A Sabbath-school has been organized at Pendleton, Oregon.
The Wisconsin annual camp-meeting is announced for August 14-25, at Grand Rapids.
On the 8th ult., a church was organized at Pomeroy, Wash., by Brother W. F. Martin.
The Oriental Watchman, published at Kamatar, India, has now a circulation of 4,000 monthly.
The Iowa State camp-meeting is announced for August 27 to September 7, to be held at Ames.
Sabbath and Sunday, June 7 and 8, Brother W. T. Millman was with the church at Rolla, Mo., when six candidates were baptized.
From the Reaper we learn that Brother George W. Reaser has been transferred from Natal to Cape Town, and is now in charge of the South African District. His address is 28a Roeland Street.
Broader plans are being laid for church-school work in the conferences represented by Walla Walla College. To this end a normal department is to be opened in the college for the training of church-school teachers.
Sister Taylor, of Van Wert, Ohio, who is over eighty years of age, and is not able to go out and sell “Christ’s Object Lessons,” has sold eleven copies to people who have visited her, and wants to sell as many more. Of this example the Visitor truly says, “If those who are younger in years would be as active in the work, we would soon sing the song of jubilee.”
A sister eighty-three years of age attended the canvassers’ institute in Johnstown, Pa. She felt that the Lord called her to sell our books. Her sales have averaged about ten dollars each day that she has been in the field.
Of the cause in St. Louis, Mo., Brother R. C. Porter says, in the Record, that the colored work is making steady progress, and a good class of people are taking hold under the labors of Brother and Sister George. The German interest is good in the tent work. He also notes the addition of two members to the English church on the 7th ult., with seven more applications for baptism.
At the annual meeting of the California Medical Missionary and Benevolent Association the following officers were elected: To fill unexpired term occasioned by the resignation of Dr. Sanderson, Dr. A. N. Loper; to serve two years, Dr. R. A. Buchanan, W. S. Sadler, L. E. Bowen, E. E. Parlin. The board was organized by electing A. T. Jones chairman, and E. E. Parlin secretary.
The people of the little island Tristair D’Acunha, in the South Atlantic Ocean, have been visited by the message of truth for these times. Several years ago, Brother S. H. Carnahan, now of Lostine, Oregon, wrote to an old gentleman on the island named Peter Green. On account of his age another party answered the letter. A number of S. D. A. publications were sent to the island by brethren then of College Place, Wash. And now comes a letter to Brother Carnahan, dated Jan. 20, 1902, in which the writer says:—
I was very glad that you wrote to Mr. Peter Green. He is still alive, but he soon will be called away to a better world. I was very glad for the books you sent me; we read them, and I find light shining upon God’s Word showing plainly the truths God would have us know now just before Christ makes His second appearance. The books also enlightened us greatly upon worldly history as well.
The Pacific Medical Missionary and Benevolent Association, embracing the territory of the Pacific Union Conference, was organized at a meeting held for that purpose at Sanitarium, June 18 to 20. The initial board of trustees elected is composed of the following: W. T. Knox, A. T. Jones, Dr. W. R. Simmons, Dr. A. N. Loper, Dr. T. S. Whitelock, E. E. Parlin, G. H. Boeker. At the organization of the board W. T. Knox was chosen president and E. E. Parlin secretary. The constituency of the new association is as follows: The executive committee of the Pacific Union Conference, the superintendent of each sanitarium within the field, one representative for every 500 membership in each conference in the district, all who become life-members by the payment of the sum of $500, and not to exceed ten representatives from the International Medical Missionary and Benevolent Association. The association starts out with strength and enthusiasm. May God prosper its work.
A WIDOW IN MADAGASCAR.
Upon the death of any man of position in Madagascar, the wife is dressed in all her best clothes, and covered with her silver ornaments. As soon as the family enter the house, they begin to revile her with most abusive language, telling her that she is virtually the cause of his death. Then they strip her of her clothes, tearing off with violence the ornaments. They give her a coarse cloth, a spoon with a broken handle with which to eat, and a dish with a foot broken off; her hair is disheveled, and she is covered up with a coarse mat, and under that she remains all day long, and she may not speak to any one who goes into the house. She is not allowed to wash her face or hands, but only the tips of her fingers. She endures all this sometimes for a year, or at least for eight months, and even when that is over, her time of mourning is not ended for a considerable period. She is not allowed to go home to her own relatives until she has been divorced by her husband's family.—Missionary Link.
A MISSIONARY HEROINE.
By Henry Haigh
At Rangoon I attended a service at the chapel of the American mission. Over one thousand adults were present, and the preacher, twenty-two years of age, who had arrived at Rangoon the day before, preached with marvelous fluency. He was a missionary’s son. As a child he lived with his father and mother in Burma, where it was the business of the father to follow the Karens, who were nomads, on their wanderings. Cholera came, and the missionary died.
It seemed the plain duty of the widow to return to America with her only child, that he might be educated. But the thought came, “If I leave these Karens, who is going to look after them?” She saw it to be her duty to let her son go home by himself, while she remained in the jungle to carry on the work. For seven years and a half she toiled, doing herself the full work of a missionary all alone. She preached, baptized, buried the members when they died, administered the sacrament, and saw a great harvest. All the time she prayed, “God save my boy.” One day a letter came. He was converted and wrote, “I think I will be a missionary.” She replied, “That is what I want; come and take up your father’s work.” The day before she had welcomed her boy, and now sat hearing him preach. I said to myself, “If ever Christ had a heroine, this is one!”—Rev. Henry Haigh.
MEXICO STILL REMEMBERED.
OUR friends are still sending in their donations for the work in Mexico. Since the last report the following have been received:—
We trust that the Lord will continue to open the hearts of His people to give to the work in this needy field. Address all contributions to SIGNS OF THE TIMES, Oakland, Cal.
Our Brother's Need.
The sad word came to us in 1900 that our publishing house in Christiania, Norway, through financial failure of other firms in that country, and partly through human mistakes, was hopelessly involved, with liabilities exceeding $60,000. Business houses were failing in all parts of the kingdom, and there seemed to be no hope. But when the matter came to our brethren in responsible positions in America, they said, “It must not be. Every dollar of obligation must be met.” Our creditors (for God's cause is one) said, “We will wait, and give you time; let it be paid in six semi-annual payments.” Our representatives said, “It is well.” It was laid before our people last year, and over one-half of the debt has been paid, and there has been no diminution in foreign-mission donations. This year, July 5, another offering is asked for Christiania. The sum of $30,000 this year will lift the incubus. Let it be given. We appeal to our readers to help in the good cause. It is no debt of dishonor; helping to remove it will prove a blessing to giver more than receiver. Let what might be expended July 4 lift toward freedom from debt. From $1,000 to one cent, let the donations flow in. Christ paid sin's debt. Are we workers together with Him?
PUBLICATIONS WANTED.
SIGNS, Sentinel, Life Boat, and Our Little Friend, for missionary work. Also would like one copy of SIGNS or Life Boat for six months or a year to supply the county poor-farm. Address, post-paid, Mrs. J. H. Grove, Cotton Town, Texas.
LATE copies of SIGNS, Sentinel, or Life Boat, for missionary work. Address, Mrs. Robert Torrence, Niles City, Mont.
WHAT A SCHOOL PRINCIPAL SAYS.
THE principal of Healdsburg, Cal., High School says the following of the new book “Essentials of Our Language,” by Prof. G. W. Rine:—
“I wish I were able to tell you of the high opinion I have of your production. It is more than a good book; it is an excellent one. Your arrangement and selection of materials stand for the exercise of good judgment and scholarship. The book should have a ready sale.”
This book is a guide to accuracy in the use of the English language and is adapted to home study as well as class work. It has been written with a special view to the needs of that large number of young and middle-aged persons, who, unable to attend school, are yet desirous of mastering the essentials of good English.
282 pages . . . . . post-paid, 75 cents.
Pacific Press Publishing Co., Oakland, Cal.
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LESSON 2.—JULY 13.—THE TEN COMMANDMENTS—DUTIES TO GOD.
2 “I am the Lord thy God, which brought thee out of the land of Egypt, out of the house of bondage.
3 “Thou shalt have no other gods before Me.
4 “Thou shalt not make unto thee a graven image, nor the likeness of any form that is in heaven above, or that is in the earth beneath, or that is in the water under the earth; thou shalt not bow down thyself unto them, nor serve them; for I the Lord thy God am a jealous God, visiting the iniquity of the fathers upon the children, upon the third and upon the fourth generation of them that hate Me; and showing mercy unto thousands, of them that love Me and keep My commandments.
7 “Thou shalt not take the name of the Lord thy God in vain; for the Lord will not hold him guiltless that taketh His name in vain.
8, 9 “Remember the Sabbath day, to keep it holy. Six days shalt thou labor, and do all thy work; but the seventh day is a Sabbath unto the Lord thy God; in it thou shalt not do any work, thou, nor thy son, nor thy daughter, thy manservant, nor thy maidservant, nor thy cattle, nor thy stranger that is within thy gates; for 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.”
Golden Text.—“Thou shalt love the Lord Thy God with all Thy heart.” Luke 10:27.
SUGGESTIVE QUESTIONS.
(1) Where were the Israelites when the words of this lesson were spoken? Ex. 19:1, 2. (2) What preparation had been made for the occasion? Verses 10-13. (3) Who spoke the words of the law of God? Ch. 20:1. Note 1. (4) With what words were the commandments introduced? Verse 2. Note 2. (5) What is the first commandment? Verse 3. (6) What is the second commandment? Verses 4-6. (7) What shows that the Gospel is proclaimed in this commandment? Note 3. (8) What is the third commandment? Verse 7. Note 4. (9) What is the fourth commandment? Verses 8-11. Note 5.
NOTES.
1. God spake these words. Yes, “God spake all these words.” And about twenty-five hundred years later, the same Voice said that not “one jot or one tittle” of these words should pass, or fail. He said, “It is easier for heaven and earth to pass, than one tittle of the law to fail.” See Matt. 5:17-19; Luke 16:17.
2. God’s Idea of Liberty.—The people were in bondage in Egypt because they were not permitted to serve God. They were brought out of “bondage” that they might have liberty to keep His law. Christ was their deliverer, and “if the Son therefore shall make you free, ye shall be free indeed.” John 8:36. The natural man is in bondage, and can not keep the law of God (Rom. 8:7); but in Christ, the Spirit will “guide you into all truth” (John 16:13), and God’s law is the truth (Ps. 119:142, 151). The psalmist further proclaims, “Great peace have they which love Thy law; and nothing shall offend them.” Verse 165.
3. Showing Mercy.—While the law of God can not justify the sinner (the transgressor of the law), it does proclaim the mercy of God. This is practically a proclamation of the Gospel in the law; for the mercy is unto those who keep His commandments, and this no one can do until he has accepted the mercy of God through Christ, in whose Spirit only lies the power to keep the law, as shown in Note 2. The R.V. with margin reads, “Showing mercy unto a thousand generations of them that love Me and keep My commandments.” This expression shows the unending mercy of God and the perpetuity of His law.
4. Taking the name of the Lord in vain does not consist only of what is generally recognized as profanity. One may take the name of the Lord in vain even in prayer. “When ye pray, use not vain repetitions, as the heathen do; for they think that they shall be heard for their much speaking.” Matt. 6:7.
5. “The seventh day is the Sabbath of the Lord.” Read again Note 1, and remember that not one “jot” (the smallest Hebrew letter), nor one “tittle” (a small horn or point of a letter), of the law can fail. Therefore no word of the law can be changed. God has never authorized a change of the day designated by Him as His Sabbath, or rest day, and no one else has authority to change His law. God’s resting on the seventh day is a fact that no power can change; therefore as the memorial rest is based on that fact, the day could no more be changed than could the fact.
Read “Patriarch’s and Prophets,” pages 303 to 308, as the best lesson help to be obtained.
LESSON 3.—JULY 19.—THE CURSE OF FORMALISM.
NOTE.— This series of lessons is entitled, “Studies on the Gospel Message.” For introduction and excellent suggestions as to their study, we refer the student to the Lesson Quarterly.
The position of God’s chosen people was one of privilege (Rom. 3:1, 2), and therefore of corresponding responsibility (Amos 3:1, 2). Because they would not serve Him and thus make known to the nations His great name and the Gospel of His kingdom (Ps. 145:10-13), they lost their place among the nations (Deut. 28:47, 48). But God’s purpose was unchanged. When His people, as an organized body, refused to be a channel for the Gospel to the nations, and sought to cover their sins under the cloak of Pharisaism, glorying in the holy city, the holy temple, and the holy land, the Lord took from them all these outward evidences of the covenant promise, that they might learn how to worship Him (John 4:23, 24), and that some of them, as captives, might do what the nation had failed to do as conquerors. Those who knew the spiritual nature of the kingdom of God, as Daniel and his companions did, could be used to proclaim the Gospel as a living experience.
More than a century before it came upon them the Lord had specifically warned His people of the result of their hypocrisy (Isa. 29:13, 14), and only a few years before the captivity He had made it still more definite (Hab. 1:5, 6). Their own sinful course had brought its sure result. 1 Chron. 9:1. They lost the Jerusalem experience before they lost the visible city. Dan. 9:16. They lost the reality of the sanctuary services before they lost the visible temple. Jer. 7:8-14. It was serving strange gods in their own land which scattered them in a strange land. Jer. 5:10. Thus was being emphasized the truth concerning the real dwelling-place of God (Acts 7:48), and the folly of glorying in anything except a personal knowledge of God was made plain (Jer. 9:23, 24). Under these circumstances occurred those events which are recorded in the book of Daniel.
QUESTIONS.
What special trust was committed to God’s ancient people?
What would inevitably follow their failure to make a right use of their privileges?
What did God design that His people should do for Him among the nations?
What resulted from their neglect to fulfil His purpose concerning them?
Why did the Lord take away from His people all the outward evidences of His covenant promise?
Who could still be used to carry out God’s purpose for the nations?
In what message through the prophet Isaiah did the Lord describe the hypocrisy of His people?
What did He say would be the result of such a course?
In what prophecy did He make this warning more definite as to time?
What was the result of their continued transgression?
What led to the loss of their city?
Why were they deprived of the temple and its services?
What was the real cause of their being captives in a strange land?
What great truth was thus being taught to them and to us?
What is the only thing of which man may rightly boast?
For what events did this experience of transgression and consequent captivity prepare the way?
GIVING THEM SOMETHING TO DO.
One way to enlist the interest of a class of active boys is to organize the class, giving every member a position in the organization, which may be merely nominal. A secretary could be appointed for looking after the records of the class. Another could be made librarian, whose duty should be to receive the Sunday-school library books belonging to the class, and to distribute the hymn-books and other material which is used by the pupils, while a treasurer could receive the offerings, and a historian could take care of the events of interest in the class history. A committee on visitation of absent members of the class would be a good thing toward drawing in the young fellows who are absent every other Sunday; and a lookout committee, including every member of the class, could be appointed to look after the children moving into the neighborhoods represented in the class. These duties would help to use up the extra activity of the boys, and would help even an ordinary teacher to secure better attention in the lesson-study hour.—Sunday School Times.
NURSES WANTED.
Twenty reliable Seventh-day Adventists to take Nurses' Course. Address Colfax Springs Sanitarium, Colfax, Iowa; or W. D. Kinney, M.D., Supt.
NOTICE
By W. S. Durland
If J. H. Durland will write to his brother and sister, he will save them a great deal of worry and some expense.
W. S. DURLAND.
Garfield, Wash.
LESSONS BY MAIL ON MEDICAL ELECTRICITY OR HOW TO USE THE BATTERY
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Living by Faith
“Living by Faith.” (Spanish.) A translation of Bible Students’ Library No. 75; 16 pp.; price, 2 cents. Address, Pacific Press Publishing Co., Oakland, Cal.
BAPTISM: Its Significance, Its Nature, and the Necessity for It.
By Ellet Joseph Waggoner
By E. J. Waggoner. Bible Students’ Library, No. 79. Pacific Press Pub. Co., Oakland, Cal. 16 pp.; 2 cents.
One of Many Doors
Commencing July 1, 1902, the Sunday-School Lessons in the International Series will be on Old Testament History, just that portion treated by the book, “PATRIARCHS AND PROPHETS.”
A better help to teachers and scholars in the study of these lessons can not be found. It establishes faith and confidence in the records of the Old Testament, and adds new charms and beauty to its study.
Before each one acquainted with the value of this book, a door of opportunity is now opened to place it in the hands of others. Agents, therefore, are wanted everywhere to take up its sale.
Write at once to your State Tract Society or the Publishers regarding rates, etc.
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DESIRE TO KNOW THE MYSTERIOUS
This is the title of the first chapter in a book recently published, which treats on the many delusions which are in the world at the present time, all arising from the belief that it is possible for the living to communicate with the dead. It shows that the only safe foundation for those who wish to know the truth is a thorough knowledge of the Scriptures.
Miracles and Delusions
is the title of the book mentioned, containing one hundred pages, bound in substantial cloth, unique cover design.
Price, 50 cents, post-paidPaper, 15 cents
Address your State Tract Society, or
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Heralds of His Coming
Is the end near? May we know the time? are important questions deserving of the most serious consideration. These, together with many others bearing on Christ’s second advent, are fully answered in this tract.
A. G. L. No. 51 :: 1½¢ each :: 98¢ per hundred
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PRAYER
By A. T. Pierson, will bring new life and light into your church, missionary society and home. Price, $1.00 per 100
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WHAT MUST I DO TO BE SAVED
This tract points the way to that desired end. It is especially helpful at this time, when so many theories are taught. It makes a clear distinction between the true way and the false. A. G. L. No. 17. 50 cents per 100.
