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India

Challenger
Missionaries Field Address Art & Ruth Morris #11 Ramanathan Street

Fwd. Agt/Development Director

D. Eugene Houpt
P.O. Box 215

Danville. IL 61834-0215
Home 217/442-6736
Office 217/446-1542

Kilpauk, Madras
India 600010

THE INDIA CHALLENGER is a quarterly publication of South India Church of Christ Mission

Volume 37

March, 1987

ART MORRIS REPORTS ON THE SPECIAL CHRISTMAS PROJECT

WE ARE SO HAPPY to thank all ofyou wonderful people who made the special Christmas program possible. Really, this was successful beyond our expectations, and it has changed the whole image of the churches in India. You have helped bring God's redeeming love, in a visual way, to those who know Jesus as well as those who do not know Him (Hindus, Muslims, etc.) The Christmas gifting of 1986 was equal to one of the big crusades we have had in times past in revitalizing and challenging the Indian
Church.

chicken. We bought plastic tumblers, ball point pens, hair oil in nice jars, combs, soap, hair ribbons, tooth brushes and tooth powder. For the older girls we bought mirrors, face powder, powder puffs and soap dishes. For both boys and girls we bought new thongs and some books. Needless to say, the wholesale shopkeeper had a wonderful season as well.

Art Morris surrounded by happy children who have just received their gifts.

Children being served their Christmas rneal on the special

banana leaf.
We were in a crisis in November on the Bibles The

All the Sunday School teachers now have their own Bibles, song books and lesson pictures. There is nothing to prevent them from going on and on to start more Sunday Schools. The students are singing songs and memorizing Bible verses as they have never done before. The Christmas dramas were especially meaningful, and throughout Tamil Nadu, Christmas was recognized
and celebrated. There were more stars in the windows of homes than have ever been seen before

Bible Society of India ran into trouble with the foreign exchange rules of the Government of India. Their offices were closed by force. Our problem was solved by the World Home Bible Society. They had a stock of Bibles in Delhi, so all is well that ends well. The only ones who suffered were the poor chickens which were eaten by all these hungry children. But what a blessed reward to see the happy faces of the
children and to hear their Bible verses.

as well as in most of the gas stations and the Indian

Government Banks. IT WAS JUST A

WONDERFUL SEASON!

The children loved their Christmas gifts, and especially the Christmas dinner with rice and

THANK YOU, DEAR FRIENDS, AND MAY GOD CONTINUE TO BLESS YOU! And certainly we in clude our thanks to the many precious children who took this as a special project. So many we were told brought their pennies, nickels and dimes until they

'I
Art Morris presenting gift to a little boy.

had a substantial amount. It all added up to help

make this tremendous project possible. We are beginning to plan now to have a finer Christmas program in 1987. We will again need your help. The children here are keeping their Bibles close beside them, so they can quickly memorize God's wonderful words. Perhaps next year we will be able to reach more people in other areas where we did not go this year. This is just another great way ofspread ing the Good News and building the church. At the same time so many back in the States are learning the joy of being involved in something that is truly
successful for the Lord.

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Our youngest Sunday School child

More happy children with their gifts.

Art Morris greeting one of the graduates of Southern Asia Christian College who is now actively teaching the word.

LAMPLIGHTERS
FOR INDIA
$10.00 monthly through 1987 will make you a member of the Lamplighter Club.

Your gift will provide an evangelist with:

One Bible

One Song Book

Teaching Material
Musical Instruments

Help these evangelists light lamps across India by sending your gift to:
SOUTH INDIA CHURCH OF CHRIST MISSION

(Art and Ruth Morris, Missionaries)

PO Box 215

Danville, IL 61834-0215

1,000 new Lamplighters are needed as each one goes out to win one and another, and another . . .

This is village evangelism. The Gospel Team boys, in white shirts, are always moving into new areas. They sing,
play instruments and preach. Their enthusiasm for the Gospel is catching.

These are village people who are eager to hear the Gospel
proclaimed.

DO YOU WANT A PROJECT?

Quite often we are asked to suggest a project that would be good for a children's group or Sunday School class. There are always needs in India! And the amount of money varies considerably, as you would expect, according to the project. We will suggest a few projects here with various amounts. Maybe one of these will fit your budget. Join the Lamplighter Club (full details elsewhere in this issue).
Sponsor a boy or girl in our homes$15.00 per
month.

WEDDING ANNIVERSARY FOR ART AND RUTH

Art and Ruth Morris celebrated their 40th wedding anniversary December 18. We failed to let you know this in earlier issues, but it isn't too late to send your greetings. If you want to send a greeting, mail it to
the Mission office. We will send them to India in a

registered packet to assure delivery.

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Sponsor a college student at $20 per month.

This will insure his education to the Bachelor

of Theology Accredited Degree.

Sponsor a bed in the leprosy hospital. $25.00 per month will cover all food, vitamins, operations, etc. Sponsor a crippled child in pre- and post operative care. Cost is $20.00 per month. Take one for as long as you wish. Sponsor a gospel team to evangelize an en tirely new area for six months. This would cost
$500.

Art and Ruth Morris.

Buy a motorized cycle for a preacher. We never get enough. Our immediate need is for 10 at
$500 each.

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Send your gift for any of the above to: P.O. Box 215,
Danville, IL 61834-0215. Be sure to indicate the project for which you are designating funds. If you give to the general fund, then we select the most urgent need at the time. Your gifts are so important. Thank you for considering ways you can help.
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India

Challenger
Missionaries Field Address Art & Ruth Morris )fll Ramanathan Street

Fwd. Agt/Development Director D. Eugene Houpt

P.O. Box 215

Danville, IL 61834-0215
Home 217/442-6736

Kilpauk, Madras
India 600010

Office 217/446-1542

THE INDIA CHALLENGER is a quarterly publication of South India Church of Christ Mission
Volume 37

June, 1987

Number 2

THE CHANGING FACE OF NEW INDIA

We want to dedicate this issue of The India

Challenger to all the wonderful friends who sponsor the needs of this Mission, and who make all of this work possible. We started working with the very poor and uneducated, and today many of these are now of the new middle class. It is this middle class who open many doors for the Gospel. In this group we find the young educated teachers, clerks and junior managers who are all coming into the Church. They work in Government service and in some of the many thousands of new companies in the Madras area. They often have modern amenities, such asT.V., re frigerators, motorcycles, and some do have cars. This core group of 20% of India is the new India, and
our new Mission field.

of drinking water. We need your special prayers and help to support this double program.

William Carey, the founder of the modern mis sionary movement and the one who opened the door of the Gospel to India, had a beautiful way of putting the missionary challenge. He said, "The land of India is a great Treasure Chest, but it is sunk deep in the ocean of sin and superstition. We missionaries are willing to daily dive deep into this dark ocean of sin and bring up precious souls for our Lord Jesus Christ. To make this possible, we must have rope
holders who will stand in the homeland and hold the

missionaries' hands in this great joint endeavor.

Then India will be a Christian land."

Now we have two fronts to work among. We still work among the poor and deprived village people, who have immense needs, especially now that we are
in the grips of a famine. This means that even drink

ing water in this hot, dehydrating country is at a premium. Crops are withering and dying out, cattle being sold and people are walking for miles for a pot

David Morse handing out Christmas gifts.

WHAT DOES IT MEAN TO BE EDUCATED?

In India, it means that the students are able to perceive that their gods bring no salvation to them,
and that they are caught on the treadmill of igno

WHAT IS THE BEST METHOD TO REACH THE EDUCATED?

We find the house churches is the best way, as most of the middle class will not attend any Church build

rance and superstition. They want to break out of the

blind fate of Karma, which leads to endless rebirths. The students are slowly breaking caste and inter

marrying on the basis of love and companionship.

We challenge the students with the new concept
that God is a God of love and that He cares for each

ing for fear of hurting their gods. They will attend a house meeting where they can find answers to their questions as to a loving and a caring God. This is true if the meeting is conducted by their friend, a family friend, or one who is their intellectual equal, or
business acquaintance. These young people, or middleclass people, are

one individually. It is the task of the missionaries and youth of India to release them from this prison of

darkness, which has kept them enthralled for the

past 4,000 years.

hungry to hear the teachings of the Bible.

We have workers by the tens, and soon will have them by the hundreds, who open their homes and
start a Church within their homes. Men and women

are freely witnessing and telling their neighbors

what the Lord has done for them. It is a very great

challenge, and the one we have opened our hearts to.

40t}i National Missionan' Convention

Sept. 20-33,1987
C<>i>k Coiivcnticm Center Meinpliis, I'eniiessee

THE C IIIlISTL\i\IlT o r Tin: iiEui: Ai\i>

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EVANGELISM ON THE MARCH IN ALL PLACES

NOVEMBER was the month of Sunday School

Evangelism. Each teacher was teaching about the

birth of Jesus and teaching new verses and present

ing plays and dramas. In just one church in Madras there were 12 young people won to Christ.
In DECEMBER the Maravar church had a great
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Convention, and over 150 souls were added to the kingdom. There were four new house churches. In May we are going to visit them and encourage them.
In JANUARY the mission compound churches

LATE NEWS!
Art and Ruth Morris will be at the
NACC. See them at Booth 409.

had special programs and over 100 were added.

FEBRUARY: The Fisherfold responded in great

numbers and over 640 accepted Christ. Many others are studying and learning, but not ready to accept
Christ and face the persecution.

MARCH: The Madras City churches moved into swift action and over 150 converts were baptized into
Christ. The new house churches are beginning to
bear fruit.

orphan or waif from nothing to High School gradu

ation. Thank you, dear sponsors, and God bless you, for you have reached out and lifted up a child that
Jesus loves.

APRIL: The Andhra churches responded tremen

dously, mainly because of the students in the Andhra Christian Training Center. These young students
took their new knowledge out to their homes and

families. It just brought a real change. Bro. T.B. Paul

and staff were thrilled beyond words.
MAY: The Maravar churches, under the leader

Now on June sixth, the Boy's Home school will start again, and 30 new ragged, dirty, and needy kids will join our Mission family. Many are from childabused homes, and suffer from diseases and mal nutrition. They need food, clothing, and love and friends. Please help us take this new set and make
them Christian leaders for the New India.

ship of Bro.Francis, are having their own Evangel

istic Crusade and are starting new house churches. Pray for this and watch for the results in the next issue. Also, the fourth Annual Church of Christ/Christian Church Convention is being held in faraway Meghalia. Some of our leaders are going and we will go if the Government gives us permits. JUNE: On June 6th, the 14th Annual Convention
of the Churches of Christ will meet at

FESTIVALS OF INDIA
Christmas is not celebrated as Americans cele brate it. Schools and Government leave is one day.

Good Friday is also a one day Holiday, and so is Easter, but since it is always on Sunday, it is not
counted as a Holiday.

Mother's Day, Valentines Day, and Halloween are not known at all except to the very few American
families in India.

Madrapakkam. This will be great as over 2,000 have sent in their reservations. Bro. Paul Raghu is the Coordinator of this Convention. The very best preachers of the churches and from all corners of
India will be here.

The big festival is Divali or Deepavali, which is

celebrated all over India. It is a National Holiday.

People light candles all around their homes and

shoot off firecrackers to scare the evil spirits away. It is at this time the Hindu children get new clothes and sweets. This is a big festival. Since it is a National Holiday, workers get three days' leave.
Since we live in South India and this is a Dravdian

JULY: Southern Asia Christian College, affiliated with Serampore University (the Bible College Ac crediting Association of India) opens its doors for its 20th year of bringing Bible teaching to the youth of
India.

land, school leave is granted for their big Hindu

festival of Pongal. The children get 10 days' leave for this, versus Christian Christmas of one day. This is the Harvest Festival to thank the goddesses and

spirits for the harvest. If it is a very good harvest

then the time is happy. If the rains failed, then it is sad, but it is always held. They honor the cow and worship it as this makes the crops to produce. This Pongal festival is held in January, just after the one day Christmas leave.

HIGHLIGHTS OF 1987
On March 14th, there were 17 graduates of the Bible College in Madras. They now have an accred ited degree and are capable and willing to go out and
win souls for the Lord. Since the Government of

India stopped new missionaries from coming for the

last 10 years, this shows how terribly important it is to have new Indian preachers. We knew this would come and planned on it, so

started SACC in 1967. Our graduates are now all

over India, preaching the Word. We have been ac credited for over seven years and have built a firm place in the Religious Life of India. On April 21st there were 24 graduates from the eight homes here in India. This is just another high light in the continuous step in preparing a new set of leaders for India. Now over 4000 boys and 1200 girls have been trained in our homes in the past 33 years. This may seem small to some but it is 10 to 12 years of hard work, love and care to bring the poor ragged

THANK YOU
Art and Ruth Morris wish to thank all of you who remembered their 40th wedding anniversary. Many greetings were received. We packaged them together and sent them to their address at Kody where they were able to enjoy them during a more leisurely time. It is always good to be remembered, and we thank
you for taking the time to show your love and
concern.

REACH OUT IN Lt7VE

Bible School Classes, Mission Groups, Individuals Please help the 22,000 children in our Bible Schools have a Happier
Christmas.

All Kills arc lax ili'ilui-tilili

$5.00 will provide 1. A Special Meal

2. A Bible

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3. A Song Book
4. A Toy
for One Child

Miiki-<'ht-cksciu( liiSdulh India

ChuH-h III' Christ Mi.sKii>n.

Si'iid idi-iiiKnutt'd l'<ir Christniiisl Kilt to;

SOUTH

JNIIIA

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CHRISTMAS IN INDIA
We will be having the Christmas in India project again this year. This will be the second year for this
great project. The first year was such a success that we want to give others a chance to be a part of it. Not only was the project such a material help, but it was a great evangelistic tool. There will be more about this
in future issues.

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India

Challenger
Missionaries Field Address Art & Ruth Morris #11 Ramanathan Street

Fwd. Agt/Development Director

D. Eugene Houpt
P.O. Box 215

Danville, IL 61834-0215
Home 217/442-6736 Office 217/446-1542

Kilpauk, Madras
India 600010

THE INDIA CHALLENGER is a quarterly publication of South India Church of Christ Mission

Volume 37

September, 1987

Number 3

LOOKING FURTHER AT THE NEW INDIA

by - Ruth Morris

problems they face, either now or in the future.

Do they want to change religions? Not at all! They do not know Jesus Christ and His saving love, so are happy as they are. No doubt within their religion one will find superstition, fear, an unceasing chain of being born again, higher and higher on their scale, until one day they go out of existence. Not a very loving religion, is it? Then we may think if they are so happy and have no need of the Christian religion, why bother. The only
answer to this is Jesus' promise that He is for all and all
must know him.

So for these young sophisticated students and young marrieds, what can we do to show them God's love? Our priorities should be first in our lives that we have enougi. love and know Jesus well enough that we can share that love with others. Also, as in H Tim. 2:15, "Study to show thyself approved of God. . . ." If we know our Scriptures, and if we can show the love of Jesus, the opportunity will arise. Tests of one's character and ability will be made. Sometimes one must go through
the fire but one's life will be watched and measured. Then

approaches follow.

Our walk with Jesus for this group must be visible and practical. Joy is sure to follow. Now how would one approach the poorest of the poor? In quite a different mannercompassionate and caring,

remembering the 5 loaves and 3 fishes. A starving man or woman cannot hear one's word, only see action. Often
quick action to save him from starvation will be noted.

For the middle class, we would propose and implement

Ruth Morris, author of the accompanying article, is deeply involved in the work of South India Church of Christ Mission. Dealing with the changes that are daily taking place in India is always quite a challenge to this
visionary lady.

house churches, where informal training and teaching could answer their searching questions. House churches
help bring the New Testament teaching closer to realization as we know the church is not the building, but
the heart and life of each Christian.

How would you react to the land of India today?

Progress is very visible, and we find different levels of prosperity. One can go to the very poorest of the poor or the most educated, prosperous Westernized Indian. These people would speak English, enjoy colored T.V. (although most of it would be in Hindu language) and T.V. cassettes can be rented from any street corner shop. Some of these would be from the Western T.V. serials; I have noticed Dynasty, James Bond, adventure stories and many others, all in English. However, their religion will still be the Hindu religion, of some branch. Religious festivals will play an important part in their lives. Arranged marriages, inferiority of women, bride burning and inequality of education are

FOUNDATION FUND
In our last December issue ofThe India Challenger we
introduced the plan to establish a Foundation Fund to assure the future financial support for the work in South India. This program has been slow getting off the ground. We desperately need the participation of at least 30 friends

of the Mission who are concerned about the support continuing long after they are no longer here in person. In the first article we listed the primary objectives of the
Foundation Fund. They are:

1.

Provide a way for the person of average or modest means to make a large gift to the work of the Mission over a period of months or even a few years (4,5,6,
years).

Enable the average person to accomplish something great with their smaller gifts or offerings. 3. Multiply, if possible by 3 to 5 times, a portion of each offering through the creation of a special fund for the
future.

2.

At the annual meeting of the trustees this past August, an update on this program was presented. We must have lO participants to get the program established. Thus far, we have only three. If any of you readers would have an interest in being a part of a really good project to assure the future financial stability of this important work for the Lord, please contact us for further details.

Here is another way you can be involed in the work on the fruitful fields of Inda! Our Indian preachers love to listen to good preaching, and many of them understand English very well. When we are able to get tapes of sermons, we make copies on our tape copier. Then the tapes are distributed among the preachers. If you would like to share some tapes of your services and your preacher's sermons, this gift would be welcome. Perhaps a class could take this as a project for a period of time, to supply the tape and make sure the copies are sent. Send the tapes to our Danville address. We will do the forwarding to
India.

CHRISTMAS IN INDIA

Art Morris is presenting a check to Gene Houpt, forwarding agent. This took place at the annual meeting of the trustees of South India Church of Christ Mission. Art and Ruth are the first participants in the endowment trust which is just getting started. We need many to share in this program to make sure there is funding for the work well into the next century.

Some of the children who will share in the special Christmas project. These are boys from the Madras Home.

SERMON TAPES DESIRED

There is still time for you to be a part of the special Christmas project. We are striving to make this an even greater event than the tremendously successful one of last year. As we reported, this special effort is not only a blessing to the ones who give and receive, but it is one of the best evangelistic tools we have found. This makes an excellent class project. Many use this instead of a gift ex change, and find it a tremendous blessing. Each $5.00 gift will provide a special meal, a Bible, a song book and a toy for one child. Send your gifts marked "Christmas Project" to South India Church of Christ Mission, P.O. Box 215, Danville, IL 61834. Even if you wait until December, your gifts will be valuable. We will have to advance funds in November from the general balance (which is always small). Funds received later will still be timely and helpful.

The new tape duplicator is always in use. Note our request for tapes of sermons.. Here they will he copied and distributed to many of our Indian preachers.

These are scavenger hogs. The ragpickers have to compete with these for their very survival. Many children of the ragpickers now are in our care and will share in the special Christmas project.

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More Children who will share in the special Christmas project

ART & RUTH BACK IN INDIA

Art and Ruth Morris left Memphis Sept. 23. They were required to be back in India by midnight, Sept. 25. We haven't established contact with them as yet, but we did have a message on the telephone machine from an Indian operator. We know from this that they are back on the field. Will give you all the news from them as we receive it.

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Ruth Morris speaking at one of the workshops at the National Missionary Convention. She was explaining how problems become challenges that lead to victories.

Art Morris delivering an address at the National Missionary Convention in Memphis. Sept. 22. He and Ruth left for India the next morning.

Some of our girls from the Girls' Home. Mrs. Ruth Morris,
director is in the back.

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Art Morris is presenting the annual publication of Southern Asia Christian College to the dean. Mr. P.V. John. The Bridge Builder always summarizes the college
year.

Howard Hughes, chairman of the board of trustees, is

making a presentation of lesson to Art and Ruth for use in Southern Asia Christian College. Howard has spent many
years developing these lessons. In this presentation there were four volumes of studies for new Christians as well as leadership training for Christians in India.

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