The Cairo bulletin. (Cairo, Ill.) 1???-1928, 1914-11-24
THE RURAL
CHURCH
THE FARMERS THE cUsToDlANs
or. THE NATIONS MORALITY.
Cooperation Of Church, School and
Press Essential to Community
Building.
BY Peter Radford
Lecturer National Farmers Union.

Lecturer National Farmers Union.
The church, the press and the school
form triple alliance of progress that
guides the destiny of every oommun-
ity, state and nation. Without them
civilization would wither and die and
through them life may attain its great
est blessing, power and knowledge.
The farmers of this nation are greatly
indebted TO this social triumvirate for
their uplifting influence, and on behalf
of the American plowmen | want to
thank those engaged in these high
callings for their able and efficient
service. and shall offer to the press
a series of articles on cooperation
between these important influences
and the farmers in the hope of in.
creasing the efficiency of all by mu-
tual understanding and organized eff
fort We viii taks up, first, the rural
church
The Farmers Are Great Church Build.
ers.
The American farmer is the greatest
church builder the world has ever
known. He is the custodian of the
nations morality; upon his shoulders
rests the ark of the covenant and
he is more responsive to religious in
fuences than any other class Of cit
iz5nship
The farmers of this nation have
built 10000 churches at a cost OF
s750000.000, and the annual contribu-
ton of The nation toward all church
institutions approximates 00,000000
per annum. The farmers OF the Uni
ted States build % churches per day.
There are 100000 rural church com.
munieants on the farm, and 81 per
cent of the total membership of all
churches reside in the country.
The farm is the power.house OF all
progress and the birthplace of all that
is noble The Garden of Eden was
in the country and the man who would
get close to God must first get close
to nature.
The Functions Of Rural Church.
II the rural churches today are GO
ing TO render service which this age
demands, there must be cooperation
between the religious, social and eco
nomic life of the community,
The church to attain its fullest meas,
ure of success must enrich the lives
of the people in the community it
serves; it must build character; devel-
op thought and increase the efficiency
of human life, 1t must serve the So
cial, business and intellectual, as well
as the spiritual and moral side OF life
If religion does not make a man more
capable, more useful and more just,
what good is it? We want a practical
religion, one We can live by and farm
by, as we'll as die by.
Fewer and Better Churches.
Blessed is that rural community
which has but one place of worship
While competition is the life of trade
it is death to the rural church and
moral starvation to the community,
Petty seotarianism is a scourge that
blights the life. and the church preju.
| dice saps the vitality, of many COM
munities. An over-churched commun-
ity is crime against religion, a seri-
Gus handicap to society and useless
| tax upon agriculture.
While denominations are essential
! and church pride commendable, the
high teaching Of universal Christianity
must prevail if the rural church is to
| fulfill its mission to agriculture.
We frequently have three or -four
churches in a community which is not
able to adequately support one. Small
congregations attend services once {
month and all fail to perform the re
ligious functions of the community
The division of religious forces AMI
the breaking into fragments of mora
efforts is ofttimes little less than {
calamity and defeats the very purpose
they seek to promote.
| The evils of too many churches car
be minimized by cooperation. The
social and economic life of rura
community are respective units AM
cannot be successfully divided by de
nominational lines. and the churches
can only occupy this important fell
by cooperation and coordination
The efficient country church vii
definitely serve its community by Lead
ing in all worthy efforts at communit
building, in uniting the people in al
! cooperative endeavors for the gel
eral welfare of the community and j
arousing a real love for country lif
. and loyalty to the country home an
= these results can only be successful
accomplished by the united effort c
{ the press, the school, the church an
Y organized farmers.