Golden Age of Golden Age of Missions 1800-Missions 1800-

19001900

Following the heroic first efforts to Following the heroic first efforts to evangelized the unreached, now a evangelized the unreached, now a

systematic and global mobilization of systematic and global mobilization of evangelicals for world evangelism was evangelicals for world evangelism was

launchedlaunched

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European and American Missions

(1832-1860) Missions were paternalistic, financially

subsidized, insensitive to cultural differences and encouraged dependency– missionary is the ruler

To be Christian had to be European in dress and custom Civilizing instead of evangelizing

There was little confidence in national’s ability and reluctance to indigenous leadership, much less financial trust with resources

Henry Venn developed the 3-selfs formula and coined the phrase “euthanasia of missions.”

Change was hard to be effective until forced to do so in 1899 in China

Liberian Mission Compound

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Social Issues

Title page of abolitionist book

Slavery in US began in 1619 until 1864, from raids in Africa – How did nationals see missionaries then?

Second Awakening was quenched by social issues and the Civil War

Poverty due to industrialization, is there a remedy?

Southern Baptist Convention formed to allow former slave owners to be pastors and missionaries.

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Colonial Expansion

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Alexander MacKay - Uganda (1849-1890) MacKay was trained in the classics, applied

mechanics, higher mathematics, natural philosophy, surveying and fortifications – became an missionary engineer

Ran a school to teach reading, writing and arithmetic and building and design.

MacKay translated the Gospel into Uganda language

Stanley declared MacKay was the “best missionary since Livingston.”

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Golden Age of Missions (1865-

1910) Killed in the Civil War: 258,000 South;

360,000 North; and 400,000 wounded. Skepticism about Bible truth and values thanks

to Darwinian theory, Documentary Theory and rationalism

German higher criticism Third Awakening was about to begin (1850-1900)

Development of strong social concern Postmillennial Holiness Movement Great revivals, especially in Southern Armies D. L. Moody was key figure

Liberal social concern was beginning in parallel to evangelical missions

Status of the US, 1861

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Quality of Missionaries

Mainland and American missionaries usually college educated, but from England recruited out of churches Only 36% had college training between 1815-1891

What they lacked in academics they excelled in character CMS lost 53 missionaries in first 20 years in

Sierra Leone – more in Liberia Melville Cox, died in 4 mo. “Let a thousand fall

before Africa be given up”

Commercial exploitation committed military to organize countries for profits back to Europe. 5 countries owned 95%

Missionaries generally followed the military/commercial expansions

Example of Colonialization in Africa

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Hudson Taylor – China (1832-1905)

Saved reading a gospel tract, while mother prayed Learned faith principles from Plymouth Brethren;

learned open air preaching and tract distribution Taught himself Mandarin, Greek, Hebrew and Latin Lived in poverty while studying midwifery Departed in 1853 for 5-month trip to China George Muller encouraged him to resign from

problematic mission and start his own, Ningpo Mission

Taylor met and married Maria Jane at Ningbo – after two children (1 died), decided to return to England for furlough

“If I had a thousand pounds China should have it – if I had a thousand lives, China should have them. No! Not China, but Christ. Can we do too much for him? Can we do enough for such a precious Savior?”

Hudson and Maria 1865

Ningbo8

Hudson Taylor – China (1832-

1905) While recovering health in England translated NT

into Romanized Ningbo dialect for the Bible Society, graduated from medical school, and wrote a book

Traveled in conferences throughout England promoting China

Decided to form a new society dedicated to reaching the interior of China: China Inland Mission (1865)

Distinctives:1. Missionaries from various denominations2. No guaranteed salary—income shared and no debts3. No appeal for funds would be made4. Decision-making power delegated to the field, not

home office5. Seek to penetrate the interior in every province6. Missionaries would wear typical Chinese clothes and

worship Chinese-style

Duncan Kay flia

Wordless book preaching

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Hudson Taylor – China (1832-

1905) Largest group of missionaries sent to China, but

conflicts on field soon led to dismissal of 4 in 1868 1870 Maria and children return to England: 5 year old

dies en route, 5 months later Maria dies in childbirth Hudson returns to England marries Jane Faulding,

returns to China with 18 new missionaries Hudson’s ministry in England challenged a famous

athletes, esp. C. T. Studd, along with seven Cambridge University students, “the Cambridge Seven”

By 1881 there were 100 missionaries in the CIM, by 1883 there were 225 missionaries; by 1887 there were 325.

In 1888 Taylor brought the first 14 missionaries from the Americas

In 1900 the Boxer Rebellion killed 58 missionaries and 21 children of the CIM

On 11th and final trip to China Hudson dies and is buried next to 1st wife

Jennie Faulding

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John Nevius – China (1829-1893)

American missionary to China from 1853 Practiced itinerating missions, leadership training and 3-

selfs principles of “indigenous” church principles 1890 taught 3-selfs principles to new Korean missionaries

that resulted in explosive Korean church Nevius’ Principles:

Believers must be self-supporting and stay in their community

Limit programs to what the nationals want and can support National churches should call and support their own pastors Church should be native style with funds only from nationals Intensive biblical training provided for all believers every

year Missionary should focus on widespread itineration evangelism Self-propagation is taught by every one becoming a teacher

of someone else

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Lottie Moon – China (1840-1912)

Raised near Roanoke, VA Appointed first single female missionary by SBC Spent 40 years in China as teacher to children and

evangelist to women Challenged SBC women to form their own missionary

organization for support and promotion of missions Encouraged an annual Christmas offering for

foreign missions in 1888 (an offering later took her name)

Her approach was different: “It is comparatively easy to give oneself to mission work ... but it is not easy to give oneself to an alien people. Yet the latter is much better and truer work than the former.”

She advocated regular furloughs During a national famine she succumbed to

malnutrition, dying en route to the US for health reasons. 12

Amy Carmichael-

India (1867-1951) Raised an Irish Presbyterian and started

several women’s ministries in Ireland Challenged to give up her life for missions by

Hudson Taylor Ill health made her unacceptable to CIM, so

joined Church Missionary Society, to India Worked with Hindu temple young girls forced

into temple prostitution to earn money for priests

When asked, What is missionary life like?, she wrote: “Missionary life is simply a chance to die.”

Her example inspired thousands of missionaries

Chennai, cap. of

Tamil Nadu

Dohnavur

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C.T. Studd – China, India,

Africa (1860-

1931) Son of wealthy British investor in India and world-class cricket player

Studd followed Hudson Taylor to China in 1885 along with six others known as the “Cambridge Seven” who turned their backs on sports and professional careers which sparked the Student Volunteer Movement

CIM doubled in sized after the Cambridge Seven in 5 yrs

Arriving in China he turned 25 at which time his father’s will transferred to him a large fortune, which he gave away to George Muller, D. L. Moody and other ministries.

15 years later Studd went to India to pastor for 7 years for British and local officials

1910 Studd went to Sudan convicted by lack of Christian witness, establishing 4 mission stations to reach 8 tribes

His wife’s illness forced a return to England; she would work at WEC hdq and Studd returned to Africa for 15 yrs w/ 1 visit

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D. L. Moody – Third

Awakening and SVM (1837-1899)

Started a SS class in the YMCA, which grew to a church by 1864

Anywhere the Union army met he got permission to preach, after 1865 to the Confederate army as well

For over two years (1872-1874) he and Sankey traveled throughout England, Scotland and Ireland in non-stop city-wide evangelistic campaigns

From 1875-1876 he and three other evangelists campaigned in the major cities of the Midwest and Atlantic coast, preaching the message of salvation

After starting several primary and secondary schools in 1886 the Chicago Evangelization Society (Moody Bible Institute) was founded

He started a “College Students’ Summer School” at Mt Hermon, Northfield MA – this birthed the Student Volunteer Movement

By 1911 5,000 missionaries had volunteered through this movement

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John R. Mott – SVM (1865-1955)

Hearing the ministry CT Studd’s son in 1886 state, “Seekest thou great things for thyself? Seek them not. Seek ye first the Kingdom of God” began a 50-yr labor

As rep. of Cornell U.’s YMCA at the first interdenominational student Christian conference ever held, he along with over 100 out of 251 from 89 pledged to work in foreign missions, thus the SVM

For 27 years Mott was the national secretary for the intercollegiate YMCA of America and Canada and chairman of the SVM for foreign missions.

In 1910 he made chairman of the International Missionary Council in Edinburgh

He organized national student movements in India, China, Japan, Australia, New Zealand, and Europe

He organized 21 regional missionary conferences He wrote 16 books, crossed the Atlantic 100+

times, spent 34 days a year on the ocean for 50 years promoting the cause of world evangelism

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Bible Institute Movement

With the rise of mass evangelism, SVM on one hand and rationalism and secularism on the other, a need arose to train future leaders and missionaries in biblical knowledge

Bible Institutes were typically 3-year programs Most were premillennial and dispensational, inerrancy,

evangelistic and very focused toward ministry Liberal Arts Bible colleges developed in the 1930’s –

1970’s to offer alternatives for university training in career fields other than and including Christian ministry fields, but mostly for Christian ministries (i.e. Christian education, science as teachers, business to support ministries, sports as testimony, etc.).

Christian Universities expanded the offerings with the philosophy of putting Christian leaders in all careers, but Christian ministry preparation is only one among many careers.

Accreditation tends to move institutions towards secular methodologies and objectives, de-emphasizing biblical priorities

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