Daily Kennebec journal. [microfilm reel] (Augusta, Me.) 1870-1975, 1915-12-01
Are We a God Fearing People?


are God fearing people He says;
Are the universal disrespect for
Law. murder and bIoodshed, adultery
ana divorce. mammon worship, the
spirit of avarice and greed. selfishness.
dedication of the Ego. pront. ad-
vance, and advantage at the expense
of our neichbor. the mad chase after
the almighty dollar-are ali these
n.orls of a 'God-fearing people? The
daily press is full of examples of law
lessness and irreligion which give the
lie TO the above statement. The
American nation is no whit better
than any other nation on earth. 1t is
true there are God-fearing people in
our nation, but they are woefully III
the minority. our nation as a nation
is not a God fearing nation'"
A church and country life survey
recently made and TO be reported to
the national convention Of the Fed
eral Council Of Churches al Columbus,
O.. next week, says:
One out Of every nine country
churches have been abandoned in re-
cent years Only one-third are in
creasing in membership and two-
thirds have either ceased growing or
are dying. Eighty three per cert.
have less than 100 members; Il per
cent have less than %: - per cent
have between % and 80: and "a per
cent have between 80 and 100. Only
six per cent have individual preach
crs while % per cent share ministers
with another church; % per cent have
one-third the time of a minister, -
per cent have one-fourth time; II per
cent have one-ffth time; per cent
have one-sxth time. \ large pro-
portion of preachers receive about the
same pay a day laborer. Less than
80 per cent Of the rural population are
church members.
The Ohio survey is considered the
most thorough ever undertaken but
the campaign not only for surveys but
also for speedy reforms TO make
churches community centers as well
carried into every part of the country
within the next year.
Here are the causes which the
country church of the near future
must promote in order TO save itself
according to much discussed report
by President Kenyon l.. Butterfield of
ready for presentation to the Com
mission: Good roads, better farming.
encouragement Of agricultural college
extension courses. community beauti-
fication public health and recreation,
temperance, better schools Saturday
half holiday for agricultural laborers
community athletics, observance of re-
ligious and patriotic holidays and
home coming weeks, community plan
ming and contentment with farm life.
The church must become the social
center for the community, with its
minister leading in a variety Of inter
est. and religion thereby will become
a stronger appeal. says the Butterfeld
report. Naturally this program is
expected eventually to dim denomina-
tional lines.
Thus. without decreasing purely re-
ligious activity the rural church be-
comes a community institution and
through its preacher and it's lay read
ers promote these causes: Good roads,
better farming. agricultural college
extension courses, temperance, public
health, community Identification and
planning. promotion of cooperation
among farmers for buying, selling
and production and social and recrea-
ton centers. This is big program
but the Commission is planning big
campaign 10 carry it out. Within the
next year it will institute rural church
surveys in every state. With in
formation gathered from those as
basis, organized attempts will be made
to sc. rural churches to form com
munitI' declarations and possibly in
time to merge. Il is a praiseworthy
movement intended to strike the fun
damental reason for rural church de-
cay.
Does the fact that two-thirls of
rural churches have ceased to grow
and that SO per cent have membership
less than 100, indicate that farmers
ere not religious? Most students Of
rural conditions say mo- They be-
lieve rather that the ordinary rural
church has failed to fill an existing
need for community leadership. 1t
has been too insistent on sectarian dis
tinction. 1t has been able to pay for
only the partial time of minister, and
has made it physically impossible for
him to do anything but preach week \
iy or occasional sermons. The result
has been development of a multitude
OF small weak churches, whose ag-
prepate membership in most country