the mind of the true eastern is at once lethargic and suspicious; he does not want to be reformed, and he is convinced that, if the european wishes to reform him, the desire springs from sentiments which bode him no good. moreover, his conservatism is due to an instinct of self-preservation, and to a dim perception that, if he allows himself to be even slightly reformed, all the things to which he attaches importance will be not merely changed in this or that particular, but will rather be swept off the face of the earth. perhaps he is not far wrong. although there are many highly educated gentlemen who profess the moslem religion, it has yet to be proved that islam can assimilate civilization without succumbing in the process. it is, indeed, not improbable that, in its passage through the european crucible, many of the distinctive features of islam, the good alike with the bad, will be volatilized, and that it will eventually issue forth in a form scarcely capable of recognition. “the egyptians,” moses said, “whom ye have seen to-day, ye shall see them again no more for ever.” the prophecy may be approaching fulfilment in a sense different from that in which it was addressed to the israelites.
look, moreover, not only to the spirit of the lawgivers, but to the general principles on which the laws are based. the tendency in all civilized european states is to separate religious from civil laws. in moslem states, on the other hand, religious and civil laws are inextricably interwoven.
look to the consequences which result from the degradation of women in mohammedan countries. in respect to two points, both of which are of vital importance, there is a radical difference between the position of moslem women and that of their european sisters. in the first place, the face of the moslem woman is veiled when she appears in public. she lives a life of seclusion. the face of the european woman is exposed to view in public. the only restraints placed on her movements are those dictated by her own sense of propriety. in the second place, the east is polygamous, the west is monogamous.
it cannot be doubted that the seclusion of women exercises a baneful effect on eastern society. the arguments on this subject are, indeed, so commonplace that it is unnecessary to dwell on them. it will be sufficient to say that seclusion, by confining the sphere of woman’s interest to a very limited horizon, cramps the intellect and withers the mental development of one half of the population in moslem countries. an englishwoman asked an egyptian lady how she passed her time. “i sit on this sofa,” she answered, “and when i am tired, i cross over and sit on that.” moreover, inasmuch as women, in their capacities as wives and mothers, exercise a great influence over the characters of their husbands and sons, it is obvious that the seclusion of women must produce a deteriorating effect on the male population, in whose presumed interests the custom was originally established, and is still maintained.
—lord cromer
in “modern egypt.”
[pg 113]
from the day of its inception until the beginning of the last century, mohammedanism never came into close, continuous contact with a pure christianity. its very beginning was a protest against a christianity that, in its worship, had all the appearance, at least, of idolatry. the mohammedan leaders then, as well as in subsequent generations, saw nothing in christians which made them believe that christianity could be better than their own religion. the christianity with which islam was in conflict was not such a manifestation in the lives and practises of its followers as to compel the intellectual approval of moslems or even to command their attention. all the churches of syria, armenia, and asia minor had become worldly and formal, from which had departed the gentle spirit of their lord, who exalted meekness, truth, purity, and righteousness. as the mohammedans passed on towards the north and west in their victorious progress, not once did they encounter the strength of christianity displayed in quiet meekness and forgiving love. in europe they met the church in arms and saw in it nothing to compel their respect.
wherever mohammedanism has penetrated, it has not come into vital touch with living christianity. all that the mohammedan knew of the practical teaching of jesus christ, up to the beginning of the last century, he had obtained from observing the christians whom he conquered and controlled. it is no wonder that he concluded that his own religion was superior, when he saw the intemperance of even the leaders in the [pg 114] church, and when he took note of what seemed to him to be the worship of pictures and idols. he could not see that the christian was more truthful, or honest, or pure, than himself; hence he naturally concluded that the christian religion was no better at least than his own faith.
a traveler in the interior of the empire, and putting up at a caravansary kept by a mohammedan, asked him if it would be safe to leave his luggage in the outer court. the mohammedan replied with great earnestness, “certainly it will be safe, for there is not a christian living within a three hours’ journey of here.” this incident reveals the opinion of at least one moslem regarding the power of christianity to make men honest.
the mohammedans have never had an adequate opportunity of knowing jesus christ as redeemer and lord and of becoming his true disciples. they have never seen the true christ in the face and life of his followers. they have had only a distorted vision of him, dwarfed and disfigured and marred, and in that vision they have seen no form of comeliness and no beauty that they should desire him. it is only in comparatively recent years that an effort has been made to bring to the attention of islam the fruits of the true christian life. it is not possible nor is it expected that the experiences and prejudices of twelve hundred years will be overcome in a single generation or even in a century. such deep-seated convictions can be changed only by prolonged fasting, prayer, and sacrifice. modern missions in turkey are an attempt to show to all in that country what true christianity means in the individual, in the family, and in society. it is not an attempt to convince the mohammedan by argument that mohammed is the false prophet and that jesus christ is god. such an attempt would result only in failure. the [pg 115] mohammedan must be made to see in the lives of the true followers of jesus that which will give him a clear vision of the son of man, and lead him to cry out, “my lord and my god.” i repeat, mohammedanism has never yet had an opportunity to accept christ and that we may not expect it to become christian until the christian world has demonstrated to it the beauty, love, purity, and power of the true christian life.
these facts regarding turkey and the various peoples who comprise its population were not fully known to the early missionaries nor to the officers of the mission boards. the country was largely unexplored and the vast interior was almost a terra incognita. mohammedanism was vaguely understood. there was a clear knowledge of the conditions and needs of the greek church, but the armenians and the other races in the remoter interior were but partially understood and only by a few. the most of our knowledge of arabia, syria, eastern turkey, and the interior of asia minor, the customs, beliefs, and lives of the people who dwell there, is the heritage which has come to us from the investigations and reports of missionaries who have traversed in every direction all parts of the country, except sections of arabia. many of these, by living among the people for a generation and mastering their language, have been able to speak with the highest authority upon what they have seen and known. we are approaching this question, not with the doubtful knowledge or even gross ignorance of eighty years ago, but with all the light that has come to us from fourscore years of mission operations which now cover practically the entire country.
never in the history of modern missions has a more difficult and complicated work been undertaken. the questions which entered into the mission problems of the turkish empire were legion, assuming new phases [pg 116] at every turn and every phase presenting a new difficulty. the one dominant note that runs through it all is the fact of mohammedan rule. this fact in all its length and breadth must be taken into consideration. add to this the antiquity of the old churches, the form of christianity, from which the spirit has fled, the race hatreds, the poverty of the country, the uncertainty of everything that pertains to the government, except that it never fails to be superlatively bad, the conviction of the moslems that they have seen true christianity and know it to be as bad as their own government, and we have a few of the difficulties which confronted the early missionaries. on the other hand, there were the encouraging features of the reverence of the oriental churches, all of them, for the holy scriptures, their allegiance to the church, and their respect for ecclesiastics, to which must be added their superior intelligence, eagerness to learn, and capability for great advancement. surely turkey presented a varied scene marked by high lights and dark shadows. without hesitation, men and women of unusual intellectual and spiritual capacity and breadth, and of indomitable courage, entered this country to win it for christ and for christian civilization.
