The Richmond Virginian. (Richmond, Va.) 1910-1920, 1917-04-14

facilities as American Baptists. but
they, too. are making progress. There
are theological seminaries at Bristol,
Hamburg, Stockholm. Rio Janeiro,
Canton. Shanghai, Rome and colleges
at many points. Better far than the
amounts of money which have been
contributed to the accumulation of
property and endowments is the grad
ual creation of an education sentiment
and tradition that naturally inclines
Baptist young people in increasing ra-
ito to seek an education in institu-
tons of higher learning, our own and
others.
"Baptists organized the first Pro-
testant missionary society for work
among the heathen--the Baptist Mis-
sionary society. of England. organized
in 1893. William Carey. one of the
most famous. scholarly and effective
missionaries of Christian history, was
its first missionary and the first Pro-
testant missionary of the English
speaking world. His labors opened
the glorious chapter of modern mis-
sionary effort. AS he opened the
work in India. so Adoniram Judson,
Congregationalist converted to Bap-
fist views. opened the work in Burma.
He was directly instrumental in or
ganizing the first Baptist missionary
society in this country in 1914. and
was its first missionary. Great sue
cess has attended Baptist work in
Burma, India. China, Brazil, Russia
and Sweden. Baptists have nearly
half million communicates on the
foreign field and hold large property
interests.
Organized I'm 1S45.
THE Southern Baptist convention
was organized In 1S45, and its
constituency are the largest and the
most homogeneous body OF Baptists
in the world: Anglo-Saxon in blood.
harmonious in doctrine. with very
slight variations In practice. rapidly
growing in wealth. they constitute
great asset OF the Kingdom. Their
foreign mission work is conducted
through the foreign mission board
located ut Richmond. their home mis-
sion work through the home mission
board located at Atlanta and their
Sunday school and publishing work
through the Sunday school board at
Nashville Each state has its con-
yention. it's college for men and for
women. its local boards and other
equipment. The women are organ
lied into the Woman's Missionary
Union auxiliary 10 the Southern Bap-
fist convention, with headquarters in
Baltimore and through organization 3
in all the states. They have train
ing school al Louisville. KY. with
curriculum and faculty second TO
none in the country.
The BAPTIST young people are or
ganized into the Baptist Young Peo-
pies union for the older young peo-
pie and various other organizations
for the juniors. all earnestly laboring
10 train mp a body OF faithful. devoted
and effective workers. These various
organizations are disseminating
knowledge OF missions. Christian his
tory and tho Bible.
"Baptists believe the practical
worth OF the Bible for the life of the
people in their daily temptations and
perpiexities and seek In every posi-
HE way to give 10 their membership
SIN intelligent knowledge of the book
Through the Sunday school. summer
asse mhlies. training schools, college
classes. Chautauquas. etc. they are
teaching and learning il and methods
Of doing Christian work. They have
given TO the world such biblical
scholars as Broadus, Hovey. Hackett.
Harper, Weston and others They
have made some contributions TO other
fields of Christian thought. They
have contributed to the common
treasures OF the Christian world by
giving to II some OF the hest known
OF its hymns. such as Father. What
Ger OF Earthly Bliss Saviour. Thy
Dying Love. Majestic Sweetness Sits
En,hroned.'' Come. Thou Fount OF
Every Biesssng.'~ 'Bies, Be the Tie
That Binds. How Firm a Founda-
tlohn. We Saints of the Lord MY
Country. It's OF Thee and many
others scarcely less known and gen
orally used. Among Baptist com.
posers Howard Doane and p. r, Bliss
arc among the most notable. Rap-
fists have also made some contribu-
tionS to the polite literature and gen
cral scholarship OF the country.
Among the living scholars of the pres
emit day several who rank among the
first could he named both in England
and America. They are trying TO do
their share of the worlds work in
all lines of worthy endeavor, loyal to
conscience. to home and Preside. to
country and to God.
Fundamentally Dcinocratic-
"Baptists are the friends OF free
dom. the opponents OF autocracy and
aristocracv In politics and religion. in
state and church. Holding that con-
science is free and supreme under
God, they are fundamentally and
necessarily democratic: believing in
the Fatherhood of God, the LeFash.p
of Christ, the brotherhood of man.
the right and duty OF every human
being to determine his religious con-
nections for himself: opposing all
that puts a priest be-
tween God and the soul. all ecclesi-
asticism that makes the church the
purveyor OF grace. all ceremonialisn,
that obscures the spirituality OF re-
ligion: opposing infant baptism as an
invasion Of the fundamental and in
alienable rights OF the individual soul
and as dangerous to the spirituality
and reality of the Christian religion.
as the foundation OF the Greek and
Roman Catholic churches and ALI
other non-evangelical churches. az
tending to hull the conscience to sleep
and obscure the distinction between
tho church and the world, believing
in light and truth from whatever
source they may come. holding them
selves in the attitude Of learners from
the word and works and people OF
God: their faces to the future with
out fear because they believe in a
God that lives and loves and rules
and is mighty; loyal to country and