ifP-, (\f '

.1/^
NEWSLETTER
MEWS. FROM THE OHURGHES
THE FIFTH CONVENTION Of the Mindanao
churches was held at Pigcavmyan in Co-
tabato Province. V/e attended and spoke
tvdce. The 4 day rain did not dampen
the spirit "of the convention entirely*
The attendance was good for this pion
eer area of the South vrhich has been
--Oii-aupied-iiiainly by_llusliiris. -(Even^up
until the 1920's, Moro or Muslim pir
ates raided Cebu from Mindanao.) Sun
day morning Bible School attendance in
the nev/ little church totled I50 and
classes v/ere held in English, Ilongo,
Cebuano, Ilocano and Tagalog languages.
There wore 5.Baptisms Sunday aftornocn*
Wo Spont.about half of our Christmas
"vacation" onroutc to and attending
this convention.
-oOo-
February third wo loavo for Bacolod
City on Nogros Island whoro wo have
beon asked to officiate in dedicating
a now chapol, Arcadio-;Solidum is tho
minister thoro and vjritos of tho pro-
gross of tho chapel construction. It
vras built entirely by volunteer labor
with most members helping in somo vray.
-oOo-
Januarj'- 17,
inmates of the provinci-
nl jail vrorc haptiaod-

ry iV
'i/
I-:'
iil
'V t
Vt
/:
h
I'd
hi'iu^jin^j th total afin-
^ ^ mat baptisms up to 120
durinig the past 6 months^
,^ch were given a copy of the Nbt
J^ment. One of the prisoners who was
Baptised was convicted as the hired
murderer in one of the most sensation
al murder" cases recorded in Cebu-the
slaying of a leading newspaper editor.
If stastistics mean anythingQyex-....QJiA
third of.the penitentiary papulation
has bhen^baptized. Pray for these
babes in Christ that confront so very>
very many ofstaoles and discouraging
factors.
NEWS OF ^ MISSION FAMILIES
During the recent Christmas season,
Leonard Thompson and Heather ,Ho.lIey/>
both students attending Davao Bible
Seminary from Madras, India, were
guests in our home. Both Leonard and
Heather spoke and sang at the Martiros
Street Church. Christmas eve, and
Christmas day, Leonard and I spoke in
tho Chiirch at Santandor on the south
ern-most tip of Cebu Island. Leonard's
bass solos were very enthusiastically
rccelvod by tho Filipino brethren. Wo
had mot Leonard and Heather while in
India somo time ago. It vras a pleas
ure to renew their acquaintance again.
Thoy are Anglo Indian, or Eurasian
both are quite talented.
-oOo-
This March BETTY YAEBROUGH will bo-
como Mrs. Bill Turner.
/ She and Bill hope to
sail to the Philippines
- in August and plan to
^ work with tho Carlsons
and Davisos in Cebu for
a while at least. They
vrould like later to enter an area whro
no missionaries are presently v/orking.
Additional living^lihk support will bo
needed,-aa-woll as. funds fox.-equipment _
and travel. Until May 28th, Betty and
Bill may bo addressed at Box 578>Mill-
igan CollogG, Tonn. Wo hero on tho
field arc oortainly looking forv/ard to
their arrival.
-oOo-
Just before Christmas, Don solemnized
his first Filipino v;odding. Don, Jr.
served as ring^boaror. All tho men
participating in tho service wore tho
Filipino formal shirt named tho Barong
Tagalog. Both tho brido and groom arc
Christian, and work as sohool toaoh-
ors on tho island of Loyto. Tho brido's
parents and family arc mombors of tho
Martiros Church of Christ.
A HOUSEWIFE'S PROBLEMS
Not thc-t a house wifo
hero has any more pro-
hicms hero than in the
States, hut thoy aro
somewhat diffGrontoPor
instance, one of_r^
pet pievos is foot
prints on_,thc walls.
Our homes hero arc sim
ply made hy nailing hoards on the out
side of the building frame. Nothing is
put on the inside hut a coat of paint
(if 3'-ou can afford it), and this pre
sents a wonderful world of lodges for
6 and 7 year old hoys to climb. The
more agilo child will he able to cir
cumnavigate the entire room and then
climb through the coiling lattices and
do another room without once having to
sot his usually dirty hare foot on the
floor. The top two foot of the inside
A/alls aro loft open in the form of lit-
/ tico work to lot the air ( and littlo
hoys) circulate more freely.
Wo have suporvisod
the translation of
..93iE-jaiiclyuscd
religious ti^aots
from English into'
Visayan. The trans
lation v/as done hy
a former student
of the Cohu Bible
Seminary. Unfortunately, funds will
not permit printing these now,although
thoy aro badly needed. Wo are filing
thorn away until some Christio.n philan
thropists help make printing possible.
Don still continues his program, show
ing religious and educational films in
the sliom district of Lkirtiros, in the
rural area of San Isidro, and in the
city jail.
As cholera (nicknamed ElTor hero)still
rages through the islands, wo received
the sad news that Brother Gorondio Sat
incaman, older of the Church of Christ
Nogros, fell victima great loss to
tho cause of Christ there,
TY-POUE MILLION PILIPINOS have no
Bibles. Only one in seven in this so
called Christian land have over ovmod
aniz^jiar-t of the Scriptures at all.
As you know, much of our attention
in rocont days has been given to tho
purchase and distribution of Bibles,
Now Testaments and portions(Acts, Luke
and John)
We preach, "More light v/ill be pro
vided the Philippines if you buy a Now
Testament and read it than if you buy
a candle and burn it." We refer to tho
burning of candles as a "meritorius
good v;ork" to -earn salvation that is
popularly practiced by tho pious souls
under tho influence of the Hispanic
culture.
1,600 attractively bound portions
tolling of the life of Christ (John &
Luke) and of tho early Church (Acts)
have been received from tho Philippine
Bible House in Manila and aro in the
hands of faithful servants of God
who are distributing them free to in
terested. persons.
-oOo-
Scriptures bought and being distributed
^ 110 V
'611 Now Testaments
1,600 Portions (Acts, Luke &John)
2 Concordances (for teachers)
1 Bible Dictionary ( "
-oOo-
Sunday morning Don participated in the
distributing of over 500 NewTostamonts
to the local police forces. Those Nov;
Testaments were given free by tho Cobu
Chapter of the American Bible Society.
Ho was instrumental in organizing this
group about a month ago. Jerry Lacson
a Cobu Bible Seminary professor was o-
loctod secretary of this nev/ chapter^
lUBCH & AFRII. 1962
NEWSLETTER
MEWS FROM THE CHURCHES
Perhaps the "best suimnary of oizr 10th
s of c!fii^3?i^
T/i^" he quote from a letter from one
of our pastorss ".00Perhaps I may also
iell you that I've been so refreshed
/spiritually as a result of the cpnven
^tion-.-I "wish we had conventions morerr"
often than once a year# It really does
Ir good to me inwardlyj renewing the spir
it and determination challanged with
those stiring messages#,Figures show
Ithat there were 220 registrationsj 24 '
Churches of Christ represented, and 16
baptisms and 6 letters of transfer#
-oOo-
QongraiuLationi,
iPedro
&
Bene !
14 years a^ Pedro Panoy came to the
mission as a young man seeking work# He
had only a few years schooling and was
hired as a yard boy# He was not with
out ambition, however, so with mission
encouragement went on to finish his ed
ucation--even thou^ it meant a grown
man* sitting in classes with children#
Mow, 14 years later he has finished his
grade school, high school and on March
29th received his 4 year Bachelor of
Ministerial Arts from the Cebu Bible
Seminary#
Althou^ Benedicta Beodoro re
ceived her Two Year Bible Teacher's
Training Certificate this year she will
be continuing, her training in the Sem
inary# She is an honor student,a val
uable choir member and we are glad not
to have to loose her yet#
MffS OT mssiOH TOMTT.nas
Larry CarlsonI a Marine Medical Corps
man'htatiohed on Okinawa, came home
this month for a two week furlou^#
Ray Carlson spen
" some 2 weeks tramp
ing over 52 kilome
ters visiting three
churches tucked a~
way in the hills of
Megros Occidental,
Five persons were
baptized during his
visit# Those small
congregations are cared for by "preach
ing elders" but are on the regular cir
cuit of the mission evangelist, Simon
Labrado#
(gave the commencement add
ress for the 10th Annual Commencement
of the Aparri Bible Seminary, TeauA-
year Diplomas and four 2-year Certifi-
cates were awarded# Preceding the
Commencement, Bon spoke-jfcwice for the
Aparri Seminary^Conference on Evangel-
ism# The day he was to return, winds at
the airport were so strong that planes
were unable to land so he was
to stay and speak another day,
NEEDS OF TBDB MISSION
We can't afford:^
ers with cars, b
big help to them
and prospective mem
a cheap but practice
this project is within reach of your
youth group or missionary circle#
no
preach-
e a
memby
^haps
Qonvention J^otes
J (The open-air ohapel vras beautifully
decorated by Mrs.Dulce Labrado (mission
secretary and Seminary teacher) with
palm fronds and her- lovely handmade ja-
per flowers. Predominate were the Sem
inary's colorsgreen and gold
s/ The Convention lasted days. Dur
ing this time we sat in service for 2^-
hours, listened to 25 halfhour(or long
er)se27mons and heard 13 scripture read
ings,
^ Each representing church was called
upon to give special niambers in song or
by instrument. The song services were
accompanied hy Ray Carlson on violin or
celloy Mrs. Carlson on the pianoy/ Dulce
on the portable organ, Sojelio Celis &
Rosita Najarro ( Seminary Students ) on
the olarine^t and flute,and several tak
ing t^lrns on the accordion. There
nq lack of musical talent, ^ ,
vgaMon mem-
begj, 288j^pti^_s7( since last conven-
tion~X and lQ^n OT7n_ their
church is on,
^Tseveral of our guest speakers, thou^
Filipino, had to speak in English as
their own dialect is not tinderstoodhgre*
^ Thou^ only 220 actually registered,
least 3SO differ^t personsJEdtfcended
the meetings. For the most part, chil-
dren were not registered but the cooks
can testify to their presence.
All in all, a ViitKY satisfying meetings
Eleve^..^'
in-an
e^^stimalrSd about 500 stood si
dawn to^^^en t^" ai 'jioi^
service waWiiiqdcas^d.-ovea:
die station, lie Marffre^St.Chiiroh of
Christ was well represented with some
30 members attending this early service
The service was held on the Cebu Normal
School play field.
-oOo-
er Sunrise Service,'*
J
rowd
bcal -ra-
CHRISTIANITY ?
A number of Filipino Catholics who fe,lt'
they should be penance for their sinsj
practiced flagellation yesterday, Theyj
went about the streets . in the heat of;
the-sun, faces masked, backs bleeding!
from gashes inflicted by means of whipsv
knives, bits 'of glass or nails,The cxiis/
ious ritual ends when the flagellants,)
followed by a huge crowd, take a dip in
the briney sea,
^^An oilman in the group started when,
he was l^ahd has been a _
f Ibg^r pr the past 60 yearn, ,g?ie re^
son behind the sacrificp? He answeredj
proudlyg"Ho roAscrL-ajL^ail, I^got use to^
it and I lika.-ijt>il " ^
Amiddle-aged man does his flogging ^
for medicinal purposes, "An intense al-^
lorgy on my am erupts if I do not flog-
myself every Good Friday," And he hasJ
done so for I4 years, j
Another flagellant relates of a)
dream siz years ago where he saw his
suffering self all beaten :up to lookIdsj
{flagellant best. The dreamer accepted:
this to bo a sign that he had been tap-'
ped from, above to bo a flagiellant.He isj
Inow on his second year, ;
Another newcomer is a young man whot
;had boon very sick once upon a time.Hisr
sister, in an act of groat concern and
*reckless piety, had committed him to a i
fla^llant if only he w;ould be healthy j
[again, (Manila iBulletin) ^
IgRACIE ? f
"Is it a miracle? This question ih-^
trigued the people of Cebu City and sub
urbs regarding the mystery of the"bleodf
ing and perspiring" image of our Lord!
Jesus on the one-foot crucifix of Feliz|^
Lao and his wife. Several persons \7h0f
visited the "miraculous" image wore re-)
questing bottles of oil mixed with thor
"blood and perspiration". Thoy say many<
{who had been suffering illnesses were 5
cured after, application of the "healing-
oil", . .. (ifenila Bulletin) }
Tho above articles copied from a local :
paper leave us to draw our own oonclu-
sions& -
Don R, Davis, Box 4I9 Cebu City, Philippines
JUL 1 9 1962
MAY & JIBE 1962
NEWSLETTER
mys FROM TEE CHORCHBS
Q?he church at Jaro, Leyte, has Recently
experienced a revival of spirit and has
asked the mission for help Ray Carl
son visited there and conducted 3 "bap
tisms o This small congregation has
been presented the opportunity of pur
chasing a small lot with a church build
ing on it froin a denominational group
about $400* feel that this is
an excellent opportxmity and pray that
funds will permit the mission " to give
assistance to the Jaro Church of Christ
for this project.
The Mission plans to send a trained
evangelist to the Jaro church once a
month to help with the church eldershipi
Round-trip plane fare from Cebu to Tac-
loban, Leyte, is $6,50 Prom Tacloban
an hour's bus ride will take you to
Jaro, Perhaps your group could help in
this project,
-oOo-
Three v/eeks ago the
mother of Jose and
Victoriana Palioto
died. To her child
ren she left a plot
of land near Asturias
which ^was^ her home,
"After conferring with
brothers and sisters, Jose hopes to do
nate this land to the church for a bur-
rial ground, . This is a very important
contribution. So often v/hen talking to
those interested in becoming Christians
we are aksed, "But where will'we be hur
ried?" Too few municipalities ovm their
graveyards. These grounds are mostly
owned by the Roman Catholic church and
arc closed to those of any other faith.
The Santahder Church of Christ donated
the first Christian burrial ground here
on Cebu, Now the United Church has one.
One at Asturias would be only the third
such ground on the whole island of Cebu,
NEWS OP MISSION FAMILIES
Botty and Bill Tumor will bo sailing
from the West Coast in August, The many
here who remember Betty will be looking
forwars to having her back and are anx
ious to meet her husband,
-oOo-
By way of a gift, the
Davis household men
agerie has been in
creased bj** two turk-
ies. They look for
ward to an All-Amer-
ican Thanksgiving!
-oOo-
Imogone Carlson has students from the
Seminary enrolled in her piano courses.
Each student practices ^ hour each day
on the upright piano in the Carlson's
front room. Ray and Imogene must have
long since developed some sort of men
tal earplugs against such as "Country
Gardens" played over 50 times a day.
TEE DORCUS SOCIETY of the MartiresChurcl
has for it's project (to raise funds to
help purchase the land the Church is on]
the making of stuffed dolls, and animals
to sell in the market at Christmas_time
The ladies are will
ingly giving their
time for this. We
have some patterns
to begin with, but
we would surely ap
preciate a few more,
If you have any yo'i
could send, please
air-mail them to the Dorcus Sooio"fcy,
Box 41> Cebu City, Philippines^
Forwarding agent for the Davisess
Mrs. Joyce Herndon
First Christian Church
Odon, Indiana
Dear Qhristian 3riends,
Our now school year has' started with all its involvements. Vacation months
hero in tho Philippines include April an \ May only.
During the first two weeks in May, Don and. I enjoyed a hit of a holiday.We
took a few picnics in tho mountains, enjoyed swimming in tho artosian!-wollfed
pools in Talisay and tried out a newly built miniature-golf course constructed
by an entorprizing citizon of Cobu. !Phis is tho first course made hero in Cebu
and it was an immediate success with young and old alike.
The last week in May the staff of tho Cebu Bible Seminary hold a teacher* s
and workers training institute (or seminar) in Giljungan, Begros Occidental.
Groups came from churches all over tho island and Don said that the meetings
were very well attended and tho people quite int'erested iii the lessons present
ed. Five members of the.;Seminary staff taught. Mr. and Mrs. Carlson were pre
vented from going by a last minute illness which hc^uitalizod
ITio staff members retiuned hot and wearytoting suitcases full of dirty
clothes, on the evening of the 31st. Tho next afternoon they were duo in Christ
ian Service Camp; Don, however, had come homo with an eye infection and took
an extra day at home to have it treated. He arrived at camp a day late.
The Christian Service Camp was hold in the mountains on the groimds of the
XMCA "Camp Six". The facilities th6re were somewhat sinilar to camps in the
States, thou^ ofcourse Lore primitive. Sqme 35.
the week-of ,camp which also served as an oriontstibn"~week3ror the Seminary stu
dents > who came early for that purpose. Each evening the campers participated
in holding evangelistic meetings to which pe^^lo living nearby came. Tho miss
ion had had some previous contacirj^j^E tfiesb*'-3^e^lc throu^ an evangelist and
on the last day of camp there w^e(^6^aptisms. Now two of our Seminary trained
young people conduct services for ~tii6 hew little congregation each Sunday after
noon in the home of one of the members. Three more have been baptized there.
School be^n again on Juno 11th. So far the enrollment of tho Cobu Biblo
Seminary has reached 22 undergraduates, 5 graduates and 1 special student. Don
is teaching 5 graduate courses^ Biblical Theology, Polity and Church Government
Ecumonics, Church and Lav/ and Thesis Writing. Ho teaches in English. Here iu
tho Philippines all education past the sixth grade is entirely in English.
Our own throe boys are also busy again in school. Mark (7) is in tho third
grade, Don,' Jr. (6) is in the second grade and Wayne (4) ds in Kinder^rden. The
two older boys spend 30 hours a week in classes and have at least an hour* s home
work each school nig^t. They attend tho "Cebu American School" which teaches
tho Calvert System. The education is fine but tho tuition most dear. Included
in their classmates are Spanish, Italian,. English, Filipino, American and Eur
asian children.
This coming August wo will be starting;
ported by our home congregationss Madisoh"VQ[lT6 "Christian Churcn5""fificinnat^,
Ohio, and the First Christian Church, Sapulpa, Olsiahona. They have heon faith
fully behind us all this time and wo are sincerely ^atefull to them, as well ss
to all you who have helped us during this time.
In Christian fellowship,
Don and Cleanor Davis
Donald R. Davis
CE6U CHRISTIAN MISSION
p. O. Box 41 )jj
Cebu City, Philippines ^
FOVMBER 1962
NEWSLETTER
mis PROM THE CHDRCHES
The Martires St, Church of Christ has
recently received a face-lifting both
inside and out. It is quite an improve
ment, They will be having an evangel
istic meeting lasting from Nov. 925.
A Much planning is be
ing done in prepara-
tion.-- Kiere- will be
special classes in
^ js the afternoon for tie
(n /T\ children getting out
LLIHH LLI school across the
} J, I ! L street.
-oOo-
At Rozas, Surigao, one-half hectare
of land (about one acre) has been pur
chased and the brethren there are ready
to build. They are now gathering mater
ials and have purchased saws so that
they can cut the timber.
-oOo-
The Word of God is
being spread in a new
area as Evangelist
Solidum has started a
new preaching point^
near Bacolod City, on
tho_islajid _of Negros,
-oOo-
The Dadiangas church in the province
of Cotobato is still continuing in its
building program. As soon as the cur
rent rice crop is harvested, they are
hoping that the brethren will be able
to help more with the building and the
financing,
-oOo
Please pray for these small congrega
tions as they strive to grow in Christ
ian brotherhood.
TOS OP TEE MISSION FAMILIES
AT lAST! The Turners have arrived^. The
froighter docked in Manila Friday night
Oct. 26, After a full week of cloaring
their belongings throu^ customs and
arranging for their transhipment, the
Turners arrived in Cebu City, Saturday
Nov. 3rd, just in time for cottage pray^
or mooting being held in- -the Lavish
home. With one hour's
notice of their arri-
val, Don rounded up rr- ,
the students who wero
on Campus and hurried V
out to tho airport to
moot thom, Tho faith-I
ful few who regularly
attend the prayer
meetings wore privilogcd to he among
tho first to greet Betty and Bill,
Tho follov/ing evening ahout 85 people
joined in the reception for thom on the
Davis's fromt lavm. The program con
sisted of throe parts. First a greet
ing and devotional, then rofroshmonts
of many many Filipino dolioaciosthen
a "Barrio Fiesta" of many songs, skits
and special mumbors.
Now tho turners arc busy at tho joT
of unpacking their belongings which ar
rived by boat today, Thosp have boon
packed away since last Juno and wo know
they will bo cagor to sso tho many wed
ding gifts that had to bo packed so ve
ry soon after they woro rccoivod.
-oOo-
Somo ono or somothing made av/ay with
the Davis's Thanksgiving Dinnerthe 2
turkios which wore being fattoncdo Tho
cat disappeared at tho same timcj Tho
turkios wore ozpondablo, hut the cat
has boon roplacod as tho rats began to
gnaw holes in Bloanor's Tuppor\7arc!
THIEF./
Last week Don cau^t a little theif in
the act of stealing a duplicate of the
radio which was stolen from us last
year* 14 7^* ol4 Ernesto and his young
er "brother Ricardo entered what they
thou^t was an empty house after they
saw Carmen and Eleanor leave the house
in the morning* .
First they enjoyed
eating a pineapple up-
side-down cake which
was sitting on top of
the refridgerator.
Then they sauntered up
the stairs to see what
mi^t "be found* The
younger hoy ' i;ook a
fancy to Mark's and
Ronnie's' cowhoy guns and holsters,
while the older hoy went ahout more
serious business* Just as he entered
our hedroom, Don happened to look tip
from his desk in the office just ac-
cross the hall* Don rushed out and
grahhed hiT just a is he was reaching to
ward the radio* The younger hoy raced
down the stairs, dropping the guns on
uhe way. took Ernesto to
the police station
and fo\ind that he al
ready had a record .
there of past thefts*
This time the police
said they had to re
tain him as a repeat
ed offender*
is an every-day oc-
case of a young "boy
in the city with nothing to do "but get
into trouble. Only Ernesto is perhaps
more fortunate as he has a mothor and
a father to plead his case and ho may
he paroled in their care* Public ed
ucation here contains only 6 years of
grade school and 4 yea3?s cf hi^ school.
However, most of the hi^ schools are
privately run and charge tuition which
few can afford to pay, so there are
many like Ernesto and Ricardo who s-re
out of school at 12 years and have no
thing to do until t^ey ar4 old enough
and large enou^ to get a job. The av
erage 12 year old Filipino boy is about
the size of an 8 year old American boy*
Ernesto's case
curance herethe
"^rmrQhair Strategist"
Too many of those who say they believe
in independent missionaries are much
too literal., It is "bad enough to con-
tri'bute support through a wasteful and
questionable organization, but worse
is to condemn, without doing anything an
a positive way to support indepen
dent missionaries. Why "let George do
it" then criticise his method?
Doesn't it seem hypocritical to
argue for an independent missionary
program^ then not support it? It re
minds one of the "aaan-chair sta?ategisth
who won't do anything themselves, and
don't like the way anyone else does
something.
"Words are cheap." How empty is
our praise when we congratulate miss
ionaries and recruits to the mission
field, then will not support them pro
perly.
Do we realize that many of the mis-:-
sionaries have spent one to thhee y08'3?s
seeking support before they could go?
Do we know if they have onou^ support?
Have wo educated others as to those
needs and responsibilities? Have we
done anything to put meaning into our
words?:.
Let's be more than just an "armohair
strategist" in the mngdom of our lord
as we evangelize the world*
^Frank Watson
"Why should we give money to save
the heathen abroad when there are hea
then oji our own country to save?
Why should I give money-to"those in
other parts of this country when there
are needy ones in ny own state?
Why should I give money for those
in other parts of the atate when there
are needy ones in my own- town?
should I give to the poor in
the town when ny own church needs the
money?
Why should I give to church when my
own family wants it?
Why ^ould I give to my family what
I want for. myself?
WHY?^Because I am a Christian, not
a teaiaion." (copied)
Field addresss P.O.Box 41> Celiu City, Philippines