Brief Biography of Samuel Zwemer Who Had Been a Missionary in Egypt, John by ROGER S
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Brief Biography of Samuel Zwemer who had been a missionary in Egypt, John BY ROGER S. GREENWAY G. Lansing, to plan a mission to Muslims. The Lord led them to focus on Arabia, the “No one through all the centuries of center of the Muslim world and the most Christian missions to Moslems has deserved difficult place to conduct Christian missions. better than Samuel Zwemer the designation of Apostle to Islam." So wrote the great In view of the general hostility of Muslims mission historian, Kenneth Scott Latourette, toward Christianity and the difficulties in the introduction to J. Christy Wilson's involved in a place like Arabia, it was not biography of Zwemer, published in 1952… surprising that they could not find a mission agency that would sponsor them. So in Samuel Marinus Zwemer was born on April 1888, while still in school, they decided to 12, 1867, in the form a new agency, which they called the parsonage of the Arabian Mission, under which they could be Reformed church sent. Zwemer was heard to say, "If God in Vriesland, calls you and no board will send you, bore a Michigan. His hole through the board and go anyway" An parents had entrepreneurial spirit, coupled with immigrated to enormous faith, vision, and energy, America from the characterized Zwemer throughout his life. Netherlands, and Samuel was the In 1890, having finished his seminary thirteenth of their fifteen children. The education and being ordained, Zwemer Zwemers were a close-knit family, with sailed to the Middle East, where he joined deep religious convictions and moral values. Cantine in Beirut for the study of the Arabic All six of Samuel's sisters became language. Phelps stayed in the United States schoolteachers, and four of his brothers as treasurer and fundraiser of the mission. entered the Christian ministry. One of the From Beirut, Zwemer and Cantine went to brothers died in mission service in Arabia. Cairo, Egypt, where they joined Professor Lansing and laid plans for the exploration of Zwemer professed his personal faith in Jesus Arabia and nearby countries for mission Christ on March 9, 1884, and he soon openings. After extensive investigation they became active in the campus mission group settled on Basrah, sixty miles above the at Hope College, the school he attended in Persian Gulf on the combined waterways of HoIland, Michigan. In 1887, Robert Wilder the Tigris and Euphrates rivers. visited Hope College as representative of the Student Volunteer Movement, and Zwemer They worked in Basrah for responded to Wilder's appeal for six years, and then a happy missionaries. It was not until years later that event occurred in Zwemer learned that when he was still an Zwemer's life. He and infant, his mother had dedicated him to Cantine had been asked to missionary service. After completing his meet two young women undergraduate work at Hope College, missionaries who were Zwemer went to New Brunswick Seminary coming to Basrah from in New Jersey for theological studies. Like Australia. The Australian Hope College, New Brunswick was (and is) mission did not allow single ladies to see owned by the Reformed Church in America. male friends, but Zwemer managed to get a While at seminary, Zwemer joined with two job teaching them Arabic. One of the two other students, James Cantine and Philip T. women was Amy Wilkes, a trained nurse, Phelps, and a professor of Old Testament and she and Zwemer fell in love. In 1896, they were married at the British Consulate in Two daughters born to Samuel and Amy Baghdad. But marriage did not come succumbed to dysentery in July 1904. On cheaply for the tomb that marks Zwemer, because their graves on the his bride's mission “Mohammed’s mission, whatever island of Bahrain insisted that he else it may have been or done, was appear the words, reimburse them "Worthy is the Lamb for Amy's travel a blindfolding of Jesus, an eclipse to receive riches." expenses to the field. That led to of the Sun of righteousness by Zwemer was a the report that in powerful speaker as good Arab the moon of Mecca.” well as a writer. It fashion, Zwemer became known in had purchased his Zwemer, The Glory of the Cross, 42 church and mission wife. circles that Zwemer possessed gifts that enabled him to raise Some time later Zwemer and his wife money and recruit new workers. It was not moved to Bahrain, a British-held island in surprising, therefore, that in 1905, while the the Persian Gulf, where they set up a Zwemers were on furlough in America, mission station. In Bahrain, Zwemer Zwemer received two appointments, one to combined street preaching and literature serve as field secretary of the Reformed colportage work on behalf of the American Board of Foreign Missions, and the second Bible Society with simple medical care. to be the traveling representative for While still in America, Zwemer had done recruitment of the Student Volunteer some study of medicine and had worked as a Movement. He accepted them both. In the volunteer at a mission clinic in New York latter role, Zwemer worked closely with City. Now he had Amy, a nurse, to help Robert E. Speer, and the two of them him, and together they began to practice influenced many young men and women to rudimentary medicine. In 1892, Zwemer's go into overseas missionary service. younger brother, Peter, joined them in the mission and opened a substation in Muscat. In 1910, Zwemer took part in the great In 1894 the Arabian Mission was adopted by World Missionary Conference in Edinburgh, the board of the Reformed Church and Scotland. During the conference, plans were became one of their regular fields. made to begin a quarterly publication to be called The Moslem World. The journal first Zwemer wrote his first book in Bahrain. In appeared in January 1911, with Zwemer as the sweltering heat, he wrapped a towel the editor. Despite his enormous travel around his hand to keep the perspiration schedule, leadership in numerous from blotting the ink on the paper. The conferences, and many other involvements, book, Arabia: the Cradle of Islam, went Zwemer continued as editor without through four editions between 1900 and remuneration for thirty-seven years, and he 1912. The second book written in Bahrain never missed an issue. was Raymond Lull, First Missionary to Moslems, and this short missionary With good reason Speer once wrote about biography was translated and published in Zwemer, "In this century, not many men Arabic, Spanish, German, Chinese, and have lived who had the talent and drive of Dutch. Samuel Zwemer. He exercised a tremendous influence on the Christian Death touched the Arabian Mission as Peter. mission to Islam and on the advance of the Zwemer, Samuel's brother, died in 1898. church and the gospel worldwide." In the years that followed, Zwemer moved In 1929, Zwemer accepted the appointment back and forth from Egypt, where he taught to become professor of missions in at the Presbyterian Seminary, to the Persian Princeton Theological Seminary. He saw Gulf, where he spoke to Muslims and this as an opportunity to influence a promoted literature distribution and writing. continual stream of young men who were He traveled to the United States, where he entering the ministry at home and abroad spoke hundreds of times to student groups, and to challenge them to consider missions. churches, and missionary conferences. He He remained at Princeton until his went country by country across North retirement at the age of seventy-one. Amy, Africa, then to South Africa at the invitation who had shared so many of the burdens of of the Dutch Reformed Church of South his active life, died suddenly in 1937. A few Africa, where he spoke in English and Dutch years later his old colleague, James Cantine, to Christian congregations and in Arabic to introduced him to Margaret Clarke, and they gatherings of Muslims. He were married in 1940. went on to Indonesia, where he challenged Christians in Java and Sumatra to increase Throughout his lifetime Zwemer's theology their mission work among Muslims. Then remained biblical and conservative, in the he was in Baghdad for Calvinist tradition. a conference with He spoke and wrote missionaries from against liberal Arabia, Iran, and Iraq. theologies that He went to India, questioned the deity where he spoke at of Christ and the conferences from one importance of the side of the country to atonement. Over and the other. He made over he insisted that visits to China, where to be a missionary to there are millions of Muslims required a Muslims, and in strong Christology several Chinese cities and an overpowering he was invited to emphasis on the speak in mosques because of his knowledge unique work of Christ in the atonement and of Arabic and Islam. the resurrection. Zwemer was ready to travel anywhere After retiring from Princeton, Zwemer Muslims could be found. He was passionate taught courses at the Missionary Training about the importance of personal Institute of the Christian and Missionary evangelism, and he followed a familiar Alliance in Nyack, New York, and at pattern. He would address Muslims with the Biblical Seminary in New York City. By gospel by whatever available means, he that time, interest in missions was waning in would promote the publication and the mainline denominations, but among circulation of tracts, and he would challenge conservative and evangelical churches it was Christians to be more active in witnessing to gaining momentum. In his later years Muslims, particularly through Bibles and Zwemer was most often invited to churches other Christian literature.