The change in the Armenian community, in the course of five or six years, had been very encouraging. At the beginning of that time, some were truly interested in the things of religion, and the missionaries had religious conversation with many. But by far the greater part then came for the purpose of general inquiry, or to see the philosophical apparatus, or hear a lecture on the sciences; and it was matter of joy, if mere human knowledge could be made the entering wedge to their minds for the knowledge which is divine. How marked the change! They now came in large numbers, drawn by the power of the truth of God alone, not to inquire about electricity, or galvanism, as before, but about the eternal destiny of the soul, and the way by which it might be saved. There had been, also, a favorable change in the general style of preaching at the capital; and among the people there was a growing disposition to compare every doctrine and practice with the Scriptures. This the vartabeds, or preachers, could not disregard. It was not an uncommon thing to hear of sermons on Repentance, the Sabbath, the Judgment-day, etc.; and sometimes the preachers were largely indebted for their materials to the publications of the mission. Indeed, one of the most respectable vartabeds in Constantinople made repeated applications to the missionaries to furnish mutter for his sermons. Instances of pungent convictions of sin became more common. Some who had been drunkards, gamblers, adulterers, and downright infidels, were thoroughly converted, and exhibited that humility, purity, spirituality, and Christian zeal, which are the fruits of the Spirit alone. The older converts, also, appeared to grow in the knowledge of Christ, and one striking characteristic was an active zeal for the salvation of others.
Vertanes was full of hope and activity. It is mentioned by Mr. Dwight, in his excellent "History of Christianity in Turkey," that a report reached Constantinople, in the spring of 1841, that a considerable number of Armenians in Nicomedia, members of the old Church, had become disaffected, and were about going over to the Jesuits; and that the Patriarch commissioned this same Vertanes to go thither with all speed, and endeavor to bring them back to their Mother Church. He was successful in the object of his visit; and while he heartily and faithfully obeyed the Patriarch, and endeavored to persuade men not to suffer themselves to fall into the snares of Rome, he also labored zealously to bring them to a sense of their sins against God, and to a hearty reception of Christ alone as the Saviour of their souls. His visit was very comforting and useful to the brethren in Nicomedia.
The intelligence received from Adabazar early in this year, was most cheering. An attempt had been made to raise a storm of persecution, and one of the brethren was thrown into prison, but he was soon liberated by a powerful friend, and afterwards the truth spread more rapidly. Meetings for prayer and reading the Scriptures were held every Sabbath, at which from twenty-five to fifty were present, and one of the priests seemed to have become obedient to the faith. No missionary had yet been among these brethren, and the issues from the press were almost the only instrumentality employed among them by the Holy Spirit. One year previously, it is believed, not a single soul could have been found among the four thousand inhabitants of Adabazar, who was not groping in the deepest spiritual darkness. Now, some forty or more were convinced of the errors of their Church, and ready to take the Bible as their only religious guide, of whom several appeared to be truly converted men, and even willing to lay down their lives for Christ. It was not until the autumn of 1841, that a missionary was able to visit them. Mr. Schneider, of Broosa, was then hailed with joy by all the evangelical brethren, and returned with the most delightful and cheering impressions. A spirit of inquiry had extended into many of the neighboring villages.
The Rev. George W. Wood1 was transferred to this mission from Singapore in 1842, and was associated with Mr. Hamlin in the Seminary. The Rev. Simeon H. Calhoun, for some time resident at Smyrna as agent of the American Bible Society, received now an appointment as a missionary of the Board; the Rev. Edwin E. Bliss, designated to the mountain Nestorians, having been refused a firman to go thither by the Turkish government, was associated with Mr. Johnston at Trebizond; and Mr. Schauffler devoted himself to the Jews. Mr. Homes had the special charge of the book distribution at Constantinople.
1 Afterwards one of the Corresponding Secretaries of the Board.
There being so little to impart peace to a really awakened conscience in either the Roman or the Oriental Churches, individuals were often found wandering to and fro, as in pagan India, vainly seeking for rest. One of the most noted cases of this kind was that of an Armenian. To pacify the clamors of conscience, he became an inmate of a monastery far in the interior, where he undertook to perform the most menial services for the monks. Failing to find peace in this, he penetrated into the depths of a wilderness, clothed himself in sackcloth, and lived on the coarsest fare, away from the abodes of man. Here also he was disappointed. Returning to Constantinople, he united himself to the papal Armenians, hoping in their communion to find the relief he sought. He became chief singer in one of the churches near the capital, and endeavored to derive comfort, but found nothing to impart peace in the strictest forms of papal worship. A friend now advised him to visit the American missionaries. He had heard of them only as heretics and enemies of the Christian faith, but was at length persuaded to accompany some friends to Mr. Hamlin's house. Taking a seat as near the door as possible, he listened in silence; then proposed some objections; but gradually became interested, and drew his chair nearer and nearer to his newly found teacher; until at length he seated himself on the floor, literally at the very feet of Mr. Hamlin, and there drank in, with mute astonishment, those divine truths which he had never heard before, but which revealed to him the only sure foundation for peace of mind. There was an instantaneous change in his whole character; and we hear of him twelve years afterwards, as a living witness of the truth, and a faithful laborer in the kingdom of Jesus Christ.1
1 Dwight's Christianity Revived in the East, p.118.
In October of this year, it was deemed advisable to suspend the preaching service at Constantinople for a few Sabbaths, in consequence of violent opposition on the part of some Armenians, formerly reckoned as brethren. This unexpected and painful change was owing to their forming an acquaintance with individuals who had imbibed the errors, which threaten the unity of the Episcopal Churches of England and America. Just before the outbreaking of this opposition, Mr. Dwight thus gives utterance to his feelings: "How wonderful are the ways of Providence in regard to the Armenians! In one way or another, men are continually brought from distant places to the capital, and here they become acquainted for the first time with the Gospel; and returning to their homes, they spread abroad that which they have seen and heard. There is something quite wonderful in the state of the Armenian mind at the present time." The persecuting spirit above noted was directed more especially towards Hohannes, and this induced him to go to the United States to prepare himself for preaching the Gospel.
In the early part of this year, the Armenian brethren met in a retired part of the hills adjacent to the capital, and there, after united prayer, agreed to send one of their own number, at their own expense, on a missionary tour among their countrymen in the interior of Asia Minor. Of their own accord they also agreed to set apart the first Tuesday in each month, for special prayer to God in behalf of their nation, and for his blessing on the means used for their spiritual illumination. Not unfrequently they remained after Mr. Dwight's preaching, to have a prayer meeting by themselves for the outpouring of the Holy Spirit; and if there was any one present at the meeting who was particularly anxious about his soul, they kept him with them, and talked and prayed with him. It is recorded also, that at one time as many as thirty Armenian men were present at the monthly concert for prayer, which was necessarily held in the middle of the day, and that some of them prayed as if they felt true longings of heart for the outpouring of the Holy Spirit.
About forty different works, and more than forty-four thousand volumes and tracts, were issued from the Smyrna depôt during the year 1842. Eight or ten booksellers at the capital were kept constantly supplied, and the products of the press were sent into almost every part of the interior.