Evening star., 1909-06-27

I tions must swell the average greatly. is
q fact likely to give pause to church lead
| ers 1t would indicate that the present
| trend toward the systematization of gifts
| Is none too soon. There Is some talk.
also, OF indicating what might fttingly
| be the proportion of congregation
This field of local church finance Is ut
| terly chaotic. Some wealthy churches
| Trinity Church, n. Y, being con-
spicuous instance-spend disproportionate
| sums upon their own upkeep, and that,
| too, of money which they have not given
themselves. but which has come by en-
| dOwment
| 1t is figured that if the expense OF
| maintenance in some churches were dis
trfbuted pro-rata among the persons in
| attendance the cost-call it admission fee.
for ciearness-would be SO much greater
| than the price of best theater seats as
| to be prohibitive. Along this line may
come some Weighty suggestions as to
what relation minister's salary should
bear to the size and wealth of the menu
bership. The advent OF the laymen into
| church activity is expected to bear
radical results along this line of the In
| PRODUCTION of better methods of financial
administration. The merging of boards
in some denominations will follow hard
after the pooling of the funds. This will
cut down administrative expenses great
ly.
In contrast with the American gifts.
attention was called in the recent Pres
| byterian General Assembly to the fact
that native converts on the Presbyterian
mission fields last year gave $350.0OO-
equivalent to double the American scale
| of giving.
Some Baptist Problems.
The Exclusion OF Prof. Georg B. Foster
of the University of Chicago from the
| fellowship OF the Chicago Baptist Asso-
citation, on account of his alleged heretical
| beliefs is attracting less interest among
| Baptists than certain other questions
| which are up at Portland. The first OF
these is the success of the apportionment
and budget plan. whereby the million and
half of dollars needed by the Baptist
benevolent societies has been secured.
While certain opportune legacies were
largely instrumental in accomplishing the
result the officials most gratified
| over the fact that there was a net in
crease Of S2OO.OOO in the gifts of living
| donors, which is equivalent to an increase
OF % per cent in the gifts of the churches.
The question of union with the Free
Baptist denomination will also bulk large
4 ly in the Portland discussions. That the
Free Baptsts practice open communion
has led some conservative members of the
larger denomination to oppose the union.
| This opposition has been especially strong
] In the south. which is more conservative
/, in religious matters than is the north.
Especial weight attaches to this opposi-
ton because there has of late been
| steady rapprochement between northern
| and southern Baptists.
Shall Baptists Have Bishopse
Even livelier is the interest among Bap-
| lists In the question of superintendents
| for the foreign mission field. The Mis-
| sionary Union has appointed two men to
have supervisory power over certain large
areas of the Baptist mission work. Many
persons, including a number Of mission
aries object to this opposed TO historic
Baptist independence. They say that il
is nothing less than the establishment Of
an episcopacy upon the foreign field, and
| that. whatever these district superin-
The Missionary Union and its defenders
rejoin that conditions abroad and at
home differ greatly. The missions are
| not the same home churches The
whole missionary enterprise is business
undertaking on the part of the denomina-
ton Though for purely spiritual purposesl
and 1t should be managed in business
fashion. Practically all the laymen and
others who have investigated conditions
upon the foreign mission field have re-
ported in favor of a system of district
superintendents. The Presbyterians and
| the Congregationalists are considering 1t.
and are likely to adopt 1t shortly.
The innovation is of a piece with the
| establishment OF a national Baptist con-
vention, with the creation of the budget
and apportionment plan. and with the
whole. modern trend toward Capitalization.
| Independency In religious life Is being
pacting of denominations is but leading
up to still larger mergers OF denomina-
tions with denominations.
THE RELIGIOUS RAMBLER.