Review: The Momentous Years, by Vernoy Johnson
Vernoy Johnson has given us a treasure. He has skillfully woven an account of the lives of his parents, Ruth and Alfred Johnson, in China from 1921 to 1927. The materials out of which he has woven this book are his mothers letters, writings by his father, relevant historical documents, and interesting photographs. Ruth Johnson, a fine writer, sprinkles her letters with wry humor and her stones convey a vivid picture of "the land as Alfred Johnson always referred to China, and of their experiences. Though there is less material from the pen of Alfred, who was out and about building schools and missionary houses, what he writes is interesting and gives the reader another view of the experience. Vernoy, however, is the master weaver. His research, editing, and writing have created this treasure.
There are stories of travel on the Han River, narrow escapes from bandits, holding off rebels at the walls of Icheng, and perilous trips up a mountain in chairs carried by four men (except Rev. Nordlund who required six men). Vernoy treats his parents' story with love and care, along with a capacity to critique.
To the remark by his father about China being "outside the realm of civilization," Vernoy responds:
Outside of civilization? He does not see China as The Middle Kingdom, standing between earth and heaven, with a history of elegance and culture going back to a time before Christ, China, with its history of sophistication in mathematics and the sciences, where gunpowder was invented, where the four-thousand-mile wall was built to keep out the barbarians, where delicate art forms were developed prior to the time when near-animals were clubbing each other to death in Europe and Scandinavia (p. 5-1).
Yet, recognition that the enterprise of these missionaries was indeed momentous becomes more clear with each page. Momentous in the scope of the interaction of two cultures, in the historical developments in China, in the care for persons that was inspired by faith in God who is no respecter of persons, and in the impact of this experience on the lives of the Johnsons and their comrades, as Mrs. Johnson referred to them. The experience of these years remained central to their lives. Gordon Nelson [right] also observes this about his parents, too, missionaries to China in the next decade.
The Momentous Fears contains a map of the area of Covenant missions which becomes increasingly useful the further along in the story one travels, a chronology, a family tree, a listing of the sources, and remarkably good reproductions of old photographs.
Many readers remember Vernoy Johnson as au excellent, well-loved math teacher at both North Park Academy and North Park College. I suppose it is fitting for him to give us an arithmetic problem. He numbers the pages within the chapters rather than consecutively for the entire book. Adding the number of pages in each chapter, I get a sum of 127 pages, 8 and I/2 by 11 inches, in addition to the pages of reference aids. We recommend The Momentous Years without hesitation.