The Universalist. [volume] (Chicago [Ill.]) 1884-1897, 1896-03-14
THE PACIFIC COAST MISSION
AIRY.
Letter to All Souls Church, Brook
lyn, n. Y.
FROM REV. G. A. BRADLEY.
FROM REV. c. A. BRADLEY.

To Mrs. j. C. adams. President, and
the Womdn's League of All Souls
Church, Brooklyn, n. Y.
DEAR FRIENDS: l learn of the mater
ial assistance that you have given to the
Pacific Coast Mission, and also that you
desire word from the field worker. [
do not know how to write polished let
ters. l do not know that l can write
the things that will please you.
My work is among plain, every day
people, many of whom are very poor, and
all far away from the home and the asso.
Citations of their youth. 1t is through
your fundamentally that these people
can have the services of minister of
their faith. We are working to gladden.
their lives; preaching to them the doc
trines of our church, because we believe
that nothing can make life so joyous
and happy, as true knowledge of God
our Father. revealed by our Lord Jesus
Christ as it is presented to the world by
tu0 OulV6I5dllbb SuuIcus
If you have a map of the United
States, look at the three States of Cal
ifornia. Oregon and Washington. Make
comparison of the territory with some
part of the country with which you are
familiar. Over in the eastern part of
Washington locate Spokane as the
northern limit; draw your finger west
ward to Puget Sound, where are the
cities of Seattle and Tacoma; thence
south to Portland, Oregon. on south
through Oregon and California to San
Diego, our most southerly station, and
you have the line of travel for your Mis-
sionary. To the lover of statistics we
will say, that it is run by rail of nine
teen hundred and twenty four 1924
miles.
All along this line are Universalists
from our Eastern churches, who need
our help that they may be strong in the
faith. You have taken up this WORK and
l have been selected as your instrument.
1t is needless to say that over so great
territory have to stretch myself out
very thin; but look forward to the time
when we shall develop greater mission
airy zeal in the East, and greater strength
on the Pacific Coast. and have more
workers in our territory.
Some may ask "What have we accom-
plished since our work was inaugurated
July LIST of the year 1895? Frankly, I
don't know. l have worked. travelled.
preached, visited, correspondent. in fact
have done everything that has come to
hand. The days are not long enough.
Night always finds some task undone
that had hoped to complete. AS have
grown accustomed to the details, the
labor seems to increase rather than di-
minish. Nearly every mail brings word
from some new quarter. am finding
new people and new fields.
And now word about my work. II
you do not like details you may skip this.
believe in individual effort and want
the individual to exert himself. / try to
teach our people to do for themselves. [
do not care so much for pulpit work. as
do many of our ministers, but prefer to
be seated face to face with the individ-
ual. l can then preach what that par
ticular soul needs.
1 am not trying to organize any new
Missions, visiting new places only as
am requested to do 30. The reason for
this is, that we have several small
churches that are struggling along with
out ministers. About all the preaching
they get is from chance tourists, and
your missionary. will mention two in
particular, as they are purely mission
churches; Portland, Ore, and Spokane,
Wash. These churches we're organized
by Or. Shinn early in 1892. They never
have had pastoral care. Never till now
have they felt that any one was watch
ing over them. Both have taken new
start since l visited them. 1t was not
what l did, but the encouragement that
they drew from the thought that their
church remembered them, and had sent
a messenger to them. But they are get
ting to that point where they need min
listers. 1t is absolutely necessary for the
preservation of these churches that we
give them all the pastoral care possible.
AS soon as we can give them pastors we
will be free for new fields.
Another work that have undertaken
is register for all the isolated Univer-
salists. that we may have their names
and addresses for future use. When
calls come from new localities l answer
them to the best of my ability. and do
what can to arouse the energies of the
people to self help.
regard it our mission now to revive
those Universalists who have become
cold and dormant. rather than to make
new ones. One phase of our work that
seems to be productive of much good, I
never thought of until it developed; nor
do believe it has occurred to you; that
is, the quickening influence that my Wis
its seem to have on our ministers. We
seem to be doing as much good in this
way as in any. The few ministers that
we have here are hard worked and poorly
paid. A visit from the messenger of
their church is a stimulant and they go
at their work with renewed energy.