p. 14 | L. H. CHRISTIAN by Louis H. Christian

Review and Herald Publishing Association · Washington, D. C. · Apr 14, 1904

L. H. CHRISTIAN

By Louis H. Christian

Scandinavia

L. H. CHRISTIAN

We came to Denmark a little more than a year ago. Soon after our arrival, we began to labor in Copenhagen, the largest city in these northern countries. As our own mission hall was rented out until spring, we secured a hall in the center of the city, for meetings during the winter months. These public lectures were quite well attended, when the nature of the hall is considered, the average attendance being over two hundred. For this I am grateful. And yet a congregation of two, three, or four hundred in a city of half a million is but a drop in the bucket.

During the month of August I visited our smaller churches in Denmark. There are nineteen churches in this conference. Although the stay at each place was brief, we had good meetings, and I greatly enjoyed this opportunity of becoming

acquainted with our brethren in Denmark. They are a plain, God-fearing people, sincerely devoted to, and generally speaking, well-grounded in, the different phases of the present message.

The last church visited was that at Frederikshavn. At this place we have a nicely located sanatorium, which is doing a noble work. In spite of difficulties, it is struggling ahead, and evidently has a bright and useful future, if it receives the needed assistance in beginning.

In September I visited nine of our churches in Norway—from Bergen, along the coast to Christiania. Norway is a remarkable country, and the Norwegians a liberty-loving, progressive people. Our work among them is intensely interesting. In Bergen, the first city visited, we have a church of about seventy members. In Stavanger, farther south, there are sixty members. The companies I met with were smaller, but not less earnest and consecrated. It touches one's heart to see how loyal, even in their poverty, these brethren are to the cause of present truth.

My last stop was made in Christiania. Our membership here is about two hundred—the largest Scandinavian Adventist church in the world. Our work in Scandinavia practically began in this city. It is just twenty-five years since Elder Matteson began to labor in Christiania. More than seventy-five accepted the message that first winter, in spite of the strongest opposition possible. The Lord has since blessed, and is still greatly blessing his work in this city. Our large publishing house here has, during these years, printed thousands of books, pamphlets, tracts, and papers. Scores, yes, hundreds, of people are to-day rejoicing in the message, as a result of literature prepared by the Christiania publishing house. For this good result we must not forget to be grateful, both to the Lord and to those who did the work.

Since the visit in September, I have spent the holiday week in Christiania, in connection with a canvassers' institute. More than twenty canvassers were present, besides twelve students from Elder O. A. Johnson's Bible school. We had a pleasant, and I hope a very profitable, time in studying preparatory to successful canvassing. There is a sturdy, spiritual, old-time canvassers' corps in Norway. Do they not meet any difficulties?—Yes, mountains of them; mountains of solid rock; for Norway is a mountainous country. But there is no mountain in this world so steep or so large that it can not be either ascended or surrounded. We who seek to proclaim the third angel's message would certainly be the basest of cowards if we were frightened or disheartened by difficulties.

On the eleventh of last October we began a series of public meetings in our own hall in Copenhagen. These were continued until the holidays, with a good interest. Our hall can seat three hundred persons. This year we have rented a large hall down town, for two lectures a week. There has been a splendid attendance. We still have meetings in our own chapel.

In connection with our public work, we have a five months' Bible training-school. There are twenty-five students. They are earnest, devoted, and intensely eager to learn. They are too young in experience to enter the Bible work or the ministry in the immediate future, but they are planning to canvass. Our school is plain and elementary, yet the Lord is with us. We try to be practical. The students attend in the forenoon from 8 o'clock to 11:30, and canvass in the afternoon. Since the holidays they have worked 843 hours, and sold 1,797 papers, 474 books, 55 tracts, and secured 31 subscriptions for our papers.

I have baptized thirty-three dear souls since coming to Copenhagen. Others are keeping the Sabbath. I could have baptized a larger number, but have kept them waiting until they were better prepared. There seems to be need of caution on this point, for one who is a stranger in a foreign country. Not all of these have accepted the message as a result of our public work. Two sisters, who had received a few Danish papers from America, decided to obey, and asked for baptism before they saw an Adventist minister. One of our colporteurs found them.

We love Denmark, and feel at home here. If it were not for the great work among the Scandinavians of America, we would gladly remain, even though we came here with the thought of staying but a year or two.

Pray for the work here. The great need of the cause in Scandinavia to-day is earnest, humble, genuine labor in spiritual and educational lines. It is the old, true advent doctrines, advent spirit, and advent methods that will bring substantial success.