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On April 27, 1913, a national day of prayer, called for by the government of the Republic of China, was observed by Christian churches then in existence in that nation. Its purpose was to seek divine assistance for the problems besetting the new republic (following the Revolution of 1911), including its efforts at codifying a constitutional framework of government.
The Synod of the Reformed Presbyterian Church of America (RPCNA), which had been active in missionary efforts in China since at least the late 19th century, determined to offer its counsel to the government, particularly with respect to the duty of nations to honor the “King of kings, and Lord of lords” (Rev. 19:16), Jesus Christ.
A 55-page pamphlet was authored on behalf of the RPCNA by Rev. William John McKnight, and delivered to the government of China by Rev. John Knox Robb. An account of its delivery is given in the Christian Nation for April 8, 1914 by John W. Pritchard. Recently, McKnight’s rare work was uploaded to Log College Press.
The pamphlet begins by sending greetings and the warmest wishes for the success of the new government. It also assures its intended Chinese recipients that the RPCNA has petitioned the U.S. Congress for the repeal of the Chinese Exclusion Act, and desires to see any wrongs done to China by the U.S. properly remedied.
Sun Yat-sen had briefly served as President of the Republic of China in 1912 (McKnight quotes the words of Sun in the pamphlet); Yuan Shikai was the President in 1913-1914, when the RPCNA’s “Message to China” was authored and delivered. The unsettled status of draft versions of a Chinese constitution, among related matters, led to the call to Christian churches for a day of prayer, and to the RPCNA’s determination to reach out to China in this matter.
McKnight discusses at great length the flaws of the American constitution in omitting any homage to Jesus Christ. The RPCNA has long testified that it is the duty of nations to publicly and explicitly acknowledge the true God and to seek his assistance and blessing in accordance with the words of Ps. 2:10-12: “Be wise now therefore, O ye kings: be instructed, ye judges of the earth. Serve the LORD with fear, and rejoice with trembling. Kiss the Son, lest he be angry, and ye perish from the way, when his wrath is kindled but a little. Blessed are all they that put their trust in him.” McKnight tells the story of Alexander Hamilton who once quipped when asked why there was no mention of God in the U.S. Constitution, “We forgot.” He also quotes, among many other noted Americans theologians, Chauncey Lee, who said, “Let it, then, be received, as an axiom in politics; let it be engraven upon our hearts, as with the point of a diamond; that Religion is the only sure foundation of a free and happy government.”
The principles of free, just and pious civil government, and the RPCNA’s earnest desire to see them implemented in the newly-formed Republic of China, and to avoid the pitfalls of an atheistic government such as America adopted in 1789, constitute the heart of McKnight’s “Message to China.” The pamphlet both begins and ends with prayers and good wishes for the well-being of China, and an earnest desire for the new republic’s success and prosperity.
From the report by Robb published by Pritchard, we learn that a box containing hundreds of copies of the Message intended for each member of the legislature to read mysteriously disappeared (thousands more, we know from the 1913 RP Synod minutes, were intended to be delivered to RP missionaries in China). Yet, the Message was delivered to the government. However, history tells us that the Republic of China, although it was remarkable enough that it sought divine assistance through of day of prayer, did not ever promulgate a constitution that did as the Covenanters hoped — acknowledging submission to King Jesus. China’s 20th century history is overall a tremendously sad chapter, but the RPCNA and other denominations have never stopped praying for reformation in that great land. The 1913 RP “Message to China” stands as an enduring, if not well-known, testimony to lessons that should be applied by all nations on earth, as well as 21st century China. Read the full pamphlet here, and be encouraged for pray for China today, as well as our own nation.
