Foreign Mission Journal, June 1912

“And they that be wise shall shine as the brightness of the firmament; and they that turn many to righteousness, as the stars forever and ever.” Ш}? 3Fnmgtt Mission Journal. Jtntered at the Poat-Offlce at Richmond, Vs., as Second-Class Matter. VoLLXII. JUNE, 1912. No.12 THE GREATEST YEAR IN OUR HISTORY. The Foreign .Mission Board reported at Oklahoma City the greatest year in Its history of sixty-seven years. Never before lias the work been done under so great ditilculties. The Board began its year’s work with the largest debt it ever re¬ ported— nearly $90,000. Conditions in the South have been unusually hard for rais¬ ing funds. The severe droughts in some sections, the low price of cotton, the hardest winter on record which has in¬ terfered with congregations in the towns and cities and made it almost impossible for the country churches to hold meetings at ail and the terriblo storms and floods of the spring — ail these things have stood in the way of the missionary offerings. Yet the people have responded most nobly and have given the greatest total contribution ever received by the Board — S5S0,40S. This is an increase of $70,400 over last year. Only' once before have the receipts for foreign missions made such an ad¬ vance in one year and that was under far more favorable circumstances. The large debt has been reduced to $50,000. While the Board regrets to report any debt at all tills Is far better than the heavy debt of last year. Taking everything into con¬ sideration, in the homeland the work for foreign missions has been simply glorious. The same thing Is true on the foreign fields. The work of the missionaries has been beset by tremendous difficulties. The fearful ravages of the plague and famine in China and the Chinese revolu¬ tion, the most stupendous movement in human history, with Its war and unsettled conditions; the war in Mexico with condi¬ tions worse than in China; political unrest in Brazil with some armed uprisings; the most perplexing problems on all the fields; the fact that the Board could send out only a few new missionaries; the loss to the missionary forces by the death of several noble workers and the breaking down of many more — all have combined to hinder the work. Yet there have been the largest results ever reported. The number of converts is 700 more than was reported last year, reaching a total of 4,300. The number of native workers has been increased. Never before have there been so many men and women in the theological seminaries and train¬ ing schools— 245 men and 312 women, and thousands of young people are in the mis¬ sion schools and colleges, preparing to be¬ come ellicient leaders and workers in the future. In many places the native churches are becoming self-supporting and self-propagating. The contributions of the native Christians, including the gifts of the missionaries, have reached the large sum of $77,S72. The missionaries report the prospects on all the Helds as being exceedingly bright. This is especially true in China. While the revolution has retarded the work temporarily, already the tide of in¬ fluence in favor of the gospel has set in, and in the words of one of the mis¬ sionaries: “There never was so great an opportunity for the proclamation of the