Martyrs of Australian Missions

March 20, 2009 – 9:17 pm

From my friends in the South Pacific at InFocus, an excellent group blog comprised of 5 bloggers from Australia that love Jesus and seek to proclaim his gospel.

Martyrs of Australian Missions
by Jason Harris

It has been said that the blood of the martyrs is the seed of the church. Most Christians are familiar with the great British and American missionary martyrs of previous centuries, but perhaps less familiar are the martyrs of Australian missions. The first Australian missionaries to plant their blood in the seedbed of the mission field were two sisters, Topsy and Nellie Saunders, and another young lady, Annie Gordon.

It was 1895 and the anti-foreigner sentiment in China that would eventually break out in the Boxer Rebellion was gathering momentum. On 1 August of that year, the “Vegetarian” rebels carried out an attack on a mission station where the Saunders sisters and Miss Gordon were working (Welch, Missionaries, Murder and Diplomacy in Late 19th Century China: A Case Study, 16).

Nellie and Topsy were woken by three men with trident spears who tipped their beds over and dragged them out. Nellie was stabbed immediately and collapsed at the door. Topsy was marched outside and surrounded by several more men. “Walk! Walk!” they shouted at her, “tell us where you have hidden gold!” “We have no gold,” she replied: “there is money in the bedroom. Go and take it.” Angry, one of the braves dug a spear into her. (Gittings, link)

Eleven missionaries were martyred that day. Among them, the three Australian missionaries…

Check out the rest of the post at InFocus: Martyrs of Australian Missions.

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