THE BEGINNING OF THE ADVENTIST WORK IN INDIA AND

BANGLADESH.

By Sunil Sarkar, November 25, 2015

The Adventist church history of India is very helpful to build true

philosophy in the minds of the Adventist church workers in India.

Valuable lessons need to be learned from the experiences of the Adventist

pioneers by following their footsteps for the expandability of the church. I

would like to start the history by saying that the greatest strength behind

the establishment of the Adventist churches in India and in other

neighboring countries like Bangladesh, Sir-Lanka, Pakistan and Burma was

nothing, but, 'God's love' which perused and moved the early pioneers to

save many souls for the second coming of Jesus Christ. And therefore, with

the strength and power of the Holy Spirit they were able to start the

Adventist Church of India.

After many regular writings of the General Conference leaders like

S.N. Huskell; J.O Corliss and G.C. Tenny in the Review and Herald about

the Indian religion, politics, culture and practices to draw attention of the

workers for India; it was Elder G. C. Tenny being the first General
Conference worker to travel from Adelaide, Melbourne to India on

Wednesday, October 12, 1892.

First Elder G.C. Tenny had spent few thoughtful days with Mrs. Ellen

G. White and A.G. Daniells; and then bored a steamship named Massilia

to Colombo to travel to Calcutta, India for the first time in Adventist

church history of India (1). He had first reached to Colombo, Sri-Lanka;

and then after passing many thunders, storms and cyclones in Bay of

Bengal via Madras to Calcutta. Elder G.C. Tenny had landed in Madras for

two hours and then traveled to Calcutta; where he had reached on

Thursday November 3, 1892. Elder G.C. Tenny claimed to be strange in

strangest land all alone with the dependence on God (2).

In his first trip Brother G.C. Tenny had made connections with some

of the Methodist missionaries like Dr. Sheldon who worked in Bindrabon;

Mr. and Mrs. Newsham; Mr. and Mrs. Scott; and also went to Cawnpore to

meet Mr. W.A. Mansell the Methodist College principal. And during this

travel to Cawnpore, he stayed with Mr. Cummin the station master at East

India Railway station in Cawnpore for few weeks. And then Elder Tenney

had traveled for the General Conference session via Europe to America (3).
And this is how this new Adventist field of India was opened to the

Adventist evangelists of the world.

Elder G. C. Tenny

After the General Conference sessions; initially few literature

evangelists were sent who were mostly Australians. First, an American

literature evangelist named William Lenker and an Australian literature

evangelist named A. T. Strope was sent to India to sell books. They had

landed at Madras on November 23, 1993 travelling by ship from

Southampton, England (4). Then Lenker and Strope had travelled to

Calcutta and Bombay; and after canvassing for four months, in the month

of April, 1894, they had requested 20 more literature evangelists to the

Foreign Mission Board of the General Conference (5). And then before

January 1895, three more Adventist literature evangelists from Australia

were sent to India. From these five literature evangelists three were

appointed in Madras, Mysore, and Hyderabad; and two in Calcutta (6).

During this time William Lenker had written for the Adventist

church workers about the success story of William Carey who had landed

in India on November, 11, 1793; had taught agriculture and industries to

local people; translated Bengali Bible; made Bengali, Sanskrit and English

dictionaries; and had built a mission at Serampore which was 13 miles

away from Calcutta. He explained how Carrys first convert Krishna Das

Pal when applied to medical missionary Dr. Thomas was converted to

Christianity and after whom 300 souls were converted (7). Since then time
to time Brother William Lenker had been calling the workers to work in

India describing the great scope of literature evangelism in India.

In the mid of 1895 Elder D. A. Robinson was appointed to be the first

superintendent for the field of India. In the month of October, 1895 Elder

D.A. Robinson and his wife, their little girl Ethel, Ellery Robinson and Miss.

M.M. Taylor had travelled together from London to Calcutta by ship and

started to build a mission station (8). Throughout 1896 Elder D.A.

Robinson, Mrs. Robinson, Brother Ellary Robinson and Miss Taylor had

been learning Bengali language and canvassing in the nearby fields of

Calcutta.

In the beginning of 1897 when Dr. and Mrs. Place had joined them

with medical missionary work, it made many local Bengali people to be

interested in the Adventist truth as 20 to 30 had joined the Bible readings

every Saturdays and Wednesdays and 200 people used to gather in their

meeting hall for every Sunday evening meetings (9).

In the month of June,1897 after reading a distributed tract on baptism

by immersion an educated Bengali man from a high-class Brahman family

who was previously converted by the Baptist missionaries to Church of

England, had come in Elder D. A. Robinson's compound gate to meet him.

But the Hindu gate keeper had told him that Adventists are different from

Christians and they observe Saturday Sabbath as their worshiping day.

So, first time the educated Indian man had left without meeting Elder

D.A. Robinson. But after a month the man had come back, met Elder D.A.

Robinson and asked questions about the Sabbath and Sunday observation.

Elder D. A. Robinson had answered his questions and given him some

readings and that is how he began to keep the Sabbath with them. Since

then, the Indian man and his family had started to live in the mission

compound and assist the workers and the children.

During this time his three daughters had started to learn English with

Miss. Taylor and his two sons had studied with Dr. Place to get experiences

as nurses. Initially Elder D. A. Robinson had furnished these local Bengali

families to preach the gospel among the local people in India. The man's

wife was a good Bengali teacher who took care of the compound children

when most of them used to go for literature evangelism, conducting Bible

studies and worship meetings (10).

 The first Bengali Brahmin man who had accepted Adventist truth and his

family members (10)

Initially the missionaries had drawn the attention of the local

Bengalis through literature evangelism; then as they had started the

medical work and got the favor of the people, they too had started to

conduct the Bible studies and worship meetings in different homes and

venues. Brother Ellery Robinson was very successful in canvassing and

managing the literature work for the field. Through canvassing he was able

to make double money than his monthly salary.

By the end of 1897, Brother Ellery Robinson with other workers had

begun a new publishing enterprise and managed to work with over eleven

hundred subscribers for the papers they used to distribute. And then as

Elder W. A. Spicer had arrived at Calcutta via London in the month of

March, 1898, the literature work expanded even farther. This time they had

found a local publisher to produce Oriental Watchman papers to circulate

throughout India with the subscription cost of one rupee for eight months

from May to December of 1898.

Because of the great scope of evangelism in India, Elder D. A.

Robinson had requested six more canvassers and urged the donation to

Adventist world to produce the papers for ten thousands subscribers. He

also invited self-supported workers who would like to work in India in

spite all the hot weather to spread the gospel in the most truth needy field.
 Elder D. A. Robinson

All the workers that had been working at Calcutta endured all the

sufferings and heat to spread the Adventist truth in the fields of India.

Most of these workers were from the cold countries and it was hard for

them to tolerate the summer heat of Calcutta; and yet they had sacrificed

their lives to share the love of Christ to local people of India. Dr. Place and
Miss Tylor was from northern New York; Brother W.A. Spicer was from

Minnesota; Brother Ellery Robinson and his wife was from Massachusetts;

Sister Place and Sister Spicer were from Michigan; Sister D.A. Robinson

was from Vermont and Elder D.A Robinson was from the frozen region of

Carleton Country, New Brunswick (11). In spite of all the heat, plague,

famine, risks, problems and language barriers these faithful missionaries

had labored and served the field of India.

In the middle of 1897 when Dr. Place and Mrs. Place had come to this

newly made Head Quarter at Bow Bazar, Calcutta to unite medical mission

work with literature evangelism and preaching with Elder D. A. Robinson.

The Calcutta English speaking church woes the credit of starting the

medical mission work carried out the truth in the nearby cities in which

Deacon, Mookerjee and Shannon families were the early members (12).

In the beginning of 1898 Dr. Place took the medical work to a better

place at No. 7 Esplanade East, Wellesly st, 51 Park Street where they had

rented the house for sixty-eight dollars a month and Elder D.A. Robinson

requested for another skilled women physician to carry out the work they

had been doing at Bow Bazar. In the month of August, 1898 they had
started a girls school in a village about twenty miles from Calcutta under

Miss Burrus as she had two native teachers to assist her in her work. And

during this time they had about fifty pupils to take care. And the public

meeting Elder D.A. Robinson had been holding among the English

speaking people in Corinthian Theatre for a year was transferred to

Dalhousie Institute which was much better place to conduct public

meetings (13).

In the middle of 1898 after the death of Elder D. A. Robinson; Mrs.

Robinson, Dr and Mrs. Place, Elder and Mrs Ellery Robinson, Elder and

Mrs. W.A. Spicer had left the field of Calcutta. In the beginning of 1899

W.W. Quantock a graduate of Battle Creek College was called by Foreign

Mission Board to carry on the work in India as the secretary and treasurer

of International tract society at Calcutta that was carrying on by the

literature evangelists like brother Yeoman and Richardson under various

disadvantages (14).

In the middle of 1899 Dr. and Mrs. Ingersoll had replaced Dr. and

Mrs. Place when they had moved the medical mission work to 50 Park

Street at Brother L. G. Mookrjees place where Brother L.G. Mookerjee had

been in charge of the treatment rooms for the men and continued to work

there for six years till he and his wife Grace Madeline Kellogg Mookrjee

went to work in the new field at Gopalgonj, East Bengal to start with a

dispensary in the beginning of 1906.

Sister Green, Sister Whites, Brother Edwards and Brother Ellery

Robinson were among those others who worked for the treatment rooms

with Brother L.G. Mookrjee, Brother Nabo Mookerjee and some members

of Shanon family since 1897 (15). During 1900 there were very few mission

workers at Calcutta and the local church members had helped the field

along with few missionaries.

After a year in the beginning of 1901, Elder W.A. Spicer had travelled

back to Calcutta for the second time and described the anxiety of the work

in India and called for the self-supported and mission workers for India.

And in the month of May, 1901 the Foreign Mission Board had approved

five more missionaries for India like Professor and Mrs J. L. Shaw; the

father of sister Shaw Elder G.K. Owen the Bible teacher; Misses Annie

Knight and Dona Humphrey the nurses to work on their own charges (16).
 Elder W. A. Spicer

During the same time Miss Grace Madeline Kellogg an Adventist

Bible worker at Ripon, Wisconsin also had called the Wisconsin Conference

to resign the work to sail to work in India in the month of September, 1901

(17). But ahead of everyone; on June, 25, 1901 Brother Luther J. Burgess had
arrived in Calcutta and started to master the local language to start the

work to reach out to hungry souls (18).

In the beginning of September 1901 when Professor J. L. Shaw and

group had reached Calcutta and there came a great expansion of work

from the Adventist Head Quarter of Calcutta, India. During this time

brother Ellery Robinson was sent to central province to distribute Oriental

Watchman papers; Brother Quantock was sent for canvassing in different

parts of India; Sister Quantock was sent to work with sister Whiteis at

Karmatar and learn local language. Brother J.L Burgess was sent to work at

the Calcutta sanatorium; Sister Fleming was sent to visit the zenna work;

and Brother W.A. Barlows and the wife had been busy preaching and

working for sustainability of the people at Simultala (19).

In September, 1901 sister Grace M. Kellogg had joined the work in

Calcutta leaving her job as a Bible Worker at Wisconsin. Initially sister

Grace Kellogg had been independently working at Chandernagore, Hoogly

area and was carrying out the work in spite of the hindrance of Hindu

religious people from the surroundings. Because of her Bible studies a

young man had taken a stand for Christ; a Hindu man decided to offer his
house to conduct worship meetings; and a Muslim man promised to join

Bible classes regularly (20). The Adventist truth started to spread to

different parts of India and neighbouring countries.

In the beginning of 1902 brother H.B. Meyer had started the work in

Burma. On 13 January, 1903 after canvassing in the several cities of Madras

and Hyderabad; an American colporteur named Ann Orr with a recently

converted young lady had reached to Colombo, Ceylon (Sri-Lanka). The

population of Colombo was mostly Buddhists Singhalese with richer life

style than Indians (21).

In the beginning of 1903 W.A Barlow and his wife had started the

industrial work among the local people starting with planting fruit trees at

Santal Mission at Simultala. Brother J.L. Shaw visited brother Barlow and

had given him six thousand copies Santali printed tracts of Second

Coming of Christ"; Signs of Christs Coming; and "The Drunkard's

Stomach for distribution in the Santali (22).

In the beginning of this year brother Dr. R.S. Ingersoll also had

decided to open a training school to train workers for the medical field at

Calcutta Sanatorium (23). And Brother W.W. Quantock went to work in the
Central Provinces of India which located in between of Calcutta and

Bombay. He had gotten eighty subscribers for Oriental Watchman besides

selling other books in Nagpur, Berar, Bilashpur towards Bengal (24).

In February, 1903, seven souls were baptized at Calcutta church and

Brother H.B. Meyers had declared from Thayemayo, Burma that three

souls are willing to be baptized. Literatures were distributed in several

parts of Burma before so there was harvest ready, few people started to

keep the Sabbath and the tithe financial statement for the field was sent to

the Head Quarter at Calcutta for first time (25).

During this time Brother and Sister W.O. James had landed in

Bombay on March 30, 1903 and initially lived in a Y.M.C. A gentle mans

home as they had started to canvass and conduct Bible studies (26). In May,

1903 Brother J.L. Shaw visited Chandranagor where Sister Madeline Grace

Kellogg had been working; and because of her labour three candidates had

been baptized in the river of Hooghly before one hundred fifty English and

native people. The Hindu native educated man that had accepted Christ

had lost his job and his wife returned to her parents (27).
 In July, 1903 when Sister S.E. Whiteis with Sister Ratna Mookerjee

had visited Sister Grace Madeline Kellogg; they found her giving Bible

readings to many English-speaking Bengali lawyers, doctors and teachers

at Chandernagor as many of them were interested to accept the Lord. One

Bengali babu after getting Bible study had shared to his wife and as she

couldnt speak English it becomes difficult for Sister Kellogg to give her

Bible studies. Another woman was interested in zennas work as she knew

English (28).

In July, 1903 brother and Sister J.L. Shaw had gone to canvass and

conduct Bible studies in Darjelling with Brother L.F. Hansen where Brother

D.A. Robinson had subscribed the papers and had done the early work.

During this time, Brother Harry Armstrong had arrived in Calcutta and

had started to work on printing the Oriental Watchman locally on own

mission expense and to start with own press (29). The Adventist brethren

from America had donated five hundred dollars for the new printing office

called "The Watchman Press (30).

As they had been already producing many tracts and papers through

the local publishers; Brother J. L. Shaw used to send many these tracts and
papers to the Santal students at Simultala for distribution. Beside the

industrial work the school boys had been working few hours daily to

distribute English, Hindi, Bengali, Urdu and Santali freely at the railway

station, highways and byways. At the end of 1903 brother W.A. Barlow and

the wife had started to build an industrial training school at Simultala.

They used to give Bible lessons to the Santali students, taught the

gospel songs and the industrial work for the local communities. Twenty

school boys had been engaged in planting vegetables, trees and doing relief

work like building the roads as the aid was given by the government. Some

of the poor local farmers had joined the planting work by digging holes for

planting trees and building roads. In last three months almost twenty

people had died in cholera when brother and Sister Barlow had treated

eighteen sick people in the village homes and brought few of them for

treatment in the mission compound.

One young boy named Tulsi had lost his mother, father, brother and

became orphan. Brother J.L. Shaw took him to Karmather orphanage where

Brother Burgess in charge and he lived. Eight years ago in 1895 brother and

sister Barlow had lost their five years old daughter in same kind of plague.
In spite of all the famine, plague, flood and crisis Brother Barlow and the

wife remained to develop the Santali at Simultala, taught the people to

observe Sabbath and get ready for the second coming of the Lord (31).

In the end of 1903 Brother and Sister W.O. James also had travelled to

Poona for the first time. They had met many European families who have

heard about Adventist for the first time and found seventy five yearly

subscriptions for Oriental Watchman and Good Health papers. From the

beginning of this year brother and Sister W.O. James had been canvassing

in Bombay, Jansi, Bilaspur towards Calcutta. Sometimes they had no house

to sleep and stayed in the train station that even didnt have waiting rooms

(32).

In the end of the year till December, 1903 brother and sister Shaw had

spent eight weeks with Sister Wilcox and Sister Anna Knight at Simla

canvassing and giving Bible studies to the natives where several

government officials had made their summer homes due to chill weather

and have scope for more foreign missionary to come and work there (33).

A day William Carey had been preaching to a crowed in city of India

and met a Brahman priest carried on the shoulders of several man. Carry
had handed to him a paper of these written words I am a sinner; Christ is

my Saviour" (34). No one ever dared to tell this Brahman man that he was a

sinner as he was regarded more as god. The Brahman priest repeated these

words again and again I am a sinner; Christ is my Saviour "; and finally

had said it is true". I am a sinner and Christ is my Saviour.

But the Brahman man wanted to test William Carry first and said in

his heart that if this European man is true about the written words; he be

willing eat with us and not discriminate us. And on invitation, William

Carry accepted to eat rice and dal with him in his house. And the Brahman

priest laid aside his priestly robe and offer himself for the baptism. It was

the conversation of the first Brahman to accept Christianity in India. And

the grandson of this first convert a white haired man Lal Chand Mookerjee

in his seventies and lived in the garden house in the suburbs of Calcutta.

And His son was brother A.C. Mookherjee the early Adventist

worker at Calcutta English Church since the time of Brother D.A. Robinson.

In the month of June1897, Brother Ellery Robinson had sold him a copy of

Patriarchs and Prophets"; then a copy of Great Controversy"; and then a

book on Daniel and Revelation" and brother A.C. Mukherjee had accepted
the truth. Brother A.C. Mookerjee had eleven sons and daughters and all of

them lived under the same roof.

Every morning, noon and night he had gathered the family stopping

the work in the printing office to study the Word and pray with them. And

these Adventist books were used occasionally for the family devotion.

Brother D.A. Robinson had brought him to full light and made him the

angel of the message to brighten the heathen land of India.

Brother A.C. Mookerjees home was like an Adventist training school

of fourteen members including his son in law who had accepted the truth.

The oldest son of the family brother L.G. Mookerjee had been working as

nurse in Calcutta since the time of Dr. Place in 1897; and who would often

pray with the patients to ask forgiveness of their sins in their clinic bed in

the 1903. The ancestor of the Brahman priest had gotten light from William

carry and finally gotten greater light from Elder D.A. Robinson; and father

to son and father to son.

Because of the collaborative effort of the Adventist mission workers

sent from America and the local workers that taught them to learn native

language; translated and printed the tracts in local languages; it was

possible to reach out the Adventist truth to several parts of India by 1904;

and which includes Bombay, Madras, Central Provinces, Colombo and

Burma. In the beginning of 1904 Brother Herry Armstrong was sent from

Calcutta to open a new field in Colombo, Sri-Lanka (35).

In the month of March, 1904 brother Armstrong reached Colombo

and opened the new field at Sri-Lanka. Initially brother Armstrong lived in

a school master's family named Mr. Henri Tussaint; who was a truth seeker

and the first Sabbath keeper. He was privileged to teach him and the family

a Bible class each morning. After few days Brother Armstrong also had

made relationship with the editor of Ceylon Independent" paper to write

an article each week to communicate with the public of Sri-Lanka(36). Soon

brother Armstrong had started to conduct Sabbath services and three man

had joined to worship every Sabbath morning as they expressed their

desire to accept the truth (37).

And after two years of work in Burma in 1904 brother H.B. Meyers

with his wife and Sister Harrison had started the school of fifteen Burmese

students at Rangoon. (38). Beside running the school ; brother and sister

Meyers also had been conducting Bible readings in the homes of local
people every Tuesday and Friday and regularly canvassed to get

subscribers for oriental Watchman and Good Health papers in Rangoon.

In the beginning of the year Smith and Sister Enid Sloane had gone to

work in Mandalay and on May, 1904 had come back and joined the school

work with sister Meyers. By September, 1904 the local converts like Brother

Maung Maung , Sister Mah May and Mg. Maung preach in local languages

in Barman quarter , Moulmein and Karens (39). In the beginning of July,

1904 brother J.L. Shaw had visited Rangoon to supervise the work (40).

In the month of July 1904 Calcutta Sanatorium where Brother L.G.

Mookerjee was working had been moved to No. 50, Park Street (41).

During this time Sister Rigan from Burma and brother and sister Burgess

were given leave to go back to America (42). Since the beginning of 1904

Brother A.C. Mookerjee had been conducting Bible lessons on Daniel and

Revelation specially the prophecies with charts at 39-1, Free School Street,

No.1, Dehi Serampore Road, Calcutta. Some of the local Bengali people had

sent funds to A.C. Mookerjee to circulate tracts by post in advance at

International Tract Society. There were 24 regular Bengali Sabbath keepers

attending the Serampore church (43).

 In the month of August 1904 Brother A.G. Watson had initially joined

to work with the local International Tract Society Press at Serampore. In

August a baptism service was conducted at Serampore church when three

souls have accepted Jesus as their personal saviour (44). And then on

February, 9, 1904 Brother L.G. Mookerjee and Sister Grace Madeline

Kellogg had been married and lived at Calcutta Sanatorium for a while.

Beside the nursing work at the treatment rooms; Brother L.G. Mookejee

had been conducting the Bible classes with Sister Grace Madeline Kellogg

Mookerjee at Calcutta sanatorium (45).

Since the beginning of 1905 brother A. C. Mookerjee had been

making several inquiries on Gopalgonj, those days at Faridpur District of

East Bengal where he had found the residence of 200 families living in the

watery land and few protestant Christians were present there. During these

inquiries and tract readings two people from Faridpur had expressed their

desire for the truth and few others had expressed to start the work in

Faridpur, East Bengal as they have learnt the truths from the translated

tracts and subscriptions. One of the local missionary from Faridpur District

had come to Brother A.C. Mookerjee to discuss the truth and was satisfied
with the answers. In the end of 1905 A. C. Mookerjee had been sending

tracts and answering their questions with many people of East Bengal (46).

In the beginning of 1905 many missionaries were sent by General

Conference to work in India. Brother and Sister W.W. Miller were sent to

work in Calcutta, Brother Votaw and the wife in Rangoon Burma; Brother

J. C. Little and the wife at Karmatar with the press. And sister Burrowy for

can canvass in India (47). Brother A.G. Watson and A.C. Mookerjee had

been translating Oriental Watchman in Bengali along with other Bible

tracts.

During this time a man named Mr. M.K. Chakrovorti who hated

Christians before; but with the influence of a Baptist missionary he was

baptized in to Baptist mission. He knew many protestant Christians of East

Bengal and Calcutta followed the New Testament and did not obey the

fourth commandments the Sabbath truth.

A preacher had told to Mr. Chakravorti that brother A. C. Mookerjee

was a bad man with bad moral character; but it only made him more

interested to meet him. And as brother A.C. Mookerjee read Bible with Mr.

Chakravorti; he declared Adventist messages as the truth. Finally Mr.

Chakravorti had resigned his teaching job with the Baptist Missionary

College on August 23. 1905 and on Friday August 25, 1905 had come to

Calcutta, reside with Brother A. C. Mookerjee (48).

Latter Mr. Chakravorty had joined the Calcutta Sanatorium to work

with Mr. singh and Nabo Mookerjee the son of A.C. Mookerjee .In the end

of1905, Mr. Chakravortiy also helped editing and translating Bengali tracts

like His Glorious Appearing and The Immortality of the Soul; and

during this time Brother A.C. Mookerjeee had been translating Is Sunday

Sabbath? (49). Brother Chakravorti had written two books "The Daughters

of Light" and "The Bible changes the human heart" (50).

In the month of January, 1906, Brother L. G. Mookerjee and His

brother in Law had visited Gopalgonj of East Bengal for the first time to

inquire about the interest created out through the literature ministry of

Brother A.C. Mookerjee through Bengali tracts and correspondence (51).

And the Brother L.G. Mookerjee had started to visit East Bengal time to

time; and one time in the month of March, 1906; he decided to stay about

five days in East Bengal visiting several villages and meeting many

nonbelievers.
 In this field Brother L.G. Mookerjee had found many new people

interested to know about God and he woke up every morning 2 to 3 AM to

preach and discuss with many Hindu, Muhammadians and other

Christians about the second coming of Jesus, Prophecies and Sabbath

truth. He also had started to teach some children to memorise the Bible

verses. Even though Brother L.G. Mookerjee was from medical field, he

realised the need and joy of preaching to save the nonbelievers.

Brother L.G. Mookerjee had been working in this field for past three

months and was able to organize some Sabbath keepers in three different

villages. Some of the protestant Christian who had joined the Sabbath

meetings were persecuted by their church leaders. During this time brother

L.G. Mookerjee also had applied for a mission board about a mission

ground, a bungalow and a boat to travel from village to village to

permanently start the work in East Bengal (52).

And finally in faith with the love of preaching the people of East

Bengal brother L.G. Mookerjee and Sister Grace Madeline Kellogg

Mookerjee had fully moved to Gopalgonj to carry on the work on their own

expense (53).
 In the month of September, 1906 when their self-owned house to

work in East Bengal was almost complete brethren W.W. Miller, J.C. Little,

W. A. Barlow and A.C. Mookerjee had visited Gopalgonj. And an evening

meeting was held to invite the delegates and people came from several

villages to join the meeting. The people attended the meeting was revived

by the Adventist preachers. During the meeting one man stood and hoped

to be an Adventist (54).

But some of the other protestant church members had started to

spread the rumours against Adventist church and one of them named Dr.

Rouse had even produced tracts like Sunday as Sabbath and distributed

to the people of Gopalgonj (4). As some of the Scotch church members

joined Sabbath keeping Mr. Bose had told the Sabbath keepers to move out

of Gopalgonj. Few others threatened Brother L. G. Mookerjee and told him

to leave Gopalgonj or they would burn him live (55).

While making their own house to live and work in Gopalgonj, East

Bengal; Brother L.G. Mookerjee and Grace Madeline Kellogg Mookerjee

also had rented a jute godown to use as dispensary in the heart of

Gopalgonj bazar to give treatments to the sick people. They had been
giving Bible studies, distributing tracks, conduct meetings and organizing

churches to different villages of East Bengal travelling through boats

village to village.

During this time Sister Grace Madeline Kellogg Mookerjee had

received the tropical water disease while working in the field of East

Bengal. And finally while giving the birth of the only son Marcus Kellogg

Mookerjee on November 14, 1906 she became very sick. Due to this reason

Brother L.G. Mookerjee and Sister Grace Madeline Kellogg Mookerjee had

travelled back to Wisconsin, United States of America for two years (56).

During this time brethren A.C. Mookerjee, J.C. Little, W.W Miller, A.G.

Watson and J.L. Burgess had travelled time to time in this new field of East

Bengal to nurtured and organize the church members under all the

disadvantages.
Brother L.G. Mookerjee (right), Grace Madeline Kellogg Mookerjee (in the
back) and their son Marcus Kellogg Mookerjee (in the middle), other two
people are unidentified.
 Even though Sister Grace Kellogg Mookerjee could not fully get rid

of the sickness; the family returned to Calcutta on March, 1909. She took

the two years little boy Marcus Kellogg Mookerjee with her in different

areas of Calcutta and distributed tracts, Oriental Watchman and Adventist

home and health books. During this time brother L.G. Mookerjee had been

travelling in the East Bengal fields from Calcutta to preach the gospel and

organize the churches (57).

And, in the month of July, 1909 Sister Grace Kellogg became severely

ill again and Brother L.G. Mookerjee had taken the family for the Adventist

treatment room in Darjeeling (58). Sister Grace Kellogg had been taking the

treatments there for a while; but the little boy Marcus Kellogg Mookerjee

did not do that well in Darjeeling (59).

So, they had finally returned to Calcutta to the work place. And

finally due to the rapid tropical disease that Sister Mookerjee had received

from the field of East Bengal; on 12th November, 1910, in the Sabbath

afternoon at 4pm Sister Grace Madeline Kellogg Mookerjee had breath her

last breath (60). And that is the lesson to be learnt from an Adventist Bible
worker at Calcutta and East Bengal (Bangladesh) that gives her life to

preach the gospel of Christ in spite of all the sickness and sufferings she

has gone through.

To be continued

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Dear Readers,
I am looking for the pioneers families and their inputs as I have
gotten few and their documents. Please, feel free to pass the pictures
and documents you have to:

Email: sunilsarkar1981@gmail.com
Sunil Sarkar

Thank You