by Gale Sears
“Heavenly Father, manifest thy tender mercy toward thy suffering children throughout this famine-stricken realm! Stay the progress of pestilence, and may starvation and untimely death stalk no more through the land. Break the bands of superstition, and may the young men and young women come out of the darkness of the Past into the Glorious Light now shining among the children of men. Grant, our Father, that these young men and women may, through upright, virtuous lives, and prayerful study, be prepared and inclined to declare this message of salvation in their own tongue to their fellowmen. May their hearts, and the hearts of this people, be turned to their fathers that they may accept the opportunity offered them to bring salvation to the millions who have gone before.
“May the Elders and Sisters whom thou shalt call to this land as missionaries have keen insight into the mental and spiritual state of the Chinese mind. Give them special power and ability to approach this people in such a manner as will make the proper appeal to them. We beseech thee, O God, to reveal to thy servants the best methods to adopt and the best plans to follow in establishing thy work among this ancient, tradition-steeped people. May the work prove joyous, and a rich harvest of honest souls bring that peace to the workers’ hearts which surpasseth all understanding.
“Remember thy servants, whom thou has chosen to preside in thy Church. We uphold and sustain before thee President Heber J. Grant, who stands at the head at this time, and his counselors, President Anthon H. Lund and President Charles W. Penrose. Bless them, we pray thee, with every needful blessing, and keep them one in all things pertaining to thy work. Likewise bless the Council of Twelve. May they continue to be one with the First Presidency. Remember the Presiding Patriarch, the First Council of Seventy, the Presiding Bishopric, and all who preside in stakes, wards, quorums, organizations, temples, Church schools, and missions. May the spirit of purity, peace, and energy characterize all thy organizations.
“Heavenly Father, be kind to our Loved Ones from whom we are now separated. Let thy Holy Spirit abide in our homes, that sickness, disease, and death may not enter therein.
“Hear us, O kind and Heavenly Father, we implore thee, and open the door for the preaching of thy Gospel from one end of this realm to the other, and may thy servants who declare this message be especially blest and directed by thee. May thy kingdom come, and thy will be done speedily here on earth among all peoples, kindreds, and tongues preparatory to the winding up scenes of these latter days!
“And while we behold thy guiding hand through it all, we shall ascribe unto thee the praise, the glory, and the honor, through Jesus Christ our Lord and Redeemer, Amen.”
Bibliography
Analects of Confucius. Translated by D. C. Lau. Harmondsworth, Middlesex, England: Penguin Books, Ltd., 1979.
Becker, Jasper. Hungry Ghosts—Mao’s Secret Famine. New York: Henry Holt and Company, 1998.
Buck, Pearl S. The Good Earth. New York: Washington Square Press, 2004.
Cannon, Hugh J. David O. McKay around the World: An Apostolic Mission. Provo, Utah: Spring Creek Book Company, 2005.
Chang, Jung. Wild Swans: Three Daughters of China. New York: Simon & Schuster, 2003.
Chang, Jung, and Jon Halliday. Mao: The Unknown Story. New York: Alfred A. Knopf, 2005.
Cheng, Nien. Life and Death in Shanghai. New York: Grove Press, 1986.
The Communist Manifesto and Other Revolutionary Writings. Marx, Marat, Paine, Mao, Gandhi, and Others. Edited by Bob Blaisdell. New York: Dover Publications, Inc., 2003.
Compestine, Ying Chang. A Banquet for Hungry Ghosts—A Collection of Deliciously Frightening Tales. New York: Henry Holt and Company, 2009.
———. Revolution Is Not a Dinner Party. New York: Henry Holt and Company, 2007.
Ebrey, Patricia Buckley. Cambridge Illustrated History: China. New York: Cambridge University Press, 2003.
Heaton, H. Grant, and Luana C. Heaton, comp. Southern Far East Mission, 1949–1959. Salt Lake City, Utah, 1999.
Jiang, Ji-Li. Red Scarf Girl: A Memoir of the Cultural Revolution. New York: HarperCollins Publishers Inc., 1977.
Liang, Jian. Guilin’s Landscape. Guilin, China: Fairyland, 2006.
———. The Scenery of Li River. Guilin, China: Fairyland, 2006.
Mao, Tse-tung. Quotations from Chairman Mao Tse-tung. Peking: Foreign Languages Press, 1966.
Marx, Karl, and Friedrich Engels. The Communist Manifesto. New York: Penguin Books, 1967.
Somerville, Neil. Your Chinese Horoscope 2007. New York: Barnes & Noble, 2006.
Tan, Amy. The Opposite of Fate. New York: Penguin Books, 2004.
Other Books by Gale Sears
The Autumn Sky trilogy
Autumn Sky
Until the Dawn
Upon the Mountains
Christmas for a Dollar
The Route
The Silence of God