118 POETRY. [OCT. few exceptions, their horses, cattle, and waggons were lost, or have been disposed of to supply their urgent wants; and they have nothing remaining except their cooking utensils, tents, and clothes on their backs, which will soon be worn out. Within six months more than 200, or onetenth, have died, many of them in consequence of their confinement. During the same time a large majority of the men, and, I suppose, of the women too, have openly renounced heathenism and embraced Christianity. When they will be liberated, and where they will be located, we do not know; but they will probably be sent to some place where the expense of erecting buildings, and taking supplies of food and clothing, will be much greater than where they were before. We hope that, by means of those converted within the past winter, God designs to diffuse his Gospel among the 30,000 of their people still at large; but in order to this they must be watched over, followed, and further instructed. Are the churches willing to furnish the means for doing this? We, who have the honour of preaching to them, are willing to do our part in the work. By the last accounts the removal had commenced. They were being removed down the Mississippi river, the Missionaries accompanying them, whither they knew not. AN ADVENT SONG. "THY light is come! arise and shine!" Courage! E'en though the thundercloud Joy to the pilgrim! Lone and drear Tossed mariner! bid thy bark breast Soldier of Christ, sheathe not thy sword! Watchman of God! with sleepless eye 1863.] MISSION WORK AMONG THE NESTORIANS. 119 Courage, take heart, thou man of toil, True bridegroom of thy Church! revive Calcutta Christian Intelligencer. MISSION WORK AMONG THE NESTORIANS. A WORK has been recently published at Boston, entitled "Woman and her Saviour in Persia," which exhibits in a very interesting manner the power of the Gospel among the Nestorians, a Mission in which, before recent retrenchments rendered necessary by the civil war in America, there were 3 stations and 35 out-stations, 54 native preachers, 14 female assistant Missionaries, and 43 teachers. The materials for the book are taken principally from the history of the female seminary at Ooroomiah, where there has been much of religious awakening and desire after instruction. One extract will suffice. It was in May, and the day one of the finest of those charming May days in Ooroomiah. The most of the Nestorians who had been admitted to the communion were present; and in distributing the guests among the Mission families, it was understood that all who had been connected with the seminary should go there. The object of this was to gather all the scattered members of the family together once more, in the place where prayer had been wont to be made, before they went to the Lord's table. As yet no one knew that their teacher was about to leave them; for she did not wish any thing else to turn away their thoughts from Jesus. When they had assembled in the schoolroom she could not say much, but besought the Lord Jesus to be the Master of the assembly. After singing a hymn, the words "Looking unto Jesus" were given as the key-note of the meeting. He came and whispered peace, and all felt that they sat together in heavenly places. The eyes of their hearts were opened, so that they realized the fulfilment of the promise, "There am I in the midst of you.' They were invited to speak freely of their joys and sorrows, in order that together they might carry them to Jesus. The first to speak was Hanee, one of the two whom Mar Yohanan brought to Miss Fisk at the commencement of the school. She had, not long before, buried her only child; and holding her hands as though the little one still rested on her 120 MISSION WORK AMONG THE NESTORIANS. [OCT. arms, she said, "Sisters, at the last communion you saw me here with my babe in these arms. It is not here now. I have laid it into the arms of Jesus, and come to-day to tell you there is a sweet as well as a bitter in affliction. When the rod is appointed to us, let us not only kiss it, but press it to our lips. When I stood by that little open grave, I said, 'All the time I have given to my babe I will give to souls.' I try to do so. Pray for me." She told but the simple truth; for, after the death of her child, she used to bring the women into the room where it died, and there talk and pray with them. Since then she has received another little one, and, in the same spirit, given it back to Christ. When she ceased the whole company were in tears. The leader could only ask, "Who will pray?" And Sanum, whose children had died by poison, and who could enter into the feelings of the bereaved mother, knelt down and prayed, as very few could pray, for mothers left desolate, and for those who still folded their little ones in their arms. There was perfect silence while she pleaded for them, save as the sweet voice of her own babe sometimes added to the tenderness of her petitions. A child in heaven! what a treasure! and what a blessing if it draw the heart thither also! There was a little pause after the prayer; and, to the surprise of all, the voice of Nazloo was heard in another part of the room; for they had supposed her near, if not already entering, the river of death. "Sisters," said she," since seeing you I have stood with one foot in the grave; and may I tell you that it is a very different thing to be a Christian then from what it is in this pleasant schoolroom. Let me ask you if you are sure that you are on the Rock Christ Jesus?" A tender prayer followed, the burden of which was, "Search us, O Lord, and try us, and see if there be any wicked way in us, and lead us in the way everlasting." The next to speak was one of the early pupils, who had come many miles to be present. She said, "I could think but one thought all the way as I came, and that was, 'Freely ye have received, freely give.' We have certainly received freely have we given any thing? Can we not do something for souls? I fear the Lord Jesus is not pleased with us?" But we cannot dwell longer on the prayer-meeting. As many as twelve said a few words, and more than that number led in prayer during the two hours they were together: from thence all repaired to the diningroom, where they did "eat their meat with gladness and singleness of heart." Then it was announced that arrangements had been made for class prayer-meetings. It seemed to be just the thing that all longed for, though none had spoken of it; and at once each class went along the familiar passages to the room assigned it, and the voice of prayer arose from nearly every apartment in the building. It must be remembered, that, at the present time, the Nestorians are being grievously oppressed by their Mohammedan masters. Last year, the English Ambassador obtained a royal order on their behalf; but it did not benefit them. They then turned their eyes towards Russia, and great hopes were entertained of help from this quarter; but this, too, seems to have failed. In the midst of these distresses God vouchsafes to the evangelical church, which has been raised up amongst them showers of blessings. May the work spread, until the whole lump be leavened! COME OVER, AND HELP US. THE Mission field in Western Africa is still widening. The day dawn is now stealing over its borders, and if faithful labourers will but go forth to the aid of the feeble band in the field, now bending beneath their heavy burdens, the Sun of Righteousness will, ere long, shine in noon 122 COME OVER, AND HELP US. [NOV. tide glory into the very heart of this large, dark, and unhappy continent. The traveller, the sailor, and the trader, have long been there, penetrating every accessible portion of that mysterious land, and freely risking health and life in the eager pursuit of wealth and fame. And shall the soldier of the Cross be less courageous? Shall he, with the last, earnest, emphatic command of his ascended Lord appealing to his conscience, turn a deaf ear, and leave Afric's millions to perish in their ignorance, because, in obeying his Master's behest, he may probably sustain detriment to his health? Oh! not so, reasons the world's soldier. Truly, "the children of this world are wiser in their generation than the children of light." "But," urge some over-prudent Christians, "it is cruel to send people to Africa to sicken and die: it is an unnecessary waste of health and life." It is not cruel, notwithstanding all our losses, for others to come, and to come more and more. For then it were cruel for our dear Saviour to have come to earth to suffer, bleed, and die. It were cruel for his apostles to have followed in his footsteps. Ay, the labours, sacrifices, and deaths for Jesus' sake, of the suffering church through her long history, evermore "filling up that which is behind of the sufferings of Christ," have been one long system of cruelty. Nay, verily, away with such principles. They are not Christian. It is ignorant Peter selfishly rebuking the Saviour, who would die for him-"Be it far from thee, Lord, this shall not be unto thee." It is the hypocritical economy of the world, only manifesting itself when expenditure for Christ's sake is the object, saying, "To what purpose is this waste?" Nay, more, it would destroy the name of Christian; for Jesus said, "Whosoever will come after me, let him deny himself, and take up his cross and follow me." It would rob him of his present blessedness and his future glorious reward. "They that leave all shall receive manifold more in this life;" "if we suffer with Him, we shall also reign with Him." Ay, such principles are cruel, for they would leave countless numbers of heathen to perish; for how can they call on Him of whom they have not heard, and how shall they hear without a preacher, and how shall they preach except they be sent? There are two significant facts in the history of African Missions, which should encourage labourers to go forth. One is, that, "constrained by the love of Christ," men of the most cultivated minds, and women of the highest refinement, have gone to that barbarous land, that outcast of the nations, and made for themselves not only homes that they could merely tolerate, but such as they could love and cherish; and there, year after year, have continued patiently and cheerfully to labour for their Master; esteeming it their greatest earthly privilege to spend and be spent in his service. The other is the undeniable fact, that in no other part of the heathen world is there evinced so much willingness to hear the Gospel as in Africa. "Ethiopia is now stretching forth her hands unto God," whom, through the mists of superstition, she sees, as yet, afar off. Happy and honourable, in the eternal kingdom, will they be who shall aid her in taking even one feeble step towards her unknown |