The Romance of the Red Triangle: The story of the coming of the red triangle and the service rendered by the Y.M.C.A. to the sailors and soldiers of the British EmpireYapp, Arthur K. (Arthur Keysall)
History
The Romance of the Red Triangle: The story of the coming of the red triangle and the service rendered by the Y.M.C.A. to the sailors and soldiers of the British Empire
Yapp, Arthur K. (Arthur Keysall)
World War, 1914-1918 -- War work -- Young Men's Christian Associations
revival, but of the kind of thing that may be taking place hundreds of
times any week.
* * * * *
In the early days the famous ---- Division assembled in one of the great
camps near Winchester. Regiments and units were there from India, South
Africa--from all parts of the world. Rain came down in torrents and the
mud was appalling. The huge Red Triangle tents were crowded from morning
till night and the devoted workers, all too few in number, had neither
time nor strength for religious work in the ordinary acceptance of the
term. They could have limited their canteen work, and closed the
refreshment counter excepting for a few hours daily. That would have
been the easier plan, and would have given them the opportunity of
devoting themselves to concerts and meetings in the evenings. The
alternative would have been to spend and be spent in serving the
material needs of the men, trusting that God would use the atmosphere of
the place and the personal contact of the workers to influence the men,
and thus make up for their inability to do much in the meeting line.
They chose the latter plan, and the leader retiring for the night would
throw himself on his bed and sometimes fall asleep without undressing.
At times suffering from the reaction, he would ask himself the question,
'Is it worth while? Am I doing the right thing?' The answer came the
night before the men left for the Front. It had been a record day, every
moment had been crowded, and they had sold out. The majority had
retired for the night, a few remained to tidy up the tents. This task
accomplished, a group of soldiers gathered round the leader, and the
talk soon turned quite naturally to some of the deepest problems of
life. Presently a stalwart young Gordon Highlander told of his home in
far away Scotland, of his farewell to his dear old mother before he went
out to India, and of the promise he made her--the promise he had not
kept--to read his Bible every day, to lead a pure clean life, and to
keep clear of drink. The atmosphere of that crowded Y.M.C.A. tent had
brought it all back to him and, unknown to the staff, he had renewed his
vows to God and his mother. In making this confession he was overcome by
emotion, and throwing his arms round the leader's neck he sobbed out the
story of his repentance. There is no more moving sight than the anguish
of a strong man, probably no sight that gives more joy in Heaven than
the tears that tell of the return of the one that had been lost.
* * * * *
Public-domain text, read in full here on John Shaqi.
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