Students, Students and More Students!
Students, Students and More Students
John Stott had laughed out loud back in his student days, when Oliver Barclay told him about his plans for postgraduate research.
‘You’re going to spend three years studying knee joints in frogs?’ he had exclaimed in disbelief.
‘Not just frogs. Sheep too,’ Oliver had responded, as if that would sound more persuasive.
If Oliver had decided to stay in Cambridge to research limbs in birds, it would have seemed much more interesting to John!
Oliver completed the doctorate, but did not pursue a career in science. Instead he joined the Inter-Varsity Fellowship, as we have seen, and spent his whole working life among students. For Oliver, as for John, students were a special group. They weren’t more important than other people. God’s love for the poor and the uneducated was just as great as his love for students. So why did these two friends give so much energy all their lives to students?
When John spoke at university Christian Unions, he urged students to work hard, as he had in Cambridge. ‘Your mind matters,’ he would say. And he wrote a little booklet with that title. John was only joking when he laughed at Oliver’s choice of research. He knew that all aspects of study are important.
Students will soon become schoolteachers, doctors, lawyers, lecturers, writers and journalists. Some will go on to serve in government. All these people influence the way others think. To change a nation, you have to begin in the universities. That is the same all over the world.
The British Empire steadily diminished in the 1960s as countries under British rule gained independence. In each place the Union Jack was lowered in a special ceremony, and the country’s new flag raised in its place. This was always captured on the television news. Several countries in Africa gained independence in the 1960s.
John was alert to these political changes. But what did political events in Africa have to do with a church in the West End of London? John Stott saw the link. It was students! Independent nations needed good leadership in every aspect of society, so would want their best students to have a Western education. (This was highly-regarded then, and still is now.) So John could see that as more countries gained independence, more students would come to study in the West. He was praying about this on his Quiet Days.
He was right. But how would this affect a church? It is hardly a university offering degrees! A church doesn’t give degrees, but it could bring the students the Word of Life! Some countries sending students to the West followed Islam, or Hinduism, or Buddhism. All Souls could work to share the gospel of Christ with students from these nations while they studied here. It could also welcome the students who arrived as Christians already.
By the mid 1960s students from all over Africa, and many parts of Asia were streaming through the airports. London University was becoming very multi-cultural. And so was the Polytechnic of Central London (now Westminster University), just a hundred yards from All Souls. Students arrived in the country knowing no one, and feeling very cold in Britain’s October weather. John began the All Souls International Fellowship, offering Christian friendship. All Souls soon became known for its welcome.
John Stott did not ask the question ‘What is needed now?’ He always asked ‘What will be needed in five and in ten years’ time?’ and ‘How can we start preparing for that now?’ First, he began to look for an extra member for the staff team to lead the International work. The work grew and grew. Michael Baughen, and Richard Bewes and Hugh Palmer – successive rectors – continued to build this aspect of All Souls life. On any Sunday, visitors will be welcomed into a thriving community of many nationalities.
* * *
Hundreds of students came to hear John speak in Cambridge, soon after the holiday in Wales when he discovered The Hookses. The CICCU arranged another mission four years later, and John returned there again. This time Billy Graham was leading the mission, with John as his chief assistant. John Stott and Billy Graham each had great respect for the other. One student said he saw them go round and round in the revolving door of the University Arms Hotel, where they were both staying. Each was deferring to the other. Neither wanted to get out first!
John Stott was soon travelling to many universities around the world to lead special mission weeks. ‘We let him out on a long lead,’ said one of his churchwardens. Over the years, with students as with pastors, he would come to be known affectionately as ‘Uncle John’.
Two of the best-known universities on the African continent are in South Africa. They are the University of Cape Town and Witwatersrand [Wits] University in Johannesburg. In 1959 Uncle John led missions at both. In Cape Town the students were very creative. One day they hired an aeroplane to swoop low across the campus, and drop leaflets about the mission! Everyone knew the mission was happening. Everyone was talking about it. Each evening hundreds came to hear John Stott speak.
A few days later John flew to Johannesburg. Here he was welcomed by Robin Wells, Chairman of the mission committee. John liked to live in the students’ residence during a mission, and was always grateful when one of the student leaders slept on someone else’s floor for the week. The Wits students knew this. ‘John Nowlan, our President, has moved out of his room for you,’ said Robin.
‘That’s very kind,’ said John. ‘I know it’s an upheaval.’ After unpacking, he and Robin sat down over a cup of tea, before meeting with John Nowlan and other student leaders. This was John Stott’s pattern wherever he led a university mission. He talked with the student leaders, and learned from them. They knew the university and had prayed for their fellow students; he was their servant for the week.
‘I believe you’re coming to London to study,’ said John, as he leaned back in the chair.
‘Yes, that’s right. My wife, Val, and I sail just a few days after the mission finishes,’ Robin replied. ‘I have a place at Imperial College.’
‘I look forward to introducing you to my friend, Oliver Barclay. He’s on the staff of the Inter-Varsity Fellowship. Another scientist. You’ll get on well.’ John always enjoyed the chance to introduce his friends to others.
Robin needed to brief John for the week ahead, but first he was keen to hear news of the Cape Town mission. ‘How was your time in Cape Town?’ he asked. ‘We were praying for the mission there.’ It was good to hear a first-hand report from John’s perspective, and to know so many students had come to meetings. Robin laughed when he heard about the aeroplane.
‘Our Christian fellowship is smaller,’ he explained. ‘Around half of Wits University is Jewish, and we have a strong Atheist Society. It can be quite aggressive.’
‘That’s helpful to know,’ Uncle John said. ‘And you think the atheists could be active this week?’
‘It’s likely,’ Robin replied. Then he added with a glint in his eye, ‘So everyone will know about the mission!’
John laughed. It sounded as if God would use the atheists to bring glory to his Name. ‘Now tell me how you want the meetings to end.’
‘We’d like to invite students who want to profess faith in Christ, or just want to find out more, to come to the front. We’ll have older Christians there to talk with them. Local ministers and missionaries are coming to help,’ said Robin. John’s mind often went back to the Sunday afternoon at Rugby when Bash urged that the boys do something with Christ. ‘Good,’ he said. ‘I am glad you want to do that.’
The atheists were indeed active. One day they handed out hundreds of leaflets, saying it was nonsense that Jesus was raised from the dead. The leaflets got everywhere – they were pushed under doors in the residences, laid out on tables in the refectory, and handed to students as they came out of lectures. God used the atheists to make sure everyone knew about the mission.
John spoke at lunchtime meetings, and each evening in the Great Hall, an impressive Greek-styled building with a grand flight of steps. He gave clear reasons for the Christian faith, drawing from the Old and New Testaments. Jews and atheists alike found a man who engaged with them and with their questions.
As often happens on university missions, numbers at the Wits meetings grew as the week progressed. By the middle of the week the atheists could contain themselves no longer. They arrived with banners that read, ‘You lie!’ and ‘There is no God!’ and ‘God is Dead!’
‘First they marched quietly up and down the aisles,’ said Roy Comrie, a student at the time. ‘But we were all so captivated by what John Stott was saying that no one noticed. So they began to shout.
‘Uncle John stopped. Everyone wondered what would happen. Then after a pause, looking at the leader, John said, “Do come up to the platform,” and he invited him to the microphone!
‘He was very bright,’ said Roy, ‘but totally disrespectful. He spoke to John Stott as if he were an ignoramus.’
‘I’ll debate you on the existence of God,’ the atheist leader challenged aggressively.
‘Very well,’ replied John. ‘Let’s do that. What about Saturday?’
The debate was packed. The atheist proposer made seventeen points. John Stott listened hard. Without taking any notes he stood up and dealt with all the points in order. ‘He was gracious, patient and authoritative,’ said Roy. ‘Many lives were transformed that night. It was a great lesson for the Christian students to see what God can do.’
The atheist leader did not become a Christian that week. Really thoughtful students often need more time to think carefully, and to count the cost of following Christ. ‘Perhaps like Saul of Tarsus, he will one day preach the faith he’s tried to destroy,’ John reflected, as he wrote in his journal. Shortly afterwards he received news from the students that the Atheist Society had disbanded.
The Holy Spirit used John Stott to draw many to faith in missions like the ones in Cambridge, Cape Town and Wits. For Christian students, a mission like this strengthened their faith and helped them to be more courageous in speaking of it.
A few days after the Wits mission finished, Robin and Val began their journey to England. It had been a very busy time, with the mission to plan, and packing, and saying goodbyes. Before they caught the boat, they first had a long train journey to Cape Town. John joined Robin’s parents, Will and Lorna Wells, on the railway station platform to wave goodbye. He had enjoyed getting to know Robin and observing the way he led the student team. John sensed he would make a fine contribution to the Christian Union in London.
Soon the train drew in and Robin and his father heaved the suitcases into the carriage. After hugs goodbye, Robin and Val climbed in, and the guard’s whistle blew. Will, Lorna and John waved until the train turned a bend.
It was John’s first time in Africa. Will and Lorna knew of his passion for birdwatching, and had made plans. ‘You need to see our beautiful bird life,’ said Will. ‘We’re taking you to Kruger National Park.’ John was thrilled. Kruger is known across the world for Africa’s ‘big five’ (lions, leopards, elephants, rhinos and buffalos), and for its stunning birds. With two weeks of university missions behind him, John was thankful for the chance to relax before flying home. That afternoon he cleaned the lenses of his binoculars and stuffed his washbag and a change of clothes into his rucksack. John Stott was off to Kruger, and he knew he would not be disappointed.
* * *
Three years later John was back in Africa for another speaking tour. It was as tightly packed as ever. He started in Sierra Leone, then Ghana, Nigeria, Kenya, Uganda and Zambia. Many meetings, many conversations. Much travel by car and by plane. (It was in Kenya, on this trip, that he first met David Gitari, as a young student, several years before David stayed at the Wreckage.)
‘Welcome to Kenya,’ said David with a huge African smile. ‘I’m David Gitari.’
‘It’s wonderful to meet you,’ said John. ‘I’ve been looking forward to it.’
When John had had a chance to rest, they talked over a meal. ‘We have to tell you that things could get tough this week,’ David said.
‘We never expect missions to be easy,’ John said. ‘But what’s on your mind? Something in particular?’
John could see the young student was troubled. ‘Is it Kenya’s wait for independence? Will my Englishness count against me?’ he asked.
‘Yes,’ said David, nodding his head. ‘Partly your Englishness, and partly as you are a chaplain to the Queen. News has got out. It may not go down well here.’
Not many students came to Christ that week. But the fruit of the mission could be seen a long time later. David Gitari became Archbishop of Kenya, and could see the ripple effect of the mission across the Church. But years before that, over breakfast in the Wreckage, he had some news to bring: ‘Uncle John,’ he said, ‘You exploded a myth in my university. You showed that Christianity is not cultural. So many Kenyan students think they are Christians just because they are not Muslims.’
Long trips away from home are demanding, especially when they cover several countries. The food is different, and the heat can be hard to cope with. But it was vital ministry, which God was blessing, and John Stott welcomed every opportunity he received. Uncle John had an unusual memory for names, and he needed it! He tried hard to remember everyone he talked with. ‘I just love these Africans,’ he wrote in his journal. ‘They’re so much more warm and open and sincere than Europeans.’
* * *
The following summer John was off on his ‘long lead’ from All Souls once again. This time he was flying to Asia. His mother wasn’t well, but Joy managed to bring her to the airport to say goodbye.
‘You’ve got my flight itinerary, Joy, haven’t you?’ John asked.
‘Yes,’ said Joy. ‘It looks exhausting. Eight countries!’
John was to lead university missions in India, Malaysia, Singapore and the Philippines. He also lined up visits to missionaries and to church leaders in Iran, Sri Lanka, Hong Kong and Thailand.
‘And you’ve got all the addresses where I’m staying?’ John could not receive an email pushed through to his iphone, as would happen now. There was no email; there were no iphones. So he was always careful about giving street addresses where he knew them in advance, especially now his mother was more frail.
‘I’ll stay in touch as much as I can,’ John assured her. He kissed his sister and his mother goodbye, and picked up his briefcase, jammed with books and papers to read in-flight. It wasn’t easy to leave family for these trips. He turned to wave goodbye again just before disappearing through the big doors marked ‘DEPARTURES’. They waved back, and then made their way to the car park, glad to have seen him off.
Some weeks later Lily Stott suffered a stroke. Joy sent John a telegram straight away. But the telegram took six days to reach him, as he had left the address just before it was delivered. When the news caught up with him, John was shocked to receive it. Then further problems arose. He could neither send a telegram in reply, nor make a phone call. Because of severe storms, there was a breakdown of all telephone communication between Hong Kong and England. All he could do was to wait for more information.
John prayed much for his mother, and for Joy and Joanna, as he waited. Lily improved, though never fully recovered. Being away at times like this was a hidden cost of all the travelling. John was so grateful to Joy. She lovingly looked after both his parents as they got older.
* * *
Back home John Stott’s links with the Christian Unions remained as strong as ever. Oliver Barclay took over the leadership of the Inter-Varsity Fellowship when DJ retired, and led the movement until 1980. Its publishing house, IVP, became the main publisher for John Stott’s books. When Oliver retired, he was succeeded by Robin Wells. Robin had gone back to South Africa after completing his doctorate at Imperial College and was by that stage a scientific advisor to the South African Government. But like John and Oliver, he remained deeply committed to students. So when the invitation arrived to succeed Oliver, he left his role to return to the UK with his family.
‘Ah, Robin,’ said John with evident approval when he heard news of the appointment. John had been struck by the clarity of Robin’s thinking as a young man, and by the breadth of his theological reading. And as John spoke, something else was going through his mind. He had another new idea brewing, and from what he knew of Robin, he was sure Robin would want students involved in it. As soon as Robin settled into the role, John would talk with him about it.