#16 MY MENNONITE MISSIONARY
Rev Charles T. Homuth
I was intrigued why an Ontario farmboy born in the late 19th century and who grew up in a Baptist household would transition to a life of religion, exotic travel, harsh living conditions and missionary duty. But that was the path taken by young Charles Homuth. He was the son of William Homuth (1838-1928) and Elizabeth Gingrich (1850-1902), had two younger brothers and one younger sister. grew up on the farm in Turnberry Townhip, Huron Country and left common school at age 12 to work on his father’s farm..
Charles’
Calling
At age 14,
Charles converted and “gave his heart to the Lord.”
Charles went to New York City to study for two terms at the newly-formed Christian and Missionary Alliance Institute. The Institute was the vision of Alfred Simpson who wanted to bring the Bible to the world by energizing and training missionaries. Alfred was a charismatic religious fundraiser in the Gilded Age, able to work audiences into donating basketfuls of watches, rings and other jewellery to the missionary cause. By 1897, $100,000 was being spent in foreign missionary work. The Institute was open to all denominations. Charles was learning about evangelical preaching.
Around the turn of the century, rural youth were moving to Toronto and some were becoming active in the new urban evangelical churches. Charles was such a young man and in 1898, he was appointed pastor at the Christian Workers’ Church in Toronto.
Christian Workers Church/Primitive Methodist Church, Yonge & Davenport, Toronto
In 1903, Charles and Sarah Jane headed
to Africa as missionaries with The Africa Industrial Mission (aka Sudan
Interior Mission). This missionary body was probably the largest Protestant
organization at the time and more than any other missionary society pioneered
the evangelization of both Muslims and non-Muslims in many parts of northern
Nigeria. It established churches, schools and dispensaries. After a year and a
half of duty, the Homuths were advised to return to Canada because of Sarah
Jane’s health.
In 1909, Charles entered the ministry
in the Mennonite Brethren in Christ (MBiC) Church and was ordained in 1911 by
the Ontario Conference. He was sent to Aylmer, Ontario as preacher.
The Mennonite Brethren in Christ (MBiC) was formed in the late 19th century. It was one of the groups that were expelled or left, for various reasons, the German-speaking Mennonite Church in North America. It represented those Mennonites attracted by the evangelical and Christian way of life of the English-speaking Methodists. The Mennonite practices and beliefs-- such as observing feet-washing, wearing certain plain clothing styles,--soon became less of a concern as the MBiC embraced the evangelical practices of the need to be born again, the experience of sanctification and "praying through" (with weeping) to victory over sin. They believed in total immersion of the convert, baptism only upon confession of faith (so no infant baptism), the refusal to swear on the Bible, nor would they engage in war. Life insurance was discouraged. An annual weeklong summer camp meeting was a way to revive their spiritual enthusiasm.. Men greeted one another with a kiss and women greeted women the same way. Ministers were called elders; women could be appointed as elders and take part in the work.
Missionary Work
Jebba, Nigeria
In 1912, Charles and Sarah returned to Africa to open a new mission at Jebba, in the British Protectorate of Northern Nigeria. Jebba was considered a kind of headquarters for the MBiC as it had telegraph communications and was connected to the coast at Lagos by a railway which reduced the mission's dependence on river steamers up the Niger. The MBiC's belief was that since Christ "had offered up his life out of love towards us in order to redeem us from eternal death, the MBiC was duty-bound to contribute its mite[sic] to the great work of our Lord."
Ideally there was to be a minimum of four missionaries at any one station, but as recruits were few, stations generally were staffed by two, usually either a husband and wife team, or, which became just as common, two single women. Charles personally built the church building at Jebba. It was made of cement blocks and Charles was the architect, mason, carpenter, cement-mixer and painter. He had some native labourers but, as he wrote to his friends back home in Wingham, “they were either lazy or very slow so that it was difficult to have patience with them.”
Charles and Sara Jane faced many hardships. Nature was one. “The wet
season”, wrote Charles, “commenced at Jebba, on Good Friday, with the usual
fierce tornado accompanying it. The wind tore up trees by the roots and started
the roof of the mission bungalow. The abundance of rain brought prospects of
plenty of food, which was scarce and dear last year. Tomatoes are one of the
garden vegetables that do well, and were ripening August 5, but there are so
many things to destroy young plants, that is discouraging. One pest is like a
huge grasshopper that lives in a hole in the ground in daytime but comes out
and devours plants at night.”
Charles reported that the smallpox
was very bad in Shinga, about 30 miles distant, and 200 deaths from it. "One
never knows when they may come in contact with disease, but Mr. Homuth comforted
himself with the thought that “Man is immortal till his work is done” and the
promise “No plague shall come nigh thy dwelling” ". Sarah became ill in 1912 and
the next year she was advised to return to Canada with Cornelia Pannabecker, another
missionary. (Charles did not return home until 1918.)
Charles would often go to the Shonga Mission
station, about thirty miles from Jebba and preach in the villages on the
way. He had to be a jack of all trades
in Nigeria, hence it is amusing to hear that the missionary had, “on occasion,
to pull some teeth for some of the natives with forceps, but the government
doctor generally attends to that work.”
The Jebba missionaries were
frustrated in their ability to “save” the villagers. Language was a major
obstacle. Sunday services were offered in three languages—English, Yoruba and
Nupe. Cornelia Pannabecker, a missionary working alongside Charles, often
complained in her diary that she was tired and accomplishing nothing. In
September she wrote, “Bro. H. [the Rev Charles Tobias Homuth] spoke this
morning & at 3 p.m. I spoke at 4. p.m. Oh that God would break in upon us
in convicting & convincing power, & that souls would get down before
God & confess their sins & wrongs.”
Cornelia had been learning the Nupe
language since arriving in the protectorate in 1906, but frequently felt
frustrated speaking in formal services. Although often reporting, "God
helped me," she could also record, "I had to speak Nupe this
afternoon; it went hard.” What bothered her more than fluency in Nigerian
languages, was the lack of expected response to the mission's evangelical
holiness preaching. "Oh that the people might understand our
mission," she wrote, emphasizing "understand." As troubling
for Cornelia was the constant struggle with her conscience; she was plagued by
thoughts that she wasn’t doing enough. But exactly what did she expect? There
were only the six Canadians; their missionary station in Jebba had only been
open for a year (the only other Nigerian mission open for five years); the
foreigners could barely speak the Africans’ languages and communicated through
interpreters. How could they really expect the Africans to repent of their sins
or “pray through” to consecration?
A major accomplishment from 1910-1914 was the translation of the New Testament into the Nupe language; this was done by another missionary. A Nupe-English and English-Nupe dictionary of 2 volumes with 12,000 words, a 300 page book of Bible stories, another book of 623 Nube proverbs, some schoolbooks and hymns were compiled and printed. Later the Scriptures and other literature were translated and printed in eleven Nigerian languages.
Charles was the only missionary who managed to make it through two three-year terms. On April 2, 1918, and alert for German U-boats, Charles sailed aboard the Eboe cargo ship from the West Coast of Africa to New York; there were only 6 passengers on the manifest (4 Canadians—1 trader a missionary couple, Charles, and an English accountant couple)
On return, Charles rejoined Sarah
Jane in Aylmer. In 1919 he was transferred from the Ontario Conference to the
Western Conference and served as pastor in Alsask Saskatchewan, Maitland, and Didsbury, Alberta. In 1925 he returned
to Ontario where he was stationed at Elmwood; Grace Chapel Toronto; Stayner; Hespeler;
and Breslau. During his last pastorate, Sarah Jane died (aged 84) on Aug 23, 1940. She is
buried in Mount Pleasant Cemetery, Toronto.
Upon his retirement from active
pastoral service in 1941, Charles married Ethel Maunsler, 20 years his junior
and he moved to St. John’s, Newfoundland. Although he had been in failing
health for some time, death overtook him rather suddenly on January 26,
1953 (age 81). He is buried alongside Ethel in Mount
Pleasant Cemetery, St.John’s Newfoundland. Ethel passed in 1968 (aged 76).
Charles’ obituary states: Brother Homuth was devoted to God and his Church, and rendered a wholehearted service in the cause of Christ. Of a cheerful and kind disposition, he endeared himself to those on the pastorates which he served. Living in touch with spiritual forces, he was expressive concerning the reality of the Christian experience. He will ever be remembered by his shouts of praise and exhortations to his fellow Christians to yield themselves wholly to God.
Abraham Charles Tobias Homuth
b. March 12 1872 in Wingham, Huron County, Ontario
m. Sarah Jane Davis (1866-1940) on October 25 1899 in Toronto
m. Ethel M Maunsler (1892-1968) in 1941
d. Jan 26, 1953 in St.John’s Newfoundland
my 1st cousin, 2x removed
People who become missionaries always amaze me.
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