The Lee County journal. (Leesburg, Ga.) 1904-19??, 1914-05-07
WORK AND IDEALS OF A
home MISSION BOARD

One Of the largest and most power
full religious agencies that serves the
cause OF Christianity in the South, is
the Home Mission Board Of the
Southern Baptist Convention, with
OFFICES in the Healey Building, at Az
lanta, Ga.
The field Of action of this Board ex-
tends from Maryland to New Mexico,
embracing Southern Illinois and all Of
the south The Board also has in
Cuba and the Canal Zone, Panama,
about forty missionaries and Us many
churches. Altogether it maintains
wholly or in part 1900 missionaries
and workers, at a cost OF approximate
" $450,000 This mission work in the
South by the Baptists is in addition
to the $55O,00O raised in the various
states for purely state Mission work,
making total Of S1,O00,00O year
expended by Southern Baptists in mis-
sion effort in the South.
The work OF the Baptist Home Mis-
sion Board embraces Cooperative Mis-
sions in various states, with 1000 mis-
sionaries; an NEvangelistic Department
with twenty-five evangelists; Coun-
try Church Department with twenty
field workers lin the first year oil it's
work.; a Mountain Mission school
Department, with 150 teachers, thirty
four schools, 5000 students. and prop
erty worth 100000; an indian Depart
ment, with twenty missionaries; a For
eigner Department with forty-five mis-
sionaries; a Church Building Depart
ment, which is now raising $1,000
600 Church Building Loan Fund; a
Negro Department with forty mission
aries, and a Publicity Department,
which distributes yearly about r.
100000 of free tract literature, be-
sides as much more material through
its monthly mission magazine, The
Home Field, and through books and
newspapers.
The fiscal year of the Board ends
on April 81, and more than 100000
must be raised before then to enable
it to pay for the great activities which
this agency conducts for Southern
religious body. Baptist churches
quite generally make special contribu-
lions to Home Missions in March and
April The quota to be raised in Geor
gia is 100000. The Baptist churches
will in the next few weeks give great
attention to meeting their apportion-
ment to this great and successful be-
nefcence.
One Of the strongest incentives on
the part of our churches to liberality
in supporting Home Missions, aside
from the good it does in making men
and society better and building up
not only hope for the future life,
but life here that is clean and pure
is that the impact of our American
life on other nations may not give the
lie to the words of our foreign mis-
sionaries. There is an ineongruity in
sending American missionaries and
American rum on the same ship to
Africa And when Chinese point to
corrupt American politics, corrupt cit
les, and an industEialism which grinds
up human hope and life in its wheels
as evidence that Christianity does not
really. save a nation, the missionary
is up against one of the most dam
aging deterrents to the force of his
message.
Then, too, Home Missions through
the 100000 foreigners who return from
our country annually to their own
lands, has the opportunity, if it will
reach these people with our religion,
to send 100000 missionaries a year to
preach the gospel Of Christ to tine ends
of. the earth These will go at their
own charges and without salary, and
VIII. understand their people better
than our missionaries can hope to UNI
derstand them. Certainly Foreign Mis-
sions has a right to expect that Amer
ican churches viii SO support Home
Missions that the impact Of America
shall confirm and strengthen them in
stead Of weakening them.
Modern industrialism has greatly in
tensified our Southern life. The good
old days are gone. The South has
been great enough out Of ashes, and
with minimum Of outside aid, which
has been more than counter-balanced
by outside entertainments, to rebuild
her lost fortune and to forge to the
front as a part Of the nation. Our
great wealth is becoming greater daily.
VIII the men who were strong enough
to conquer almost unparalleled misfor-
tunes will they and their children be