p. 70 | MISSIONARIES IN ASIA

The Seventh-day Adventist Publishing Association · Battle Creek, Mich. · Jul 21, 1868

MISSIONARIES IN ASIA.

ANGLICAN EXCLUSIVENESS IN INDIA.

In a place in India, where besides the missionaries there is also an Anglican government chaplain, it so happened that a harmonium was placed in the English chapel; and on Saturday evenings usually a goodly number of Europeans collected in the chapel to prepare the musical pieces for Sunday. On one of these Saturdays, a shameful outrage was committed by the chaplain.

The local school teacher employed by the government is a pagan, but well disposed toward the Christian religion, is a well-educated man, has a title of master of arts, and a salary of 300 rupees a month. This man had ventured to do what was regarded most extraordinary for a Hindoo, and had never been seen in this place,—he had publicly walked out in the evening with his wife. At the invitation of a European family that usually assists at the singing in the chapel, he had come to visit the chapel with his wife to let her hear English church music. The chaplain, instead of being rejoiced at this approach of these enlightened, liberal-minded pagans, that had so far broken over the usages of Hindooism as to come, man and wife, thus publicly to the chapel, at once, without ceremony, requested the two to leave the chapel, as it was consecrated, and Pagans must not enter it! One of the missionaries present said to the chaplain, “You have done wrong, sir!” and another missionary expressed his regret to the Hindoos at the outrageous treatment they had received. The chaplain coolly remarked, that he knew well that he had not acted according to evangelical usage, and that the missionaries would have done far otherwise.

The Pagan school teacher wrote a letter to the Christian chaplain, saying to him, that it seemed to him that he had no lawful right to act as he did, and that his conduct had been neither courteous nor in the spirit of the Bible. He himself, he said, could overlook the offense, but that he was much grieved at this treatment on the account of his wife and the English family that had invited him to the chapel. Instead of courteously answering this sensible letter, the chaplain sent it to the school-inspector, desiring him to know and reprove the impudence of his subordinate. In his expectation, however, he was grievously disappointed. The inspector declared to his reverence that he regarded his behaviour as in the highest degree improper, and that he felt that it was his duty to report the matter to the bishop.

Any wonder that these Anglican clergy have, with

this worse than Hindoo pride of caste—clerical caste, no power with the people?

To crown the whole matter, on the following Sunday this same chaplain preached a fine sermon on the duty of loving our neighbors, and always doing to others as we would have them do to us!

The German missionary journal from which this account is taken, in answer to the question, why so few cultivated Hindoos show any disposition to become Christians, says: “The above related circumstance will serve to answer this question. It teaches us that the number of really evangelical Christians in India is small, and becoming smaller still,—while there are many worldly Christians; and besides these a large number of really well-meaning people, but who do not look upon the Christian religion otherwise than a sort of law—a dead form, to which we must conform. Is it a wonder that the Pagans do not go where they feel that they are not wanted, and where they are despised and excluded as unclean animals,—at least until a little holy water (sprinkling-baptism) is thrown upon them? On the doors of the few Dutch (Holland) chapels in Guayama, the inscription was once to be found, ‘Dogs and slaves not permitted to enter’! We smile in these enlightened times at this candid rudeness of the men of a former age; but does it not look after all at least more honest and tolerable than the conduct of this cultivated, high-church Anglican? How long will it take the missionaries to wipe out the effect from the minds of the Hindoos of such uncharitable conduct toward them by so-called Christians? —Christian Standard.”