Alexandria gazette. [volume] (Alexandria, D.C.) 1834-1974, 1920-03-01
interchurch World Movement
Natural Growth OF Tendency
To Eliminate Waste
AVOIDS USELESS COMPETITIONS
Religious Finaneierins Revolutionized
BY Success OF Men And Millions
Movement And Cooperation
Is Result

ed States and Canada to coordinate
the resources in men. money and mate.
rial for Protestant America.
Historically it is the logical out.
growth OF tendency OF the national
boards In each denomination to form
working alliances among themselves.
tn which each board shall preserve its
identity and control it's own personnel
and treasury.
In former times. the home mission
society, the foreign mission society.
the church extension society and the
various philanthropic and eleemosy
nary agencies. Of any denomination
conducted their affairs independently
OF one another Each surveyed It's
own restricted territory, prepared a
budget Of money and workers for It's
own purposes and made its own ai,-
peal to its constituency for sunnnrt
This could only mean that these
agencies were more or less in corr.
petition with one another: that thrre
were waste and duplication Of wc~li
and money, and that among them nj
some work was neglected and sor,n
tlenominaticnal resources were entire
IL overlooked Because OF thoir sno
,cialized training. the leaders Of csch
agency regarded themselves as pc il
Harry fitted for their tasks, and icai
oslsly regarded attempts at outs,;"
interference
Decide On Experiment
After decades Of such haphazer''
methods, the leaders Of che denomiaa.
ton decided on an experiment Tie
thought it would be possible for -
agencies to get together for CON
mon study. cf all the opportunities ;-,;'
resources Of their brotherhood. 10
rake out unified budget OF mon az
money. and to conduct a concerted -
zeal for funds. It was made cir
that each constituent beard Shot
preserve complete autonomy
When the hoard representatives IT.
they found it possible to eliminate !:
great amount OF Organization *
pcnses They ultimately worked CO
budget and plan Of campaign Tia,
TcS satisfactory TO all. This result
in The fa...ous lien and Million
Movement" Of the Disciples of Chris
which brought in what was then CO
S.,!c-od The stasgcr:n. sum Of ="
3Sa.Ga0 for Il five.vcar program. II
members Of the communion wore
pleased with this bnsiaess.!ilc mctho'
Of conducting affairs that they CO..
tributed even more generously TIN.
had been expected
The success Of this enterprise revn
lr;ionized the whole business 9!
church fnancieriug. The other grea'
denominations imm ediately adopte''
the plan. The UNCONVENTIONAL associ;,
tons have come to be known as 'tor
ward movements" and some thirty Of
them are in existence today. Each one
mas clarified all the information in re.
lation to enterprise within the denomi.
nation, and has reduced the business
OF collecting and spending money to a
science.
WorId.sudaet Formed
The Interchurch World Movement is
simply plan to do interdenomination
ALLY what the forward movements
have done within the various com
,munions. 1t means that every denomi
national budget will be made in the
Ilight Of world needs instead OF in the
Isemi-obscurity of incomplete informa
ition 1t means that contributions to
lone denomination will not be in waste
full competition with contributions to
another, because all the fellowships
will have worked out their program
together.
The functions of the Interchurch
World Movement are threefold. First,
it collects. by means of world surveys,
all the pertinent facts on which dc.
nominational programs may be built
Second, it sets up the practical ma.
chinery Of cooperation. Third, it acts
in an advisory capacity whenever its
advice is requested.
The Movement has nothing to do
with organic church union or matters
of creed or doctrine. Each constituent
unit preserves complete autonomy, and
is bound only so far as it wishes to be
bound Financial appeals are made
by each denomination to its own con
stituency. Any surplus in undesignat
ed funds. over and above the actua,
cost OF administration, will be prorat
ed among the denominations engaged
in a given financial undertaking.
An illustration of one thing ths
Movement can dois to be found in ];
western community, Of $500 person!
IN which thirteen denominations have
been supporting separate churches
with missionary funds. while an ada
cent territory of $4,000 persons ha
only three churches. BY seeing that al
missionary boards are supplied witt
information in such cases. the Move
naent will make possible wiser dis
.tribution Of funds, .
Its;frst goals are to reduce uaheces
sai,y duplication and, overlapping t
a1mininlnm and to bring about an In