Dr. Horace Newton Allen arrived in Chemulpo, Korea (Incheon), praying for an opportunity to evangelize Korea, where the introduction of Christianity was illegal. A rebellion in Seoul provided the opportunity when Prince Min Yong Ik, a nephew of the king, suffered seven sword thrusts. Refusing to flee with other westerners, Allen tended the prince, who miraculously recovered. Recognizing that Western medicine was an outgrowth of Christianity, the grateful king removed restrictions on Christianity.

When Dr. Allen arrived in Korea, it was an important step in the history of Western medicine and Christianity in the country. Though Allen came to Korea with the plan of converting the natives to Christianity, political and religious conditions hindered him from being able to preach openly in Korea.

But the crisis with the Crown Prince Min Yung Ik provided Allen with the unintentional opportunity to prove the usefulness of Western medicine.

Thanks to his daring survival of the besieged city of Namdaemoon and the treatment of the prince’s atrocious wounds, Allen gained the trust and gratitude of the Korean royal court. It was the prince’s amazing survival that proved the efficiency of Western medical science and bestowed Allen with more power in Korea.

This experience demonstrates how, under God’s guidance, even difficult situations can create opportunities for ministry and for dramatic, long-term change. Allen’s practice of medicine helped spread acceptance of Christianity and, in time, provided a foundation for hospitals, schools, and Christian missions in Korea. His account offers a lesson on the power of compassion, courage, and service to communicate the message of Christianity. Allen’s help to a fellow missionary in a political crisis started a chain of events that led to greater religious freedom and the growth of Christianity, showing how faith in action can make a difference to others in the longer run.

Also On This Day

1838 – Marie Rafaravavy, a persecuted Christian in Madagascar, met secretly with a former missionary of the London Missionary Society, who helped her escape to England with some of her persecuted companions.

1921 – Hymn writer William J. Kirkpatrick was found slumped over, dead. He’d been working on a piece of music.