OUR EUROPEAN MISSIONS

Seventh-day Adventist Publishing Association · Battle Creek, Mich. · Jun 7, 1877

OUR EUROPEAN MISSIONS.

The Seventh-day Adventists have two Missions in Europe, under the supervision of the General Conference. Elder J. N. Andrews, who had a deep and valuable experience in America for a quarter of a century as a laborer in the gospel, is our “embassador for Christ,” to represent our doctrines and practices in Switzerland, France, Germany, Italy, and where else the providence of God may give him an open door in Europe. He has labored in the gospel in Switzerland, Prussia and Italy, and has nearly completed one year’s publication of an eight-page monthly in the French language. Want of proper help on his paper, however, with the study of the French and German languages have kept him from the gospel field almost entirely the past year.

Elder J. G. Matteson, who has labored thirteen years successfully in America as a preacher and editor, has recently been sent to his native country in Europe to represent Seventh-day Adventists in Denmark, Norway and Sweden. We hope much from this mission. Elder Matteson will want means immediately on his arrival in Denmark to commence his work of preaching and publishing, as he has no old and tried friends there, to whom he can look for support. We therefore announce to the friends of missions and those anxious for the prosperity of the cause of God, that the privilege is now set before them of donating for the advancement of Elder Matteson’s mission to Denmark. Please remit, without delay, to REVIEW AND HERALD, Battle Creek, Mich.

And while these two brethren are amenable to the General Conference, it is expected of them to give that form to the work that will best advance and build up the cause. And as long as they have charge of the work, under the general supervision of the Conference, those who labor with them must respect their position, judgment, and counsel. Our beloved brother, Elder D. T. Bourdeau, was sent to Switzerland to help Elder Andrews who labored under the embarrassment of his imperfect French. It was very difficult for him to edit a paper in the French language, or to speak in French, at the time of Elder Bourdeau’s arrival. And besides, he had much care and anxiety for the work in Elder Ertzenberger’s German field. It has seemed to us that Elder Bourdeau was very much needed in Switzerland, for the first year of his missionary labor in Europe at least, to work under Elder Andrews in raising up new friends and supporters to the cause in Switzerland, to hasten the cause there as fast as possible on to a self-sustaining basis, and to assist Elder Andrews while making almost super-human efforts to master the French and German languages.

We are pained to learn that Elder Andrews and his son and daughter have been kept from their studies, and Elder Andrews from the lecturing field, to do such work as folding papers, and making tracts, and next to nothing being done in Switzerland and France in gathering numbers to the small membership, and strength to the feeble cause.

Elder Bourdeau labors hard, even beyond his strength. He needs the counsel and care of Elder Andrews in this. But more than all, he needs the counsel of his brethren where and how he should labor as God may give him strength.

Those who labor to build up the cause in Europe have a model in many respects to work after. The cause in America has arisen from a humble beginning. Those who have managed adopted the plan to labor where they could accomplish most with the least means. Our first publishing house was not established at New York, Boston, Cincinnati, or Chicago; but in the (then) village of Battle Creek, Michigan, of 2,000 inhabitants. Here the work has been carried on to much better advantage, and with very much less means, than it could have been in some large city. And it has been considered of the utmost importance to encourage laborers to go out to preach the word of God and scatter our publications where they could accomplish most immediate good. This policy secured growing strength of numbers and means to the cause at every step.

If it be said that the fact that the European

paper is published at Bâle gives it position and influence, then we might regret that such position and influence was not given the REVIEW AND HERALD twenty years ago. Something may be gained in publishing in Bâle; and a hundred times as much may be lost by shutting Elder Andrews up in that city, away from his brethren who should do a hundred things to help him, in the way of board, and such work as they can do on the paper and the tracts without charge.

We are becoming terribly anxious about the mission in Europe. If it be true that preaching can do but little without publications, it is quite as true that publications will do little without preaching. The work in Europe, in order to prosper, must copy after the American model. Elder Andrews must have such help on the paper and the tracts as to enable him to go into the lecturing field a part of his time. Elder Bourdeau must join him in this work, to raise up churches and supporters of the cause.

We have become very deeply interested in the case of Dr. Ribton of Naples, Italy. But we cannot see our way clear to make his work a distinct mission at present. We recommend that Elder Andrews visit him without delay, and report to us at Battle Creek. We are anxious to help and counsel every man God is moving out to work in his cause; but wish more evidence than mere correspondence, before putting means into the hands of utter strangers. Past impositions may have made us too cautious; but as the worthy poor who have a just claim on the charities of the public, suffer on account of the impositions of those who follow begging as a trade, so it is to be feared that the true servants of God are sometimes left to suffer because of the necessary caution to guard against impostors in the ministry.

Elder Andrews must not be confined to his paper. It will be for the good of his physical and spiritual health for our very dear brother to go out here and there and speak to the people. He must leave part of the work of his paper to others. It would be well to print only four or six times in a year, rather than to shut himself wholly up to printing. And it would be better to have the translating and printing imperfectly done, rather than to have nearly the whole force of the European Mission spent on a monthly sheet.

We trust, however, that Elder Bourdeau will cheerfully join Elder Andrews, and that the work of publishing and preaching will be balanced, and that numbers and strength will be added to the cause in Europe.

GEN. CONF. COM.