The Man Who Brings the Ember
Poem★★★Humility is a cultivated virtue in the garden of the Christian heart. It has been repeatedly stated that in the Mohammedan religion meekness is not set forth as a vir- tue at all. The work of Christian missionaries in winning Moslems to Christ has been defined as, “getting the proud- est man on earth to accept the thing he hates from the hand of one he despises.” Menial service, such as sweeping, scrubbing and the washing of feet is known as “black work,” and it would be unthinkable for a person of high class in many parts of the Near East to stoop to such tasks.
In the American College at ‘Teheran, Persia, many of the boys did not wish to be seen on the street carrying their schoolbooks. A servant awaited them at the gate to take their books or any other parcels they might have. Humility and the dig- nity of labor are indeed great lessons that Christ has for Bible lands today.
The point
Missionaries face the paradox of asking proud people to accept Christ from those they have looked down upon; Christian humility stands against cultural pride.