The Recorder for December begins with a paper by the Rov. RB, Whitaker, a missionary in Shantung, who Writes on "A" Missionary Confession." He confesses that his standard of living, as compared with that of the people ho works among, gives him an uneasy conscience. The people in Shantung are about the poorest in China. and their lot has been made tenfold corer by the exact ins the leaders of the last ten This brother would like simple life, He would like to the way of Living of his Chinese colleagues but there are difficulties, He is married and has six children. Me cannot bring. himself to suerifice. these encum= rances to his ideals, Me finds that most of his Chinese col can live comfortably on salaries and still money. Neither -he nor his foreign brethren can do. as much. Mle thinks a solution might be to adopt the Roman Catholic method and have celibate missionaries, But not inquired whether the catholic priest hax solved the prow Diem that worries him. Me should. ask some priest in his district and me will probably tind that the good difficulties are not less than We wonder whether, if Whitaker were in Africa' he 4 grass skirt and live a kraal. In that case would he further conform to native standards tind have six wives to work for him. Perhaps Mrs, Whitaker would have something to Say about that.
Dr. I, I, Kung, who is Minister of Labour and Commerce in the National Government, writes "Mow does the Modernization of aufeet Christianity." y sketches the history of ty in China and " notes objection of Catholic ancestor worship Msi would have inks as many was a tremen dous mistake. He says," We want a Christian church which suits the Chinese. For instaree, ancestor worship should be regarded as a principle of honouring the dead and should not be regarded as a brace tice disloyal to the teachings of Christ. Well, this is a matter of worship has its also has certain superstitious practices connected. with it and it is doubtful whether the good outweighs the bad. China as been bound under "the dead "Jonge enough and one might well honour the earlier mission aries for choosing the difficult rather than the easy path of compromise, There are now dependent Chinese churches have never heard of one that has one back to an De. Kung says, "Now that China is ie readjustment they (the missionaries) must ascertain the real needs of the people and serve them according these real needs? "China needs scientific and technical men to develop her country in order to solve the problem of livelihood, But is ism pure and Kung continues, starvation it. scorns irreleva to elaborate on the necessity and glory of prayer." Not at all There are thousands of people in other lands who face the same difficulties and who find prayer very present help in time of trouble. Dr. Kung's job is to remedy the conditions that have plunged Wis country into its present distress. The missionary's is to preach the gospel. If he-ceases to do that he may still be a good man but tin is not a missionary. 4
Text read from the printed page and cleaned; old type leaves the occasional error.