Rock Island Argus. (Rock Island, Ill.) 1893-1920, 1910-03-07
LIGHT FOR LAlTY
NEED OF CHURCH
Missionary Movement Subject
of Address at Trinity Epis-
copal Church.
BY CHICAGO BUSINESS MAN
Evangelization of World in Present
Generation Is Slogan of the
Great Undertaking.

The Laymen's Missionary Move
ment, which Is rapidly gaining ma
tional scope, was the subject OF an
address at Trinity Episcopal church
at the morning service yesterday
w r. Stirling, a Chicago business
man, was the speaker and his aim
was to explain the movement so as
to interest the laymen of Trinity
church. A large congregation gath
cred to hear the talk and an unus-
uaIlv large percentage of those pres
ent we're men to whom the remarks
and explanations were addressed. Mr-
Stirling is the secretary of the Lay
Mems Missionary Movement and ne
is we'll qualified to explain what the
movement is. A convention of lay
men will be held in Davenport April
to 8, at which the missionary move
ment will be more fully explained.
Mr.. Stirling referred to this fact par
ticularly in his address.
"Givc I.nymen Chance"
Mr.. Stirling opened his remarks
With the slogan. Give the laymen
Chance" and said that it was for
this purpose that the missionary
movement among the laymen them
selves had been started. The clergy
has long been extending its aid to
missions. both foreign and domestic.
and the principal reason that this
work has not reached the Sc0Eo that
it ought to has been because the lay
men were net in II. 1t was true. too.
that the men Of the church should
take upon their shoulders the bur
dens Of CndeayCr that heretofore mad
been borne more particularly by the
women The need for missionary
work had not been properly impress
ed upon the men and they were lg-
norant of the great good that lay IN
their power to do. NO man, SAID
Mr.. Stirling, can be found who does
net believe in missions once they are
explained 10 him, and it is to be re-
eretted that this educating of the lay
men has not taken place long ago
The greatest handicap to missionary
..crIz is of course the lack of money
with which to carry it on. Mr.. Stir
ling said that much money had in
rast times been pledged to this end.
but that in many cases the pledges
had been forgotten. He believed,
however. that once the men who
make the pledges understand fully to
whom they are giving and the exact
purpose for which they are giving,
they will pay their pledges gladly.
start OF the Movement.
1t was to teach the laymen of the
nation just these very things that the
Iaymen's missionary movement was
started. On account of the general
hn Il
was and what was being accomplish
ed in foreign lands, party of so
business men, prominent in all part'
of the country, finally organized
themselves into an investigating COM
mittee and made trip around the
world. The report that they brought
back was a wonderful tribute to the
men who were engaged in missionary
work and to their accomplishments
The facts learned by the party
brought about an awakening among
them and they organized to bring
about a similar enlightment of the
entire body of laymen in the Chris
tian churches. They realized that the
door to foreign missionary work is
standing wide open, that the con-
verts in the foreign fields are filed
with enthusiasm and ready to give
their lives to spreading the true re-
ligion, and because of the great OPP
portunities of the present time. it has
become the slogan of the movement
to ''evangelize the world during the
present generation"
Must Give More Freely.
In order to enlarge the scope of
realize the ambition of the movement.
the sums spent in this work each
year must be greatly Increased and
this increase of course must come
from the laymen. Figures show that
of the money collected in the differ
ent parishes, the percentage applied
TO foreign missionary work is less
than one to three, whereas in the
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