The Phoenix index., 1940-03-09
Negro Episcopal embership
Shows $780, Increase--Patt0n
Director Of
Institute
Will Retire

NEW YORK CITY-(SNS) -
while in 1865, under the leader.
ship Of both Southern ard North
ern Episcopalians, movement was
begun to awaken the Church tc
its responsibility for work amonf
Negroes, the American Church In.
stitute was not organized unit
1906. Prior to that there had beer
study for the situations existing
and some scattered work.
With this preamble, the Rev.
Robert w. Patton, D. D., who an
bounced his retirement as director
of the American Church Institute
for Negroes :. at the end of 1940
told the National Council of the
Episcopal Church at its February
meeting in New York City, of the
progress of the church among oui
Negro population.
INCREASE 50 PER CENT
At that time Q9O6) Dr.. Patton
said, there were about $1,000 Ne
gro communicates of the Episcopa'
Church. Now there are about 55,-
600. Thus, in IS years dncluding
l940) since the founding of the
Institute there are 10000 more than
In 1906 or $50 per cent increase
as compared with an increase OF
200 per cent in the Episcopal
Church as a whole. In this increase
it is fair to say the Institute play
ed an important part.
While it is not the function OF
Institute schools merely to make
Episcopalia1ls DR.. Patton explain
ed, the influence of the Church is
bound to be felt along with the
great things the schools accom-
plish In elevating the standards of
Negro citizenship and in training
Negro youth to serve efficiently il
industrial and professional life"
my conviction is that right now
encouraging results would attend
wisely planned and we'll executed
evangelistic effort to increase the
number of Negro c0mmunicants in
the Episcopal Church. Today mil
lions of Negroes have no religious
connection. 1t Is no longer prosely-
ting, to seek for Episcopal men,
bership, but just trying to save
those whom Our Lord tenderly
calls the lost ones. We can bring
them back if We try sincerely"
TELLS OF WORK
DR.. Patton referred to the ex-
tension services of the Institute
Schools at Raleigh, N. c., Law
renceville, Va, Denmark, 81. c.,
and elsewhere in the South, tell
ing of the 10000 to $4,000 young
people and adults who attend the
schools annually for one to two
days to several weeks for special
visits to communities
for miles around by officers anC
teachers of the schools; community
work of trained nurses: the serv-
ice of clinics; the neighborhooo
of Home Economics teach
ers; the Farmers Conferences;
visits by faculty members to public
schools to give advice on SANTA
tion, home life, the need of reli-
gion, good teaching, and goo6
citizenship. ct is a conservative
estimate" he said, that all of our
Institute schools and colleges for
the past ten years have minister
ed annually in the SCHOOLS and
through the extension services, to
at least $4,000 Negro youths and
adults or 35O,eoO during the past
ten years.
Dr.. Patton explained the grow
ing influence of both Negro and
white people of the South in the
financial support of the schools,
in addition to the $3,400,00O given
by the church in the past 81
years, for Negro work, both before
and after the organization of the
Institute.
I'm the light of the remarkable
growth in Negro communicates OF
the Church during the lifetime OF
the Institute DR.. Patton con.
,1uded. sit IS not unreasor tc
that within another
hundred years or much less, if We
axe faithful to our duty, there
nay be more Negro communicates
Of our church in the United States
han white communicates at the
present time.
Should this prove true predict
hat the presence in our church in
such numbers of a people so en-
lowed with a deep consciousness
If God, will not only enrich our
church services, but impart passion
md reality in great measure to the
laily lives of the average members
If our communion. God knows We
need it. We need them and theil
contribution, to translate what Is
90 often colo conventional loyalty
,nong us into something more
,oo,o1,, human and therefore more