Perrysburg journal. (Perrysburg, Wood Co., O. [Ohio]) 186?-1965, 1915-05-20
MISSION OF THE
RURAL CHURCH
SHOULD BE UNIVERSITY OF RE-
LIGlouS LEARNING.
Duty of Christianity to Evangellze tho
World.
BY Rev. Jno. A. Rice, D. D.
Pastor st. John NJ. E. Church. South.
st. Louis. Mo.


Pastor st. John NJ. E. Church. South.
st. Louis. Mo.
Some years ago, the question was
asked: What is college? The at
tempt to answer it shook the educa-
tional world in America from center
to circumference. Another question is
now beginning to be asked: What is
church? Without undertaking to
give definition of it, let me ask, in
this initial paper, what the church
| is for? The New Testament reveals
three distinct tasks to which it is
| committed.
First, that of evangelization. The
church is divinely commissioned to
reach for the lowest and the least
man in the least land and offer him
sonship to the Eternal God; offer him
divine power, which lifts him out
of the bog and places him upon the
highest levels of human life, where
God and the soul are in fellowship.
This alone were an immense priv
ilege.
Teaching the Art of Living.
The church is commissioned also
to teach and train those who are
rich with its evangelistic message.
The term, Religious Education, has
come to mean a specific thing in our
country, namely, the training Of the
people in the local church in those
deep matters which pertain to the
art of living. I am not now speaking
of the work of education in schools,
colleges and universities, but the work
of education at our doors, in the con-
gregation. Every agency in reach
should be employed to the utmost in
this important mission. Indeed, the
local church could be made sort OF
university for all the people, in which
the simple, practical arts and virtues
of everyday life should be taught and
enforced. Only recently has this
special phase of the church's work re
ceived anything like adequate atten
tion. The New Testament word fol
it is Edification.
School of Religion Needed.
OF course, the Sunday School is The
center for all this work, although thu
activities of the church should exten'
through the entire week and the Sur
day School should cease to be 8
named. 1t should be called the Schoo
of Religion or the Church School
something else that indicates it to b
an all-the-week activity. During th1
time various and sundry clubs, classes
musical organizations, culture courses
as well as distinctly religious meetings
should be held. Thickly settled neigh
borhoods, as we shall see, offer fin
opportunities for the development @
things spiritual.
The third task to which the churc
Is committed is that of Christianizin
the social order; that of infusing tn
spirit of Jesus into every nook an
corner of our life. Nothing is foreig
to the interest of the church.
Neiahborly Love Essential.
If religion pervades and colors tn
whole life then ours Is serious bus
ness, for it will let no corner of tn
world escape it's influence. The soone
we learn that Christianity is not
thing to be practiced in corner tn
better for the world. The question
the eighteenth century, touching Chri
tianity, was, Can it be made to squal
with the human reason? OF the min
teenth, Can it be made to square wit
the results of scientific research?
the twentieth, What can it do? "
must learn to enforce not only love
God, whom we cannot see, but love
our neighbors, with whom we are liviI
in constant contact. Neither witho
the other is Christianity whatever ell
1t may be. Everything that interes
his neighbors must interest him, If
is a genuine follower of the Christ.
1t is the mission of the church-t
rural as well as the city-to evane
lize the whole world, to train to t
highest degree of efficiency tho
whom it evangelizes and to seek
make the spirit of Jesus the absolu