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W. F. M. S. Of The M. E. Church

W. F. M. S. Of The M. E. Church image
Parent Issue
Day
29
Month
April
Year
1881
Copyright
Public Domain
OCR Text

We give our readers this week these two addresses, believing tliat although it may be a little late, yet their merits are suffici ent to more than overbalance. Both o; these ladies are wcll known and greatly esteenied by our people. ADDRESS OF WELCOME. ÏjADIBS- I stand in your presence this evening to perform a pleasant duty, I itrn here in behalf of the ladies of this church to extend to you ur warmst, kiodlièst greetings. We love yon for your aKun dant labors ia this blessed work and havo looked forward with pleaning anticipations to the time when we uiight take you by the hand and welcome you to our hearts and homes. We fèel that a rich blessing has come to us in the presence of souli imbued with the spirit of the marter, and we trust that our zeal will be rekindled, that our love for the perishing will become deeper and stronger from association with you. We also eztend (o you the hospital - jties of our unpretending little city- great in nothing save her educational advantages. With a feeling of pride we point you to our schools, to our ohurches, to our universily, with its fifteen hundred students, and to which honor is due as being among the first to open its doors to women AH earnest seekers after knowledge find a welcome in its classic halls, regardless of color, nationality or sex. We are living in an eventful period of the world'.s history. Tbe old system of education, which was liorn in ignoranoe and nurtured by prejudice, hai passed away. It is the glory of our (Jhristian civilization that it hs lif'ted woman from the degrejlation of een tur tea. has Dlaced her in a position of honor and uaefulnes.H, and hun opencj bcfbre her the 6elds of pcience and universal activity. We are stewards of' a heritagc of priceless value. 80 rich, so full, so free, that we can never estímate it. In no lands, except Christian lands. does woman stand forth in her true excellence. Dignity, intelligenco, progresa belong to her here. None need fear that the intellectual cultivation of woman is incompatible with the f ulfillment of those duties that deepeo and enrich the blessedness of home, that develop the full meaning of that sacred word. No, woman will not love home less but humanity more. But with increasing knowledge comes increasing responsibilities. Is it any wonder that the W. F. M. S. and kindred benavolent enterprises, in our own and sister churohes, have sprung into existence ? It is indeed fitting that Christian women, for whom the gospel has dono so much, should manifest their gratitude by untiring zcal in bearing the glad tidings to others loss fortúnate. We are not ignorant of the fact that Pagan babitations are emphatically the habitations of cruelty to women, and we long to reach out to them a sisterly hand and to teach them the sweet meaning of Christianity. Nothing but the gospel can alleviato t1 "W' reform the wrongs ot those sadly degraded women of heatben lands. The beginning of our mission work dates back to the time when our American Methodist church was itself a niission. No sooner had this vine of Ood's planting taken root in this new soil than it began sending out tendrils in every direction. The first missions were projected among the Indians. Even at this early date woman held herself responsible ibr her ehare of the work in Christianizing the savages. Mission work in creaxed raptdly; so much so that in less that two years it becatne necessary to have ome sort of general church organization. This led to tbe fomlation of the present society, which was effected in the city of New York, April 5, 1819, and is to be marked as one of the great evcnts in our ohurch history. In less than three months another organization was formed, called the F. M. S. of the M. E. church. This eldest missionary dsughter of our church, ived forty years. Her lije was full of good works, and very beautiful. Gradually, however, this society was absorbed and ost in the increasing interest of later yeare, and in 1861 oea-ed to exi.-t altogethcr. But it is not one of the possibilitics of Christian womanhood to mmain inactive. While this society wa-s in process of docay, there sprung up all over the Uipie in;iiio missfonaitwi, 01 wnicu tho Five Point.s is tbe mother and ravdel. "The Five Pointsl" What does that name impart? It is the synonym for ignorance, ;he most entire ; for miHery, the most abect; for crime of the deepest dye; for degredation, so deep that human nature caunot sink below it. The cry of those dispairing ones reicbed tbe ears and touched the hearts of Chrintian women. Hen wa mi.-sion ground - this heathendom, without the full excuse of ignorante so eotire, as creates a hope for foreign fields. In 1850 the L. H. M. S. of the M. E. church applied to the annual conference for tuissionaries. Their request was granted and cheerfully responded to by the bishops. The entire results of the toils and prajrs of these noble women eternity alone can reveat. In that day when our Father says: "Inasmuch as ye have done it unto one of the least of these ye have done it unto me," they will not be unrewarded. These bome missions were eontinued and supplemeoted by another organiiation of women Tor foreign work. Like all the great benevolent enterprises of tbe day. it began in a quiet, unobtrusive way. Marvelous effects are often realized from apparently small causes, and produce results of vaat importance. I toss a tiny pebble into the oceao, its ever increaxing circles reach the Far off shores. A little rivulet issuing Protu the hillside, gently gliding down the woody vale, receiving tributarios on either hand, and gathering strength as it goes, becomes a broad river, bearing on Ui placid bosom the commerce of nations. Such bas been the growth of W. F. M. S., and we prophesy great things for God ind hutnanity, through itsinstrumentality. For many years mission work in foreign lands was of slow but hopeful growth. It was a time of preparation. It has cost much of treasure, much sacrifiee and many a precious life has been laid a free-will offering upon this altar. Our hcarts are very sad as we wander in thought to our lonely mihionary graves. Stilled by the voice of the Master - they slept - wbile the unreaped harvest, perished for lack of laboren. But we see the germs of glorious results as we look over the dreary tion. We see the rosy light wbich herald the dawD ; a dawn which shall speedil break into the brirlitoesa and beauty of glorious day, atid which, nccording t prophecy, shall deluge tuountain top une vailey witli the refulgence of its glory The ujarch of civilizaron nod Christianit will become more ranid, inore startling more wqnderful, until He whose right it i shall reign. The vast mission fiuld wa never so bright with promise as to-day The promise of God is waiting to do fo China, for África, for India, for the Islarjd of' the sea, lor the world. Having then such a heritage, such hope, let us be of good cheer. He wh has been with us from the beginning wil be witb us to the end. May the uiauifoU tokens of his favor in the past be our in spiration for the responsibilities, and aetiv ities of the years to come. Allow us again to greetyou, my sisters, to throw wide opee the doors of our hospitality and bid you welcome, thrice welcome. RESPONSE. Mrs. President - Dear sisters an friends : It gives me great pleasure to re spond to these words of welcome so grace fully and kindly spoken. Indeed this op portunity is doubly grateful to me, for to nicht I reoall the warui words of welcome which oame from this people, on an othe occasion, when I cainc to iheui in a differ ent relation, and tlieir unwearicd care to make tbose words more than good shal never be forgotten. We rejoice in the oportunity given us to meet together in this beautifui city Not great in numbers and accumulatec wealth, as are ouie of our commercial een tres, but "a city that is set upon a hil whose lightcannot be bid." Itsinfluence is lelt throughout ouruwn land and through out the civilized world. lts graduales are fóund in every city in America, fiilinp many of the most important and influf nlia positione. But to us, one of its chief glo ries ia in the fact that it offers its advantages alike to all ; that it makes no distinction against race or eex. Already have the children of the enst received training in this univerMty. The sons and daughters o: África have been received with kindness and encouraged in their efforts for the elevation of themselves and their people. Here the same opportunities are given to daughters that are afforded to their once more favored brothers, and women have already gained honorsin the school of libera arts and in the professional schools. Especially is this fact of interest to us as women, working in behalf of our sisters in heathen lands, for we have learned that the doors that close absolutely to the missionary with the words of eternal life- that even in times of daDger, and dire extrcniity will not open to the skilled physician, will ojen when woman's knock is heard and the voice of wuman offers the same skill and aid. And so the more libera views wliich have prevailed to open to women these doore of opportunity here, wil open to women doors to life and lfberty an(J enlighteninent in the lands far remóte. All that wo ask is that the woiuen be permitted to cultívate and develop such gifts as God has bestowed upon her. The existence ol the talent is the Divine warrant and authority for its use. As a society we recogmze the debt which wo already owe to this city. We shall not Corget the quiet, persevering, Belf-denying, unknown toils of Leonora Howard, following her own conscience - against the wellaaeant advice and entreaty of friends - and ïtting herself for success in the field to which she was to be assigued. How she would have been cheered could she have ureseen while going through her daily (ril, that the skill she should here acquire would bring the princely gifts which have rewarded her work in China. Here Julia Sparr completed her work of Dreparation, and Delia flowe not waiting to iomplete her own education, bas gone out o edúcate others far away, and from these lalls we expect many to go with skill of land aud brain t moet uü allevlaie Jbease or body, and with skill of voice and heart to alleviate the more deeply seated disease of soul. We thank you for the kind words with vhich you welcome us to your homes. The adies of Ann Arbor have already won the idmiiation of the great church to which we elung by the sumptuous way in which they entertained for two succesaive years the members of the large annual conference with which this church isconnected. That act of large hospitality is already known .nd recognized íár beyond your own borler?. It has stimulated the hearts of those n other churches. It bas shown that the ïospitality of the olden heroic days is not ost in the rush and self-seeking of the too greedy present. We trust that our coming o your homes may not be without a blessng even to you. We kuow it will be a ilessing to us. But we hope that betweeo he welcome of to-night and thefarewell so oon to be spoken, we may show ourselves worthy of this welcome. We expect that he friendships already formed will now be more fully develpied and ripened, and that ew ties will be fortued of true Christian aféction which will cause some of our hearts beat a little more quickly hereafter at he mention of names that would otherwise e unknown. While we recognize the param lunt importance of the work that has Callftri "o tnaPthor, va %art faal ihnt tlio o ial value of this gathering cannot be lightly stimated. We hope that we may be beter friends, sisters, wives and moihers by he enlarging of heart and experienoe which hall result from this meeting, and that we hall be more deeply interested in the weiare and have more love fur our sisters far ver the waters- who have never known hat dearest spot on earth- Home, sweet iome. Only a few years ago such a gathering as his would have been impossible, not only 80 but scarcely conceivable. There are those ven here who lojk back to the time when he territory from which we are gathered, was scarcely more than a wilderness. Slowly nd painfully did the pioneer luthers and mothers find their way to the unmarked sections, which now are thronged with prosperous cities, and villages, and fertile farms - all tilled with happy, Christian homes. Then it had been impoiwible for women o leave their hgmes for the long absence hat would have been involved io such a leeting. Now the short space of a single ay brings us from the remotest extremiies of our territory to the eastern border f a trct which contains empires. Then uch a gathering of women, for womens' work, planned, discussed, supported, exeuted by themselves, would have been a hing chimerical, ridiculed perhaps, by wouid-be, wise men fur its groiesqueness nd absurdity. Now no great church a worthy of the name which has not some such or ganizaion, and the remita are asufficient answer o all cavillars. We believe our work is ut in its infancy (but we expect it to grow ery faxt). Wo believe that from the fair erritory which is our own, from this beauil'ul peninsular state, from the rich valleyï f Indiana, ('rom the vast resources of Viseonüin and from the teeming wealth of he Prarie state there are to be contribuions such as we have not yet dreamed of. 'J'here are alrcady in the conferences which are here represented three hundred ndthirtythousand( 330,000) members. Of hese at teast one hundred and eighty housand (180,000) are women. Some of hese are poor and toil ooogUntly from year o year, but most of them are in able homes and would not feel the single dollar which ia our mionimun for the year's mmtribution. That would bring M, at least, f 180,000 a year, more than twice a.s much as is dow given by the wholo society. Let us pray for a great revival of missionary zpal in our own territory, pray that the waltod energies of the church be turned into the channel of Cliristian beoevolence. May we not hope that our deliberations will contribute to this end? The past year ha.s been a good year for the W. F. M. society. The work of the Lord has prospered in the hands of 'hese jaithful womcn. Prayers have been offered in faith and answered before we thouglit it OOoM have been possible for the answer to come. All, I think have been encouraged in ihi.s woik and thank God for the results of the past yc-ar, and now we ask what of the future. Not what of the night for the dawn is already here. From every nation, tongue and clime, we hear "the morning lightis breaking, the darkneesdisappears. " Let us then re-jonsecrste ourselves to this work that we may receive that inspiration which will enable us to go forth to work earoestly, that we raay hasten on the glorious noonday, when all sh&ll know the Lord from the least even unto the greatest. Ladios of Ann Arbor, again do I ask y ou to accept the thanks of your vi-iiting itor8 for the curdlal welcome with which you have greeted us.

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Subjects
Ann Arbor Courier
Old News