Orleans County monitor. [volume] (Barton, Vt.) 1872-1953, 1920-04-21
Mr.. Baldwin Opposes.

even if equally important. Another
wear would seem to be a more hitting
time for the enterprise. Last Decem-
Der our churches made up their bud
get for the present year and con-
Quoted a thorough Every Member
Icanvass and 1T DOES NOT SEEM
FRIGHT to start another canvass only
-four or five months later. These are
strong and valid reasons which can
mot be ignored" In justice to Dr.
Warner, / would add that he favors
proceeding with the drive at this time,
for the main reason that the Congre-
lgationalists, are one of the combln-
alton of Protestant churches who mad
fixed upon this time to start 1T. Inc
Pilgrim Memorial drive was put on IN
MAY 1919, in Vermont; and in Deem
Der of the same year the Every Mem
Der canvass was put on, and even un-
der those circumstances our churches
raised the largest sum IN years. ana
now another drive is on for S5O,OOO,-
900 more, put over by an alliance OF
the supreme heads of a large plumber
of denominations. / cannot learn
lust who are in it. T. Z. Dawson,
publicity department director, inter
church World Movement for Vermont,
/ in a paper before me says: Vermont $
quota is divided as follows:-Com-
munity, Baptists, Christians, Congre-
gationalists Disciples and Friends.
cannot believe this is correct as l am
/ informed that Methodists and Pres
byterians are included at least. This
alliance fixed the amount each denom-
nation should raise, how it should
be raised, and what shall be done with
I it. To raise the amount from the
Congregational churches the directors
of the State Conference, appointed
campaign directors in each county, of
one, and he appointed one man from
each church and he appointed his as
sistants, to carry on the drive. The
membership of the churches was not
consulted. In other words 1t was not
brought before the churches for their
approval.
3rd. The conditions of all Protes-
tant churches in Vermont, in the past
fifty years have greatly changed. In
many towns where there was thrIv-
ing village, manufactures of starch,
lumber, clap boards etc, these manu-
facturies are gone, the population
has changed, many of these churches
have had to be closed, and many 9TH
ers have had hard work to keep the
church and parsonage in. repair, and
support a pastor. During the years
of the war, all church people were the
leaders toward contributing for the
Red Cross, Y. NJ. c. A, Salvation
Army and other good orders, and at
the same time do their part in buy
government. The result is the
churches are unshingled, implanted
and otherwise out of repair. The time
has come when repairs must be made
or our churches will 90 to ruin.
The cost of all kinds of materials
to make repairs has increased at
least three fold, the cost of clothing,
food and everything with which to
support a family has increased more
than three fold. Quite a percentage
of the church members are laboring
men with families, of wife and from
two to eight children, how can such
men pay for the support of their home
church and pay for such drive as
a majority of the Congregational
churches of Dreams county cannot put
their churches and parsonage in re-
pair, pay their pastor a salary so that
he can live and support his family
and respond to the drive that is on.
Orleans county is no different from
other counties. NOTE: Four churches
in Orleans county were assisted by
the Vermont Domestic Missionary
Society the past year, S686.25, in or
der to save their churches from be-
ing closed. In this drive these same
churches are assessed for 5000.
1 am in favor of increasing the
contribution for missions and educa-
tlonal institutions four fold if nee
essary, give the pastor a good SAL
airy, repair the church and parsonage.
support the Sunday school and Chris
tan Endeavor society, but not in fav-
or OF paying over my money to a COM
bInatIon, which has the power to
spend 1t as they please.
would say to all church members,
when you are solicited on this last
drive, consider: Have / paid my pledge
gwen last December for the support
OF the church? Is the church, Sun
day school or Christian Endeavor in
debt? Does the church or parson-
age need repairs? Has the church
paid Its apportionment for missions
Ii your church is clear in regard to
these things, respond to the drive.
Last Sunday, Rev. DIR. Paul Revere
rockingham, pastor of the Airing
ton Street Church, Boston, said from
his pulpit, among other things the
following: "An enormous sum of mon
ey IS being sought, something like a
billion dollars, and it is being sought,
L have heard, in a commercial sort
of way. 1t gives one the impression
that the Kingdom of Heaven is some
thing that can be bought, that with
sufficient funds the problem of the
church Is solved, and its position made
secure As some one has put it. the
whole thing has come to be, not
matter of conservation but coin-secra-
ton Ii there ever was a time in the
history of the world where personal
and spiritual religion was needed.
that time is now. We need a reIig-
ion which shall make appeal, not to
what we have, but to what we are.
not to ours, but to u.s."
DR.. George A Gordon, pastor of the