The Chickasha daily express. (Chickasha, Indian Territory [Okla.]) 1899-current, 1915-12-08
Meeting Opens in Columbus, Ohio,
Designed to Make Country
Churches Center Of Com
munity Interest
CLIFFORD PINCHOT
GIVES ADDRESS
ION Threshold Of Great Movement"
He Declares; Outlines Work
to Be Undertaken; Presi-
dent on Program
GU. P. correspondence


COLUMBUS, Ohio, Dec. S.-To
make the rural church in America not
only the religious, but the social, COM
mercial and agricultural center for the
farmer and his wife and children, is
the object of conference here today
between Clifford Pincnot, agricultural
educators, churchmen, farmers and
others meeting with the federal coun-
ell of churches and the national COM
mission on church and rural life. Pres
ident Wilson is expected to address
the convention December 10, the last
day, discussing his ideas of rural
credits, one of the big questions with
which congress is expected to deal
this year.
Clifford Pinchot, who is chairman of
the commission, in his address before
the conference today, said in part:
Il believe we stand today on the
threshold of great movement which
will bring back to the church in the
country and smaller towns the greater
power for good it used to have. do
not contend that the church should
take the functions of the Grange or
the agricultural school, but / believe
the failure Of the country churches.
through their ministers, to get into
productive touch with the work and
needs of the country people is one of
the fundamental reasons for the pres
ent weakness of the country church
Good farms, good roads, good schools
are necessary to the success of
churches and active churches should
assist powerfully in securing such ma
terial Improvements.
1--WE are not here to advocate the
weakening or strengthening of any
one denomination at the expense of
another; nor have we any theory to
exploit or any AK to grind. We merely
seek the truth about conditions, tor
gether with remedies that are both
wise and practicable"
Ohio has been selected as field for
the first intensive rural church reform
campaign. A survey by the state
shows that 800 of the 5000 Ohio coun-
try churches have been abandoned,
one-third are growing, while two
thirds have ceased to grow or are dy-
ing. Eighty-three per cent of them
have membership of less than one
hvh 1red each. Only six per cent have
individual preachers, the others hav-
ing from one-half to one-sixth of some
minister's time.
The plan is to combine the strength
of these country churches and estab-
iish at the logical points. community
churches which, in addition to being
houses of worship on Sunday, will be
expected to be active in promoting
good roads, scientific farming, public
health and sanitation, temperance.
public recreation, community beauti-
fication, better schools, library organ
ization and other things of that sort
1t is the belief of the leaders of this
movement that the average country
minister is underpaid and often needs
wider practical experience and train
ing. Among those ON the program to-
day were:
DR.. Washington GLADDEN., Columbus;
DR.. w. f. Richardson, Kansas City;
Professor Edwin L. carp, Madison, N.
IT,: DR.. Alva w. Taylor, Columbia, Mo-;
DR.. S. X. Mosiman, Bluffton, Ohio; DR..
Ward Platt, Philadelphia; Albert F..
Roberts, New York; Hiss Jessie Field.
New York; President w o. Thomp-
son. Ohio State University, Columbus:
Rev. Hubert c. Herring, Boston, and
Rev. R. A. Hutchinson. Pittsburg.