Again, while the missionary zeal of the Liberian Church was, time and again, thwarted by hostilities among the tribes in whose borders mission work was carried on, there is abundant evidence that foundations were being laid. Thus when, in 1892, the tribes of the Cavalla region were notified by the Bishop that disturbances caused by them necessitated the discontinuance of mission work, the chiefs, with one accord, begged for a withdrawal of the notice, and that they be not denied the light of Christianity.
One of them is quoted: “We are looking to you, as the people that started leading us to the Great One, still to continue His message amongst us. But if you mean to leave us to remain in darkness, please let us know; for we do not think it right to seek it elsewhere until we hear and know the same from you, that you have already given us up. We close with the following—that we sincerely and earnestly need the preaching and teaching of the Word of God amongst us with more force and spirit than ever in other past times. We are sincerely and earnestly yours for whom God’s Son died too.
Signed, Teba Yue Hue, King.”
Many a white Church might envy such a witness to its labors.
In the year 1895, the efforts of the Church toward self-help and national entity had so far progressed as to give birth to a new organization—“The Board of Directors of the Protestant Episcopal Church Missionary Society of Liberia, for the conduct of the Business of God.” This organization was effected by the General Convocation of the Church of Liberia meeting in St. Mark’s Church, Harper, and has continued ever since with appropriate changes in name and in constitution.
Steadily the native Church grew—the children of early converts in the ranks, still more of the grandchildren. From these, the ordained ministry is now being recruited, teachers prepared, doctors taught, nurses trained, Christian mothers and fathers raised up to be called blessed of their children. The general level of life is surely and steadily being raised. It has produced not a few worthy to be held in memory. Not the least among them, as earnest of what the race is capable of, was the Rev. M. P. Keda Valentine, who died on July 11th, 1896, and of whom Bishop Penick, his former Bishop, on hearing of his death, wrote: “He was one of the foremost spirits who ended the forty years’ war between two factions of the Grebo tribe. He was foremost in Latin, Greek, Hebrew, music, athletics, courage, marksmanship, statesmanship, and Christian character amongst his fellows. Deeds of daring, self-sacrifice, patient endurance, forgiveness, and justness cluster about this man’s life as about few I have ever seen or read of.... For six years I was in touch with Keda Valentine as his Bishop; I, coming from the center of Christian culture and light; he, from the depths of heathen corruption and superstition; yet I cannot recall one solitary instance when this man, by word or deed, fell below the mark of lofty Christian manhood as we know it. No duty assigned was ever too hard, no promotion over him ever drew a word or look of protest, no echo of envy did I ever hear from his lips. I saw him sit amongst the kings and sages of his people, where no other young man had ever sat, and when I asked them why he was there, they answered, ‘True, he is very young, but God has put plenty of His Book in him, and he is fit to sit with us and make laws.’ Now he is gone to join the other brave, cultured, true spirits—Montgomery and Walters—three bright stars in that dark land’s firmament.”
Bishop Ferguson died on August 2, 1916, just one hundred years after the organization of the American Colonization Society, to which the Liberian Republic owes its existence. The Rev. Mr. Matthews furnishes the statement here quoted which contains the facts about the District just prior to the Bishop’s death: “When he was made Bishop, the Church had but ten clergy in the District; today we have 26, all colored. Then only 24 lay helpers; now we have 74. Then but 9 day-schools, with 284 pupils; now we have 25 schools with 1,094 pupils. From 5 boarding schools with 251 scholars, we have now grown to 20, with 596 boarders. The number of Sunday School scholars has increased over 2,000. The number of stations and churches has increased 150 per cent, and the communicant list has grown over 2,000. From being, in 1885, absolutely dependent for support on the home Church, the Liberians, in 1913, contributed nearly $7,000 toward self-support.”
We must not close the story of Bishop Ferguson’s devoted labors without a reference to his relation to the Republic. This relation was unique. The Bishop grew to be the chief citizen, the “grand old man” of the Republic. In his quite fifty years of service as teacher and Bishop, he had trained many of the rulers and legislators in whose hands the destiny of Liberia lay. These men knew him as man, as teacher, as Bishop. They knew his honor, his love for country and people, his wisdom, his unselfishness. They trusted him. He was their adviser. At crucial times he was called to address and to advise their Congress. The President felt that in him a wise counsellor was at hand, and he used him as the Bishop was willing to be used. Well did the Liberians say of him, with set purpose to abide by it: “Let us imitate the good example he has set us.”
Yet still the negro Church of Liberia, while proving itself capable of developing individual Christians of high character, did not seem prepared for full independence. Three years passed, during which time the matter of the Liberian Episcopate was discussed in all its bearings. There were strong arguments in favor of a negro Bishop, possibly with a white Archdeacon as his adviser; but finally it was deemed best by General Convention to appoint a white Bishop, and at its meeting in Detroit in October, 1919, the Rev. Walter J. Overs, a man of long experience in Africa, was elected Bishop of Liberia. Consecrated two months later, he at once left to assume his new duties.
But the Liberian Church was not to be left without a native Episcopate. The Rev. T. Momolu Gardiner, a native of the Vai tribe, and a priest of high Christian character, had long since given evidence of what the Negro can attain to under the training of the Church. The Liberians themselves had expressed an eager desire for a Bishop of their own race, and no one was more fitted to fulfil those desires than Mr. Gardiner. In October, 1920, therefore, he was elected by the House of Bishops as Suffragan Bishop for Liberia, and was consecrated on June 23d of the following year.