Page:Village life in Korea (1911).djvu/245

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The Village Church.
207

ing the way for the more perfect translation which has since been made.

Of course the first missionaries found no Church, and had little to start with besides faith in God, on whose help they depended. At first it was slow work, and the workers doubtless often grew tired and wondered when they would see the fruits of their labors. Thank God, most of them have lived to see an abundant harvest and have been permitted to "come rejoicing, bring their sheaves with them." From the very beginning, the work has not been confined to Seoul and the other large cities, but the workers have gone to the country, and, entering the villages, have proclaimed the glad tidings to as many as would hear. The result of this is that the Church in Korea is preëminently a village Church. This does not mean that the cities have been neglected, but it does mean that the common people in Korea, like those in the days of our Lord's ministry, have heard the word gladly, and thousands of the village farmers and men of all walks in life have come in, and to-day compose a large part of the Church in this land.

Come with me and let us attend services in one of our village churches. It is Sunday morning, and we are just a little late for the opening of the Sunday school, which is already under way. Here we find the people using the same literature that is being used by nearly all the Sunday schools in the country. This will be good news to some people, who have been disposed to lie awake at night because of a lack of unity among the different denominations in the mission field.