Sabbath Keepers in the Philippine Islands
Brother E. M. Adams gives the following encouraging word concerning the work in the Philippine Islands: “It is a pleasure to tell you that we have about twenty keeping the Sabbath and studying in the baptismal class, which is the result of our last tent effort. It is our plan to open another tent series soon in another place, close to the present location,15so the interested ones can follow us. It stimulates us to greater endeavor when we see the people eagerly laying hold of the truth. Two very interesting incidents have been related to me by two of our new Sabbath-keepers. Valentine Contreras says that about twenty-five years ago he found a man at Malolos who had a Bible, and prepared his food and horse feed on Friday, and would do no work on the Sabbath. Since that time Valentine has been looking for a Bible. During our tent meeting he bought one, and is now keeping the Sabbath. Saturnino de Castro, who with his wife and daughter is now keeping the Sabbath, relates that about ninety years ago his grandfather was a singer in the Catholic Church. In some way he got hold of the padre’s Bible, and read it. The result was that he on some pretext excused himself from singing and left the place, taking the Bible with him. He stopped attending mass and going to confessional, and began to keep the Sabbath. This light was handed down to his son, who also kept the Sabbath; but while the grandson was taught the same, he wandered away from the Sabbath. He said that when we first presented the Sabbath it was clear to him, and he and his family both said that they had not a doubt about the truth that we had presented. This illustrates the power in the Word, and shows why the Catholic Church does not want her people to have the Bible.”