Background
Merriman Colbert Harris was born on July 9, 1846, at Beallsville, Ohio, United States. His father was Colbert Harris, a landowner, farmer, and school-teacher in southeastern Ohio; his mother was Elizabeth Crupper of Virginia.
(Excerpt from Christianity in Japan A hand-book summarize...)
Excerpt from Christianity in Japan A hand-book summarized is all that is attempted in this little venture. Japan and her people are so well known to the average reader, that this part of the booklet is very much abridged. It is hoped that those Who are too busy to read larger volumes and more adequate accounts of this perennially interesting land, may find some profit in perusing this brief story of Christian effort Within its borders. About the Publisher Forgotten Books publishes hundreds of thousands of rare and classic books. Find more at www.forgottenbooks.com This book is a reproduction of an important historical work. Forgotten Books uses state-of-the-art technology to digitally reconstruct the work, preserving the original format whilst repairing imperfections present in the aged copy. In rare cases, an imperfection in the original, such as a blemish or missing page, may be replicated in our edition. We do, however, repair the vast majority of imperfections successfully; any imperfections that remain are intentionally left to preserve the state of such historical works.
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Merriman Colbert Harris was born on July 9, 1846, at Beallsville, Ohio, United States. His father was Colbert Harris, a landowner, farmer, and school-teacher in southeastern Ohio; his mother was Elizabeth Crupper of Virginia.
Merriman attended theological schools at Harlem Springs, Washington, and at Scio, Ohio. In 1871 he entered Allegheny College at Meadville, Pennsylvania, where he graduated in 1873 with the degree of A. B.
Early in life Merriman Harris was influenced by a teacher, Robert L. Morris, who was interested in foreign missions, and by James M. Thoburn, who took up his life work in India, and he decided to become a missionary. The course of his training was interrupted by the Civil War. He enlisted in the 12th Ohio Volunteer Cavalry in 1863 and remained until his regiment was mustered out in 1865, serving with Sheridan’s Cavalry, and with Sherman’s troops on the march through Georgia.
After the War Harris taught school for two years at Fairview, Ohio. In 1869 he joined the Pittsburgh Conference and was assigned to the pastorate at Urichsville, Ohio, but in 1871 he left the active ministry. Appointed missionaries to Japan, Harris and his wife at once set out for their chosen field, which proved to be the newly opened port of Hakodate, in the far north. In the short space of five years, and in spite of much anti-foreign sentiment, Harris had established a church, and his wife had opened the Caroline Wright School for girls.
Harris was appointed vice-consul at Hakodate on October 29, and consular agent, January 3, 1877. In 1879 he was transferred to Tokio, as presiding elder. This work was interrupted by the illness of Mrs. Harris and they were transferred to San Francisco, where, from 1886 to 1904 Harris was superintendent of the Japanese mission of the Methodist Church. In 1904 he left this work to become bishop of Japan and Korea, an office which he filled with credit until 1916, when he asked to be relieved. Thereafter he was retained as bishop emeritus.
On the eve of Harris' departure for America in 1916 one hundred of the leading men of Japan gave him a banquet. On returning to Japan later in the same year he was presented with a beautiful house fully furnished, situated on the Methodist grounds at Aoyama. Here he died, May 8, 1921, and was buried. The Emperor expressed his grief by the gift of 500 yen; floral offerings came from the highest officials of the government; and the Japanese press united in eulogizing his life and work.
In addition to his other activities Harris found time for writing. His published works include One Hundred Years of Missions, Christianity in Japan (1908), and Japanese Proverbs. Such was his enthusiasm for the Japanese and their institutions that he sometimes contended that they were occidental rather than oriental. The latter term seemed to connote “heathen” in his mind.
(Excerpt from Christianity in Japan A hand-book summarize...)
Quotes from others about the person
“If all Americans dealt with us as openheartedly as Dr. Harris does, and if we revered Americans as we revere Dr. Harris, friendship between Japan and America would remain unchanged forever. ” - Viscount Kaneko, the foreign minister
On October 23, 1873, Harris married Flora Lydia Best, daughter of Dr. David Best of Meadville, Pennsylvania. She died in September 1909 and on November, 1919, he married her cousin, Elizabeth Best.