صور الصفحة
PDF
النشر الإلكتروني
[blocks in formation]

gaged at the Bible depôts, two are colporteurs, All are more or less and twelve are teachers.

engaged in the work of circulating the Scriptures. There are six schools, containing one hundred pupils, in which the Bible and Testament are made the chief books of instruction. I also visited the Bible shop in the midst of the business bazaars of the city, and found there a large Armenian and Turkish Bible lying open, that any who passed by might read the Word of God. There have been disposed of from thence, within the last five months, eighteen Bibles and one hundred and three Testaments. I likewise visited two of the schools, and found the children diligently studying the Bible and Testament, and learning the way of salvation. Then I called upon the chief vartabed of the Armenian Church. He received me very cordially, and said, 'he taught all his people that they must have the Bible and read it. He had a copy of our Modern Armenian Bible, and would examine it, and if the translation were correct, he would at once recommend it to his people.' He was desirous also to have the Word circulated among the Kuzelbash. It was our duty to endeavor to enlighten and Christianize them. He wishes to preach only what is found in the Bible, and prays that Koords and Mussulmans may all receive the truth as it is in Jesus, and be made happy in the love of Christ.

NATIVE PREACHER.

237

"As I leave, he presses me warmly by the hand, and says, 'If we both live in the faith of the Gospel, we will meet again in heaven.' He seemed to be a man of excellent liberal spirit for a chief ecclesiastic in the Armenian Church.

"We afterward visited the school under his direction, and found a class of larger boys translating the Bible from the ancient to the modern language, which they can understand. The teacher says that ours is a correct translation, and does not differ from the ancient version. Thus the Bible is penetrating among the Armenians in their schools and families, and we trust will soon bring them from the darkness and deadness of superstition to the light and life of the Gospel of Christ. I was much interested in the experience of one of the native preachers. He first obtained a copy of the ancient Armenian Bible at Aleppo: with this he retired to a cave for two years, and fasted and prayed. Then Christ revealed himself to him, and told him to go forth and preach repentance, and keep the Sabbath day holy. In obedience to this command he would hold up a serpent, and in the name of the Lord beseech all men to repent. At that time he suf fered much persecution; now, these old things have passed away, and all things become new. He is an earnest and devoted preacher of the Gospel in all the towns and villages around, and,

238

PROTESTANT CHURCH,

from his faithfulness and zeal, is called 'the Apostle to the Gentiles.' I was greatly pleased to find the Bible work of so much interest and importance at Arabkir, on the borders of the ancient Cappadocia.

"The next day we set out upon our journey, escorted on the way by one of the missionaries and several of the native brethren. We passed through a finely cultivated country, abounding in ploughed fields and growing grain, and in six hours came down to the river Euphrates, one of the four rivers that flowed from the garden of Eden. It here runs with a swift current through a rugged gorge, winding among the mountains. Crossing the stream in a primitive scow, with a long rudder that sweeps through the current, we reached the town of Maden, picturesquely situated on the opposite bank. Here a little church of Protestants is gathered through the labors of the American missionaries, and they have a small dépôt for Bibles and Testaments in one corner of their chapel. It was the evening for their social prayer meeting, and they soon all came in to bid us welcome. Then their native preacher conducted the service, reading from the Scriptures and offering prayer. And afterward we addressed them in behalf of the Bible and Mission Cause. They listened with deep interest, and seemed greatly encouraged to feel that Christians in Eng

[blocks in formation]

land and America received with them the same pure Bible and Gospel of Salvation.

"It was a peculiar delight to join in the worship of God with these brethren on the banks of the river Euphrates.

"In the morning early we rode over the mountains filled with silver ore, and came to a fine hill country abounding in springs of water, and villages perched upon the hillsides. Thence crossing a fertile plain, and ascending the steep hillside, we reached the fortress-built town of Kharpoot, that overlooks the whole plain and the hundreds of Armenian villages around. The view was most beautiful, as we arrived at the hour of sunset and twilight in the East.

"Kharpoot is one of the more recent missionary stations of the American Board, and is in the centre of a large Armenian population. There are thirty cities within this field, and 366 villages on the plain, containing 100,000 Armenians, 20,000 Koords, and 5,000 Kuzelbash, all accessible to missionary effort. The city is the seat of the pashalic, and a mart of traffic from all parts of Asia Minor. I was glad to find the Scriptures. kept publicly for sale, in various languages, near the principal business bazaar: here Turks, Armenians, and Koords from the mountains, come to purchase the Bible. There have been sold, during the last year, twenty-two modern Armenian

232

PUBLIC MEETING.

it has a copy of the Bible; and American Christians desire that every family in the East may also receive the Word of God.' He says, "This is a very good work. Every family of my people also has, or can have the Bible if they wish. They can receive it both in the ancient and modern languages.'

"This was regarded as a most important admission by an Armenian bishop in the presence of the missionaries-that the Bible should have free circulation among his people.

"In the afternoon a public meeting of the Protestant community was held at the mission chapel. The Rev. Mr. Jones, from England, addressed them in relation to his society, and I, from America, in behalf of the Bible Cause. They were greatly interested in the account of our new Bible House at New York, and all the operations of the Bible Society, of which they had never before heard. And it was most pleasing to receive their warm expressions of gratitude for thus receiving the Bible and the Gospel of Christ at our hands. The next day was the Sabbath. We attended service in the native languages, and then administered the communion of the Lord's Supper to the little church gathered here; and it was an occasion of deep interest to sit around the table of our Lord with these brethren in a strange land.

« السابقةمتابعة »