William Thomas Berger was a Christian

Christian

A Christian is a person who adheres to Christianity, an Abrahamic, monotheistic religion based on the life and teachings of Jesus of Nazareth as recorded in the Canonical gospels and the letters of the New Testament...

 starch

Starch

Starch or amylum is a carbohydrate consisting of a large number of glucose units joined together by glycosidic bonds. This polysaccharide is produced by all green plants as an energy store...

 manufacturer in London

London

London is the capital city of :England and the :United Kingdom, the largest metropolitan area in the United Kingdom, and the largest urban zone in the European Union by most measures. Located on the River Thames, London has been a major settlement for two millennia, its history going back to its...

 and owner of Samuel Berger & Co., a patent rice starch manufacturer, who became the first home (England) director of the China Inland Mission

China Inland Mission

OMF International is an interdenominational Protestant Christian missionary society, founded in Britain by Hudson Taylor on 25 June 1865.-Overview:...

 with James Hudson Taylor in 1865. At this time the headquarters of the mission agency was located at Saint Hill Manor

Saint Hill Manor

Saint Hill Manor is a country house at Saint Hill Green, Mid Sussex, near East Grinstead, West Sussex, England that serves as the location of the head office for the Church of Scientology in the United Kingdom.-Early history:...

 in East Grinstead

East Grinstead

East Grinstead is a town and civil parish in the northeastern corner of Mid Sussex, West Sussex in England near the East Sussex, Surrey, and Kent borders. It lies south of London, north northeast of Brighton, and east northeast of the county town of Chichester...

, England

England

England is a country that is part of the United Kingdom. It shares land borders with Scotland to the north and Wales to the west; the Irish Sea is to the north west, the Celtic Sea to the south west, with the North Sea to the east and the English Channel to the south separating it from continental...

. As the Home Director he was responsible for editing the Occasional Paper of the China Inland Mission and carrying on the work of sending more missionaries to follow Hudson Taylor to China

China

Chinese civilization may refer to:* China for more general discussion of the country.* Chinese culture* Greater China, the transnational community of ethnic Chinese.* History of China* Sinosphere, the area historically affected by Chinese culture...

.

At the time of the Yangzhou riot

Yangzhou riot

The Yangzhou riot of August 22–23, 1868 was a brief crisis in Anglo-Chinese relations during the late Qing Dynasty. The crisis was fomented by the gentry of Yangzhou who opposed the presence of foreign Christian missionaries in the city, who claimed that they were legally residing under the...

 that brought unwelcome notoriety to the mission activity in China, Berger had to defend Taylor and his group from the attacks of the British press. Often, he had to assume this role with little or no knowledge of the current events in China due to the delay in communication with the missionaries overseas.

The Bergers resigned due to failing health and also due to his personal convictions which were similar to Andrew Jukes (in conflict with the traditional Christian principles of the China Inland Mission) regarding the eternal punishment of non-Christians. He remained a faithful supporter of the mission and a friend of Hudson Taylor until his death.

See also

• List of China Inland Mission missionaries in China
• Christianity in China
  Christianity in China
  Christianity in China is a growing minority religion that comprises Protestants , Catholics , and a small number of Orthodox Christians. Although its lineage in China is not as ancient as the institutional religions of Taoism and Mahayana Buddhism, and the social system and ideology of...
  
  
• Benjamin Broomhall
  Benjamin Broomhall
  Benjamin Broomhall was a British advocate of foreign missions, administrator of the China Inland Mission, and author. Broomhall served as the General Secretary of the China Inland Mission ,...
  
  
• Historical Bibliography of the China Inland Mission