MARY SLESSOR

MARY SLESSOR

Pioneer Missionary to Calabar

Mary Slessor was born in Aberdeen, Scotland, in 1848, the daughter of a shoemaker. When David Livingstone, famous missionary and African explorer, died in 1874, his life inspired many—including this red-haired Scottish "lassie." Two years later Mary arrived in Calabar (what we know today as southern Nigeria, Africa). She was twenty-seven.

Mary’s first assignment was to a mission station along the coast. Uncomfortable with the difference in lifestyle between European missionaries and native peoples, Mary chose to live simply, African-style. This enabled her to send her salary back to Scotland to support her family.

But Mary, like David Livingstone, was a pioneer, and she set her face toward the interior of Africa, which had never heard the Gospel. Her goal was the Okoyong people. When she arrived, the only trade was in "guns, gin, and chains," but Mary encouraged the people to grow more crops to sell—both to give them a better standard of living and give them less time for drinking and fighting.

Mary also believed that "school and the Gospel" went hand in hand. People had to learn to read so they could read the Bible for themselves. She also challenged pagan customs—such as witchcraft, twin-murder, human sacrifice, polygamy, and slavery—that were contrary to the Gospel. Her reputation as a peacemaker soon brought chiefs from other villages to seek her advice. In 1892, the British appointed her as official vice-consul (similar to a judge) for the area.

In 1902, after fifteen years among the Okoyong people, eleven young people were baptized, seven of whom were her own adopted children. But Mary was restless. There were still tribes who had never heard the Gospel of Jesus Christ! She was due for a furlough in 1904; instead, Mary spent her own time and money to search out a new mission base in order to reach the fierce Aros and Ibibios tribes.

Finally, on January 13, 1915, at the age of sixty-six, she succumbed to fever and dysentery for the last time. But her spirit and influence lived on.