For eight weeks—from March 19 to May 12—Philippine Union College at Manila was host to a field school for workers from all over the far-flung lands of the Far Eastern Division. This school was conducted by a teaching team from the parent Seminary at Washington, D.C. It was the ninth such school held since 1948, when the first experiment was made to bring the Seminary right into an overseas division. The eight previous schools were held in Northern and Southern Europe, South and Inter-America, Southern Africa, and Southern Asia. Each of them has provided experiences by which successive schools have become more profitable. This can also be seen from the increased attendance. It was my privilege to take part in two earlier schools, each of which was attended by about 70 workers, while this last one was attended by 167 students, topping the enrollment of every other school held so far.
The teaching team was comprised of Walter Schubert, associate secretary of the General Conference Ministerial Association, who gave a strong course in Evangelistic Procedures and another in Pastoral Ministry; Arthur L. White, secretary of the Ellen G. White Publications, who in his course in Prophetic Guidance unfolded God's leadership in the Advent Movement; Irene Wakeham, who, besides serving as registrar, also taught a course in Voice and Diction. And, in the course in Archeology and the Bible, I presented the archeological evidence that provides background for the historical parts of the Old Testament and creates confidence in its veracity. I also acted as director of the school and was assisted by Reuben G. Manalaysay, president of Philippine Union College, and by
L. E. Smart, educational secretary of the Far Eastern Division. To these two men the school owes much of its success, because housing, feeding, and other detail work were efficiently and smoothly handled by them and their helpers in the dormitories, culinary department, library, and office. A. A. Alcaraz served as study supervisor and assisted in the reading of papers and tests, and Mrs. Esperanza Valdez was the secretary. I can truthfully say that I have never found a finer team of associates; all were fully determined to do everything possible to make the school a success, and God's Spirit was felt from the beginning to the end, resting upon this earnest group of workers.
The student group represented the whole Far Eastern Division, as can be seen from the list of countries and numbers of workers in attendance: Formosa Hong Kong
Indo-China Indonesia Japan
Korea
Total 167
The Philippines, where our work is strongest in membership, having a constituency of more than 50,000, naturally sent the largest delegation. However, the representations of other countries made our school truly international. It was a wonderful experience for all these men to live and study together for eight weeks, and many expressions of appreciation were heard from those who attended. Because of the political conditions in the Far East, some of our workers had considerable difficulty in obtaining travel documents, but in more than one instance the Lord's hand was seen in the working out of their problems.
The students of this school formed a good cross section of the working force of the Advent Movement in the Orient. There were presidents of mission fields; ordained and licensed ministers working as pastors and evangelists of large districts containing many churches; departmental secretaries; editors; teachers of colleges and academies; business managers of institutions; and physicians and dentists. Their backgrounds and past experiences were just as varied as their nationalities. There were men who had been in prison, and one who had been tortured severely during the last war, as well as the Japanese worker who was instrumental during the last days of the war in saving Philippine Union College from being destroyed by the military occupation forces. Practically everyone had seen the ravages of war, had heard the scream of falling bombs and the wails of the maimed or dying victims of modern warfare. All of them had a strong desire to save the lost among the teeming millions of the Orient, but also a keen sense of insufficiency for this stupendous task, and a burning urge to study earnestly and to learn, in order to become more useful and efficient.
Organization of the Glasswork
Because of the great number of students and the government regulations with regard to the size of classes, the whole student group was divided into three approximately equal sections. This forced every instructor to present his subject three times, resulting in heavy teaching loads. These, however, were cheerfully borne by all concerned. The daily program began with worship in the dormitories at 6:00 A.M. Four classes were conducted every morning from Monday through Friday. In addition to the classwork, a chapel hour was held each school day from 9:00 to 10:00 A.M. followed by prayer bands or testimony meetings. Supervised study was scheduled in the afternoons and evenings. Although the program was rigid and strenuous and came during the hottest season of the year, all entered into it wholeheartedly and willingly, and maintained an excellent spirit and discipline throughout the eight weeks.
In the Pastoral Ministry class, taught by Walter Schubert, consideration was given to the following points: the origin and objectives of the church; the divine calling and responsibilities of the pastor as a shepherd in accordance with the Bible and the Spirit of prophecy; the pastor's private and family life and his need for prayer and study; and the different facets of pastoral ethics. Special emphasis was given to the study of true worship in our church services, and considerable time was spent in discussion concerning pastoral visitation and the art of constructive counseling for solving problems and avoiding apostasies. Also the relation of the pastor to the conference and other organizations was discussed. This course undoubtedly will result in healthier churches, a greater spirituality, and a more efficient ministry, as well as a richer harmony and uniformity in our organizational system.
In the Evangelism class Pastor Schubert most enthusiastically presented the problems of evangelization in view of the urgency of the time in which we live. Soul winning, called a science by the messenger of the Lord, was handled as such in the class, while the key position of the Holy Spirit as the principal agent in soul winning was strongly emphasized. Much time was spent in studying how to approach certain religious groups in order to avoid raising unnecessary prejudices against our church. The problems and different aspects of evangelism were candidly discussed with an enthusiasm that gave to an the students of this course a film and irresistible determination to go out victoriously to win the battle of evangelism, and an ardent desire to bring more people into the truth. Several who have been laboring in other branches of our work were so inspired that they expressed a desire to change over to direct soul-winning endeavors.
Stepping into the class in Prophetic Guidance, conducted by Arthur White, a grandson of James and Ellen White, one could find an interesting discussion of the broad work done by Ellen White during her fruitful life of seventy years of service. It was pointed out that for every six years she devoted to service in the United States, she labored one year overseas. Visions were given her not only in America, but also in Switzerland, Germany, Norway, Sweden, England, Italy, France, Australia, and New Zealand. Thus the gift of prophecy, with its instruction given in the environments and circumstances of different lands, cannot be looked upon as largely confined to any one part of the world, but must be considered universal in its practical application of the messages bestowed to encourage, instruct, correct, and inform a worldwide church. The discussion then turned to the human-interest phase of Ellen White's life and work, as the class discussed her experience in the home and community. She was seen as a mother with her children in the home, busy with cooking, washing and ironing, sewing, gardening, and the receiving and entertaining of many visitors. In this way the operation of the prophetic gift in the
Seventh-day Adventist Church was illuminated from many angles, and every student felt that he had become personally acquainted with her and her work. Everyone was convinced that these studies were most beneficial to each worker.
In the chapel periods additional material was presented by the teachers and guest speakers.
Pastor White showed by many examples and stories how God has led His people through crises and perplexities by means of His chosen servant, Ellen White. Pastor Schubert gave two series of studies on the organization of the church and on the minister's private and public life. The writer showed in a series of lectures how the manuscript discoveries of the last hundred years have re-established, first, the authenticity of the text of the New Testament, and now, more recently, through the famous Dead Sea scrolls, the reliability of the Old Testament text.
Weekly round-table and question hours gave opportunities to discuss various problems. A Communion service, conducted on the afternoon of the last Sabbath, firmly knitted all hearts together. With it a praise service was conducted in which all participants expressed their gratitude to God in their own tongue. Twenty different languages were heard. This praise service emphasized the international character of our work and the marvelous unity in diversity existing in the Advent Movement.
The climax of the school came in simple but beautiful graduation exercises on the weekend of May 11 and 12. The consecration service was led by the president of the Northern Philippine Union Mission, W. J. Hackett. In the Sabbath morning service the division president, F. A. Mote, was the speaker. The commencement address was given by R. G. Manalaysay.
A few hours later the workers were returning to their respective fields, traveling by plane, ship, bus, or train, to meet new challenges. All were eager to return to their work in churches, institutions, or public evangelism, and to put into practice the things they had learned. The months and years to come will show, in souls won to the message and in a deeper consecration among workers and lay members alike, how much this Seminary Extension School has done for the Far Eastern Division.
