Evening star. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1854-1972, 1927-03-11
ARTICLE VI.
BY UPTON CLOSE.

christianity is to stop right now
so far as it is the wedge of foreign
! influence driven into our country by
! foreign money and organization, con
trolled by foreign personnel and
| backed by foreign guns. CHRISTIANITY
will have the same opportunity In our
new China as, say, Buddhism In your
America, so far as it is teaching
relying purely on intellectual and
spiritual conviction. Although | and
most of my associates are scientific
agnostics, we will see that it has full
protection, but it must start all over
again on this new basis.
Dr. Wang Ching hui, the president
of the New Nationalist party at can
ton thus summed up for me the attl-
tude of the dominant young minds over
whose Inner councils he presides.
This is the answer to the urgent
question asked by Sunday schools and
those interested in missions, What is
the future of missionary work in
Asia?" The people of south Asia,
who were shown the way by Turkey
when she appropriated mission proper
ties and brought Christian institutions
under rigid governmental control, are
swinging into line behind the leader
ship of China.
why" asked Mahatma Gandhi of
India when / visited his headquarters,
should you self-styled whites get 1t
into your heads that Christianity is
your special largess to distribute and
interpret? You have made mess of
it yourselves. AS a matter of fact.
Christ was originally Asiatic; as were
all founders of religions, and / think
we understand Him much better than
you do. We would have thanked Him
for bringing His gospel before us had
you not mingled it so much with your
Western culture, dress and machinery.
We will go on and present the true
Christ to India"
Gandhi has ordered the New Tesla
ment read in all Swaraj schools, for
which he is being roundly jumped on
by old Brahmins in the Indian press.
Chinese leaders do not so much
object to the Ford cars, modern
plumbing and button-down-the-fr
trousers which missionaries have
spread along with the Christian gos-
pei, but they highly resent the infiu-
ence foreign nations hve exercised
over Chinese officials sand populace
through their missionaries, the re-
peated infringements of the powers
on Chinese sovereignty Ito protect
the missionaries" and the sectartan-
ism which the missions have tried to
carry over into China.
1t is significant that many native
Chinese Christian churches have
thrown off the membership of the for
eign missionary and have vigorously
joined in the Nationalist movement,
as witness the recent anti-foreign
proclamation of the Hankow group.
Mission school graduates are in the
forefront of the campaign to end the
privileges of foreigners.
Taking Over Mission Property.
The great mission leaders of the
past half century thought themselves
strategists when they undertook edu-
cational and medical philanthropy to
put over" Christian dogma. 1t helped
them collect money at home and got
them favor in heather" lands. 1t has
proved a boomerang.
The natives" discovered the dis
tinction between philanthropy and re-
ligious propa ganda. In this they have
been greatly aided in recent years by
such non-religious works as the China
Medical Board of the Rockefeller
Foundation, which has virtually alb
sorbed and "denatured'' medical mis-
sionary work in China.
Now missionary investments of $780,
100000 to $100,000,Q00 in schools and
hospitals in China, three -fourths
American, are being taken away and
secularized. Within the last three
months both the Picking and Canton
governments have required that mis-
sion schools shall register with the
government and cease to make chapel
attendance and Bible study compul-
sorry for graduation. Japan has en-
forced such an idea for years and in
Korea practically wiped out the mis-
sion higher schools system following
the accusation that they were in part
responsible Tor the Korean uprising.
Buddhists Use Methodist Hymns.
Although admitting that Christian
schools have kept alive higher educa-
ton during the period of disruption,
Chinese educators object to their con-
duct under such titles as Picking
University" when there is a national
university in Picking. Christian in
situations have tried to avert feeling
by taking the special religious con-
notation out of their names as we'll
as curricula, Canton Christian Col
lege" being changed last year to
''Lugnam University"
Reaction against militant Chris
tianity is shown by formation of the
RED Swastika Society,"" which I
found supplanting the Red Cross in
China, and the powerful Young Mems
and Women's Buddhist associations
of Japan. Turkey has her RED
Crescent Society" Buddhism has
taken a cue from Christians in Japan
in forming church and conference or
CARNATIONS and conducting Sunday
schools in which the good Methodist
hymns are sung with Buddha substi-
tinted for TagI1S