The Washington herald. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1906-1939, 1912-11-16
Protestant Churches Unite
In Home Mission Week

! of the Protestant Churches OF Ameri-
ca" will be the principal theme for ed
ueation and the main topic Of prayer
| in over 200 hundred cities and towns In
1.-THE United States and Canada. WASH
lington pastor, DR.. s. H. Woodrow. was
one OF the prime movers IN the OBJ
servance or this week and it is expected
that Washington women OF the churches
will make of the programme Of meet
ings a means of impressing the COM
munity with the value and extent OF the
enterprise broadly known in churches as
home missions"
| In addition to emphasis which will
be given from many pulpits tomorrow,
afternoon meetings at the Lutheran
Place Memorial Church will be held and
will be addressed by leaders in the mis-
sionary work of various denominations.
| Friday night, at the First Congrega-
tional Church. a general platform meet
ing will be addressed by DR.. Samuel II.
Woodrow and others. Rev. DR.. Rad
cliffe will preside.
The Washington special committee IN
cludes: Chairman, Mrs. NJ V. Richards;
vice chairman, Mrs. J. E. Gilbert; sec
Rotary, Miss Sheldon Jackson; treasurer,
Mrs. ]. S. Van Arsdale; places of meet
ing, Mrs. Henry Anstadt; programme.
Mrs Samuel H. Woodrow; literature,
Mrs. W. X. Martin; music. Mrs. olin
Leech; young people, Mrs. Wallace Rad
oliffe
What 1t Really Means.
The amazing fashion in which all the
great Christian denominations in Amer
lea have got together for united enter
prises is revealed anew in the concerted
plans for home mission week by twenty
seven of the leading Protestant bodies.
Equally notable is the fact that in this
union work new forms have been adopt
ed which indicate a complete transforma-
ton in the methods of approach TO the
public by the churches.
+. In the new, big way of doing things,
the twenty-seven largest denominations
have undertaken to focus the attention
of all church people and as many Of the
outside world as possible upon America 8
social. religious, and political problems
during November 1924. One man has
been put in charge Of the enterprise, and
$4,000 has been fixed as the sum to be
spent under his direction. The very
statement of the cause, in terms OF pa
triotism and social service. rather than
as stereotyped home missions" reveals
the modern view that has come to DOM
mate the churches.
Printers Ink, Not Preaching.
The approved way of rousing all the
churches upon some great theme-and 1t
is only within a decade that these ma
tional campaigns have come into
Vogue-has been by the teams of special
speakers, who have been moved from
city to city. presenting their case to such
audiences as they could gather. This
plan worked fairly well for the large CEN
tiers. although it was enormously expen-
sive.
Now the home mission council. which is
the joint body officially representing the
various UNCONVENTIONAL boards. a sort of
clearing house for domestic missions, has
elected to conduct its first united national
crusade by means of the home mission
week The preparation for home mission
week which has been under way for
nearly a year, is actually an advertising
campaign. II is a new-fashioned attempt
TO reach the people through the press. the
great city daiIies, the country weeklies
and the religious papers.
With uncommon wisdom, the council
has agreed to use paid advertising space
in some of the big dalies, and It is urg-
ing local communities everywhere 10 ad-
vertise in their own newspapers. The
sum total spent for newspaper advertis-
ing should exceed the $4,000 which the
committee is expanding for all its gen.
eral propaganda.
In addition to the display advertis-
ments. which will run during home mis-
sion week, an immense output of charts.
tracts. articles for the religious and
secular press, illustrations and even
boiler plate" matter must be credited to
the committee One must look to the
activities of a political party during
Presidential campaign to find a parallel
for the present propa ganda.
Visual Instruction.
Graphic charts, which tell all sorts of
facts concerning immigration, the negro
and Indian questions. the growth of
cities and the rural problem, the state of
the churches. &c, are put out by the
committee. These are in a size TO hang
On the walls of a church, and in form
to print in tracts and newspapers. The
new passion for scientific investigation
and tabulation finds expression here.
There are diagrams upon every subject
imaginable that has a bearing upon the
religious life of the American people.
The simplest form of teaching. the APP
peal to the eye by symbols, after the
fashion of kindergartens, is employed to
make clear to the average person just
how America stands with respect to all
the social and economic problems which
come within the purvieW of the churches.
Nothing ike this attempt TO pOpulaflZe
religio-social facts has ever before been
made. The aim is to interpret America
to herself. Incidentally, it really COM
mits all the churches to social service.
ShOuIder-tO-shouIde Evangelism.
The fact is, the churches themselves
need awakening up to a realization of
she bigness of their task; and that they
should stand, as one OF the committees
documents put it, for the physical,
social. economic, intellectual, and re-
ligious emancipation of all the people"
Many congregations are thinking only
in terms of parish. They have regard
ed church work as a problem in getting
enough people out to hear their pastor
preach in order to pay him his salary
Now this home mission week is seeking
to interest the churches in religions big
new problems 1t wants to acuuaint
them with the facts-sometimes alarm
ing-concerning the state of religion in
You Will Always Find at