IIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIW No. 525 fAM. S. AM Eft, . i tno Under The Southern Cross iiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiii^ A Sketch of Our Work in Brazil ^6~V . t ^ THE BOARD OF MISSIONS of the EPISCOPAL CHURCH 281 FOURTH AVENUE :: NEW YORK ARGENTINE EauATOK Under the Southern Cross THE CHURCH’S MISSION TO BRAZIL THE LAND The republic of Brazil is larger than the whole of the United States with the addi- tion of another Texas! No brief statement could ade- quately describe the character of the entire country, extending as it does from about five degrees north latitude to thirty-two degrees south latitude. In general, however, it may be said of the southern part of the repub- lic (and even Rio de Janeiro is well to the south) that the country is largely composed of great grassy plains rising to lofty table lands. The people are largely descendants of the original Spanish and Portuguese settlers, reinforced by immigration from Europe. Portuguese is the language of the country. The state of Rio Grande do Sul, where most of our work is concentrated at the present time, is larger than the state of New York. Immediately south of it lies Uruguay; immediately west, the Argentine Republic. It is in the same latitude as South Africa and South Australia. The government has just spent $35,000,000 on the harbor of Rio Grande. It has a population of 800,000 and a climate similar to that of our own Gulf States, though, of course, the seasons are reversed, our winter being their summer. Abundant streams — some of them large, navigable rivers — abound. The soil is wonderfully fertile. All the cereals and vegetables of our own country flourish there. It is a land of fruits and flowers. Little extensive cultivation of the soil is attempted, however. Indian corn and rice, the inevitable black bean and the valuable manioc root are the principal products. In the latitude of Rio de Janeiro, coffee is one of the great products and articles of export. The plains lend themselves especially to cattle-raising. The climate is so favorable and the grazing so good that great herds of cattle thrive without much care and at in- considerable expense. 8 CHURCH OF THE MEDIATOR. SANTA^MARIA THE BEGINNING In the autumn of 1889, two OP THE MISSION graduates of the Virginia Theo- logical Seminary were sent out under the auspices of the American Church Missionary Society to Southern Brazil. They were the Reverend Lucien Lee Kinsolving and the Reverend James W. Mor- ris. At that time little interest was felt in Latin America, and these young men were regarded as entering upon a desperate and rather quixotic undertaking. Within two months after their arrival the republic of Brazil was declared, the whole civil fabric reorganized, all religious disabilities removed, the Church separated from the state, and complete liberty of worship guaranteed. The missionaries began their work in the city of Porto Alegre, the capital of Rio Grande do Sul, the most south- ern state in the republic. They found the people ready to pay attention to their message because of a spirit of reli- gious inquiry and interest in the air. In 1891 the force was appreciably strengthened by the arrival of the Reverend William Cabell Brown and the Reverend John G. Meem, and by 1893 the three principal cities of this state — Rio Grande, the seaport, a town of 20,000, Pelotas, about forty miles distant, with 40,000 people, and Porto Alegre, having 75,000 inhabitants — were vigorously occupied. FIRST EPISCOPAL In 1893 Bishop Peterkin, of VISITATION West Virginia, at the request of the presiding bishop of the Church, made an episcopal visitation to the field. He or- dained four deacons, confirmed 140 persons, and gave the whole work a regular organization. It is, indeed, from this year that the Brazilian mission, as an organized body, should be dated. A few years later, at the request of our presiding bishop, the Anglican bishop of the Falkland Islands, Dr. Stirling, officially visited the mission, ad- vanced to the priesthood the deacons ordained by Bishop Peterkin and also confirmed many candidates. This united the mother and daughter Churches in Brazil. In 1905, at the request of the American Church Missionary Society, 5 the Board of Missions took over the 'work which the auxiliary society had supported so faithfully for sixteen years. It was not at this time on the same footing as the other missions undertaken by the Board, but was an in- dependent national Church, and for several years was under its own independent bishop, Lucien Lee Kinsolving. BISHOP In 1907, the council of the Brazdian KINSOLVING Church decided to ask the Church in the United States to accept the work in Brazil as one of its missions. The General Convention of October, 1907, meeting in Richmond, Virginia — Bishop Kinsolving's native state — very wisely agreed to do this; Bishop Kinsolving therefore resigned as a bishop of the Church in Brazil, af- ter more than eight years of ser- vice, and was elected by the same Convention as the first Missionary bishop of Southern Brazil. He still retains this title, although the whole republic, not only the single state of Rio Grande do Sul as formerly, is now the field of the American Church. Bishop Kinsolviiij^ PHASES OF THE WORK EVANGELISTIC Experience has shown that cur Church's ordered form of worship is particularly effective among Brazilians. Liturgical ser- vices, by vested clergy, in a well-arranged place of wor- ship, appeal to their sense of propriety, and give for them solemnity to the act of worship, and power to the Word preached and expounded. Fpv a considerable time service books, containing Morning and Evening Prayer, with selections from other parts of the liturgy, tolerably well translated, were, by ecclesiastical authority, put in use throughout the mission. Later, Dr. Brown, assisted by the young Brazilian presbyter, the Reverend A. V. Cabral, translated the whole Book of Common Prayer into Portu- 6 CHURCH OF THE SAVIOUR, RIO GRANDE DO SUL guese. This translation, through the generosity of the Bishop White Prayer Book Society of Philadelphia, and of Mr. James Pott, of New York, was published and put ‘into the hands of the people in 1899. Since then it has been in use in all the Brazilian congregations. In all twelve churches have been built. The Church of the Crucified, Bage, a beautiful Gothic structure with a seating capacity of 250, was consecrated on the Feast of the Epiphany, 1915. This church was built almost en- tirely by the offerings of the congregation, under the leadership of the Reverend Antonio J. L. Guimaraes. In April of the same year the Church of the Redeemer, Rio de Janeiro, was set apart for devotional purposes, it being im- practicable to consecrate it on account of an outstanding debt. For years a church in this strategic center has been sorely needed. At last, largely through local offerings, Rio has one of singular taste and beauty in a most desir- able locality. On the same lot is a building adequate for all present parish activities, and space sufficient for a resi- dence for the archdeacon. 7 INTERIOR OF CHURCH OF THE REDEEMER, RIO DE JANEIRO In Meyer, a suburb of Rio, the congregation of Trinity Church is growing rapidly in a building which is neither adequate nor appropriate. The people have paid $5,000 for a lot, and have in hand a building fund of some $2,500. In 1915 the scattered communicants at Cima da Serra — a wide country district under the care of the Reverend A. V. Cabral — purchased a building in Sao Francisco de Paula and endeavored to fit it up in churchly fashion. During the past five or six years a number of churches have been built with little or no help from outside sources. In some places houses or lots or both have been given by communicants; in others lots have been sold at one-half their actual value. In Jaguarao and in Sao Jose do Norte dwellings have been converted into attractive church buildings ; in Santa Helena a small country church has been built; in Sao Francisco de Paula de Cima de Serra a theatre was bought by the congregation and is being used as a church. The church at Don Pedrito has also been built within the last few years. 8 CHURCH OF THE REDEEMER, RIO DE JANEIRO In Rio de Janeiro there was initiated in 1916 a wonder- ful work of charity, the ‘'Assistencia de Santa Thereza’’, by Dr. Francisco de Castro and his wife. Dr. Castro, a layreader, has himself contributed over $11,000 to this work. Help is given to the poor, the sick, and to orphans. A kitchen is maintained, medicines and medical attention are given, and a creche is in operation for working mothers. During its first year the ‘'Assistencia’’ clothed, fed, and gave elementary, civic, and moral instruction to 156 child- ren. A Sunday-school is maintained, and the Church’s offices have been performed by the Reverend Dr. Meem. To sum up. Church life seems to be deepening all along the line and producing fruit. EDUCATIONAL Bishop Kinsolving has felt for some time that the great need of the Brazil mission was the development of the educational phase of the work, side by side with the evangelistic. Little had been done in that line except a school for both sexes known as ''Collegio Kinsolving” at Santa Anna do Livra- mento, and a small parochial school in Sao Gabriel, until 9 THE SOUTHERN CROSS SCHOOL, PORTO ALEGRE in 1912 the diocesan school for boys at Porto Alegre (Southern Cross School) was founded under the direc- tion of the Reverend William M. M. Thomas. The mod- ern Brazilian is so eager for education for his children, and so appreciative of North American methods of teach- ing, scholarship and discipline, that the success of this school was a foregone conclusion. With no adequate equipment, and in rented houses with no facilities, Mr. Thomas gathered a fine corps of teachers and an attend- ance of sixty boys, twenty-five of them boarding-pupils. With the aid of three scholarships all expenses were met and paid by Mr. Thomas, whom Bishop Kinsolving calls ‘‘a master of economics’^ and each month pupils had to be rejected for lack of room. So in the spring of 1915 Bishop Kinsolving made a venture of faith, secured a piece of land on which was a small house, and began to build a three- story school with accommodations for four masters, a matron and forty boys. The school site is almost ideal in one of the most attrac- tive suburbs of the city of Porto Alegre, commanding a picturesque view of both city and lake. The lot has a frontage on one street of 260 metres and on the side street of 130, and is separated from adjoining properties by a small stream. It is well-fenced and has on it a building, which with enlargement can be made into a suitable resi- dence for the headmaster. It has also some two thousand fruit trees, chiefly pears, plums, peaches and Japanese persimmons, which,* ripening during the holidays, yield a profit of about $1,000 a year. There are enough oranges and lemons for the use of the school. The school year for 1919 opened with an attendance of forty boarders and the same number of day scholars — that is the school was full. A staff of fifteen men, in- cluding student teachers, most of them communicants of the Church, is giving the best kind of instruction, including moral and religious. The establishment of the Southern Cross School at Porto Alegre marks a distinct advance in the Brazil mis- sion. Its influence will be increasingly felt as successive generations of boys go out to carry on in their homes the traditions and teachings of a Church school. Church teaching and instruction in the Bible form a part of the 11 STAFF OF SCHOOL curriculum, and daily religious exercises are held in the large schoolroom until a suitable chapel can be built. The intellectual and moral elements of the problem have been successfully solved ; there remains only the physical equip- ment. Surely there are those who will see to it that this — the only educational work of the Church under the South- ern Cross — is adequately sustained. THE STAFF Probably no foreign mission field has had so little re- inforcement from the home Church as has Brazil. There have never been more than four or five American clergy at one time engaged in the work ; no field so entirely sup- plies its own staflf. In his report for 1915-16, Bishop Kin- solving says: ‘‘Having had opportunity during the past year to study rather widely missionary methods, nowhere have I found any work so largely conducted by native help. Of our forty churches and mission stations, all of those which are in the state of Rio Grande do Sul, where our work was first begun, are in the care of national clergy “Of my staff, now numbering nineteen, all but four are native clergy, of whose faithfulness, loyalty and forbear- ance I would again make record with deep gratefulness.’^ Changes in the personnel of the staflf have been rare. During twelve years no recruits had been received from this country until in 1914 Mr. Marion T. Meadows joined the staflf of the diocesan school, but stayed only one year. In the same year the mission suffered a very serious loss in the consecration of Dr. Brown, one of the pioneers in the field, as bishop-coadjutor of Virginia — the first in- stance in the history of the American Church of the elec- tion of a missionary presbyter abroad to a diocesan epis- copate. It would be difficult to overestimate the value of Dr. Brown’s services, not only to our own mission in Brazil, but to the entire Christian movement in South America. The first accession to our staff from the home Church in recent years was the Reverend Franklin T. Osborn, in 1916, who has been assigned to duty in the Southern Cross School, in Porto Alegre, and has been able to take 13 over a part of the Reverend W. M. M. Thomas's efficient work as headmaster. With the gradual extension of the work over a wider territory it was thought wise to divide the district into three archdeaconries : Rio de Janeiro, to include that city and others within reach; Porto Alegre, which takes in, roughly speaking, the northern half of the state of Rio Grade do Sul ; Rio Grande, the southern half of the same state. Of the three archdeacons, two are native Brazilians. A full list of the native and American clergy, with their stations, may be found on the last page of this leaflet. A CLOSING WORD In closing the brief statement of the work of our Church farthest south, we are impressed by the fact that our people in Brazil are tremendously in earnest. Note the efforts of the scattered communicants in Cima da vSerra, and the congregation of the Church of the Redeemer, Rio de Janeiro, who in their desire for a worthy place of worship gave nearly $300 per communicant in one year. Every mission station does what it can for the support of its own clergyman. In July 1917 the church at Santa Maria decided to assume the full responsibility of all its current expenses, including the salary of the Reverend Joao B. B. da Cunha, the minister-in-charge. This parish was started about eighteen years ago, and has always given generously to- ward all Church objects. Five candidates for the ministry have come from the ranks of her men ; to-day there are six Sunday-schools with about three hundred children in attendance. Surely we ought to give all the help in our power to those who are so ready to help themselves. It is a cause for thankfulness that in all the years of our work in Brazil we have had no controversy with our Roman brethren. There has been no proselytizing, but the Roman Church has felt the impetus of public opinion and is no longer neglectful of her people. The great need of the Brazil mission to-day, in Bishop Kinsolving's opinion, is more schools. A notable begin- ning has been made without asking the Board of Missions for either equipment or rent. But much more needs to be 14 SETTING OUT ON A MISSIONARY JOURNEY done. The need for a girls’ school is as great as is that for a boys’ school. Given equipment, teachers could easily be found and a great work undertaken. In Brazil the evan- gelistic work has outrun the educational work. The time has come when they should go hand in hand to insure a healthy growth. Nowhere have we a more devoted body of native clergy. Add to this the demonstrated fidelity of countless laymen throughout a score of years in an environment saturated with a more than Athenian indifference to the Apostolic message, and we have proof of the Latin instinct for Catholic truth ‘‘as this Church hath received the same” and “the Faith once for all delivered to the saints”. Most interesting material on the various mission fields of the Church will be found in THE SPIRIT OF MISSIONS, the official publication of The Board of Missions, issued monthly. The articles are prepared by bishops, missionaries, and others, and are illustrated. $1.00 a year; single copies 10 cents. 15 THE WORK IN BRAZIL December, 1919 Bishop: Right Reverend Lucien Lee Kinsolving, S.T.D., LL.D., Caixa 174, Porto Alegre, Brazil Archdeacons: Rio de Janeiro: Rev. John G. Meem, D.D. Porto Alegre: Rev. Americo V. Cabral. Rio Grande: Rev. George Lepton Krischke. Bage Rev. A. J. L. Guimaraes Cima da Serra Rev. A. V. Cabral Dom Pedrito Rev. J. B. Leao Jagruarao Rev. N. Almeida Iiivraanento Rev. C. H. C. Sergei Meyer (Bio de Janiero) Rev. F. T. Osborn Montenegro Rev. A. M. Fraga Felotas Rev. Jose S. da Silva Porto Alegre Rev. W. M. M. Thomas Rev. A. V. Cabral Rev. E. A. Bohrer Rev. J. Mozart de Mello Rio de Janiero . Rev. John G. Meem, D.D. Caixa 763 Rev. Salani o Ferraz Bio dos Sinos Rev. I. O. Machado Bio Grande Rev. G. U. Krischke Sao Gabriel Rev. Julio A. Coelho Santa Helena and Florida Rev. H. Zschornack Sao Jose do Norte Rev. G. U. Krischke Santa Maria * Rev. J. B. B. da Cunha Sao Iieopoldo Rev. I. O. Machado Viaonao Rev. J. M. de Mello STATISTICS Clergy: American, 5; Brazilian, 13 18 Stations 51 Communicants 1,754 Boarding and Day Schools 2 Sunday-schools 30 Copies of this leaflet may he obtained from the Literature Department, Church Missions House, 281 Fourth Avenue, New York, by asking for No 523. 16 4 Ed. 2-20. 5M. Kl. PI.