Missionary Community
The Presbyterian Mission at Ningpo was the birthplace of the “three-self” approach to missionary work. John Nevius, one of the Martins’ closest friends, advocated for a system of “self-governance, self-support, and self-propagation” rather than a more patriarchal approach. In this “three-self” system, missionaries do not try to control or orchestrate outcomes; they share their faith and let those who are also interested in following Christ create, organize, and maintain their own churches. Today, the Three-Self Patriotic Movement of Protestant Churches in China, which is based on these principles, is China’s only state-sanctioned church.
In the 1850s, Ningpo’s population of about 300,000 included only a few dozen foreigners. In November 1850, Margaret wrote to her parents that “our [Presbyterian] mission numbers 14 . . . We see each other every day, and live together very happily and comfortably.” Here are those 14 members, plus the five additional Presbyterians who arrived later in the 1850s:
Moses Stanley Coulter (1824-1852) and Caroline Crowe Coulter (1827-1908)
Michael Simpson Culbertson (1819-1862) and Mary Dunlap Culbertson (1823-1888)
Elias Brown Inslee (1822-1871) and Euphemia Ross Inslee (1840-1866)
Samuel Newell Depew Martin (1825-1903) and Margaret Wylie Martin (1826-1898)
William Alexander Parsons Martin (1827-1916) and Jan VanSant Martin (1826-1893)
Divie Bethune McCartee (1820-1900) and Juana Knight McCartee (1826-1920)
John Livingstone Nevius (1829-1893) and Helen Coan Nevius (1833-1910)
John Winn Quarterman (1821-1857)
Henry Van Vleck Rankin (1825-1863) and Mary Knight Rankin (1828-1923)
Richard Quarterman Way (1819-1895) and Susan Quarterman Way (1824-1893)
The Martins also befriended the twenty-two British and American missionaries of other denominations who were in Ningpo during the 1850s:
Mary Ann Aldersey (1797-1868)
John Shaw Burdon (1826-1907) and Burella Dyer Burdon (1835-1858)
Robert Henry Cobbold (1816-1893) and Caroline Brown Cobbold (1828-1922)
Josiah Goddard (1813-1854) and Eliza Abbot Goddard (1817-1857)
Frederick Foster Gough (1825-1889) and Mary LeMare Gough (1826-1861)
Thomas Hall Hudson (1800-1876)
Miles Justin Knowlton (1825-1874) and Lucy St. John Knowlton (1826-1907)
Edward Clemens Lord (1817-1887) and Lucy Lyon Lord (1817-1853)
Daniel Jerome Macgowan (1815-1893) and Mary Anne Osborne Macgowan (1819-1891)
William Charles Milne (1815-1863) and Frances Beaumont Milne (1825-1898)
William Armstrong Russell (1821-1879) and Mary Ann Leisk Russell (1828-1887)
James Hudson Taylor (1832-1905) and Maria Dyer Taylor (1837-1870)
On May 25, 1850, Maggie wrote to her parents that the various Anglican, Baptist, Episcopalian, Methodist, and Presbyterian missionaries in China were “all labouring together in harmony & love.” They approached their work holistically and sought to minister to the people around them in body, mind, heart, and soul through medical practice, education and publication, personal relationships, and the spiritual practices of prayer and worship.