Page:Kvartalshilsen (Kvinnelige misjonsarbeidere). 1920 Vol. 13 nr. 1.pdf/4

I will add some of his letter here as I thought it might interest you:

Dear Sister Bodil! The memories of bygone years are so joyful and they remind me of the happy time we spent in the beautiful service of Christ. . . . .

I would like to know what you have done for the Armenian cause in Norway. It is of great interest to us to hear from those who have lived and worked in Armenia for years, especially from those who were eyewitnesses to the horrific massacres that took place in the miserable country. The time has come for us to know our friends better than ever. Sister Bodil's name is so deeply attached to Musch. What is your opinion on the Armenian question? Please tell me in detail what the Norwegian nation knows about the Armenian massacres and about any help they have offered to the most afflicted people in the world. We hope to return to our dear Armenia next spring. We have organized a patriotic association and are preparing to return to our homeland. Do you want to come with us? If so, get ready. If you want to take up missionary work in the eastern part of the country, could you then prepare for such a work in Norway and Sweden?

Sincerely, Yours very devoted

Benjamin Bedrossian.

After my flight from Musch in February 1916, I came from Deabekir to Aleppo and stayed for approx. 4 weeks with the dear Swiss sister Beatrice Bohner, who ran the orphanage for 800 orphans of the deportees. Among them were a lovely little boy with a sensible face, whom I would like to tell you a little about after Sister Beatrice's account, as it clearly shows with what love even the children cling to the Christian faith, and what understanding many of them has of the value of Christianity:

One afternoon it knocks on my door and a black veiled Muhammadan lady comes in with a lovely little 7-year-old boy by the hand. He had an open, fresh face and bright, clear eyes, and looked like an Armenian child. But how did this Muhammadan lady come by this child? I asked her to sit down and asked what she wanted: "I bring you my child," she said. "Your child? This is a Christian child and you are a Mohammedan!” Then she slid the veil aside. The similarity was striking. She told me her story: Her husband was dead, and she lived with her little boy in Hadjin until the deportation command came, which robbed her and a thousand other women and children of their homes. For weeks she walked the country road with the boy by the hand. They were plagued by hunger and thirst and got sore feet. From day to day it grew darker in her heart, because she did not feel the living God, and in such terrible suffering it does not help to only know Him by name and to superficially adhere to Him. Miserable and exhausted she finally brought her child to Aleppo. There a Muhammadan got to know her and liked her. One day he asked her if she wanted to be his wife. She just needed to convert to Islam. He would give them other names and would provide for them, and they would have a home with him. It was a rescue - but for what price!! But she couldn't act differently when she thought about what lay ahead. Imagine, to yet again descend into the desert where the famine awaited them or fall into even rougher hands than this man. No, it was impossible. So, she gave him his yes and went with her child to his house. She soon found herself adjusting to the new conditions and found that she was not in the worst place; but her little boy Setrag thought differently. He had been told that he was going to have a new father, a new home and food and clothing, and he got that as well; but nothing was said about the new name and that he was no longer a Christian. "But Mom, I'm a Christian and I don't want to be a Muhammadan," he said. A daily fight began. His mother tried to soften him with prayers