to
be favored by the missionaries. for yec ~
after, IN speaking Of his brothers ~
moval tosthat town. DIR Jc-sup says that
u was hoped u would he permanent
as the Tripoh people had reason 10 he-
lisve that the chief end 81 the American
missionary - tn move IA. rent hou-es in
advance and then move out again In
thirteen years they Ind seen this done by
eight missionaries
In describing the difficulties IA evan
Relizing the Mo-lem OF syria DR. Js-sup
arraigns the Christian survival= IN that
land with great severity In quoting his
classification 81 these We are Obliged 10
condenss. The Oriental churches may he
divided into SIX great classes. cunpri--
ing fourteen different seCts. /. The Mono
physite Eutychian or Anti-Chalcedonian
sects. who reject the DEGREES Of the Coun-
cil OF ChAlccdon held IN 5gI A. D. These
are four. the ArIneniana. JacobiteS. Copts
and AbyS~inians. They have their dis
tinct rituals and Calendar arr hostil.
TO each other and all other Christian
sects. have a married parish clergy and
re- sct the Pope >. The anti-Ephessiau
who reject the Council ot Ephesus Ia tJI
These ar. the HISTORIANS or Chaldean-
They have a married clergy. a high rover
ence for the Scriptures and hut little
picture Wor-hip. y Tn" Orthodox Greek
Who accept the seven general councils
This is Rome decapitAi"d. a pri~stly sys-
tenn without - partifeN. which allows tin,
Bible To il I~opls The parish clergy AZ.
married and generally most ilhterat.
4, The Narumt-s the ancient Mono
thsItss. who accepted the paracy lis:
A. d during the CriI-ad',s They con
duet service IA Syriac. a language not
understood by the p'upl" The only -in
unpardonthi- by m" priests ~ reading
rhs. Bibie. .. The siN Oriental yapal s..cts,
who are converts from the above To- tho.
Church of Rome: Papal Greek. Pap.l
Armenian. Papal HISTORIAN. Papai Con
TIC. PapaI syrian. Papal Abys-iniAn.
Their parish clergy ~ married y IN.
I..ains. who are few ard mostly attach4.
Of the French and Italian monAst.rie-.
and foreigner Th--' -.ris all aRrc.
sufficiently both In the common truth
and the common error. which they hold
Ia be clas-s'd - ON" one in their need ~
reformation. nne m h-ing an obstacle to
the Christianizatlou ~ tho MOhAmn,s,ian
world They an hold tho docirin"s 81
MISREPRESENTATION. ~ haptismal rrEpn-
Grafton pri"Stly sh=olution. Mar.olatry
tisd saint wNrshiTs. image and picture
worship, auricular confession and prayers
foT the dead. Instruction in the Scrip
tITs- j. virtually unknown DT. JesSslp
admits that many converts have i..en
drawn from these churches. though the
chief object ~ the MISSIONS IL 10 convert
from Islam lie seems To share the preju-
dice ~ other Protestant missionaries
q Rainst IN" efforts ~ the Greek and tho
Caihohc Church "a the MOhAmB.,itn
field
he gives VIVID and detailed account
Of the ma-sacres in Syria In IssO. of the