PROGRESS WHERE THE BATTLES OF CALVIN WERE ONCE WAGED—SCHOOL, SANITARIUM, AND PUBLISHING WORK ARE FLOURISHING—SOME OF THE HISTORIC GROUNDS OF THE VAUDOIS—WORK WELL ORGANIZED IN SOUTHERN EUROPE
By H. H. HALL
ON the brink of Lake Geneva—or Leman, as they usually call it here—and in plain sight of the Prangins Woods, in which the eight hundred heroic Waldenses gathered on the evening of August 16, 1689, for their wonderful march across the Alps to their native valleys, are grouped the Gland sanitarium, the Latin Union school, and the publishing headquarters.
INSTITUTIONAL HEADQUARTERS
Perhaps no more appropriate site in all Latin Europe could be found for these institutions, representing, as they do, the principles which the Waldenses so bravely maintained in Italy; the Albigenses and the Huguenots in France, that noble band of scholars and martyrs in Spain, and the liberty-loving Protestants in Switzerland.
Geneva, for so many centuries the asylum of the persecuted, whence Calvin sent his army of Bible sellers, is only some thirty minutes' ride to the southwest. The old town where the Waldenses landed after leaving Prangins shore is just across the lake, and in plain view from the upper story of the school building. To the northeast, rising out of the blue waters of Leman, is the far-famed castle of Chilon, in the cold stone dungeons of which the Protestant Bonnivard paced away the long hours and days of his six years' incarceration, from 1530 to 1536.
The nearly one hundred acres on which our buildings are located, includes between two hundred and three hundred yards of the lake shore, and widens as it stretches back into the wooded hillside, making a most delightful retreat for health seekers, and an ideal spot for students.
The sanitarium is becoming so well known that it is overcrowded in the summer months, and plans are already under way for its enlargement. Dr. De Forest has been in charge for many years, and thoroughly understands his duties.
MAIN BUILDING OF THE LAKE GENEVA SANITARIUM, GLAND, SWITZERLAND
The food factory, which is connected with the sanitarium, and under the direction of Brother J. Robert, does an annual business of $30,000.
The school, with Prof. Paul Steiner as principal, is advancing year by year, and has an enrolment of forty-two, nearly all taking advance work. The language of the country, and consequently of the school, is French.
PULPIT OF JOHN CALVIN, WITH HIS PULPIT CHAIR ON THE FLOOR BENEATH
I was interested in the plan followed by some of its students, as well as some of those I met elsewhere in Europe. While specializing on German, the English, French, or Scandinavian student attends the school at Friedensau, where German is the language of the people. Likewise he goes to Skodsborg for his Danish-Norwegian, and to Gland for his French. The German, French, or Scandinavian student goes to Watford for his English.
PUBLISHING ITEMS
Brother Borle, who is in charge of the publishing department of the union, has a small office and depository here, from which he directs the manufacture and distribution of books in Spanish, Italian, French, and Portuguese, the printing itself being done in Barcelona, Florence, Basel, and Lisbon. Their policy is to have this manufacturing done on the outside and in the various countries represented, rather than to invest the capital necessary in a plant of their own.
As an indication of the increasing call for publications in these languages, our people are now printing a ten thousand edition of "Christ Our Saviour" in French, and have completed a seven thousand edition of "Mystery Unfolded" and a liberal edition of "Steps to Christ" in Italian. While I was there, arrangements were practically completed for the publication of a ten thousand edition of "Coming King," Italian, to be used in America and Europe.
A GLIMPSE AT GENEVA
In Geneva Brother Borle and I visited the old cathedral and adjoining building in which Calvin preached, where Farel taught, and John Knox both preached and taught during the two years of his exile from Scotland. I also saw the chapel site our people have recently secured. It is quite centrally located, and was secured, through a series of providential circumstances,221for only $5,000. It would seem to be worth twice as much. Our members, who number less than 150, are making tremendous efforts to raise the additional $3,000 for the building. May they quickly succeed, and thus a memorial to the steady advance of the gospel in its last-day setting be raised in this ancient Protestant citadel!
LATIN UNION SCHOOL BUILDING, GLAND, SWITZERLAND
A VISIT TO THE WALDENSIAN CAPITAL
A night's ride brought me to Turin, Italy, and two hours more to La Torre, the Waldensian capital itself.
As it was snowing heavily, I could not go far from town; but fortunately a meeting of the near-by pastors was held that day in the office of the vice-moderator, the Rev. C. A. Tron, whom I visited. There I met the pastor of Angrogna, which includes their ancient school site, Pra del Torre; of Val Martin, at the head of which is the famous Balsille; of Lucerna, which was so often ravaged in the terrible days gone by; and of St. John, where Girardet, on his way to the stake, proclaimed the eternal nature of the truth for which he was about to suffer, by picking up and rubbing two stones together, and informing the priests that it would be easier for him to grind those stones to powder than for them to destroy the Waldensian churches.
One of the La Torre pastors showed me through their museum, where, among other things, I saw the old Olivetan Bible, published in 1535 as the gift of the people of the valley to the then rising cause of the Reformation in France. He also took me through their church, and I saw their primary and normal school buildings, also their college and administration buildings, nearly all of which had their ancient insignia, "Light Shining in Darkness," inscribed upon them.
I went away feeling that I had been on hallowed ground, and praying that the still greater truths connected with the Lord's soon coming might enter the hearts of the descendants of those humble men who did so much to keep the light shining during the Dark Ages. We already have a few representatives at La Torre, but I had not the time to hunt them up.
THE LAND OF THE INQUISITION
Brother Borle joined me at Valence, France, and together we went to Barcelona, a city of half a million, situated on the Mediterranean, in northeastern Spain. Here our depository for Spain is located, and here they have manufactured and partially sold large editions of "Glorious Appearing," "Daniel and the Revelation," and "Practical Guide to Health."
SCENE IN LISBON, PORTUGAL. Under the cross in the principal part of the picture are the ruins of the Cathedral Do Carmo, destroyed by the great earthquake in 1755. This earthquake marked the opening of the sixth seal as foretold in the prophecy of Rev. 6: 12.
Many of the SIGNS readers know Brother Edward Forga, a Spaniard of rare literary ability, who accepted this message a few years ago; and they will be pleased to learn that he and his wife are now living in Barcelona, where he is editing our Spanish paper and doing important translation and research work. They are a great help to our little church there.
The Bond brothers, who have been in charge of the work in Spain from the beginning, were out of the city, and I was not able, therefore, to learn of the present progress of their evangelical work.
Brother John Brown, formerly of Fernando Academy, California, who is in charge of the colporteur work, was just leaving for his company of workers in Saragossa. As this was on my way to Madrid, we had the day on the train together, and needless to say we had a good talk over the incidents occurring in their work in Spain, which go so far toward cheering up the men on the firing line. Brother Brown hopes to double the circulation of our books in Spain during 1914.
When we call to mind the times of the Reformation, in which books from Geneva had such a powerful influence in spreading the gospel throughout Spain, in one instance causing the conversion of an entire monastery, we can all the more heartily bid God-speed to this present-day band of colporteurs, knowing that He whose work it is "is the same yesterday, and to-day, and forever."
EXPERIENCES IN LISBON
At Vigo, northwestern Spain, I joined Brother and Sister J. T. Thompson, of California, on their way to Uruguay, their new field of labor.
At Lisbon we were met by Elders Rentfro and Meyer, the former being superintendent of the field, with headquarters at Oporto; the latter engaged in evangelical work in Lisbon, which is a city of not less than a half million. We visited their little rented chapel, where Brother Meyer is holding three evening meetings a week, with an attendance of fifty. We met their only colporteur, and examined the beginning they have made in publishing—a few tracts and one little book. Small they looked; and yet the titles are about as numerous and the retail value is about as great as the entire denomination could boast of fifty years ago.
We were particularly interested in the old cathedral Carmo, destroyed in the great 1755 earthquake, and never rebuilt. How many perished in it, will never be known. Its broken walls still stand, a mute testimony to the severity of that disaster, which the Bible student knows was an item in fulfilling prophecy. The accompanying engraving is from a photograph taken of that222portion of the water-front near which the old quay was located that disappeared upon that occasion, with its load of humanity.
MEMBERSHIP AND OTHER STATISTICS
It was not my privilege to see the president of the union, Elder L. P. Tieche, who was in Paris, therefore I did not learn of present plans and future prospects; but the division conference records show that Switzerland,223France, Italy, Spain, and Portugal have 53 workers, 34 churches, and 1,392 communicants. Their total tithe and donations for 1912 were $19,263.92, and their nine colporteurs sold gospel literature to the value of $17,211.27 during that time.
