“At first he prevailed upon them to meet in a large apartment in the old Gentoo building, but in time the garrison resolved to subscribe to erect themselves a church, and the money which would have been thought by contractors a very inadequate sum has been so well husbanded, and the materials and work, in consequence of Mr. Schwartz’s knowledge of the country and its language, were procured so exceedingly cheap that a very handsome, lofty and roomy structure was raised out of it.”
At this point this fragment from the pen of Mr. Chambers comes to an abrupt close, but enough has been written to throw an interesting side light on the character and work of Mr. Schwartz at this period. The building referred to was duly completed as Christ’s Church, capable of holding from fifteen hundred to two thousand persons, with mission house and school adjoining, to complete which he gladly devoted the whole of his salary of £100, given to him by the government at Madras as chaplain to the garrison. Its dedication was on 18th May, 1766, a very impressive scene, when Schwartz, overflowing with thankfulness, in company with his good friends Col. and Mrs. Wood, acknowledged in prayer the goodness of God in bringing all this to pass. Some of the expressions of his earnest petition are still preserved. After the description from the memory of Mr. Chambers it is not difficult to imagine Schwartz standing reverently in this house of God for the first time, a crowd of Europeans and natives, especially the soldiers of the garrison, filling every seat. His prayer was:—
“Most gracious God, we humbly rejoice in the assurance of Thy holy word, that though Thou dwelledst not in temples made with hands, yet Thou delightest in the children of men, who as brethren meet together to confess their sins, to beg Thy Divine forgiveness, to implore Thy goodness and to praise Thy Holy Name.
“Be merciful therefore unto us and hear our prayer that we make before Thee in this place. As often as we from henceforth shall assemble here let Thy Spirit awaken our hearts to seek Thy face sincerely, without hypocrisy. As often as we shall hear Thy word, let us do it with an unfeigned intention to obey and keep it without exception. As often as Thy Holy Sacraments, which are means of entering into a covenant of love and obedience, are administered to this house, O be pleased to make them effectual to the salvation of our souls. And, finally, when strangers who do not know Thy name hear of all the glorious doctrines and methods of worshipping Thee preached in this house, incline, O mercifully incline, their hearts to renounce their abominable idolatry and to worship Thee, O God, in the name of Christ! In this manner make this a place where Thy name is glorified, Thy kingdom sought for, and Thy will duly performed....
“Frustrate all the machinations of the devil against this house, preserve it from all dangerous accidents, and let it long be what we from henceforth humbly call it, Christ’s Church.”
After this, with the consent of the Danish Mission and the Society for Promoting Christian Knowledge, he decided to make Trichinopoly his centre of work instead of Tranquebar.
CHAPTER VII.
WAYSIDE WORK.
The town of Trichinopoly, which for the next sixteen years was to be his new sphere, was the second capital of the Nabob of Arcot and his residence. It was here that in 1767 he consented to become chaplain to the English garrison on condition that at any time he might again give himself wholly to the mission.
Once more the air was filled with battle-cries, and Hyder Ali, the despot of Mysore, began to threaten the great provinces of Southern India whose rulers had made an alliance with the English for the common safety. A large army prepared to march against the invader and in one of the heathen temples at Trichinopoly, converted into a hospital, Schwartz preached to the troops, standing for a pulpit upon a heap of black polished stones. He then went on a missionary journey to see the brethren at Tranquebar. On the way he found plenty of opportunity for giving his Gospel message to processions and wayside pilgrims and especially at one place, Ammal-Savadi, where, attached to a palace, was a row of houses nearly a mile long built for the Brahmins. Here he gathered a large crowd unto whom he preached the Word of Life, expounding the parable of the Prodigal Son. One of the Brahmins, much impressed, applied to himself the character of the wandering son which caused Schwartz to exclaim: “O that they would arise and go to their Father!” After ten days with his old friends at Tranquebar, he returned, passing on his way a magnificent banyan tree, in the shade of which the merchants were busy in their booths. To them he spoke of the Supreme Being, the Fall, how Christ came to redeem us, and that now there is a way of salvation and a highway of holiness. They could not do otherwise than agree with his earnest reasoning. “It is so written,” they said, “but who can live thus? Who is able thus to eradicate his desires? We have it also on the palm leaves but it is impossible to keep it.” There appeared no active opposition to his declaration of the truth. He records as regards the way of salvation that he invariably and most justly represented it “by true repentance, faith in the Divine Saviour Jesus Christ and godliness springing from a true faith. Not a single heathen made the least disturbance, they listened in silence. Afterwards I addressed them separately and exhorted them to receive the saving doctrines of the Gospel.”