I remember you distinctly, and I have rejoiced to see you growing in grace and working in the Lord’s vineyard. I would say, my brother, you would best stand at your post of duty, laboring in the ministry of the word.
As you say, there is no more fruitful field than the South. It is the prejudice of the white against the black race that makes this field hard, very hard. The whites who have oppressed the colored people still have the same spirit. They did not lose it, although they were conquered in war. They are determined to make it appear that the blacks were better off in slavery than since they were set free. Any provocation from the blacks is met with the greatest cruelty. The field is one that needs to be worked with the greatest discretion. Any mingling of the white people with the colored people, as sleeping in their houses, or showing them friendship as would be shown by the whites to those of their own color, is exasperating to the white people of the South. Yet these persons employ colored women to nurse their children, and further, not a few white men have had children by colored women. Thus the colored people have received an education in118immorality, and many of them stand ready to treat the whites as the whites have treated them. The relation of the two races has been a matter hard to deal with, and I fear that it will ever remain a most perplexing problem.
You speak of a way of helping the colored race in a way which does not excite the prejudice of the white Southern-born citizens; that is, the industrial school. As you have presented, the greatest precaution needs to be exercised in regard to politics. Some persons are of such a temperament that they would make trouble by want of proper consideration. Words dropped unadvisedly would be like a spark, kindling a flame of intense jealousy and dangerous opposition. Whoever works in the South needs to be sanctified in body, soul, and spirit. Then there will be wise words, not words spoken at random or without duly weighing every expression.
It is from the whites that the greatest opposition may be expected. This is the quarter that we shall need to watch. The white people are prejudiced against the doctrines taught by the Seventh-day Adventists, and a religious opposition is the greatest difficulty. The white people will stir up the blacks by telling them all kinds of stories; and the blacks, who can lie even when it is for their interest to speak the truth, will stir up the whites with falsehoods, and the whites who want an occasion will seize upon any pretext for taking revenge, even upon those of their own color who are presenting the truth. This is the119danger. As far as possible, everything that will stir up the race prejudice of the white people should be avoided. There is danger of closing the door so that our white laborers will not be able to work in some places in the South.
All that you have written in regard to the great necessity of the colored people is correct. I have seen that those who know the truth for this time have a special work to take up for this people. Christ came to our world, clothing his divinity with humanity, that He might work with humanity, fallen, degraded, corrupted. He came of poor parentage, and lived the life of a poor man. He was accustomed to privation. As a member of the family He acted his part in laboring with his hands for the support of his mother and his brothers and sisters. Thus He, the Majesty of Heaven, was not to appear as honoring the greatest men because of their wealth. He has forever removed from poverty the disgrace which is attached to it because it is destitute of worldly advantages. He says, “The foxes have holes, and the birds of the air have nests; but the Son of Man hath not where to lay his head.”
Four thousand years ago a voice of strange and mysterious import was heard in heaven from the throne of God: “Sacrifice and offering thou didst not desire: mine ears hast thou opened: burnt offering and sin offering hast thou not required. Then said I, Lo, I come: in the volume of the book it is written of me, I delight to do thy will, O my God:120yea, thy law is within my heart.” Christ in counsel with his Father, laid out the plan for his life on earth. It was not a chance, but a design that the world’s Redeemer should lay off his crown, lay aside his kingly robe, and come to our world as a man. He clothed his divinity with the garb of humanity, that He might stand at the head of the human family, his humanity mingled with the humanity of the race fallen because of Adam’s disobedience. The poverty and humiliation of the Son of the infinite God teach lessons that few care to learn. There is a link that connects Christ with the poor in a special sense. He, the life, the light of the world, makes poverty his own teacher, in order that he may be educated by the same stern, practical teacher. Since the Lord Jesus accepted a life of poverty, no one can justly look with contempt upon the poor. The Saviour of the world was the King of glory, and He stripped Himself of his glorious outward adorning, accepting poverty, that He might understand how the poor are treated in this world. He was afflicted in all the afflictions of the human family, and He pronounces his blessing, not upon the rich, but upon the poor of this world.
You speak of the Oakwood Industrial School for colored students as not having sufficient buildings to accommodate the students, twelve in number occupying one room. My brother, is it not the duty of some one laboring in this line to labor for the creation of a fund to supply this need? Let appeals be121made to our people. Let each give a little, even among the poor. Without delay, encourage the brethren to erect a humble building large enough to accommodate the students. Ask the people to heed the words of Christ, “Whosoever will come after Me, let him deny himself, and take up his cross, and follow Me.” The example of Christ is for our imitation.
Those who undertake work in the South must not enter into any plan of colonizing; for this will place them in perilous circumstances. Some families should be found who for Christ’s sake will volunteer to enter the Southern field. At Huntsville there is a building, and something has been done there. Let the proper ones try to make that place different by bringing into it new, live elements. This plant must not become useless. Elements must be brought in, which will make the institution self-sustaining. Then if it is necessary, cheap additions can be made.
I could not encourage your plan. It means much, very much more than you think, to obtain and improve hundreds of acres of land. Your aftersight in this matter would be very different from your foresight. This work for the Southern people will require the tact of the most ingenious Christian. In the past you have seen families settled in localities where they could work successfully for the spread of the truth, and you have thought that this same plan could be adopted for the work in the South. But your expectations will not be realized.
The expenses of such a company in food and clothing must be considered. The results would not be such as you may be led to suppose. This plan will only bring disappointment. Let each family who shall commit itself to the work, go as the Lord’s missionaries, to work their own way. Workers are not to pledge themselves to five years’ labor, for many will not bear the test. Some would find fault and complain, and thus sow the seed of evil surmising. These persons might work interestedly for a time, and then become dissatisfied, and want a change. The Lord looks upon every heart. There are some souls you can not trust. They are unreliable. In the company you would form, you would find tares among the wheat. It would be better to begin work in Huntsville and make the work there a success.
I would say to you, my brother, that in the future nothing can be relied on in the Southern States. You can not make settlements with the purpose of carrying on a large business, cultivating lands, and teaching the colored people how to work. At the least provocation the poison of prejudice is ready to show its true character, and provocations will be found. It is very hard to make the work run smoothly. Outbreaks will come at any moment, and all unexpectedly, and there will be destruction of property and even of life itself. Hot-headed people, professing the faith, but without judgment, will think they can do as they please, but they will find themselves123in a tight place. I speak that which I know. Every one takes his life in his hands by such a course. There are some localities less perilous than others, but never can there be large settlements built up in the South. Every act will have to be oiled with the grace of God, every word spoken, carefully studied. Parties are already formed, and they are waiting, burning with a desire to serve their master, the devil, and do abominable work. Professed Christians are more determined in these things than out and out sinners.
MRS. E. G. WHITE.
The Field Becoming Difficult.
“Sunnyside,” Cooranbong, July 2, 1899.
Dear Brother ——:
In the South there are some places where work can be done. But the neglect of our people to respond to the light God has given has closed some openings which it will now be very difficult for them to enter. I inquire, What do our people mean by this neglect to work the Southern field? True, it is not a desirable field; and unless the Lord shall inspire with his love the hearts of his people, they will not succeed. They are not to begin by publishing the great and wonderful things they are going to do. Can not they see that if they do this, the gate will be closed against them? That which might have been done years ago in the South can not now be done.
When the children of Israel were encamped on the other side of the Jordan, “the Lord spake unto Moses, saying, Send thou men, that they may search the land of Canaan, which I give unto the children of Israel.” Read this history, contained in the thirteenth and fourteenth chapters of Numbers. When the evil report brought back by the spies was received, God was displeased, and declared his determination concerning the people. For forty years they were to wander in the Wilderness. After he had said this, the people decided to go up. But the favorable time125had passed. The news of their coming had been circulated, and their enemies were prepared to resist them. And Moses said, “Go not up, for the Lord is not among you; that ye be not smitten before your enemies.” But they presumptuously went to the hilltop to be defeated by their enemies.
Thus it is now with some places in the South. The doors are closed. Yet there are other places where prejudice has not been excited, and where work may be done. I write this to our people that they may see that it is not knowledge that they need, but new hearts, cleansed from all selfishness and covetousness. Those who have had every facility and convenience have shown their neglect for fields which have had so little. In some parts of the Lord’s vineyard nothing has been done. Money has been raised and appropriated, although not for personal advantage, yet in distinct disobedience to the Lord’s requirements. Those parts of this great vineyard where the least has been done were to be worked; but methods were used to divert the means for this purpose, into other channels. Through misrepresentation and misinterpretation the Southern field has been robbed. That field has not received from the Lord’s treasury its meat in due season.
The men whose influence cut off every advantage in the publication of books the profits of which were to be used in the Southern field, might better examine themselves, and see what they have done in working out false theories and principles, which have brought126upon the workers in our institutions the frown of God. O, I beg of every soul who has connived in these matters, to repent and confess and be converted, sending their sins beforehand to judgment.
My brother, I will send you that which I have in regard to the Southern field. The plans and efforts that could have been made years ago will not now succeed in some places. It is best to move when the Lord sends word to move, and not study human minds, human methods, human plans, human convenience. The Lord is wearied with the unbelief, selfishness, and covetousness of his people. This has stood in the way of the advancement of his work.
Eighty thousand dollars, I understand, were invested in the Sanitarium in Boulder, pressing upon the heart of the work a heavier load of debt than was already there. Did the Lord devise that work?—No; that amount of money was needed in India, in Australia, in the Southern field, in foreign fields, that the Lord’s ministers might carry the message of truth to places nigh which have never been worked, and to places afar off.
The Lord is displeased with his people, because they have worked at cross purposes with him. Money has been invested in various conveniences and facilities which the Lord never directed. There is earnest work to be done, but the money is consumed, so that the will of God is not done. My heart is sick and sore and distressed beyond measure. May the Lord awaken his people, who are not yet half awake.
I have thought of Paul, the great minister who was sent to preach Christ and him crucified to the Gentiles. On one occasion he was in a strait betwixt two. He was so weighed down with responsibilities that he knew not whether he would rather die or live, whether he would choose for the good of others to abide in the flesh, or give up the conflict. “Brethren,” he writes, “I count not myself to have apprehended: but this one thing I do, forgetting those things which are left behind, and reaching forth unto those things which are before, I press toward the mark for the prize of the high calling of God in Christ Jesus.”
My brother, walk humbly with God. I wish that the work could have been done in the Southern field which God designed should be done; but men have proved untrustworthy stewards. May the Lord give his people hearts of flesh, and not hearts of steel, is my prayer.
MRS. E. G. WHITE.
Words of Precaution Regarding Sunday Labor.
THE COLORED PEOPLE, AND THE WAY TO OPPOSE ERROR.
On the morning of Nov. 20, 1895, a council meeting was called at the large tent on the Armadale camp-grounds to consider some questions arising from the discussions of our brethren regarding the religious liberty work. The positions recently taken by some of our brethren indicate that there was necessity for a more thorough understanding of the principles which must govern our work.
There were present Brethren W. W. Prescott, A. G. Daniells, W. C. White, M. C. Israel, L. J. Rousseau, W. A. Colcord, M. G. Kellogg, W. D. Salisbury, James Smith, and Sisters E. G. White and E. J. Burnham.
Several letters were read with reference to the questions at issue, then Sister White read a letter which she had written to Elder A. T. Jones, in May, 1894, which had been unavoidably withheld until very recently.
In this letter reference was made to the necessity of our speakers presenting the truth in such a simple manner that even the small children could comprehend the lessons which it was designed to teach. Remarking on this, Sister White said: “According to the light which has been given to me, when the heavenly intelligences see that men will no longer129present the truth in simplicity as Jesus did, the very children will be moved upon by the Spirit of God, and will go forth proclaiming the truth for this time.”
The brethren were invited to discuss the points treated in the letters, but all were desirous of hearing further from Sister White, and she made the following remarks:—
“There is a terrible crisis just before us, through which all must pass, and especially will it come and be felt in ——. My mind has been much troubled over the positions which some of our brethren are liable to take in regard to the work to be done among the colored people in the Southern States. There is one point that I wish to lay before those who work in the Southern field. Among the colored people, they will have to labor in different lines from those followed in the North. They can not go to the South and present the real facts in reference to Sunday-keeping being the mark of the beast, and encourage the colored people to work on Sunday; for the same spirit that held the colored people in slavery is not dead, but alive to-day, and ready to spring into activity. The same spirit of oppression is still cherished in the minds of many of the white people of the South, and will reveal itself in cruel deeds, which are the manifestation of their religious zeal. Some will oppose, in every possible way, any action which has a tendency to uplift the colored race, and teach them to be self-supporting.”
“When the whites show an inclination to help the colored people, by educating them to help themselves, a certain class of the white people are terribly annoyed. They do not want the colored people to earn an independent living. They want them to work their plantations.”
“When the white people try to educate the colored people in the truth, jealousy is aroused, and ministers, both colored and white, will bitterly oppose the truth. The colored ministers think that they know how to preach to their own race better than the white ministers, and they feel that the whites are taking the work out of their hands. By falsehood they will create the most decided opposition, and those among the white people who are opposed to the truth, will help them, and will make it exceedingly hard for the work of the message to advance.
“When the truth is proclaimed in the South, a marked difference will be shown by those who oppose the truth in their greater regard for Sunday, and great care must be exercised, not to do anything to arouse their prejudice. Otherwise, we may just as well leave the field entirely, for the workers will have all the white people against them. Those who oppose the truth will not work openly, but through secret organizations, and they will seek to hinder the work in every possible way. Our laborers must move in a quiet way, striving to do everything possible to present the truth to the people, remembering that the love of Christ will melt down opposition.
“From the light that I have received, I see that if we would get the truth before the Southern people, we must not encourage the colored people to work on Sunday. There must be a clear understanding regarding this, but it need not be published in our papers. You must teach these people as you would teach children. Not a word should be spoken to create prejudice, for if by any careless or impulsive speech to the colored people in regard to the whites any prejudice is created in their minds against the whites, or in the minds of the whites against them, the spirit of the enemy will work in the children of disobedience. Thus an opposition will be aroused which will hinder the work of the message, and will endanger the lives of the workers and of believers.
We are not to make efforts to teach the Southern people to work on Sunday. That which some of our brethren have written upon this point is not based upon right principles. When the practises of the people do not come in conflict with the law of God, you may conform to them. If the workers fail to do this, they will not only hinder their own work, but they will place stumbling-blocks in the way of those for whom they labor, and hinder them from accepting the truth. On Sunday there is the very best opportunity for those who are missionaries to hold Sunday-schools, and come to the people in the simplest manner possible, telling them of the love of Jesus for sinners, and educating them in the Scriptures. There are many ways of reaching all classes,132both white and black. We are to interest them in the life of Christ from his childhood up to manhood, and through his life of ministry to the cross. We can not work in all localities in the same way. We must let the Holy Spirit guide; for men and women can not convince others of the wrong traits of character. While laboring to introduce the truth, we must accommodate ourselves as much as possible to the field, and the circumstances of those for whom we labor.
Question: Should not those in the Southern field work on Sunday?
“If they do this, there is danger that as soon as the opposing element can get the slightest opportunity, they will stir up one another, to persecute those whom they hate. At present Sunday-keeping is not the test. The time will come when men will not only forbid Sunday-work, but they will try to force men to labor on the Sabbath. And men will be asked to renounce the Sabbath, and to subscribe to Sunday observance or forfeit their freedom and their lives. But the time for this has not yet come, for the truth must be presented more fully before the people as a witness. What I have said about this should not be understood as referring to the action of old Sabbath-keepers who understand the truth. They must move as the Lord shall direct them, but let them consider that they can do the best missionary work on Sunday.”
“It will not do for those who labor among the133colored people to preach as boldly and openly as they would be free to do in other places. Even Christ clothed his lessons in figures and parables to avoid the opposition of the Pharisees. When the colored people feel that they have the word of God in regard to the Sabbath question, and the sanction of those who brought them the truth, some who are impulsive will take the opportunity to defy the Sunday laws, and by a presumptuous defiance of their oppressors they will bring to themselves much sorrow. Very faithfully the colored people must be instructed to be like Christ, to patiently suffer wrongs, that they may help their fellow men to see the light of truth.
“A terrible condition of things is certainly opening before us. According to the light which is given me in regard to the Southern field, the work there must be done as wisely and carefully as possible, and it must be done in the manner in which Christ would work. The people will soon find out what you believe about Sunday and the Sabbath, for they will ask questions. Then you can tell them, but not in such a manner as to attract attention to your work. You need not cut short your work by yourself laboring on Sunday. It would be better to take that day to instruct others in regard to the love of Jesus and true conversion.”
Question: Should the same principles govern our work and our attitude toward the Sunday question in foreign fields where the prejudices of the people are so strong?
“Yes; just the same. The light that I have is that God’s servants should go quietly to work, preaching the grand, precious truths of the Bible,—Christ and him crucified, his love and infinite sacrifice,—showing that the reason why Christ died is because the law of God is immutable, unchangeable, eternal. The Spirit of the Lord will awaken the conscience and the understanding of those with whom you work, bringing the commandments of God to their remembrance. I can hardly describe to you the way in which that has been presented to me. The Lord says in Rev. 22: 16: ‘I Jesus have sent mine angel to testify unto you these things in the churches.’ Have any of you seen this angel? The messengers from heaven are close beside those who stand before the people, holding forth the word of life. In preaching the truth, it is not always best to present those strong points of truth that will arouse prejudice, especially where such strong feelings exist as is felt in the Southern States. The Sabbath must be taught in a decided manner, but be cautious how you deal with the idol, Sunday. A word to the wise is sufficient.
“I have given you the light which has been presented to me. If followed, it will change the course of many, and will make them wise, cautious teachers. Refraining from work on Sunday, is not receiving the mark of the beast; and where this will advance the interests of the work, it should be done. We should not go out of our way to work on Sunday.
“After the Sabbath has been sacredly observed, in,135places where the opposition is so strong as to arouse persecution if work is done on Sunday, let our brethren make that day an occasion to do genuine missionary work. Let them visit the sick and the poor, ministering to their wants, and they will find favorable opportunities to open the Scriptures to individuals and to families. Thus most profitable work can be done for the Master. When those who hear and see the light on the Sabbath take their stand upon the truth to keep God’s holy day, difficulties will arise, for efforts will be brought to bear against them to compel men and women to transgress the law of God. Here they must stand firm, that they will not violate the law of God, and if the opposition and persecution are determinedly kept up, let them heed the words of Christ, ‘When they persecute you in one city, flee ye into another; for verily I say unto you, ye shall not have gone over the cities of Israel, till the Son of Man be come.’
“The time has not yet come for us to work as though there were no prejudice. Christ said, ‘Be ye wise as serpents, and harmless as doves.’ If you see that by doing certain things which you have a perfect right to do, you hinder the work of the truth, refrain from doing these things. Do nothing that will close the minds of others against the truth. There is a world to save, and we gain nothing by cutting loose from those we are trying to help. All things may be lawful, but all things are not expedient.”
“We have no right to do anything that will obstruct the light which is shining from heaven; yet by a wrong course of action we may imperil the work, and close the door which God has opened for the entrance of the truth. The final issue of the Sabbath question has not yet come, and by imprudent actions we may bring on a crisis before the time. You may have all the truth, but you need not let it all flash at once upon minds, lest it become darkness to them. Even Christ said to his disciples, ‘I have many things to say unto you, but ye can not bear them now.’ We must not go into a place, open our satchels, show all we have, and tell every thing that we know at once. We must work cautiously, presenting the truth by degrees, as the hearers can bear it, and keeping close to the Word.”
MRS. E. G. WHITE.
From a Private Letter.
The following is taken from a private letter to Mr. and Mrs. J. E. White, written June 21, 1899.
Brother —— has sent me a letter in regard to his plans for the South, but, I can not encourage such plans. He will calculate to have all things move smoothly. A community to settle in the South in accordance with the plans he has thought would prove a success, would prove a failure. What is the prospect for feeding and clothing this community? Where is the money to be pledged for building homes for families? The outlay would be greater than the income. There would be a gathering of good and bad, there would be the need of men of clear conception, baptized with the Holy Spirit of God, to run such an enterprise. I might present many things that make it objectionable. There can not be any colonizing without Satan stirring up the Southern element to look with suspicion on the Northern people, and the least provocation would awaken up the Southern whites to produce a state of things they do not now imagine.
There must be laborers in the South who possess caution. They must be wise as serpents and harmless as doves. All who engage in this work should be men who have their pens and tongues dipped in the holy oil of Zechariah 4:11-14. An unadvised word will stir the most violent passions of the human heart and set in operation a state of things that will close138the way for the truth to find access to the fields now in such great need of workers.
It is not ministers who can preach that are needed so much as men and women who understand how to teach the truth to poor, ignorant, needy, and oppressed people. And as to making it appear that there is not need of caution, it is because those who say such things do not know what they are talking about. It needs men and women who will not be sent to the Southern field by our people, but who will feel the burden to go into this neglected portion of the vineyard of the Lord. Men while their hearts burn with indignation as they see the attitude of the white people toward the black, will learn of the Master, Jesus Christ, that silence in expression regarding these things is eloquence. They all need the intelligence that will lead them to learn of Jesus Christ and the simplicity of how to work.
The cultivation of the soil is an excellent arrangement, but it is not by Northern people grouping together in a community that will accomplish the work they imagine will be a success. Hot tempered men better remain in the North. Men and women who possess the true Christ-like spirit of ministry may do excellent work among the Southern colored people. Make no masterly efforts to break down the prejudices of the Southern people, but just live and talk the love of Jesus Christ. There can not be any greater harm done to the Southern colored people139than to dilate on the harm and wrong done them by the white Southerners.
There is need of level-headed men and women who love the Lord Jesus, and who will love the colored people for Christ’s sake, who have the deepest pity for them. But the methods of —— are not the methods that will be wise to practise. They can not be petted and treated just as if they were on a level with the whites without ruining them for all missionary work in the Southern field. There is a difference among the blacks as there is among the whites. Some possess keen and superior talents, that if the possessor is not made too much of, and is treated from a Bible standpoint, as humble men to do a Christ-like missionary work, not exalting them, but teaching them religious love, and Christ-like love for the souls of their own colored race, and keep before them that they are not called into the field to labor for the whites, but to learn to labor in the love of God to restore the moral image of God in those of their own race, then a good work can be done.
There is a work to be done in opening schools to teach the colored people alone, unmixed with whites, and there will be a successful work done in this way. The Lord will work through the whites to reach the black race,—many of them through white teachers, but it needs the man and his wife to stand together in the work. More than one family of white teachers should locate in a place. Two or three families should locate near each other, not huddle together,140but at a little distance apart, where they can consult together, and unite in worship of God together, and work to strengthen each other’s hands to raise up colored laborers to work in the South.
There is a mistake often made by those who labor in the Southern fields expecting their brethren in the Northern fields of labor can advise them what to do. Those who have had no experience in the Southern field are not prepared to give reliable advice. Those who are engaged in this work must understand that when emergencies arise they must not depend upon men who have had no experience to advise them. They will often obtain advice that if followed would be ruinous to the work. Therefore it is not good policy for one family alone to settle in a locality. Men and women who have not children are best qualified for the Southern field, and if the Southern field is too taxing or debilitating, one family from the two or three who have settled in a locality can be spared. But let none feel that it is their bounden duty to remain in the Southern field after their health has testified that they can not do this safely. Some persons can endure the climate and do well. But let our brethren in the more favorable climate consider all these things and provide every facility possible to make the conditions of workers in these unfavorable locations as pleasant as possible.
In places where money has been expended on buildings, and a start has been made, it is the duty of141men in responsible positions to give attention to that locality, so that the workers shall be sustained in accomplishing the work designed when the plant was made. There is to be a work done in the South, and it needs men and women who will not need to be preachers so much as teachers,—humble men who are not afraid to work as farmers to educate the Southerners how to till the soil, for whites and blacks need to be educated in this line. But when perplexities arise in the South, spread out your wants to the Master of the vineyard. And those who know nothing of the Southern field, let them be sparing and cautious what advice they give. But sympathy, kind words, and encouragement are always in place.
ELLEN G. WHITE.
A Neglected Work.
April 27, 1899.
I can not sleep past eleven o’clock. Several times I have had a pointed testimony in regard to the Southern field. (After speaking on the subject of royalties, she continues.)
I awoke, but my soul was burdened. I felt that peculiar trials were to come upon the people of God. Then was presented before me the situation of the Southern field. The work which should have been done in that field has not been done. The means sent in by the people to the General Conference for the advancement of the work there was devoted to other purposes. This is where the work of restitution must be done. The Lord is displeased with the men in responsible positions who have not discerned the great need of this field. The work there needs means. God has given warnings, but they have not been heeded. Church-members in America who have pleasant homes and surroundings, should remember the Southern field. It is in need of special attention and support. I addressed the President of the General Conference, Why do you neglect this work? God has made it your duty to deal with this poor, oppressed race as their circumstances demand. Let the work go forward. Encourage the people who are favorably situated to help in this field. The Lord does not call families to work in the South who have young children who would thus be exposed to143evil associations; but He calls those who can work to advantage in the different localities.
There are men who will tell you that the work in the South has been misrepresented, that it is not so arduous as it is made to appear. Let no one suppose that the Southern field is an easy place to work; for it is the most difficult portion of the Lord’s vineyard, and soon it will be even more difficult. The greatest wisdom must be exercised. All connected with the work, and especially those who have to do with the publications sent to this field, must be as wise as serpents and as harmless as doves. Be careful what your pens shall trace for publication. There are many things which it will do only harm to make public.
If the greatest caution is not exercised, bitterness and hatred will be aroused in the white people in the South who are yearning for power to oppress the colored race as they have in the past. Those who are in the habit of speaking without consideration might far better remain in their homes than attempt work in this field. Those who think that the precautions given are unnecessary should heed the warnings the Lord has sent. If you would have a part in the work in the South, my brethren, you must hide self in Christ, walking humbly and circumspectly before God.
Common association with the blacks is not a wise course to pursue. To lodge with them in their homes may stir up feelings in the minds of the whites which will imperil the lives of the workers. Goods144have been sent to this field which have helped to relieve the necessities of suffering humanity. But this work does not please the white people. In some localities they do not want help given to this downtrodden race. They desire that they shall ever feel their dependence.
I tell you of a truth that this field with its neglect will come up in judgment to condemn those who have been admonished, but who have refused to lend their aid. The Lord demands restitution from the churches in America. You are to relieve the necessities of this field. In the day of final accounts men will not be pleased to meet the record of their deeds with reference to the books that have been prepared to help in carrying on the work in the South, by which means was diverted from the most needy portion of the Lord’s vineyard. This matter has been before you for a long time, and what have you done to relieve the situation? Why have you kept so quiet? O, that you would do this work of restoration speedily. The Lord calls upon you to restore to his people the advantages of which they have so long been deprived. The evil work done will one day be seen, not in the light in which responsible men now see it, who like the priest and Levite have passed by on the other side, but as God views it.
God’s people have no excuse to offer as to why the years which have passed into eternity do not show better results. The way in which some of the teachers have managed the work in the South has not been145right, and yet many have looked with great enthusiasm on the work of those who through incorrect methods have given a wrong mold to the work. Should these methods be encouraged?—No; for the material worked upon is not being in the least qualified to help the Southern people.
The breaking down of distinctions between the white and the colored races unfits the blacks to work for their own class, and exerts a wrong influence upon the whites.
Again I place this matter before you. Will you act upon the light given?
MRS. E. G. WHITE.