Rock Island Argus. (Rock Island, Ill.) 1893-1920, 1910-08-27

pass singer Is HTeSDyteTidu pSIhdpc
and the soprano is a Methodist and TIE
rest of the choir are Baptists- AS a
result the singing in all the churches
Is minus quantity, or nearly so. The
only good Sunday school superintend-
ent belongs to one denomination and
all the good teachers belong TO anoth-
er. AS a result all the Sunday schools
lead precarious existence.
One of the worst effects is seen in
the social life of the community. The
country church should be the center
Of rural social life. Where several
weak churches have taken the place of
one strong church this is impossible.
A free mingling of all the people in
the community on an equal basis is
interfered with.
Another of the evils Of denomina-
tionalism is the division of financial
support When the money that might
support one strong church is divided
among two or three the results are
disastrous. The first effect is seen
in the quality of the preachers. The
salaries which the divided churches
can afford to pay will attract only the
poorest class of preachers. Often two
or three towns are Joined together and
one preacher provided for all. He
must spend a large share of his time
travelling. and his only influence in
the community is that which he ex-
erts from the pulpit on Sunday. If
instead of giving one preacher three
churches in different towns he We're
given the three In the same town, ME
would have more time to give to his
people.
In essentials the different churches
have the same belief. Rural people
want the plain, simple religion OF
Jesus Christ. They have no time to
split hairs over fancied differences Of
creed. Few of them know the creed
of the church to which they belong
or whether it has a creed or not. The
Bible is creed enough for them.
The increased financial support which
the consolidated church receives
means a better building, better lights,
more money for the Sunday school
and, above all, a better preacher.
This last is the most difficult point.
Ideal preachers for rural churches are
difficult to secure. The theological
schools do not recognize the country
church as having needs that differ
from those of the city church. The
pastor who is sent TO the country
church is usually city born and city
trained man with city ideals. He has
no understanding of rural life or rural
problems and too often he has no de-
sire to learn. He looks upon the coun-
try church as a stepping stone to a
pulpit in the city.
1t is little wonder that a preacher
with no sympathy with the problems
or lives of his people cannot achieve
the highest success. He gives the peo-
pie theology when they want the sim
pie faith. He tells them how to die
when they are trying to learn how to
i've.
Modern agriculture has awakened |
he rural communities. 1t has renovat-
ID the rural schools. and where given a
,hance it is breathing the breath of life
nto the country churches. The idea
s Sacrilegious only to those who re-
yard agriculture as an occupation
,nly, like banking or law. Agriculture
8 much more than this. 1t is a life
ed by more than 100000 people.
The church that does not recognize
hat life and help the people who are
living it to solve their problems can
lot hope to become a power in its
community.
The fundamental change must come
With the education of the preacher,
or he IS the active force in the church. |
t makes little difference whether ag
-iculture replaces some of the theolo- |
" in the denominational schools or
whether practical religion is given a
anger place In the agricultural col |
eyes. The successful country pastor |
# the future will be educated on a
mixture of religion and agriculture. |
lie will have deep, abiding sympa- |
by with country life and an apprecia- |
ion of it's problems. He will lift the /
,hurch to its proper place in the COM
nunity. The mission boards are /
ending many industrial missionaries''
o foreign lands. These are young /
men and woDeJa trained in the indus
rial colleges. They are training the
leathen in the arts of agriculture and |
Industry and are making better Chris
ldIiS VI BIGln l11u lldS ever DSEh 0OnG
before. If men of this type could be
placed in the country churches of this
lation the moral life of the land
would be revolutionized.
1 do not mean that agriculture need
,e preached from the pulpit, although
hat may be admissible on occasion.
n the spring Of 1910 Iowa faced a
eed corn famine. An early freeze the
all before destroyed the vitality of a
arge share Of the seed corn while it
vas still in the fields. AS planting time
approached it became evident that I'M
ess something unusual were done the
'reater share of the cornfields of the
tate would be planted to corn that
would not produce more than a frac-
lon of stand. Twenty per cent of
he best corn in the state, which was