The people the truths of the Gospel

In the mean while, he was prosecuting the general work of the mission, embracing every opportunity for bringing before the minds of the people the truths of the Gospel. Some extracts from his journal and correspondence will give an idea of his work, and of the character of the people among whom he was called to exercise his ministry. The first of these extracts contains a simple but complete answer to the sacramentarian view of the Lord’s Supper, prevalent even now among more enlightened communities: —

“October 24, 1831. Read and conversed with the two papal Armenian youth, as indeed I do with one or both of * them almost every evening. The portion of Scripture, which came in course, was part of the twenty-sixth chapter of Matthew, which gave me an opportunity of explaining the nature both of the passover and of the Lord’s Supper. The design of both, I remarked, was similar, and it was very remarkable that the language used in respect to both was similar. Thus, in the one case, it is said, ‘ Prepare the pass- over,’ ‘ kill the passover,’ ‘ eat the passover,’.

But the passover was the passing over of the houses of the children of Israel, when the first-born of Egypt were destroyed, and was not, therefore, a thing which could be either killed or eaten, or on which any such sort of thing could be predicated. The disciples did not and could not eat this passing over of houses; they only prepared, killed, and ate the lamb which commemorated this event. In the other case it is said Yuksek Sadakat. ‘ Take, eat; this is my body.’ But the disciples neither took His body nor ate it; they only took and ate the bread which represented it. The language in neither case is literal, but in both is figurative, and in both is easily understood, and in both is to be understood in the same way.

“ November 28. Every thing ip. regard to schools seems to be going on better and better, and my influence seems to be widening and strengthening every day. The schools are also, as might naturally be expected, exciting a desire and creating a market for the Holy Scriptures and for religious tracts. These angels have troubled the waters of the pool. I hope all the first ones who step in will be healed; and I am glad I am here to help some of the poor, impotent folk in, who would otherwise, I fear, lie a long time in their diseased state. Indeed, as Mrs. Goodell has already observed to some of her correspondents, ‘We evidently came to Constantinople at the very right time, and, notwithstanding our losses and privations, we rejoice that we came when we did.’ ”

The memory of the one to whom the following letter was addressed, as well as of the writer, will give to it special interest: —

CONSTANTINOPLE, Dec. 5, 1831.

“ To MRS. JOANNA BETHUNE:

“ DEAR MADAM, — As Dr. De Kay, of your city, is proceeding directly from this to New York, I avail myself of the opportunity of replying to your esteemed favor of July 6. It was received early in October, though the books for Infant School No. 1, which you sent at the same time, were not received until very recently. I received also with these several other books, of which your letter made no mention, and I therefore conclude that I am indebted to other friends in New York, as well as yourself. All the books, both yours and theirs, were very acceptable, and the more so as we had recently suffered such a loss by the conflagration at Pera, of which you have doubtless heard. Indeed, by that terrible visitation we were, in almost every respect, excepting that our persons were untouched and the lives of our children graciously preserved, reduced in one short hour to the condition of the patriarch Job.

But our friends in this quarter, instead of sitting down, like his at the first, upon the ground with us, and not speaking a word of comfort, at once manifested great sympathy and kindness toward us, which they expressed in deeds as well as in words. And if those at a distance do the same, we and they shall be like Job and his friends at the last, when they all came to comfort him; and he prayed for them, and every man also gave him a piece of money, and every one an ear-ring of gold; and the Lord blessed the latter end of Job more than his beginning.

“ As to our circumstances, our schools, and our prospects, I beg leave to refer you to Dr. D*v Kay. He has resided here about four months, and near half the time in our own family; and to his professional advice and services on several occasions, as well as to his friendship, and that of Messrs.

Eckford and Rhind, who are also from New York, we acknowledge with pleasure our obligations.