Covenanter Witness Vol. 54 - Rparchives.org

in both Larnaca and Nicosia. We had a united serv
ice here, but in Nicosia I believe they had one at
the Greek church and one at the Armenian. We be
gan at 10:00 but did not finish until 12:30, for the
sermon and the table address were both inter
preted into Greek and into Armenian. The interpret
ing is of course a handicap, but the fellowship is a
great lift when three nationalities, with all their
differences, unite in Christ Jesus around His table.
Problems and Policy in the
Girls'
School
by Eunice L. McClurkin
It has pleased the Lord, whose work this is,
to increase the Girls' School enrolment to well over
300 during the school years that ended and began
in the calendar year 1954. We know that He has a
purpose in bringing these girls (and little boys, as
well, in the kindergarten and first grade) into our
school. We pray that His Spirit may guide us in
our witness to them, and also in formation of future
school policy.
About half the students are registered as
Christians, and all these, whatever their sect, are
enrolled in daily Bible classes, and attend chapel
weekly in the church. It is a constant challenge to
teachers and students who know Christ to show
Him in their lives before the unbelieving students,
and we confess with shame that we fall far short
of our goal. There is evidence of the Spirit's ac
tivity and also of Satan's counterattacks. Christian
fellowship groups for elementary and secondary stu
dents are sponsored after school hours by two of the
younger teachers, and many Moslems attend and
hear the Word of God. The Intermediates' meetings
on Sabbath, conducted in English, are attended by
some from the Moslem homes who have shown in
terest in the Christian message. The Inter-Scholas
tic Christian Association of high schools in Syria
and Lebanon has regular Easter-time conferences
and other rally times in which our students partici
pate. One of the Latakia delegates at the 1954 con
ference in Sidon who professed Christ as Saviour
is from an Alaweet home. Five boys and two girls
from our high school attended a one-day ISCA
Rally in Tripoli, Lebanon, in November, 1954.
There is ever-increasing demand for education
represented by
government certificates (5th, 9th,
and 12th grade examinations) and the government
school system is unable to fill the demand. Their
policy has therefore been to accept for further ed
ucation in government schools not all who have
passed a certificate examination, but those who
have exceeded a certain minimum above the pass
ing grade. That leaves the weaker students with
out free education, and those with the will to con
tinue must find places in private schools such as
ours. Our increased enrolment in classes above 5th
has been mainly from such weak students, but some
of them have shown improvement scholastically
with more individual attention than they had re
ceived in larger government classes. Taking in such
doubled our teaching
program
students has partially
in classes above 5th, as new students from other
schools cannot fit as a rule into our high school
278
classes conducted in English. In the Girls' School
this has meant an added government program sec
tion of 7th grade this year, opening the way for
an increase of one or more subsequent sections
every year up to 9th grade or beyond if such seems
advisable.
Sacraments in Cyprus
Rev. E. Clark Copeland
Dear Covenanter Friends,
Sabbath, April 3, 1955, was a day of great joy
for us here in Nicosia. We celebrated Communion
in both the Armenian and Greek Congregations.
It was my privilege to conduct the sacrament in
the Armenian congregation; Rev. Christou and I
together conducted the sacrament in the Greek con
gregation.
In the Greek Congregation we had the joy of
receiving into the membership of the church Miss
Avge David. We had watched Avge come under
the gospel message, receive Christ as her Saviour,
and grow up under Him the past nine years since
she entered the elementary school of the Academy
for Girls. She has taken an active part in various
church and school activities where she has had a
powerful witness, having been instrumental in lead
ing others into the saving knowledge of Christ also.
For the past two years she has helped Mrs. Cope
land with the children's S. S. class, among other
things. As we studied the sacrament of Baptism,
Avge came to the conviction that she should be bap
tized because of the unscriptural nature of Greek
Orthodox baptism. As this is in harmony with the
statement of the Constitution, Church Government,
ch. 2, par. 5, we performed the sacrament of bap
tism, though it has not been done before in cases
of persons received from the Greek Orthodox
Church. It was an inspiration to us all to hear her
clear "Malesta" (I do) responses to the terms of
the Covenant of Church Membership in receiving
baptism. It seemed to us all the appropriate climax
to her spiritual experience.
We are having our Easter Vacation in the
schools. I am not sure just what the meaning of the
except that classes do not meet.
We are trying to catch up with ourselves in a number
of ways. There are a lot of things to be done at
home which had to be let go. There are many details
to be looked after in connection with our school
building. There is family visitation to be done when
word "vacation" is,
we can go as a family. So the days will pass rapidly.
Our plans have been made to have our evan
gelistic meetings in Larnaca and Nicosia the last
two weeks of May. Remember them in your pray
ers. May God give us a harvest to the year's work
of sowing in the schools, that His Word may be
honored before men.
Triumph of Grace
By SPIROS ZODHIATES
In these columns we have often referred to
the name of George Galanakis, the young Greek
who was shot six times through the body and once
through the head. "His "executors," the Nazis dur-
COVENANTEB. WITNESS