CHRIST, THE ROOT by Examiner; Chronicle

Seventh-day Adventist Missionary Society · Oakland, California · Sep 15, 1881

CHRIST, THE ROOT.

By Examiner; Chronicle

In many of the islands of the south seas our missionaries have been the means of converting the people to the faith. In one of these the shaven crowns of Rome began to put in their appearance, with a view of turning away people from the faith, to the errors of Rome. Among their cunning instruments of conversion was a picture representing the tree of the church. Certain twigs were represented as rotten; they were cut off, and were falling into the fire; these were such persons as Luther, Calvin, and other famous teachers of the gospel. The Protestant missionaries, too, were dead twigs, and were all to be removed from the tree. The natives were not quite sure about this, and made more inquiries. Certain other branches were green and vigorous; these were the priests of the Catholic church, and the larger boughs were bishops and cardinals of the same community; the natives were not quite clear about that, and passed on to examine the trunk. This of course consisted of an array of popes, of whom the islanders had never heard. They passed on, hoping to come to something presently; and so they did, for at the bottom was the name of our Lord Jesus. The inquiring islanders said, "And what is this at the bottom, marked with the name of Jesus?" "That is the root," said the priest. "Well, then," shouted the natives, "we have the root! The new teachers say we have the root, and so we are all right; our missionaries have told us the truth." There was philosophy in that. Let us see to it that "we have the root." Friend, dost thou believe in Jesus Christ, the Son of God? If so, thou hast the root.