Review and Herald, Vol. 84, No. 13. (3/28/1907)

Review and Herald

Mar 28, 1907

Review and Herald Publishing Association · Takoma Park Station, Washington, D. C. · Mar 28, 1907

Blessings and Rewards

He opened His mouth, and taught them, saying,

Blessed are the poor in spirit: for theirs is the kingdom of heaven.

Blessed are they that mourn: for they shall be comforted.

Blessed are the meek: for they shall inherit the earth.

Blessed are they which do hunger and thirst after righteousness: for they shall be filled.

Blessed are the merciful: for they shall obtain mercy.

Blessed are the pure in heart: for they shall see God.

Blessed are the peacemakers: for they shall be called the children of God.

Blessed are they which are persecuted for righteousness’ sake: for theirs is the kingdom of heaven.

Blessed are ye, when men shall revile you, and persecute you, and shall say all manner of evil against you falsely, for my sake.

Rejoice, and be exceeding glad: for great is your reward in heaven: for so persecuted they the prophets which were before you.

Our Publishing Work

The Lord gave the word: great was the company of those that published it. Psalm 68:11.

See last paragraph on this page for instructions where to order.

Our new commandment chart just printed by the Review and Herald Publishing Association is 36 inches wide and 51 inches long. The type is large enough to be easily read in the largest hall or tent. It has the words, “The Law of God,” printed in large type at the top. It is in all particulars a decided improvement over the old chart, yet the price remains the same,—$1, post-paid.

The complete life of Elder James White and the biography of Mrs. E. G. White, with a thrilling history of the rise, early struggles, and progress of the work of Seventh-day Adventists, may be found in a little book by the title of “Life Sketches.” This little work will prove to be of great benefit to all who are in any way interested in the work for which these noble servants of the Lord have so earnestly sacrificed. The book is bound in cloth, and contains 435 pages. Price, $1.25.

The Religious Liberty Leaflet Series is gradually growing, and we can furnish our readers the eleven numbers mentioned below, which deal forcibly and conclusively with the questions indicated by their respective titles: (1) Principles Too Little Understood, 8 pages, 40 cents a 100; (2) Sunday Laws, 8 pages, 40 cents a 100; (3) Logic of Sabbath Legislation, 8 pages, 40 cents a 100; (4) The Civil Sabbath, 12 pages, 60 cents a 100; (5) Civil Government and the Church, 4 pages, 20 cents a 100; (6) Religious Liberty—What Eminent Authorities Say, 8 pages, 40 cents a 100; (7) The Church’s Greatest Need To-day, 4 pages, 20 cents a 100; (8) Church Federation, 12 pages, 60 cents a hundred; (9) Limits of Civil Authority, 4 pages, 20 cents a 100; (10) A Vital Question, 8 pages, 40 cents a 100; (11) What Are Works of Charity and Necessity? 4 pages, 20 cents a 100; (12) “Backward States,” 8 pages, 40 cents a 100.

We can thoroughly equip kindergarten class rooms with furniture, and material with which to illustrate the lessons given in “Bible Object Lessons and Songs for Little Ones.” We can furnish substantial hard-top tables with folding legs and inside cabinet for material, sufficiently large to seat eight children and the teacher, at $3.75; freight or express extra. We can furnish little chairs for the children for 60 cents for the 14-inch, and 50 cents for the 12-inch, with freight or express extra. We can also furnish three boxes of kindergarten material, which makes teaching comparatively easy. Boxes 1 and 2 contain hard maple blocks cut into cubes, halves, quarters, squares, and oblongs. Box 3 contains 10 miniature sheep, 30 mounted sticks to represent people (10 of them children), green French tissue-paper for representing water, cones, domes, and green splints for river outlines and tree-building. Where the three boxes are ordered with one book, the purchaser receives free a portfolio of blackboard sketches on the life of Christ, which will materially aid in drawing. The three boxes of material, express paid, $1.75.

Any one can learn how to prevent colds, and how to break up one which has been contracted, by reading the little book entitled “Colds: Their Cure and Prevention.” This book is worth many times its price. It is very practical during the entire year. Price, 25 cents.

The “Life of Joseph Bates” was full of unselfish motives and noble actions, and his biography is the best kind of reading for the young people. We have a nice little book containing the life of Joseph Bates that we will send to our readers for 35 cents. This excellent work will soon be out of print. Only a limited number remain. All who care to secure the book may procure it now at the small price of 35 cents a copy. The regular price was 85 cents.

The History of the Sabbath contains a mine of information on the Sabbath question. Every passage of Scripture having any connection with the Sabbath in the Old and the New Testament is examined. The steps by which the change from the seventh to the first day was made, and the final exaltation of the Sabbath are given in detail. The complete testimony of the Fathers immediately succeeding the time of the apostles in regard to the Sabbath and the first day is presented, and the comparative merits of the two days are shown. The Review and Herald has just succeeded in securing a small edition of the plain cloth binding, which they will close out at $1 a volume. This is a rare chance for those who desire this complete history to secure it at a very reasonable rate.

Looking Unto Jesus is a book that will assist the reader to look unto Jesus from every Scriptural point of view. In the words of the author: “To look unto Jesus is one of the most prominent injunctions in the Word of God. In him we find the acme of all divine excellence. We are to look to him as one sent forth by the Father, to be, in his own person, his representative among men. We look to him as our teacher and guide. We look to him as our example, the author and finisher of our faith, but above all we look to him as our Saviour and Redeemer, the hope and source of everlasting life.” “Looking Unto Jesus” gives Christ in type and antitype, and is an exhaustive treatise on the subject of the sanctuary. It is a well-written and nicely illustrated book of over three hundred pages on the work of Christ as revealed in prophecy from the beginning. It will indeed enable the reader to look to Jesus more effectually, and will give him a clearer conception of the work of the Saviour. Plain cloth, $1. Beautiful presentation edition, $1.50.

Orders for any publication mentioned on this page may be sent to any conference tract society, or to Review and Herald Publishing Association, Takoma Park Station, Washington, D. C., or Battle Creek, Mich.

Also Pacific Press Publishing Association, Mountain View, Cal.; Portland, Ore.; Kansas City, Mo.; Southern Publishing Association, Nashville, Tenn., and Fort Worth, Tex.

The Message in This Generation

By Editor

Editorial

The Message in This Generation

THE apostles gave the message of the Messiah’s advent in one generation. They went forth under a commission from their Lord, and in the experience of his promise, “Ye shall receive power, when the Holy Ghost is come upon you: and ye shall be my witnesses both in Jerusalem, and in all Judea and Samaria, and unto the uttermost part of the earth.” They were simply to be witnesses to the things which they had seen and heard, and the Lord would use their testimony as the means of telling the world of the great salvation in Jesus the Messiah.

But their experience began with Pentecost, and their testimony was given with pentecostal power, and the results were such as can only come through the abiding Spirit. Their work was done in the power of the Spirit, as “they were all filled with the Holy Ghost.” Men were convicted of sin, and cried out, “What shall we do?” “And with great power gave the apostles witness of the resurrection of the Lord Jesus: and great grace was upon them all.”

But this experience cost those men something. They had no settled homes; they were not assured of any fixed income; everything was sacrificed to the one purpose of being witnesses for Jesus. They were arrested and imprisoned; they were driven from city to city; they were made “as the filth of the world,” and as “the offscouring of all things.” But in the fellowship of their Lord they were sustained, and by the greatness of their commission they were urged on to give their message to the world. And so they prayed, and so they labored, going from country to country as the heralds of the truth that “the promise which was made unto the fathers” had been fulfilled in the coming of Jesus. And God honored the faithfulness of these men. The gospel was preached “with the Holy Ghost sent down from heaven;” and before that generation passed away, the good news “was preached to every creature which is under heaven,” and those very men were witnesses “unto the uttermost part of the earth.”

We must think of our own work in the light of these experiences. The Lord is calling upon us to give “the advent message to the world in this generation.” It can be done. It must be done. It will be done. “There shall be delay no longer.” There will be those who will accept the great commission again. There will be those in this generation who will be witnesses “unto the uttermost part of the earth.” The light of this message will shine in all lands, and penetrate even the dark parts of the earth. But it will not be done by committees on plans and resolutions. It means personal consecration. It means personal sacrifice. It means personal work. It means a cutting loose from the world. It means a mighty faith in this message as the truth which the world must have. It means that burden of soul which inspired the prayer, “Give me Scotland, or I die.”

Away with all controversy as to when “this generation” began, or how long it may last. Its length is to be measured by zeal, and not by years. A consecrated church can shorten the time. Every report of progress in planting the truth in new fields marks a hastening of the time. Every unentered field is a reminder that “the end is not yet.” Fifty thousand men and women who really believe the message which they profess, and are filled with the Spirit, could stir the world in a few short years. There would be no lack of workers, for all would be workers. There would be no lack of means, for no one would say “that aught of the things which he possessed was his own.” And God would not fail to co-operate with the human instrumentalities, and the work would be cut short in righteousness. May the Lord lay a burden for his work upon the hearts of his people. May there be a consecrated, working ministry, burning with the purpose to carry the advent message to every unsaved soul. May the pentecostal power energize every effort. And while the Lord says, “Behold, I come quickly,” may the church by its sacrificing devotion to duty, answer, “Even so, come, Lord Jesus.”

Editorial Letter

By W. W. P.

Jottings from the Editor’s Note-Book

AFTER the close of the Sabbath spent at Hsiang Cheng mission station, we began to make preparations for starting on the return journey the next day. In the meantime it had rained so that the roads had grown no better. After some delay on Sunday morning, due to the difficulty of securing a cart for Dr. Selmon and wife and the evangelist, we left the station promptly at one o’clock. Owing to the lateness of the start and the condition of the roads, we could make only half the journey to Shang-tsai that day. At seven o’clock we reached Tsai-ku, the half-way station, where we stopped at a Chinese hotel for the night.

To call such a place a hotel, conveys to the mind of the foreigner an altogether wrong idea. To say that four foreigners, two Chinese evangelists, and two drivers with their teams were cared for at a hotel overnight for thirty-three cents, gold, seems to indicate a very favorable condition for travelers in China. But when the facts are fully stated it will be seen that the price was abundant for the accommodations furnished. When we first looked into the place called a room, which Brother Anderson and I were to occupy, I found one of the Chinese evangelists with a brush scraping up dirt and litter into one corner of the room. He then struck a match and lit the pile, which gave forth much smoke and little heat. The Chinese then brought in two or three armfuls of sweet potato vines which they spread down at one end of the enclosure on the dirt floor and then laid upon them a Chinese mat; and on this we made our bed.

The donkeys had the same accommodations that we had, in the same room, with the exception of the sweet potato vines and the mat. As there was no door to our room and the donkeys were near by, they really became our companions in tribulation, and their constant munching and treading around served to soothe our excited nerves. We had

just gotten into bed when we heard that other members of the Chinese family were to occupy the same room with us. When we woke in the night we could hear the donkeys munching the straw, the drivers talking to each other, and the Chinese snoring on the other side of the enclosure. In the morning, although we were the guests of the house, and had taken this so-called room, we found that three members of the family had taken the liberty to occupy it with us.

We arose at four o’clock and started a fire of corn-stalks by which we warmed ourselves, and prepared to complete our journey. At five o’clock we were off, and between eight and nine o’clock it began to rain, which continued until we reached Shang-tsai at twelve o’clock. Traveling through rain and storm, over muddy roads in Chinese donkey carts, is an experience long to be remembered. It was difficult walking as the roads were so muddy and slippery; it was difficult riding under the cover for reasons already given; it was difficult to ride on the shafts without getting soaked through: and so we took our turns at riding under the cover, stretched out at full length, sitting on the shafts protecting ourselves as best we could, and walking through the rain. We arrived in due time, however, and in good condition with a good sprinkling of Chinese mud on our clothing and boots. During the afternoon it continued to rain, but our appointments were out and we must start the next morning for Si Ping where we should take the train again. During the night, however, it ceased raining and turned cold so that in the early morning the ground was frozen and there was a biting north wind blowing.

We left at seven o’clock with a heavily loaded cart, there being five passengers with a large amount of baggage. We found it very cold on this journey and suffered quite a bit on this account. However, we all stood it well, and reached the railway station at half-past one in the afternoon. As the train did not go until half past four, we had a good long wait in the cold, there being no waiting-room, and, of course, no fire.

We took the train for an hour’s ride to Chu Ma Tien where the train stops overnight. Here we again stayed at a Chinese hotel. The walk to the hotel was through a mass of mud and mire. Our room opened into the central gathering place, the office of the hotel, and as the Chinese continue their talking and smoking until late, we had this sort of music the most of the time. Next morning we rose early and had breakfast of Chinese food, consisting of rice and some scrambled eggs, and other things which I did not dare to try. During the night it had frozen so that we were able to walk to the station on the surface of the mire. We took the train at seven o’clock and after riding for two and one-half hours arrived at Sin-yang Cheo, where we were met at the station by Dr. Miller and other friends, who escorted us to their compound where we were to be entertained, and where our meetings for all the workers of Honan are being held. As practically all of us had arrived, we commenced our meeting the same evening. The next morning nearly all the company visited the ground recently purchased for a printing-office on the west side of the city, just outside the wall. A plot of land containing about one and one-half acres, fronting on the main road to the city, has been acquired, and the work of building has begun.

A Chinese contractor who has had some experience in erecting buildings for foreigners has charge of the work. His pay is two hundred cash, gold, (twelve cents) a day. The ordinary workmen receive one hundred and thirty cash, or about eight cents, a day. The sand for the mortar and the small stones used in the footings for the foundation are brought on the shoulders of Chinese boys from the river near by. The large pieces of cut stone to be used as a kind of water-table are brought by men who carry them suspended from poles which rest on their shoulders. The brick for the main walls are burned near by. The building will be thirty-five by seventy feet, and two stories in height, and will be used almost wholly for the publishing work.

Our meetings have continued until the present day, February 3, with the following program: Morning worship, 6:30; Bible study at 9, followed by committee work; reports and counsel meetings from 2:30 until 5, with an intermission; Bible study in the evening at 7:30. All the mission workers in Honan, and Brethren Anderson and Wilbur from Canton are here. We have had a very profitable time thus far, and the outlook is that the meetings will be a great help to the work in this field.

W. W. P.

The Sabbath, a Sign

By C. M. S.

When Jehovah had accomplished the deliverance of his chosen people from Egypt, he gave them an ordinance whose observance was to continue as long as they were a people, for a sign, both to their posterity and to the world, that God had wrought a great work for them. The Lord speaks thus to Israel concerning the ordinance:—

Thou shalt tell thy son in that day, saying, It is because of that which Jehovah did for me when I came forth out of Egypt. And it shall be for a sign unto thee upon thy hand, and for a memorial between thine eyes, that the law of Jehovah may be in thy mouth: for with a strong hand hath Jehovah brought thee out of Egypt.

This ordinance was the seven-day period of eating unleavened bread. It was given for a purpose. Its yearly repetition was designed to keep in the minds of the people God’s watch-care, power, and love over and upon his faithful children. The child would ask, “Why do we do this?” For answer the parent must tell the story of the mighty manifestation of God’s power in their behalf; and as it kept the works of the Creator in mind, it kept in mind also the One who performed the works. When heathen people asked the Israelites why they were eating unleavened bread during a period of one week, the answer must make known to them also the true God and the mighty works he did in behalf of his people.

It was ever God’s design that his people should witness for him to the people who did not know him—that they themselves should be a sign always pointing to him as Creator and Saviour. While they obeyed him and walked in his ways, they accomplished God’s purpose and were an evangelizing influence in the world. When they turned from his law and went in their own way, God’s purpose in them was thwarted, they lost the blessing of God, and they led the heathen peoples into denser darkness.

It will be noticed from the scripture above quoted that Israel’s adherence to God’s directions concerning this memorial was to be a sign upon their hand and a memorial between their eyes—in the hand and upon the forehead—the same place where the mark of the beast is to be found at the close of earth’s history upon the people who oppose the law of God and persecute his people.

God has another memorial, a memorial of a greater work, a memorial that is not restricted to any one people for its observance. “The Sabbath was made for man,” for every man; and God designed that every obedient observer of that memorial should be a sign, pointing to him all peoples that do not know him. He said:—

Hallow my Sabbaths; and they shall be a sign between me and you, that ye may know that I am Jehovah your God. Ezek. 20:20.

How many in the world need that knowledge? The world is perishing today for lack of it, and why? The people have not hallowed his Sabbath. They have put another day in its place. The Lord commanded the keeping of the Sabbath because that “in six days the Lord made heaven and earth, the sea, and all that in them is, and rested the seventh day: wherefore the Lord blessed the Sabbath day and hallowed it.” It was to point with unchanging finger to the mighty work of creation and to the

Maker of the heavens and the earth. As long as men kept it they could not forget him or his works. When they ceased to keep it, they forgot him, and what he had done, they forgot his law, made religions of their own, and fell down in worship before beasts and birds and creeping things and stocks and stones and every sort of image the mind and hand could fashion. They had lost the sign that pointed to the true God, and so made a god of anything their fancy turned to.

God knew that the Sabbath memorial was necessary if the people were to retain a knowledge of him. The fact that the nations and peoples that forsook the Sabbath have gone into all manner of idolatry, shows the wisdom of God in giving the Sabbath. He who truly keeps the true Sabbath can not forget God. Wherever in this world God’s people go, he designs they shall witness for him and stand as a sign to the people. Keeping his Sabbath, they point the world to his power and his sovereignty.

But a rival has arisen. It is not a memorial of creation, for it calls the people to rest on the day when God began his work. It is not in harmony with God’s design, for it is out of harmony with what he did. It is not a sign “between Me and you;” for its purpose is to supplant the “sign” which God himself established. It is not a memorial of the resurrection; for the resurrection necessitated the working of the very powers of creation, and there is nothing in work that symbolizes rest. There is nothing in rest that memorializes work. It is not a memorial of the resurrection, because God does not give two memorials of the same event. Baptism is the memorial of the resurrection. ‘We were buried therefore with him through baptism into death: that like as Christ was raised from the dead through the glory of the Father, so we also might walk in newness of life.’ ‘For if we have become united with him in the likeness of his death, we shall be also in the likeness of his resurrection.’ Rom. 6: 4, 5. The rival sabbath is a sign, but not a sign of loyalty to God and his commandments. It is a memorial, but a memorial of a certain power’s attempt to put a human institution in the place of the divine. And that power which has made that attempt will yet place the sign of that counterfeit institution in the hand and on the forehead of all who yield to it in obedience and worship.

They who yield obedience to God’s law, who keep the Sabbath he instituted, will feel the wrath of “the beast” and of that power which “maketh the earth and them that dwell therein to worship the first beast” (Rev. 13:12); but heaven is watching over them. In spite of persecutions and the threat of death, they have maintained the “sign,” observed the memorial, of the true God; and so the Revelator declares of them, “Here is the patience and the faith of the saints.” Rev. 13:10. C. M. S.

Rooted in Him

By W. A. S.

“I AM the root.” Rev. 22:16. The root gathers from the soil the elements needed for the nourishment and growth of the plant. Jesus says to the believer, “I am the root.”

He is to us who believe what the root is to the plant. His is the responsibility of nourishing and sustaining the life. He knows the elements needful for our growth. There can be no drying up of the supply in the life that is rooted deep in him.

“Blessed is the man that trusteth in the Lord, and whose hope the Lord is. For he shall be as a tree planted by the waters, and that spreadeth out her roots by the river, and shall not see when heat cometh, but her leaf shall be green; and shall not be careful in the year of drought, neither shall cease from yielding fruit.” Jer. 17:7, 8.

The hot blast may beat upon the tree, but its root is spread deep along the watercourses. Our Root, Jesus our Saviour, is by the river of water of life. It was just after showing John in vision the river of life, clear as crystal, flowing from the throne of God and of the Lamb, that the Saviour said, “I am the root.” Blessed message to our hearts in this dry and thirsty land.

We have not to maintain, of ourselves, our own spiritual life, but to maintain our connection with the Root. Let the heart’s affections lay hold by faith upon Jesus, as he leads his people in the shining pathway to the city of God. Just as we become Seventh-day Adventists by believing the advent truth as it is in Jesus, so let us continue rooted and grounded in it, rejoicing in the Saviour and the “blessed hope” of his soon coming. To us all now, so near the end of the pathway, the Lord says:—

“As ye have therefore received Christ Jesus the Lord, so walk ye in him: rooted and built up in him, and established in the faith, as ye have been taught, abounding therein with thanksgiving. Beware lest any man spoil you through philosophy and vain deceit, after the tradition of men, after the rudiments of the world, and not after Christ. For in him dwelleth all the fulness of the Godhead bodily.” Col. 2:6-9.

Blessed is the man who walketh not in the counsel of the ungodly, but whose delight is in the law of the Lord, and whose heart and life are rooted in Christ Jesus. “He shall be like a tree planted by the rivers of water, that bringeth forth his fruit in his season; his leaf also shall not wither; and whatsoever he doeth shall prosper.” Ps. 1:1-3.

W. A. S.

Organization—No. 9

By Arthur G. Daniells

A Brief Account of Its History in the Development of the Cause of the Third Angel’s Message

Two important decisions were reached by the brethren in the general council held in 1860.

First, it was decided that a legal organization should be effected to hold the property of the Review and Herald Publishing plant, and to manage its business affairs. Definite arrangements were made to carry this decision into effect at the earliest possible opportunity. Second, a name was chosen by which we as a people should thereafter be known.

Having definitely settled these two questions, the Council adjourned, and the brethren separated without reaching an agreement regarding the organization of churches. And as far as the report of the proceedings indicates, the organization of conferences was not even suggested.

After reading the report of the Council as it appeared in the REVIEW, some of the brethren sent to the editor statements of their opinions regarding the decisions of the Council. Elder John Byington wrote:—

I am glad to learn that the conference saw eye to eye in forming a legal association, so that there may be order in the temporal matters of the church. If it is right for a brother to give or take a deed of a house, in my mind it is equally so for an association to so arrange that they can legally hold a meeting-house or printing establishment. . . . As to a name I have sometimes thought the plain scriptural term, “Church of God,” was all that is necessary. But in reflecting more on this subject, I see that God has given to his people and to individuals names suitable to the time and circumstances under which they were placed. . . . I would say to my brethren scattered abroad I can not see a reasonable or scriptural objection to the name Seventh-day Adventists, as it is significant of the position the church of God must occupy in the time of the end.—Review and Herald, Vol. XVI, page 189.

The associate editor of the REVIEW who at first opposed Elder White’s suggestion concerning organization expressed himself as follows:—

I am truly glad to hear from the conference, by brethren that were present, and feel to thank the Lord for the unity of spirit that exists among his people, and which pervades their assemblies. I do not feel like waiting for the full report in the paper, but upon the information received from brethren who were present, can say, I am persuaded that the means recommended are in accordance with the will of God. . . . In my first articles on the subject of organization, I was wrong in taking the position that the property of the church

was properly held. This point, upon consideration, I immediately yielded.

My only fear relating to organization has been the fear of offending God by changing our scriptural organization for an unscriptural one. This, if I understand it, has been avoided. It is not recommended that we become incorporated as a church, but that a business association merely be formed so as to conform to the usages of the law. The wisdom of the conference has devised a plan to avoid the evil, and I trust also that they had the Spirit of God. . . .

I wish to counteract and remove, as far as possible, the injurious influence of my hasty communication on the subject of legal organization. I did not weigh the matter as I should. . . . I might have suggested a plan of organization avoiding the evil which I feared, instead of thus confidently and self-complacently recommending that nothing should be done. I regret that I did not consider the matter carefully and prayerfully, before writing in a manner not calculated to keep the unity of the Spirit. I hope that none will stumble over this into perdition. I ask forgiveness of all the dear people of God.—Id., page 196, and Vol. XVII, page 136.

These open, frank admissions of error in his first position regarding organization, and the hearty approval of the decision of his brethren in Council, show that our brother possessed those noble and admirable traits of character which make for peace and unity among brethren.

Not all, however, were pleased with the decisions of the Council. The following expression of opposition came from Ohio:—

We conclude from present aspects that the name, “Seventh-day Adventists” is being made obligatory upon our brethren in present truth, and if so be that it is considered a test of fellowship and loyalty to the precious cause of truth, we most earnestly request Brother and Sister White to call a conference for Ohio at Gilboa, at their earliest convenience. This we deem necessary for the following reasons:—

1. Without further light Ohio can not submit to the name, Seventh-day Adventists, as either a test, or an appropriate name for God’s people.

2. Being appointed a finance committee at the last conference, and having now on hand means for carrying on the cause in Ohio, we could not conscientiously expend those means in any other than the advancement and extension of the truth and church of God.

3. If such means are to be expended otherwise, it will be necessary for the churches in Ohio to assemble in conference and give instructions to that effect, and also choose some other committee to make the disbursements. . . .

J. DUDLEY, L. E. JONES, J. P. FLEMING, Finance Committee for Ohio. —Review and Herald, Vol. XVII, page 164.

One member of this committee repudiated this statement to which his name was attached. He wrote:—

I wish to say through the REVIEW that I did not write the notice of the secession movement in Gilboa, Ohio, neither did I ever know its contents until I saw it in the REVIEW, nor did I authorize any one to indorse my name to such sentiments as therein contained. I do not, however, wish to be understood as intimating that there is dishonesty in this, but rather a misunderstanding. We expect it to be corrected by the writer. I would say, My sympathy is with the REVIEW. Joseph Dudley.—Id., page 181.

Seven believers in Green Spring, Ohio, wrote as follows:—

We do not indorse the article of the Financial Committee, as set forth in REVIEW No. 21. We receive the name, Seventh-day Adventists, because it contains the two leading principles of our faith: first, the second coming of our Lord; and second, it sets forth the fourth commandment. On the other hand, the name, “Church of God,” is not appropriate, because there are several churches by that name, and so many by the same name would make confusion.—Id., page 181.

Seven brethren at Portage, Ohio, sent this protest to the REVIEW:—

It was with mingled feelings of grief, disappointment, and shame that we read the statement from the Finance Committee for this State (Brethren Dudley, Fleming, and Jones, of Gilboa), as published in No. 21 of the REVIEW.

It is a mystery to us how they could speak in the strain they have on the matter of “the name” for Ohio; especially as all in the church at Portage, and all at Lovett’s Grove, are unanimous in the approval of the action taken at Battle Creek on this subject; and with pain we have realized that the only dissenting vote was from Ohio. We are thankful for so fitting and appropriate and unassuming a name as Seventh-day Adventists.

We simply protest against the communication of the committee, hoping they may yet repent of their error. We greatly fear that all those who are neglectful of, or inattentive to, the “Testimonies” Nos. I to VI, and to “Spiritual Gifts,” Vols. I and II, are making a grievous and fatal mistake. Yours for union with God and his people.—Id., page 181.

Elder T. J. Butler who seems to have been the leader of the opposition in Ohio, published an acknowledgment of his error in which he said:—

I see from Brother White’s remarks appended to our call for a conference, that he “never thought of making the name a test, neither knew of any in Michigan who did.” Well, I am glad that he has said so. It has relieved our minds very much. True, we understood at the Battle Creek conference that it was to be no test; but since that time divers letters have been sent to this church from different points which breathed a different sentiment, from which some of us concluded that probably the name was becoming a test. I am sorry that we were so fast in coming to that conclusion, as in so doing we wronged our brethren and also ourselves. We ask pardon for our haste, and promise to try to be more prudent in future. T. J. Butler.—Id., page 181.

The publication of these statements helped to settle affairs in Ohio.

A. G. DANIELLS.

Note and Comment

CONVERSIONS from Romanism to Protestantism in Prussia and Austria are increasing, according to the statistics of the Year-book of Pastor Schneider of Prussia. The statistics which he gives show that conversions from Catholicism to Protestantism have been sixty-six thousand in excess of the conversions from Protestantism to the papacy. The figures also show that during the past five years seventy-five thousand Catholics have been converted in Austria.

The Catholic Church and the Law of Progress

The Christian Register says:—

The Catholic Church must recognize the law of progress in the separation of state and church or surrender all hope of becoming the universal church.

The Register does not know the Catholic Church if it imagines that the said church will recognize anything as progress which that church does not originate. According to the words of its own officials, it tolerates what it can not control, looking and working for the time when it shall achieve its own ends in its own way. It expects to be the universal church, but not through recognizing as a law of progress anything that has been accomplished through Protestant influence. It will never be the universal church; for up to the time when the Son of man appears in the clouds of heaven there will be a little band keeping “the commandments of God, and the faith of Jesus.” That is all that will stand in her way; but all the rest of Christendom will acknowledge her supremacy, as saith Revelation 13 and 14.

Sunday Rest Movement and Persecution

CONCERNING the rapid growth of the movement for a more strictly observed Sunday, the United Presbyterian says: “The movement for Sabbath rest is gaining in popular support. ‘Men of all classes are in it: there are no denominational or sectarian lines; there are no party boundaries.’ We have long maintained, on Scriptural authority, that the time was not distant when all Christendom, save one small people, would be united in enforcing a pseudo-sabbath upon the world; that Catholics and Protestants would unite in this; that persecution would come, as a result, upon those who chose to observe the Sabbath of Jehovah. Christendom is uniting now for that very purpose, making that very demand, and persecution has already come along these lines. The increase of the movement indicates an increase in the result of the movement—persecution, and we shall see more of it from now on. It is no time to lose heart or faith when we know we are in the very culmination of the work.”

One Hundred and Fifty Thousand Dollar Fund

By J. T. Thompson

For Special Work at Home and Abroad

What a Worldly Man Says

Concerning the Removal of Our Denominational Headquarters to Washington, D. C.

I THOUGHT it would be encouraging to our people who are trying to raise the $150,000 fund, a part of which is to assist in establishing our denominational headquarters in Washington, D. C., to know how men, not of our faith, look at this move.

Recently I was canvassing in the city of Chamberlin, S. D. I visited the Indian school located at this place, and while there met the superintendent of the school. This gentleman is also government inspector of Indian schools.

During our conversation he asked what my work was. Upon being told, he asked me what organization, or society, I was connected with. When informed that I was a Seventh-day Adventist, he said: “Your people have their headquarters at Battle Creek, have they not?” I answered, “No, not now.” At this he expressed some surprise, and inquired where we were located. When told that our headquarters had been moved to Washington, D. C., he said: “I knew that you were doing some work there, but did not know to what extent. What have you there?”

On being informed that the General Conference office, the Review and Herald Publishing Association, the Training College, and a sanitarium in process of construction, were located there, he said with deep earnestness, “That is the wisest move you people ever made. You have now established yourselves at the center of influence for the nation—in fact for the whole world. You have placed your work where it will be recognized as it would be in no other place.”

Men not of our faith clearly see the truth of the messages the Lord has been sending to us for some time. Ought not we, then, who have received this counsel from the Lord, to put forth most earnest efforts to speedily raise the amounts required for the work begun there and in other places? May the Lord bless the efforts put forth. J. T. THOMPSON.

Elk Point, S. D.

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