The Democratic banner. (Mt. Vernon, Ohio) 1898-192?, 1920-03-19
Interchurch World Movement
Survey Is 0hio's First
Religious Inventory.
DENOMINATIONS COOPERATE
Nen.Resident and Underpaid Minis.
tiers, inadequate Equipmsnt, Lack
Of Religious Education, Weak
Evangelism, Revealed.

live VI arc iOeIhs SiOuHu, o'so'ui"s
10. findings in the rural church sur.
vey being carried on IVY the Inter
church World Movement. In all parts
OF the state survey workers are I'M
covering startling facts Of church de.
cay.
The whole study constitutes the
Hrst great inventory of religious re.
sources ever undertaken in OHIO. On
the basis Of the information thus
uained, programs for the Improvement
OF the situation will he worked out in
every county by the many Protestant
denominations which are cooperating
in the lnterchurch World Movement.
Abandoned churches are met with
everywhere. In some cases this situa-
tiOn is found due to overchurching or
Sents an actual decline Of interest in
religious matters. One county has IL
abandoned churches, another nine, an
other 10, another eight, another seven.
In one community Of S45 population
seven churches have been abandoned,
leaving three in operation today
Decline in church influence in rural
districts is attributed by church work
ers to these causes, among others:
Nonresident pastors, inadequate
buildings and equipment, competition
between churches, failure to provide
adequately for religious instruction Of
children, lack OF provision for social
activity, ineffective evangelistic meth
ods, underpaid ministers.
FuIl.Time Pastor Rare.
a church can hardly hope to sur
yive with a nonresident pastor" says
b. l.. Lamb, interchurch survey super
visor for Ohio. Yet the rural church
with @ fnH-time resident minister is
found to be exceedingly rare. In one
county fewer than one.half the rural
churches average as high as one serv-
ice week, and the people are practi-
cally without pastoral services other
than occasional preaching. Hundreds
Of churches all over the state ore
without ministers and have services
only at rare intervals when a preacher
happens to be available.
The small one.rOom style OF archi-
lecture is practically universal for
country CHURCHES, aff0rdins 10 oppor-
tunity for the development of the
church as social and community
center.
Cdmpetition between churches re.
snlts In many communities in the
maintenance OF several weak churches.
with a total membership large enough
to support an active church il col.
lected into fewer congregations. Prog
ress has been made In eliminating
such costly competition In many local.
tiles, but much remains 10 be done.
according to church leaders. In one
county three.fourths OF the country
churches have fewer than 30 members
each and onc.half have fewer than %
only one.fOurth OF this smallest grOup
are growing.
Protestant chIldreH and youth under
"a are not enrolled in any Sunday
school Fairly findings in Ohio indi
cate that this state IL guilty of n large
share Of this neglect and that thou
sands Of Ohio children are growing
mp without any contact with the
church. =
Few interests For Youth.
Church organizations for ycunt
people are surprisingly weak IN man,
localities. In three Of tho earliest
counties completed In the survey, Onl!
one church had an organization fo
boys. Girls receive only Vttls NOR,
con sideTation. and organizat. Sss 70
men are far less numerous .baa thos'
for women.
Failure Of hundreds of cvangclistl
meetings IN Ohio IL indicated by sta
tistics showing that hundreds O
churebes are steadily declining il
membership and that only smal
fraction OF the population in man
communities belongs to any church
In Que community only . per cent q
population Of 500 are church men
bers. In another per cent OF 6T0, /
another 3 per ceut OF $40. and surve
workers estimate that when the stud
Is completed for the entire state III
membership total will not 20 fa
above 2o per cent.
Three,tOurths OF the ministers {
Ohio, II is estimated, receive les
than $500 q year. One-third are Pal
under $1,000. Such meager salarie
insufficient to support u family, ~
driving many ministers into other O
cnpations, the survey discloxes, on
are diseouraSing promising youu
men from entering the ministr
Full.time ministers receiving ns lit
as S260 and $500 year have bet
found ip several eountiss of Ohio.
Remedies suggested TOR the CORE
iion OF present conditions includ
Establishment Of rural church ceute
At strategic points, better DISTRIBUTE
Of ministers ia place at least one fu
time pastor in each community, VI
heation OF programs OF the vario
local churches, establishrnopt OF traI
isg conferences for ministers and |,
men.