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BIGOTRY IN MEXICO

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Pacific Press Publishing Company · Oakland, California · Aug 27, 1896

FromSigns of the Times, Vol. 22, No. 34.

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BIGOTRY IN MEXICO.

By H. L. Morehouse

THE intense bigotry of the masses of the Roman Catholics in Mexico renders the work of their evangelization very difficult. They have been most sedulously taught by the venerated priesthood that outside of the Roman Catholic Church there is no salvation; that Protestantism is of the devil; they have heard Luther described as an earthly prince of his Satanic majesty, and have shivered as they came in contact with Protestants who were branded as Lutherans; they have been taught that it was a mortal sin to enter a Protestant place of worship; forbidden to accept the Bible; while priestly lies have been concocted to the effect that American missionaries were secret emissaries of the United States to bring about annexation and annihilate Mexican nationality; and even in some cases that they sought to abduct children to send to the United States to be manufactured into fine soaps for toilet purposes. These are but specimens of the diabolical methods employed to influence the lower classes especially, against missionaries of the Gospel.
The poor, ignorant, credulous people believe every word of it, and often become terribly excited over the matter. Inflammable as powder, they need but the application of a priestly spark to explode in deeds of violence and bloodshed. Hence, it is not surprising that there have been martyr missionaries in Mexico. Dr. William Butler, of the Methodist Episcopal Church, gives statistics of the numbers, the localities, and dates where these witnesses for Christ came to a violent deathat the hands of Romanists, showing that one American and fifty-eight Mexicans perished thus in the last twenty-five years. The American was Rev. J. L. Stephens, a Congregational missionary, who was assassinated by fanatics on Sunday night, March 1, 1874, at Ahualulco. Many others have narrowly escaped death.—Rev. H. L. Morehouse, D.D.