I CANNOT but look with concern upon the rapidly increasing tendency to a separation of the sexes in religious work. Of course it must be separate to some extent, but it is going to extremes. There is work which only women can do well, and other which only men can do; but it ought to be done in concert Women's work should not be confined to women, nor men's to men: each needs the influence of the other. The members of our mission have ever considered it one of the most important parts of our work to teach the women to go to church and worship with the assembly of God's people. This is more Christianizing than many times the labor spent in private teaching while leaving the church-going out. It is a mistake, too, to suppose that men cannot teach women in China, and women men.The English Baptists of Shan-tung had a church containing quite a good proportion of women, where the missionaries were both single men. One of their native assistants, whom I know well, was in the habit of making village tours, teaching both men and women at their homes, and examining them in Bible lessons, no one deeming it improper.
One sex cannot be Christianized without the other. We wish a great many schools for girls, but we do not wish to see these girls married to men without Christian education. We must therefore have schools for boys; and missionary women, as a rule, must take the school department for both sexes. Moreover, men often come to missionary ladies for religious instruction, and women to missionary men. In short, the men and women of a mission must co-operate and make such division of labor as shall seem best according to circumstances.
Then single ladies going out must be sent to an established mission where they can have a home, suitable protection, and companionship. Our main great work is to evangelize the heathen nations by organizing and training Christian churches. Ladies as well as gentlemen should work in connection with a church, or with reference to one in the near future. We want men for our pastors, and we want churches composed of men and women. One of my life-long battles has been to break down the prejudices which keep women shut out, by insisting that it is proper and a duty for women to go to church where there are men, be instructed and baptized by a man.
Continuously, slowly, I have proceeded, but the battle has not been unsuccessful. If a woman says to me, "I will be baptized if you will baptize me: I cannot have a man do it," I know she is not yet a thorough Christian. When truly converted she becomes willing to be God's in God's appointed way. We go out to teach them to observe whatsoever Christ has commanded, and not to indorse heathen ideas or perpetuate heathen customs where they conflict with Christianity. Then is this the best idea for the societies, only looking at the work here at home? Pressure should not be made upon the board to send out too large a proportion of ladies. - Heathen Helper.
=========== [From Baptist Missionary Magazine, Volume 63, March, 1883, p. 66-67. Scanned and formatted by Jim Duvall.]
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