“We (Allied World War 2 prisoners in Thailand) came once to a village where the treatment we received was so different it astonished us. There was mercy in the eyes of those who rushed to the roadside to watch us go by. Before we had reached the end of their settlement they were back laden with cakes, bananas, eggs, medicines, and money which they thrust into our hands. In time we learned that this village had been converted to Christianity by missionaries, and that the Japanese, who found out about their friendly behavior, severely punished them for it.
A key figure in carrying the light of Christianity to these jungle outposts had been an elderly missionary woman who managed to continue her work during Japanese occupation. When she was forced finally to take to the jungle, she was handed along from one group of Christians to another. The Japanese knew of her existence and were never far behind. But although they put a high price on her head, she eluded them.
“We came once to a village where the treatment we received was so different it astonished us. There was mercy in the eyes of those who rushed to the roadside to watch us go by. Before we had reached the end of their settlement they were back laden with cakes, bananas, eggs, medicines, and money which they thrust into our hands. In time we learned that this village had been converted to Christianity by missionaries, and that the Japanese, who found out about their friendly behavior, severely punished them for it.
A key figure in carrying the light of Christianity to these jungle outposts had been an elderly missionary woman who managed to continue her work during Japanese occupation. When she was forced finally to take to the jungle, she was handed along from one group of Christians to another. The Japanese knew of her existence and were never far behind. But although they put a high price on her head, she eluded them.
Earnest Gordon, Through the Valley of the Kwai
"Blessed are the merciful: for they shall obtain mercy." Matthew 5:7
