AFTER THE MISSION.

Manawatu Herald, Volume XLV, Issue 2646, 16 October 1923, Page 1

AFTER THE MISSION.

AWAITING THE HARVEST.

(By Elsie K. Morton, in tlie Auckland Herald.) that the Healing - Mission is over, and Mr Hickson has departed ppm our midst, there is a general tendency for Aucklanders to sit, hack and say one to another, “Well, now, lot us review the whole thing quietly and sanely, and see how much good it has done! Let. us count the cures.” If sin and disease could he stamped out like drebliglit, if one could he inoculated against them, or treated for them, hy measured doses of spiritual antitoxin, that would he quite the logical and correct attitude to take. But the work of the Spirit is not done that way. It is a tiny seed sown deep down in the souls of men, and only He' Who plants it there knows the time and the manner of its fruition.

There is a strong tendency for mankind (o forget this in times of spiritual uplift, of eager anticipation, as at the present moment. The present age is not an age of faith and trust; we want results quickly. Wo waul to .see Christianity itself speeded up, and have looked to the Hickson Mission as one of the means hy which this may bo accomplished. Tn this we surely shall not he disappointed, but we must wait for faith to complete her perfect work, give new thoughts, new aspirations, new understanding, time to replace the old indifference

and neglect of things of the spirit. The Healing Mission has come to ns as one of the greatest impelling spiritual forces this generation lias known. The war, with its burden of suffering and tragedy, brought many to a fuller understanding of the meaning of sacrifice, the great epidemic of 1918 taught us the beauty of fellowship and service, hut the message of the Hickson Mission is one of intimate personal hope

and joy, it breaks sheer through the harriers of materialism, scepticism, and all the futile crowd of isms that have lain like a blight on the lives of Cod’s children and carries us hack to fundamentals, to the Divine Fatherhood of Cod, the brotherhood of man. THE MESSAGE AND THE MAN. This was the message the leader of the Mission brought to ns, a message of love and Divine sympathy and understanding of human pain and sorrow as true to-day as it was two thousand years ago, uttered not to one class nor race nor creed, but to all mankind. Before Mr Hickson came to Auckland many were doubtful as to whether they might claim the benefits of the Mission;

they had nor been able to attend the preparation services; they had not sufficient faith, some acknowledged they had no faith at all. But they had faith enough of some kind to waken a trembling hope that even they might receive the blessing of healing. And the healer was true to the great message he came to deliver. He asked no questions as to faith or creed when special eases' such as this were bnoughf to him: the existence of human need, the yearning for help, was enough, and he

laid his hands on all who enmo, praying for a (dossing on those wlio Imd long forgo!fen Clod, and on those who had never known Him, jus! as fervently as for those whom the world would consider to he safely within (he fold. Some of those to whom he thus ministered may not yet have felt the physical benefit they had hoped for, but who shall say they have not been drawn nearer (o God by that temporary subjection of the human will to the Divine, that they are not feeling more comforted and satisfied to-day, more assured of the reality of Christian love and kindness than if they had been rejected? Throughout the Mission it has been the message and not the man that has been exalted. From the very outset, it was made plain by tin 1 bishop, by Mr TTickson himself, that no special power was claimed hy the leader of the Mission, save ,is the channel for the operation of the Divine will. But very often, despite sueli disclaimers, the personal element enters very strongly into a movement of this kind. There is a tendency to think more of the human agency than of the Divine

power at the back of it. This factor has been strikingly absent from the present Mission, and this would seem to set on it all the more surely the seal of sueeess. To a close observer, it was very evident throughout the Mission services that while there was deep and sincere appreciation of the healer’s ministrations, it was to God, and not to Mr Hickson, that people were giving praise and thanks. The healer’s name will never be forgotten: hearts will turn to him in loving gratitude wherever he may go, and prayer will follow him to the ends of the earth, but long after

AWAITING THE HARVEST.

the thrill of personal contact, the compelling magnetism of the man, have ceased to exercise their influence, his message willbe treasured deep in human hearts, the work of healing of soul and body will go on, and because of the faith and hope that he has inspired hearts will be lifted up in thankfulness to the only true Giver of life and power.

THE FIRST FRUITS OF THE MISSION.

Of the deep spiritual awakening which has come as a result of the Mission there can be no doubt. No one, however callous or indifferent, could remain through one of the Mission services, and look upon all the pain and sorrow revealed, without feeling a yearning that good might come. No one who has followed the practical results already attained, who has seen how the hearts of the people have turned in supplication and in thanksgiving to God, can deny that good has already come, nor neglect the fact that a mighty work now lies before the Church. A sacred charge has been entrusted to her keeping. She can only remain faithful to that charge as her people remain true to her. The coming of the Hickson Mission has been a blessing in many ways, and not the least of them is the manner in which it has revealed the strength of the forces working against the restoration of the healing function of the Church. The doubters, the sceptics, the active opponents of the Mission, may well find a rebuke to their unbelief in the spiritual uplift which has taken place already in the hearts and lives of thousands of the people. These Laoricean followers, and doubting Christiana have perhaps been the means of hindering some from obtaining a blessing, but on the whole, their influence would seem to have counted for very little when one considers the great impulse towards spiritual and physical betterment which the community has received. The Mission has left not only much benefit of partial or complete healing, but a spirit of kindness, a prayerful thought for the need of others, a realisation of the true meaning of the term Divine Service to which the world has long been stranger.

The spirit- of criticism has not been silenced entirely, and there will still be breathings of doubt. There will also be a certain measure of genuine disappointment on the part of those who bad hoped for a more speedy healing, who feel that, their prayers have not been heard. All these things point not to any failure on the part of the Healing Mission, but to the strong need for continuance of its activities, and remembrance of the fact that the full restoration of a gift which has lain neglected for nearly two thousand years can hardly he expected within a few weeks. The real success of the Mission lies now with the Church and the people. To each and every one who has sought help,' the sympathy and prayers of the community should go forth with thanksgiving for mercies already vouchsafed, and with remembrance of the feet that in the desire to help others, one helps oneself. , -

The fringe of this great' redemptive work, spiritual and physical, has only been touched. The cry now goes forth for helpers to carry on the work. The Mission, its leader, the clergy, the sick and the suffering, those who are still vainly groping for the light—all need our prayers and spiritual support, and hi the measure in which it is granted will be found the real harvest of the Hickson Mission.