Omaha daily bee., 1909-11-28
PUBLICITY FOR CHURCHES
Great Boosting Campaign Planned for
Next Year.
DISCUSSIONS OF LIVE PROBLEMS
Board Of strateEy for Protestant
Denominations subdivide the
Country for Publicity
Work.

work.
When the Presbyterian church insti-
tuted its department OF church and labor
Il was takinE a radical step and was
starting the way for all sorts Of innova-
tions. other churches dealt with the
social problems Of the day through com-
mittees, but the Prssbyterians decided
that the matter called for more vigorous
handling than that. The result has been
not only the. remarkable success OF the
department, but the drawing up of a
plan by the Home Missions council for
work along the same lines that shall
bring before the churches of all Protest
ant denominations the vital economic
questions OF the day. This plan is moth
ing more nor less than a great campaign
of advertising, conducted just as we'll
regulated business houses would run
their publicity departments.
The Home Missions council represents
practically all the Protestant denomina-
lions In this country. with a membership
of $4,000, 900. Hitherto the work Of the
Home Missions has been chiefly with the
folk on the frontier or hidden away in
the mountains, but all that is changed.
The Home Mission people announce that
they are going to concern themselves
with the questions social, racial. eco
nomlcal and religious" right at our doors.
They are going 10 make the Protestant
churches q force in the worlds life. They
are going to take a long step toward fell
lowship with the "unchurched Millions"
and they believe that they will be met
half way.
The idea is to present to churches and
people, by means Of newspaper, magazine
and billboard advertising and the distri-
button of literature, such topics as the
labor question, the immigration problem,
the negro problem, the conditions of life
In the city, the village and the town.
Experts will prepare the material that
is used, and the methods of setting the
facts before the public will be in accord
with the strictest business principles. No
pains will be spared to make the adver-
Using attractive. The country must lis
ten, whether IT will or no, for 1t will be
attacked on all sides.
Rallies in Large Cities.
Early in January a series of one-day
publicity campaigns will be held in the
large cities Of the country. The stations
of the campaign will be about 200 miles
apart, so that by inviting ministers and
church workers within a radius OF 100
miles the whole country will be covered.
+NS = 80 "AA NC oPpAA IL NAAg SpAA-
sideration of modern problems, set forth
by men of national reputation in their
special fields. In the evening there will
be popular mass meetings in the largest
halls available. The appeal will be made
not only to church members, but to the
public at large, and there will be nothing
sectarian about the matter.
The man at the head of the work is
Rev. Charles stelzle, the present head of
the Presbyterian Department of Church
ana Labor. He has been described as
the Invest wire In present-day organized
Christianity" and a better phrase could
hardly be devised. Mr.. Sickle knows what
he is talking about, for he was born in
a tenement, went to work at s In a sweat
shop and now has his machinist's GER
tficate hanging over his desk in the Pres
byterinn building. He looks like a labor
leader of the John Mitchell type. He doesn't
believe In handling topics with gloves
and he can be depended on to keep his
audience interested-to say the least. As
no talks his listener cannot help drawing
a mental picture of some SNUG and self
satisfied audiences before which this man
must often have appeared and to which
he now plans TO carry his aggressive
message, 1t is safe to say he will give
them a much-needed electric shock. He
is no sentimentalist and hits from the shout
der. His motto is ITO interpret the
church to the workingmen, to interpret
the worklngmen to the church and to in
terpret employer and employees TO each
other through education, inspiration, me-
diation, evangelism and twentieth century
methods of Christian work"
What is more. he does 1t.
Church and workingmen.
At the recent Presbyterian general as
sembly in Kansas City he held a church
and labor mass meeting that was attended
by over 1000 persons, more thar half
OF them workingmen. 1t was the largest
meeting in over 100 years of the church's
history. Mr., Stelzle is under no decisions
as to the workingman's attitude toward
the church; he knows perfectly we'll that
the two have drifted far apart, but he
believes and feels he has demonstrated
that they can be brought together again.
For as a result OF this Kansas City meet
ing he has had Invitations from trades
unionist leaders I'm every part Of the coun-
try to come and address workingmen I'M
der the auspices of the Central Labor
bodies. The unions offer to bear all the
expenses so far the attendance at these
meetings has run from LOCO to 10000.
II this is not proof OF the workingman's
readiness to cooperate with the church
when it comes to him In a way h, feels
10 be friendly, what could prove IT?
Further. an exchange has been organized
between the ministers association and the
Central Labor unions, each sending dele
gates 20 the other for the discussion Of the
relation of church and labor. In some cases
the ministers have been made chaplains of
the labor unions. Among the churches that
have been interesting themselves in labor
matters in this way the increase in the
labor membership has been from 10 to a
per cent. Mr.. Stelzle holds that while there