Digitized by the Internet Archive in 2012 with funding from LYRASIS IVIembers and Sloan Foundation http://archive.org/details/gospelmessengerv102mors JANUARY 3. 1953 ^^^ 4 41 l\% A, R « • Z ff illi \l ' ^^s I'l ^ liMk \ ^^ISifH mkB fi' It mrf^ \ irliE- |» ^ ^ ^ S^^^^-sl ?B%^ IB* TP "^ Jt^M li'Ar > g. »"' nCi^? ^ ..y^-g /^^^tWwJ^i ^i^^^^^ ■ * * WilifWlM «,«^ ■HHP^ ' mi 'V Gospel Messenger "Thy Kingdom Come" KENNETH MORSE Editor ELIZABETH WEIGLE - Editorial Assistant ROY D. BOAZ Cloverdale, Va. S. LOREN BOWMAN . Wenatchee, Wash. A. G. BREIDENSTINE .... Lancaster, Pa. A. R. COFFMAN La Verne, Calif. IVAN FETTERMAN Oaks, Pa. HOWARD H. KEIM . . N. Manchester, Ind. MRS. JOHN D. LONG .... Dayton, Ohio MARTHA MARTIN ... Elizabethtown, Pa. R. H. MILLER .... North Manchester, Ind. KURTIS F. NAYLOR Denver, Colo. FOSTER B. STATLER Elkhart, Ind. THE GOSPEL MESSENGER, official organ of the Church of the Brethren. Published weekly by the General Brotherhood Board, Norman J. Baugher, General Secretary, and the Brethren House, Earl H. Kurtz, Manager, 16-24 S. State St., Elgin, 111., at $3.00 per annum in advance. Life subscription, $50, husband and wife, $60. Entered at the post office at Elgin, 111., as second-class matter. Acceptance for mail- ing at special rale of postage provided for in section 1103, Act of October 3, 1917, authorized Aug. 20, 1918. Printed in U.S.A. JANUARY 3, 1953 READERS WRITE . . . to the editor The Gospel Messenger welcomes letters commenting on editorials, articles and news.' Letters should be brief and brotherly. ! Volume 102 Number 1 In This Number . . , Editorial — Public and Private Schools 5 In the Year of the Lord 5 Kingdom Gleanings 16, 17 The General Forum — The Case Against Drinking. Ansley Cunningham Moor© 3 Marching Off the Map. Paul S. Hersch 6 Great Living Never Comes Easy. Roy L. Smith 7 Prayer for Guidance (Verse). Mark Bullock 9 You Can Help Your Minister. Edward K. Ziegler 10 The Family Counselor 12 Now the New Year (Verse). E. Merrill Root 13 God's Living Letters. Kirby Page 14 Brethren Service — Summer Service for 1953 18 Material Aid Statistics 19 News Notes 19 The Local Church — Midyear Inventory — Is It Time to Take Stock? Ruth Shriver 20 Our Mission Work — African New Year. Hazel M. Landis . . 22 The Singing Heart. Mildred Grimley . . 23 United Nations Commission Visits Gulak. James B. Bowman 23 American Indian Mission Work to Begin. Charles E. Zunkel 24 News — The Year in Religion 25 Cover page: A window in Bethany Semi- nary Chapel. Photo by F. Wayne Lawson 2 GOSPEL MESSENGER No Greater Need May I call special attention to Bro. Renz's article, "Men of Distinction," in the Dec. 6 Gospel Messenger. There is no greater need today in the social life of the church than giving our youth and young married people (some older ones may need it too) the truth about the "social glass." Read Col. 2:20-22. This refers to customs of pagan and other origins not consistent with the spiritual life. No good can ever come from the social glass. Why stoop to it? Why not join the Kansas Drys in their appeal to President-elect Eisen- hower to adopt fruit (orange) juices as the White House social drink? At his Chicago headquarters during the convention nonalcoholic beverages were served (The National Voice). — William H. Homer, Fresno, Calif. Important Work In the Gospel Messenger for Dec. 6, our temperance secretary has given us some very good suggestions for temperance education and action. The need for this is great, for we have 110 million adults in the U. S., 65 million of whom drink liquor; 7,500,000 are alcoholics. One out of every six is a woman. In many beer joints twice as many women are seen as men. As Christian people we do need to feel our responsibility in the important work of temper- ance. In the days of the old-time saloon ^ore liquor was consumed in the bar. Today, we are told, three times more beer and wine are consumed in living rooms and kitchens than in bars. The liquor people accomplish their ends by advertisement, dishonest ad- vertisement. Over $200,000,000 a year is spent in this kind of adver- tisement. However, there is one thing they do not advertise, and that is their finished product. As a result of the large amount of liquor consumption, America today is experiencing the greatest crime wave in her history; besides taking from our homes, churches and legiti- mate business channels over nine and one-half billion dollars a year. The work of temperance can ac- complish much by advertisement too. We are proud of the truth, for our nation never enjoyed such a wave of prosperity as during the days of prohibition. Bank accounts enlarged, jails were emptied, and churches were filled. The work of temperance is a religious duty. Paul says in Rom. 12, "Be not overcome of evil, but overcome evil with good." The good is the gospel of Jesus Christ. The more we win men and women for Christ, the more wei emphasize evangelism, the more wel will defeat the woes of liquor. When Jesus Christ is in the heart and life there is no room for the drink habit. So then may we more and more feel our responsibility to enthrone; Christ in the heart of the world and| thus defeat this Satanic foe. — Martha | H. Keller, Worthington, Minn. Review 1 Cor. 11:5-6 In regard to what Edith R. Eshle- man, Millersville, Pa., has said onl the subject of the headcovering, l| feel we need to review 1 Cor. 11: 5-6. "But every woman that prayeth or! prophesieth with her head uncovered dishonour eth her head: for that is even all one as if she were shaven. For if the woman be not covered let her also be shorn: but if it be a shame for a woman to be shorn or shaven let her be covered." I believe that these scriptures have reference to more than just the hat and I am not alone in this belief, for the old members and those better informed than I will verify the fact. If the heart is right the outward appearance will be all right also. Will this sister not let her light shine? Our present-day Brethren, as have many other denominations, tend to leave off many of the or- dinances of the house of God because the world looks down on them, Shall we govern ourselves by men or by the Word of God? Let us all strive to carry out God's word as much as we can, for we know that not every- one who cries, "Lord, Lord!" will enter the kingdom of heaven. — Kelly M. Day, Warrensburg, Mo. Enjoy the Messenger We always enjoy reading the Gospel Messenger. It keeps us in touch with many of our Brethren friends although we no longer live in a community where there is a Church of the Brethren. Always there is some article or poem or short comment that aids in our spiritual growth. I have yet to open an issue of the Messenger and not find something from doing so. — Susan Wilson, Enid, Okla. • • • The Messenger is so good to read. I cannot do without it. I have read it for sixty years. — Sara Hoover. Drinking is not a private matter; our lives and our children's depend upon our neighbor being collected, responsible and sober Ansley Cunningham Moore Photo by H. Armstrong Roberts The Case Against Drinking IT WAS almost midnight as I swung my car onto the boulevard which leads to the Golden Triangle. The powerful headlights knifed the darkness and revealed the road- way which clings high up on the ledge of one of the Allegheny foothills. Far below along the banks of one of Pittsburgh's three rivers I could see the lights from a thousand homes twinkling in the darkness. There was the great green "57" on the roof of the Heinz factory, telling the world of "57 varie- ties." I knew that the drama of our civilization was being en- acted in those homes, around those little lights that sparkled so brightly from this distance and height. I wondered which of those families would bring a sad tale to me that night. This, you see, is my midnight parish. The Midnight Minister I was on my way to radio sta- tion wjAs, Columbia's local out- let, to begin a series of counsel- ing programs, called The Mid- night Minister, sponsored by our council of churches. In a few minutes I sat at the microphone with a telephone at my left hand. As the engineer signaled that I was on the air, I announced a telephone number and invited anyone to call who had a per- sonal problem. I said I would try to answer the questions, with the radio audience listening in, and made it clear that I am no religious quiz kid. When I gave out the number there was cold sweat in the palms of my hands; what if no one called? I didn't know that the telephone com- pany had put a meter on the line to count the number of calls, and that this night 1,045 people would try to get the Midnight Minister in the half-hour period. Pastor, Sixth United Presbyterian Church Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania JANUARY 3. 1953 3 In five seconds the phone rang; it sounded to me like a fire gong. A soft, cultured but distressed voice said: "My husband is now drunk and asleep on the sofa in the living room. He has just broken up the toys I bought for our children's Santa Claus. What must I do?" With that question the Midnight Minister program — which is not a "show" but a sincere effort to help with their problems while they re- main anonymous — was laun- ched. The Problem Stated In the intervening months others have called and all too often their problem swings around alcohol. Eighty-five per cent of the arrests brought be- fore the morals court in Pitts- burgh each morning have drink- ing the night before as the basis of the trouble. Many of our lead- ing church people drink. Some clergymen drink. Many church officers are not opposed to drink- ing. Since so many of our prob- lems today arise from the drink habit, it may turn out in the end that this is America's number one social problem. We now have 50 million drinking Ameri- cans, 3 million chronic drinkers, 1 million alcoholics of whom 750,000 are men. The fact that the per capita consumption of alcohol is greater in Washington than anywhere else in the coun- try may account for some of the foggy thinking that originates in that world capital. Ethical religion in general, and the churches in particular, face a real problem. Here is Advertisements in magazines and newspapers and over the air with their misleading pictures of drinking as a means of social success allure our youth and our children into becoming drunkards Ewing Galloway 4 GOSPEL MESSENGER something that is blighting the lives of our people, undermin- ing countless marriages, break- ing up thousands of homes, mak- ing hundreds of thousands of children virtual orphans; yet our people by and large approve of drinking and oppose any real effort in the pulpit or out of it to control the traffic. Harking back to prohibition is not the answer. Taking an ax and set- ting out for the nearest bar is not the answer. An emotional tirade is not the answer. Our people know the dangers inher- ent in alcohol. They must want to do something about the prob- lem, and further, they must feel responsible for the total prob- lem. A case can be made against drinking, all drinking, and the churches must find ways of pre- senting this case, without fana- ticism or cant, to our church people. For the record, I do not go into a tantrum when I am offered a little "snort," and I do not presume to judge everyone who takes an occasional "eye- opener." But my own mind is made up. I am opposed to all drinking of alcoholic beverages including wine and beer and I think my reasons are clear and sound.* I seek not by pulpit authority but by persuasion to *Beer and wine are included because there are now addicts who never touch stronger beverages. The quantity they drink, coupled with an allergy to alcohol, makes many of these people very danger- ous. A would-be suicide was recently pulled by the police from the Westing- house bridge railing in this city. He was put in touch with Alcoholics Anonymous, is now one of their best workers. He says that he never drank anything but beer. It was the quantity. One of my own cases drinks only beer, comes home at night, and when he has consumed a large enough quantity will do violence to his wife and with one grand swoop of his powerful arm send all the dishes on the dinner table crashing against the wall. I have been slowly driven to include beer and wine in my opposition because of what they do to people, and because they are frequently the steppingstone to both whisky and drugs. Continued on page 13 EDITORIAL Public and Private Schools A "GREAT debate" over the merits of pri- vate or parochial schools was touched off last spring when Dr. James B. Conant, ' president of Harvard University, told a conven- tion of school administrators that private schools develop a dual system of education that is harm- i ful to American democracy. He was supported in this claim by other educators who insisted also that public schools were friendly to religion \ and tried to teach moral and spiritual values. Archbishop Gushing, Roman Gatholic leader in Boston, replied that independent schools arise from a desire to include a knowledge of God to- gether with general education. Any attempt to suppress private schools he regarded as a threat to religious freedom. Not only Catholic educators but many Protes- tant leaders also took issue with the university president. An Episcopalian dean, a Presbyterian moderator, a college president, the National As- sociation of Evangelicals and the Lutheran church- Missouri Synod, all came to the defense of private schools, emphasizing the need for more than one school system and the need to provide more specific religious training than public schools can give. According to the latest figures there are now 2,904 day schools under Protestant auspices in the United States. As this debate continues and as Christian citi- zens try to decide for themselves whether re- ligious training can be included in the public schools or whether they must develop parochial schools, there are a few considerations which every parent can bear in mind. 1. It is possible, without violating the prin- ciples of separation of church and state, to teach moral and spiritual values in the public schools. San Diego, California, schools will experiment this spring with a plan that incorporates sugges- tions given by Protestant, Catholic and Jewish leaders. Kentucky has had such a plan since 1949. Noncontroversial and nonsectarian courses are possible and, in fact, essential if a child's educa- tion is to be complete. 2. Released-time programs, by which pupils are dismissed to attend religious training classes away from school premises, were upheld by a U.S. Supreme Court decision last year. These op- portunities for weekday instructions should be welcomed and used by all churches. 3. Many private day schools and boarding schools are equipped to give superior educational opportunities in a Christian atmosphere and cer- tainly they should be encouraged so long as public O Christ! who hast showed us the beauty of eternal peace and the duty of inseparable love, grant that we may ever think humbly of ourselves, abounding in gentleness and pity towards all, that following the example of thy humility and imitating thee in all things, we may live in thee and never depart from thee. . . . — Mozarabic. funds are not required for their support. Before inaugurating an expensive parochial school sys- tem, however. Christian educators ought to ask first whether they are exhausting the possibilities for better Sunday schools, vacation schools and summer camps — to mention only a few of the opportunities we already have for specific re- ligious instruction. Meanwhile, we can work harder through parent-teacher associations and community contacts to support the efforts of Christian teachers to improve the quality of our public schools. — K.M, In the Year of the Lord A NEWS report from London reveals that countries under Communist control have abolished the use of the abbreviation A. D. (standing for Anno Domini, "in the year of the Lord") because of its Christian reference. From now on the Communist press will refer to cen- turies "of our era" but avoid the abbreviation. Perhaps the Communists, in attempting to divorce themselves from even a semblance of Christianity, are more consistent in their unbelief than many of us Christians are in our professions of faith. How often do we, for example, stop to reflect that when we write the numerals for a new year we are dating a contemporary event in re- lation to Jesus Christ? That letter we wrote in anger — can we honest- ly date it as having been written in the year of the Lord? Or the check that fulfills our steward- ship in giving to the church — does the amount as well as the date A. D. honor the Lord who gave his life for us? The application for a new job — will the position we seek really give us an op- portunity to serve the Christ who stands at the center of history and according to whom the years are numbered? Each of us can make 1953 a year of the Lord by setting his kingdom at the center of our hopes and by dedicating each day to his service. — K.M. JANUARY 3, 1953 * MARCHING OFF THE MAP New truths and new opportunities challenge the church to go forward even though the way ahead has not been charted and the roads marked IN HALFORD LUCCOCK'S book, Marching Off the Map, he reveals an exciting experience. As Alexander moved across Asia Minor his Greek troops were suddenly- thrown into complete conster- rjation. They discovered that they had marched clear off the map. The only maps they had were Greek maps which showed just a part of Asia Minor. The rest was blank space. Suddenly they were confronted by the Himalayas. Now there were no guideposts to the dark awe- some mystery beyond. I am led to suggest that this partially describes the state of our church. We have marched off the map, leaving behind the more certain markings of tradi- tion, of dress, of ritual, of mem- bership requirements, of legal- ism. We are not certain where we are. We are some- what lost among our sister de- nominations, not knowing in whose hands we ought to place ours, or if we should find our way alone. We are lost among the travelers walking the path Paul S. Hersch between the plain of this world and the mountain of escape from the world. There is another traveler to whom I would refer you. The writer of Hebrews says of him, "By faith Abraham went out. . . not knowing whither he went" (Heb. 11:8). He, too, marched off the map. He left behind the more stable markings of his re- ligion. But there is one impor- tant thing that he did not do. He did not try to go it alone. He was very much a part of the world, with cattle, concubines and all, but he remained open to another world. The very tents in which he lived were a sym- bol of his attitude — the tent has an impermanent quality about it and is open to the sky. Abra- ham went through the years with a great expectancy, open to God. He marched off the map, but his spirit remained sensitive to heavenly compass, not seen by the eye, but discerned by an open mind. He was open to God's grace and that is how one re- ceives it — by being open. 6 GOSPEL MESSENGER Pastor, Modesto Church, California We are saved by grace. This basic Protestant premise is based on the foundation that one must have an open mind. Other religions solve all your problems. No so with the Prot- estant and Brethren faith. It does not answer all your ques- tions; it keeps you asking ques- tions. Because you are open to God's grace however, you find some of the answers. Let us then look at the state of our church. We Have Found Ourselves in Theological Confusion So few of our members know what they believe that they are increasingly gullible to what someone else believes. Tradi- tionally our church has accepted the basic doctrines of the faith without arguing about them. She has placed her emphasis up- on the implications of that faith — religion in life. Our refusal to enunciate a creed has made us easifer prey for those who would spread con- fusion. Likewise, our leader- ship has sometimes deserted us by failing to speak in a clear voice. So we have at times al- lowed, the dispensers of con- fusion to speak clearly while we leaders have been sitting in the shadows, waiting for the theo- logical storm to blow over. Sometimes our lack of straight-forward speaking has arisen from a concern to pre- serve the fellowship. This is a good concern. But I would ven- ture to say that we have over- simplified how the felowship is maintained. Our fellowship will disappear if it is the Casper Mil- quetoast variety or like a vigor- ous service club that carefully avoids controversial issues. Our fellowship is not altogether de- pendent on expert public rela- tions. As Paul reminds us, this fellowship is indeed the "body of Christ." Jesus Christ is the glue, not Dale Carnegie. If the church were not more than a human institution, it would cer- tainly have cracked up in the beginning on the shoals of a liberal-fundamentalist debate when Paul spoke so sharply at the Jerusalem Conference. We must not confuse inclusiveness with easy tolerance and thus having no convictions. Or we must not confuse having sharp convictions with being exclusive. Our fellowship is stronger if we do not all look alike. We might not have remained in confusion about the Federal Council as long as we did if we had said clearly that we are obligated by our Lord to seek closer fellowship with all of his family. Likewise, we should not remain quiet about the basic doctrines of the faith just be- cause some demand an authori- tarian approach. The cross is central, even though we can never completely fathom just how Christ's death saves us. But it does save us. The truth is, our position on doctrine is stated in a guiding principle, rather than in a con- clusive creed. That principle is that light comes to the open mind. We have written no creed though we have slipped off the track into legalism at times. Rather, we insist that new light may spring forth from the Scriptures in each generation. But new light can come only if the window shades are open. To close the shades, to think that one has the final interpretation of God, is to aspire to God's position. It is blasphemy. The grace of God cames not through some formula; it comes to one who is open. Gathered around this Breth- ren principle has been our un- willingness to coerce individual conscience, either through pre- mature baptism or any type of undue force in religion. It is this very principle which has led us to teach nonparticipation in war and at the same time to keep the channels of fellowship open to the one who goes to war. It can readily be granted that this principle offers no haven of peace and rest. Those who take an authoritarian view, whether they be fundamentalists or pacifists, offer more security. Our principle is for pioneers, for wanderers like Abraham, who go through their days liv- ing in expectation, eagerly marching off the map where the way may not be clear, but sensi- tive to a heavenly compass. Some would describe this Great Living Never Comes Easy Roy L. Smith Eor the gate is narrow and the way is hard, that leads to life. —MaU. 7:14 LET'S get it straight, young folk, for it will be sure to save us untold heart- break a few years from now. The greatest rewards of life come to those who are able to discipline themselves. Life is an exact process, gov- erned by inflexible laws. In- fections in the bloodstream destroy our health; poisonous thoughts make mental cases out of us; spiritual mistakes wreck happiness and destroy us on the top levels of life. It's true in athletics. Great stars like Nurmi, Gil Dod, Jackie Robinson, and Doak Walker do not try to juggle the rules. They take no chances with their physical upkeep. No men in America live more strictly than they do. You could not pass enough laws to make them live the correct lives they compel themselves to live, because they know the rules of life. Narrow gates and hard ways! It is true in business. No one in the business demands more of himself than the boss does. If he does not, the business soon goes to smash. It is the outfit that can hold itself most steadily in line that survives. Ask your banker! It is true everywhere else. Those who are able to govern themselves find liberty at its best. Those who are unable to keep their word, play the game according to the rules, and dic- tate their own attitudes become the victims of life and miss everything except trouble. Seven times nine is sixty- three; two molecules of hydro- gen and one of oxygen combine to produce water; four tones in an exact ratio of vibration re- sult in a perfect chord. All these are exact. No special consider- ation, no variations for old time's sake, no extra privileges between frifends. God is abso- lutely impartial. The way is hard and strict! But it leads to life! That is the way all the great ones have ar- rived. No hunting for short- cuts, easy ways out, alibis or evasions. And you will forget the hard- ness when you have found life! JANUARY 3. 1953 7 cleavage between the liberals and fundamentalists in terms of a two-story house. Those who are concerned with making the world better live downstairs. Those who emphasize belief, the supernatural, live upstairs. Those living upstairs see no need to come downstairs and help with the dishes, though they usually appear when it is time to eat and then go back up- stairs. Cleaning dishes is un- important to salvation. So is voting for the right candidate, working for peace, or trying to achieve better family relations. Those downstairs think that prayer is unnecessary, that they have the answer to chang- ing the world and bringing in the kingdom. The truth is that we are all living in a one-story house that has a solid roof. Our problem is that we do get in one an- other's hair. Indeed, we live so close together that the house is stuffy. We are breathing one another's opinions. What ought to happen? We should blow the roof off the house, so that we, like the dis- ciples on the day of Pentecost, might get a breath of fresh air — God's air. This was exactly what happened at Pentecost. "They were all gathered to- gether in one place, and sudden- ly a sound came from heaven like the rush of a mighty wind, and it filled all the house where they were sitting" (Acts 2:1-2). Our theological confusion would be lessened if we would live by our undergirding Breth- ren principle always to remain open to the light. That is how God's grace comes. Be prepared to be sent off in new pathways in your local church and com- munity. We Have Tended to Be an Ingrown Church Here we observe a paradox in our Brethren life. Our fellow- 8 GOSPEL MESSENGER ship has been strong. Very of- ten it has been for the few. Too long it has been difficult for a person of another cultural, re- ligious or vocational background to be at home among us. We even tricked ourselves into thinking we were making such people comfortable when we ar- ranged for associate member- ship. Actually this is an affront to our Lord. Either a person has accepted Christ and is a Chris- tian or he is not. Salvation is an experience. There is no half- way station. Further, being a member have the sense of belongin which is so important to ever child, every member of a fami ly. Our fellowship dare not b! for the few — for those bor right physically, but must b for the many, those born spirituj ally. I However, it is not enough t change the basis of membershi; on paper; it is even more im portant that our members sho\ by their actions, by their warmtj of feeling, that they really wan| these new members, whethej they come by transfer of lette or baptism. If the church is not to become ingrown it must draw into its felIo\Kij ship those who come from other cultural and vocational background means that one actually belongs. One cannot be half in and half out of the body of Christ. The trouble with associate member- ship is that the person does not feel as if he belongs, for he knows he is not fully accepted. So our evangelism has some- times been a tongue-in-the- cheek variety. It is not enough to be accepted by Christ, but partially excluded by his body — the church. No amount of evan- gelism will work if our fellow- ship does not warmly draw the convert into the body. He must If we are to move ahead uj evangelism and home mission in the way that some have seei the vision, then we must dea with this tendency toward bein ingrown. We must march oi the reservation of Brethren ex clusiveness into the white field of sharing our rich fellowshi] (and it is rich) with all wh' want to belong. We Are Often Apologetic Abov Our Church In spite of our tendency t' keep our fellowship for oui selves, very often we are apolo getic about our church to out- siders. There are not enough laymen who speak with enthusi- asm and a sense of pride about their local church. Do not misunderstand me. We do have some genuinely enthusi- astic laymen. Recently as I was returning from a district com- mittee meeting the lady in my car spoke with genuine pride about her church and pastor. Yes, there are things wrong in all our churches. We must look at them squarely and not hush them up. But there are things that are right in all of our churches. You cannot travel from one to another and not find things that thrill your heart. Here is a student suddenly get- ting to college because some other members cared. Here are Sunday-school teachers work- ing without fanfare, the power of whose influence is only re- vealed in another generation. Here is a mission church rais- ing $25,000 toward their sanctu- ary. It was possible only through faith and devotion. Here is a committed group of young adults in camp wrestling with the problems of being par- ents. Sometimes our embarass- ment about our church has been due to our peculiar emphasis such as the anointing, love feast, laying on of hands. Then strangely we find other groups rediscovering these values. Here is an Episcopalian using the laying on of hands as a part of his regular service. Both the church at large and the medical world are sensing the deeper re- lationship between physical, mental, moral and spiritual health. This happens when we tend to forget the real signifi- cance of the anointing service. It may be granted that the com- munion is so central in our faith that we should not always keep its observance restricted to the observance of the love feast. However, we should not lose sight of what a dramatic and Prayer for Guidance MARK BULLOCK O God, in thy iniinite goodness Look down on thy children below; Direct by thy might and thy wisdom The way that our footsteps should go. moving service the love feast can be, when others are redis- covering the value of such sym- bolism. The Church is Often Marginal in Importance The church is often marginal because we become concerned more about doing the job well than whether the job is worth doing. It is even becoming more difficult to offend people. A pointed barb may be met with sophisticated indifference. This is illustrated by the fact that our moral thinking is often fuz- zy. Men running for national office declare they have done nothing wrong in using special secret funds. We are inclined to agree. The Christian Century has declared, "The mess is in us." We in the church have been seeking special privilege. Because we have no parochical schools on the grade and high school level, we are eager that they not be excused from taxes. But we are quite concerned that our private colleges and church- es be excused from taxes. The church is often of mar- ginal importance because we have marched off our special reservations of concern. We have even given the essential responsibilities in the matter of death to the funeral parlors. Less and less do we celebrate this great event in the church. We allow the funeral parlors to establish the customs surround- ing funerals which are too much centered around the corpse rath- er than around the life. We have abandoned too much responsibility for family gui- dance and sex concerns to groups outside the church. Very often have we failed to prepare couples for the dynamic experi- ences of marriage. We have allowed the matter of life-work, one's calling, to degenerate into the hands of those who only ask "What?" and "How?" — What you can do and how you can do it — but fail to ask "Why? Why do it?" What have I been saying? The Church of the Brethren has marched off the map in some directions that are discouraging. Sometimes she has abandoned her real genius. However, I still believe that she must march off the map. She dare not sit still. We must march off the map in new directions. We must cross new boundaries. I believe we are becoming more aware of what is perma- nent about the church. We do have a deeper awareness of the essential nature of the church. The origin of the church was not the scheming of men's minds; it was from the mind of God. It is his intention, not ours. We may be peculiarly fitted to march across the wall separat- ing liberal from fundamentalist if we rediscover our guiding principle in theology, namely, that light comes to the open mind. This is how we received God's grace. We will not be pioneering if we suddenly try to write a creed. Our Brethren principle makes room for peo- ple who live on both sides of the fence. This is equally true in the other areas. Our fellowship is rich and precious. Let us march across the boundaries. God's grace is for all. I have really said nothing more than the Great Commission. Go! Go to everyone. Help everyone to see that his life must be a chan- nel for releasing God's grace into every relationship of life. An abridgement oi the moderator's address ot the Northern California diatrict meeting. JANUARY 3, 1953 9 i ■ ^' ' i ^ \ -- / \ ^"•A r^ ; \ \ \ , / . V- ,,c. \ ''''■'' , * '^ '' \ ' ^ ' (Vt," . ' ! \ 1 1 / ' ■ ^v. ■ / \ ••..--. /. mmjA^gm \^ ' I' "■ '/ ^m'^ ) _JJf # / > i . ^^ '^. ^ ■ I ■f 1 \ 1 R9" " |R"n- •~! ^ 1^ '■*■ If ^ , ^fe~ / Ie-^^ ■" -*— .' / .. -v ^^^^3^2^^!^^;^^ '^^'''^SCgggiUij— »».»— ^ -. ''"--' '^ fe "■a^^gafagyg Walter Hering The one who would truly mimster|| serves not only his parish but the whole community, seeking those with no church home and striving to bring them into the fellowship oi Christian people Edward E. Ziegler You Can Help Your Minister Wfiaf fhe congregation does deter- mines how much the pastor growi LET us assume that your church has found the right minister, the min- ister who in the providence of God can become a truly great minister for a great church. Con- sider the ways in which you can help him to become a great minister. Give him an opportunity to preach. While we look with wonder at Paul's saying about the foolishness of preaching, it is indeed a significant and im- portant task. But great preach- ing is an interactive matter. 10 GOSPEL MESSENGER There can be no great preach- ing from the pulpit unless there is great listening in the pews. We must share in the process. The minister's finest effort, the fruit of his prolonged and prayerful study, will fall flat if the congregation is not alert and eager, and if the people do not come with a sense of great ex- pectancy that they will hear a message that is truly from God. Give to your minister then a receptive and hungry congrega- tion, a pliant congregation, that is eager to find and ready with deep consideration to follow the will of God when they find it. Give him freedom to preach thej truth as God gives him insight toj see it. A minister must not be boimd by the prejudices of peo- ple who already have their | minds made up unchangeably about what the will of God is. The minister can do his best preaching when he knows that his people come expectant and hungry, with pliant and open minds, and that he has absolute freedom to preach the truth of God as he sees it. We must give the minister time to prepare his sermon. A minister cannot be at his best and cannot contribute a great preaching ministry if his morn- ings are interrupted time after time by the jangling of the tele- phone, by all sorts of inconse- quential demands on his time. His mornings ought to be free five or six days a week, to spend in the study uninterrupted, with ample time for prayer, reading, and the preparation of his ser- mon. Then, too, we must give the minister an opportunity to know the needs of the congregation. Some preaching is too much like attempting to heal sore eyes by squirting eye medicine out of a third-story window in the hope that some of it will reach the eyes of passers-by walking be- low. But if a minister's preach- ing in his parish is to be really effective, he must know the indi- vidual needs of his people. This means then that we must share our problems and needs with him. It means that we must go to him with our problems, that he must become so well ac- quainted with the congregation that he knows the spiritual hun- gers and desires; the areas where the congregation is strong, the areas where it is weak, the points at which our imderstanding of the gospel and its implications is fuzzy, and the points at which we have a clear and workable understanding. His preaching will become more and more effective as he brings the vast rich treasure of the gospel to bear upon all of our needs. It is impossible to overempha- size the great importance of the Sunday worship service for it is here that the minister brings the finest fruits of his study, the inspired preparation that he has been making through the week. It is here that he expects to deal in the awful privacy of the pul- pit with many of the deepest problems of life, problems that we may be reluctant to touch upon even in private conversa- tion. But here as he brings the word of God to the people they will receive it as rays falling from heaven. Therefore, it is obligatory that every member of the church will make the Sun- day worship hour a first claim upon his life, for it is in these golden hours that the tone and color of the whole week of our life is determined. This is the highest and most important hour of the week. Let us go then that our minister may preach to us and lead us in great and vital worship. Let your minister truly he your pastor. From birth to death he is your minister, he will un- derstand your needs, he will help to deal with your problems. Call upon him in your hours of need. When sickness comes, you will be just as sure to call upon your minister as you will upon your doctor. He has no magic eye that he can tell when peo- ple are sick without someone telling him. Call upon him too in your occasions of joy. When a couple builds a new home they will certainly want to invite their minister to share in a serv- ice of home dedication. All of the young people will come to him for premarital counseling and will expect him to officiate in their great hour of joy as they make to each other their vows of fidelity and love in marriage. Call upon him when trouble comes. He is equipped and spends much time in prayer and preparation that he may meet your needs in the time of trouble. A young Negro minister in New England lost his wife in a sudden tragic accident. Crushed by the tragedy, his faith ebbing, he did not know which way to turn. His prayers did not bring help or comfort. Finally, he went to New York and called Dr. Harry Emerson Fosdick, asking for an interview. Dr. Fosdick, when he found the man was in trouble, invited him to come at once. They spent sever- al hours together and afterward the young man went out with his shoulders back and a smile on his face and he said, "Do you know what that man of God did for me? He took all the stars that had fallen and put them back in my sky one by one!" That is the function of a true minister. Let your minister serve the The pastor needs time for study, meditation and sermon preparation JANUARY 3. 1953 11 children. It is his desire to be their minister. He ought to have opportunity to get acquainted with them all, to learn to know them by name, to share in their problems, for their problems are just as great as adult problems are to us. Let him dedicate your little children as you bring them to the house of God to present them before him. Let him minis- ter to them in the Sunday school, in the vacation church school. Be sure that he has an oppor- tunity to see them when he comes to your home. I know of no higher ordination than for a little child to say when he sees his minister walking down the road, "That is my minister." 1 know of no hand laid upon the minister in ordination that seems more profundly the hand of God than when a trusting little child puts his hand into the hand of the minister and says, "You are my minister." Let your minister also serve youth. Young people today are pulled by many conflicting claims and voices. Your minis- ter must have time to spend with the young people, to spend a week or two every summer ministering in young people's camps; to go to their youth fel- lowship meetings, to see them play in their high school games, to go to the functions where they are working together in the program of the church. If they can come to him with their problems and know that they find sympathy and help, then he can truly be the minister to the young people. So let your minis- ter truly be your pastor in every age from childhood to old age. Let him m,inister to the com- munity. He ought to represent the church, speaking for righteous- ness and conscience and good- ness in the community. When one thinks of the tremendous influence of John Frederick Oberlin in his sixty years' pas- torate in Waldsbach, in the Vos- ges Mountains, and see how the entire community life was changed, one is impressed by the tremendous importance of a minister sharing in the total life of the community. He must be interested in the schools, in the recreational facilities which the community offers, in the com- munity organizations which meet some phase of the needs of the people. He must be inter- ested in politics, not as a poli- tician, but in helping to bring "thus saith the Lord" into every round of the community life. The minister will be concerned about those who are out on the fringes of the community. He ought to have time to visit and to discover unchurched people and to minister to their needs. Your minister too will be in- terested and concerned in the larger life of Christendom and of the community. Withir reasonable limits he must have time to attend conferences, tc go to the district and Annua] conferences of the church. The church must make it possible for him to do so and to partici- pate in the district, regional and Brotherhood program. More and more, we are coming to see thai our church is a part of the whole world-wide body of Christ, and our minister, therefore, mus1 have opportunity to have f ellow- 12 GOSPEL MESSENGER The Family Counselor Naomi Will H. K. Zeller, Jr. Jesse Zieglei The Family Counselor welcomes letters of inquiry. They may be addressed: Family Lif< Department. General Brotherhood Board, 22 S. State St., Elgin, HI. teens. It seems an early age for wise marriage in our society. In proposing marriage as a cancel- lation of sin you doubtless refer tc the setting forth of the judgment ol Moses in Ex. 22: 16-17. Such a pro- cedure has a traditional authoritj behind it. It is erroneous, however to assume that Moses' instruction ha: an equal force for our time. In the Mosaic era almost all the rights anc privileges accorded to man were withheld from women. Also, polyga- my was quite prevalent. In earlj Hebrew society marriage was not foi 'love, except in a few instances as with Noah, Isaac and Joseph. More than this, in ancient society the woman was practically a chattel, the purchased possession and persona property of her father or husband as the case might be, who was hei absolute master. Therefore, the Mo- saic solution to the problem of illicH relations seemed a natural conclu- sion. It could be invoked even iJ; the male transgressor already had £ wife or a half-dozen wives. Jesus sets a new standard foi women and for love. It is a standard of purity and excellence which ap- plies to any day. The solution yot purpose may be cheap, clever oi Christian in accord with the spiril: and attitudes of those who are pri- marily concerned. It is a fatal illu- sion that the mere wedding pro- nouncement as man and wife will be a Christian solution. Harry K. Zeller, Jr. Dear Counselor, A father is much concerned about his son, a member of the church, who has fallen into sin with a young girl. She is not a member of the church. Both are in their early teens. What would you advise? Will early marriage cancel the sin or do you think repentance more in ac- cord with the gospel for spiritual growth and protection of the church? Anxious Parents. Dear Anxious Parents, Nothing cancels sin but the grace and goodness of God. Repentance is always in accord with the gospel for spiritual growth. The church does not need protec- tion! The church is not a haven for saints but a hospital for sinners. In spite of what Kinsey may be leading us to believe, not every per- son is guilty of the sin which is the concern of your communication. However, there are so many other types and forms of sin — attitudes as destructive as acts — which are so extensive as to leave no one of us untouched. "All have sinned and come short of the glory of God." Perhaps neither of the alternatives you ask about is the prior considera- tion. The sin into which both have fallen should be terminated. That having been done the question of marriage could be considered. You state that both are in their early ship and to share in the program of interdenominational agencies. Every church and minister must work out a satisfactory agree- ment about how much time he may spend in the wider aspect of his ministry, but let us be sure that our minister does have the opportunity to minister to the wider community beyond the doors of our church. The Case Against Drinking Continued from page 4 secure the acceptance of these views by my parishioners. These views are set forth with the conviction that we who stand to preach must be forth- right but loving and humble in the presentation of this knotty problem. It Is Antisocial -This matter of drinking is not a popular subject. Its unpopu- larity bespeaks the need for a positive stand. I have arrived at the following convictions after twenty-two years in the pastorate dealing with alcohol- ics, with people who drink with varying degrees of regularity, with those who drink anything from straight wiskey to "a couple of beers." (Police say that all drunken drivers in- volved in auto accidents, when arraigned say that they had only "a couple of beers" — never three, never one, but always "a couple of beers"!) My first reason for opposing drinking — all drinking — is that it is antisocial. Most heavy drinkers, when pressed about their conduct, say that this is a private matter. That is not true. We in the great cities live in cramped quarters. Ours is a machine age. We are not on an island alone. My children's lives depend upon my neighbor's being collected, responsible, sober. We simply can't plead that our drinking is nobody's business. A foreman of a famous Pittsburgh steel company told me that when one of his men Now the New Year E. MERRILL ROOT Now the nem year shall bring us hack the sun: Northward again the summer-bringing one, The genial star, the Lord of Light, shall run. Soon earth (that turns through darkness into light) Shall shed the cold integument of night — The ice, the death, the shadow and the fright. Now while these astral revolutions roll, Say: "^^^ t^V dark life, in my wintry soul. Where the ice billowed from the boreal pole, The hatred and the evil and the wrong. Children of Death, shall die; and wing and song. Children of Light, shall live, a rainbow throng. The Sun that lit the sun, intense and clear, Shall storm the haggard regions of my year And flood with light my inner hemisphere. Now the world's death, the lives by which we die. Shall melt like ice and blossomed earth shall lie Under a wide magnificence of sky." Reprinted by permission from the Friends Intelligencer comes into the plant drinking during working hours, he sends him home. I wanted to know why. "Because," he said with some feeling born of experience, "he breaks up expensive machin- ery and tools and might hurt somebody." So! It seems not to be a private matter so far as that steel company is concerned. Neither is it a personal affair so far as home, mate and chil- dren are concerned. One of the glories of our demo- cratic society is its recognition of the rights of the individual. Just another of the marks of our shallow thinking is the argu- ment that we are free and, there- fore, have the right to do what we please. As most drinkers practice this democratic princi- ple it is license, not liberty. Our freedom ends where it begins to infringe upon someone else's liberty. Since the decay of the ancient civilization of Sumer and Akkad in the 19th or 18th century B. C. men have wrestled with the problem of where the rights of the individual end and the rights of society begin. It is clear to me that even if we are careless about our personal in- terests, we must see that we are in part responsible for others, for society. Th,e intoxicated driver who kills a pedestrian quickly learns that in the eyes of the law the dry Martinis he drank were not a private matter. Drinking, it seems to me, in a world like ours is antisocial. It Is Self-indulgence Moreover, I am opposed to drinking — all drinking — be- cause it is unmitigated selfish- ness. That is what drinking is, self-indulgence. Self, the ego, plays unbelievable tricks on us. It pleads, it rationalizes, it ar- gues to get what it wants. Here is some of the twisted thinking of a heavy drinker whose lack of self-restraint has led him to extreme lengths. His wife wrote me: He says he isn't harming any- one and why should he sit around here? He says the children are my responsibility and as long as he gives us a bed, I shouldn't say anything. Nothing I do is right and I can't please him no matter how hard I try. JANUARY 3, 1953 13 He resents our oldest daughter and makes her life miserable, yet she loves him so. This man is just a little boy in a man's shoes. He has not grown up. The children are his, too. The responsibility is his, too. The unfairness and crass stupidity of this form of self- gratification was pointed up for me by a woman who told me that after a wife has changed the bedclothes several times in a night for an alcoholic husband, all loves goes out the window, and by the woman whose drink- ing husband sharpened a butch- er knife in her presence and told her that when she went to sleep he would cut out her eyes and slit her throat. Both men are respected in business and community. This extreme form of self- indulgence, unmitigated selfish- ness, is not limited to the male. Child-custody proceedings in the courts show that women are in- creasingly involved. Judge Mildred L. Lillie of the superior court of Los Angeles has this to say: Intoxication in a woman is unfortunate enough when only she is concerned; disastrous when she involves her husband; but where there are children dependent upon her, such con- duct is criminal. It leads not only to loss of self-respect, com- plete disregard of morals, lower standards of conduct and neglect and abandonment on her part, but to delinquency on the part of her children. . . . Even its [beverage alcohol] moderate consumption in too many instances forms the sordid background for domestic diffcul- ties that can lead only to our divorce courts. A great many family arguments and misunder- standings culminating in separa- tion have their source in social drinking, and often one cocktail is used as an excuse for an act of infidelity or other misconduct in violation of the marriage con- tract. . . . Alcohol is playing an increasingly important part in rending asunder happy and se- cure family life and in fostering juvenile and adult delinquency. In this connection, my eyes were first opened on this point when, a few years ago, I asked a leading divorce lawyer in Flori- da what is at the bottom of most of the divorce cases he handles. The fact that he is a drinking man himself made his reply all the more impressive. After con- fessing that all divorce lawyers are guilty of perjury, he an- swered my question: "Whisky is at the bottom of ninety per cent of my divorce cases." It Is Expensive Those who have attended the usual Christmas office parties in some of our downtown office buildings say that they are often scenes of disgusting self-indul- gence. Drinking people have convinced me that the practice grows out of sheer selfishness, that it is unfair to others, and that it is the antithesis of the Christian life. I, therefore, must oppose it with all my power. I can do nothing else and main- tain my integrity. Furthermore, I am opposed to drinking — all drinking — ^because it is a waste of money in the light of the world's need of food, education, health facilities and spiritual guidance. One of my good friends told me he stopped smoking when he discovered that he was smoking ten twenty- j five cent cigars a day — almost a thousand dollars a year going up in smoke! A steel worker admitted to me recently that he drinks ten to twelve bottles of beer a day — about a thousand dollars a year that he contrib- utes to the endowment fund of the breweries! This man would yelp as if cut with a knife if his minister asked him for a thou- sand-dollar contribution to the j church. My sensitivity to the needs of a broken world is not dulled by the knowledge that we Americans spend more than three times as much for alcohol- ic beverages as for education, and about twenty times as much for that little chemical formula C2H5OH as for religion. It just GOD'S LIVING LETTERS Eirby Page Augustine 14 GOSPEL MESSENGER ONE of the deepest cries ever to come from the human soul was this fervent ex- clamation from St. Augustine: "O God, thou hast made us for thyself, and our hearts are rest- less until they find rest in thee." Augustine was born in 354 in Tagaste, North Africa, in a prov- ince now part of Algeria, forty- two years after the Roman Emp- eror Constantine had accepted Christianity, His saintly mother Monica has become a symbol of the nobility of motherhood. His father, until he became a Chris- tian late in his life, was a lusty pagan. Through the support of a wealthy friend, Augustine was able to study in Carthage, the gay Paris of the time, where he later said "debauchery bubbled round me like a frying-pan." He formed an irregular union with a nameless young woman, with whom he lived for thirteen years, and who bore him a son. With this heritage and experience, it is easy to understand Augustine's prayer in later life: "Lord, make me holy, but not just yet." At the age of thirty-three he was genuinely converted to Christianity, and baptized on Easter Eve, 387. Four years later he was ordained to the ministry. In 397 he became auxiliary bish- op of Hippo, and soon after be- came the bishop. He became the foremost theologian of Christen- dom and wrote voluminously. His Confessions became one of the most influential books ever published. It has been said that this is the first genuine autobio- graphy in all literature. It is an utterly frank record of the search- ings of a human soul after God. It is characterized throughout by a sense of deep humility. If a saint is "an enthusiast for good- ness, one who enjoys holiness as the artist enjoys beauty," the Bishop of Hippo deserves to be known as Saint Augustine. Next only to St. Paul, he became the most influential figure in the history of the Christian church. does not make sense to me. Per- haps I am too hopelessly steeped in both the Scotsman's attitude toward money and Jesus' con- cern for the least of these needy ones to close my eyes to this shameful waste of money. It Is Naive My further reason for un- qualifiedly opposing the use of any and all alcoholic beverages grows out of my association with drinkers. So many of them, if not actually ill, are naive. They are naive about cheerful- ness. I have seen more people made morose than merry, gloomy than glad, by a round of drinks. They cry a lot and in- dulge in self-pity, yet a little "jigger" is supposed to give you a lift. They are naive about the effects of alcohol in general. They always speak of it as a stimulant when as a matter of fact it is a sedative — else why do they go to sleep? They are naive about friend- ship. Every drinker thinks it a badge of real friendship to buy another man a drink. Over and over I ask the bums who come to me for a meal where they got the money for the drink they obviously have had. "A man at a bar bought it for me," they always say. "Why didn't you ask him to buy you a sandwich?" "They won't do it, doctor," one said to me with real resentment in his voice, "They will buy you a drink but not a meal. Never!" The liquor industry is naive in its advertising and these peo- ple have helped to drive me to my present positive position. Testifying some time ago before the Senate's interstate and for- eign commerce committee Bish- op Hammaker said: "Have you ever noticed that no pictured man or woman drinker [in ad- vertisements] is ever disheveled or silly in appearance? There is never a sign of boisterous gaiety. No stagger, no, not even a , swagger. Poised, masterful men; beautifully gowned, well- Reviews of Recent Books Books are reviewed here as a service to the church. A review does not necessarily constitute an unqualified recommendation. Purchase can be made through the Brethren Publishing House, Elgin, Illinois. Titles recommended for church libraries are marked with an asterisk ( • ) . — Editor. William Penn, Founder and Friend, Virginia Haviland. Abing- don-Cokesbury, 1952. 128 pagesl. $1.50. William Penn was a man whose story every Brethren boy and girl should know. Here is that story written so that boys and girls may read it with pleasure and under- standing.— Hazel Kennedy. Your Other Vocation, Elton True- blood. Harpers, 1952. 128 pages. $1.50. Another great book by Dr. True- blood in which he follows earlier convictions that every Christian has a "sacred calling." This is a truly Biblical idea, but one neglected by His church for many centuries. A Christian's "other vocation" to which men and women are called is to "profess" Christianity before their fellows. Each must become in fact a minister of the gospel. A helpful book for both laymen and ministers. — Charles E. Zunkel. Don't be Afraid of Your Child. Hilda Bruch, M.D. Farrar Strauss and Young, 1952. 312 pages. $375. A very reassuring book for par- ents which will give them a new faith in accepting parenthood as a normal process which should be faced with common sense and judg- ment as well as psychological help. The author points out the weakness of overemphasis on "rules" of psy- chology and shows how some adher- ence has been damaging rather than helpful. Should force parents to use their inner resources. — Dessie R. Miller. behaved women. No unseemly courseness in relations of men and women in high-priced loun- ges or low-priced taverns. No fights, no brawls, no murders. No such pictures. The men who create the ads seem to know nothing about awkward scenes. Yet in magazines, newspapers, and on the air our youth, even our children, are being beguiled by such fragmentary and be- fuddling allurements to become drunkards as a means and meth- od of social success." It may well be that the liquor industry is smart and the public naive. Roger Babson told the same committee: "The great volume of liquor advertising constitutes a constant appeal for alcoholic indulgence, not only to men, but to growing boys and girls and women. Drinking is depicted by masters of the art of advertising as something smart, sophisti- cated and desirable socially. It is even depicted as something desirable from a business stand- point ... as witness the adver- tisements of 'Men of Distinction.' ... I am thoroughly convinced that the tremendous volume of liquor advertising has increased the amount of intemperance and vice, crime, accidents, injuries, damage to industry and proper- ty, as well as moral degradation attributed to drinking of alco- holics." A Spiritual Problem It now is clear to me that in the end, for both the individual and the nation, this whole matter is a spiritual problem, Arnold Toynbee said, "Our secular life in this world is only a fragment of some larger life of higher spiritual dimensions." The same writer also said, "Caesar's em- pire always does decay after a run of a few hundred years." Perhaps this preoccupation with the semiconscious dream world of tavern and cocktail lounge is a sign of the slow but steady progress of decay in our Western civilization. It is a flight from reality, and no people that will not stand up to life and its stern problems soberly can long sur- vive. Reprinted by permission from The Christian Century Reprints of this article may be obtained from the Christian Century, 407 S, Dearborn St., Chicago 5, 111., at the following prices: 10c per copy; S4 per hundred; $17,50 for five hundred; $27 per thousand. JANUARY 3. 1953 15 KINGDOM GLEANINGS Paul Dailey, an employee of the Brethren Publishing House, made the drawing that appears on page 6 of this issue of the Gospel Messenger. The Elmer Baldwins are located in North Manchester, Ind., since their return from Africa on furlough. Their address is 505 E. Ninth Street. Moved by the unhappy plight of Korean children, a nine-year-old girl recently sold her school books and had her mother remit the money for the purpose of buying toys for the children of Korea. B. D. Hirt of Monticello, Ind., assumed the pastoral duties of the Buffalo church, Middle Indiana, in October. Bro. Hirt returns to a church that he had served twenty- three years before he resigned five years ago. The Washington Federation of Churches has spon- sored a novel religious television program called First Century Airlines, which is said to be attracting large juvenile audiences in the capital. Three new leaflets for women's work groups are available free upon request: The Nominating Commit- tee, The Training Program, and Tenure. These are re- ports of a study committee to the National Women's Work Council and the regional presidents. Order from General Brotherhood Board, Attention Women's Work Department, 22 S. State Street, Elgin, 111. Eunice Swank reports an amazing interest in and response to Allied Youth after Roy Berg, executive secretary, spoke at Poplar High School, Mont. Thirty- three students, from a student body of 110, formed an Allied Youth post. They will engage in study of the alcohol problem, seek constructive answers, have wor- ship and recreational experiences and make it popular not to drink. Miss Swank is sponsor of the post. The membership of the Church of the Brethren in the United States and Canada is 188,467 for the year ending Sept. 30, 1952, as reported on the annual reports from the congregations. The Ministry and Home Mission Commis- sion reports further 6,838 baptisms during the year end- ing Sept. 30, 1952, and a net gain in membership of 2,109. A total of 1,021 congregations comprise the Church of the Brethren in the United States and Canada. The 1953 Yearbook of the Church of the Brethren will give the congregational membership and other data re- garding the church. Brethren adult seminar, Washington, D. C. — April 27- 29; United Nations, N. Y. — April 30. Here is a chance for adults to become acquainted with government pro- cedures and to learn how you, as a Christian citizen, can help influence the policies of our government. The trip to the United Nations headquarters in New York is very informative. The Church of the Brethren at Fourth and North Carolina Ave., S. E., Washington 3, will serve as seminar headquarters. Cost: registration fee (includ- ing travel insurance) for Washington phase, $2.50; for Washington and New York, $3.50; lodging, $2.00 per night; food, $3.00 per day (approximately); transporta- tion in Washington, $2.00 (approximately). Write: Brethren Service Commission, General Brotherhood Board, 22 S. State St., Elgin, 111. 16 GOSPEL MESSENGER Support for the work of the Brotherhood Fund has increased by five hundred per cent in twelve churches in North Carolina during the last five years. Bro. Bert G. Richardson is the fieldman for that area and has been responsible for the promotion of the fund in this time. What was done in this area is a challenge to other areas. Marshall M. Erb, a layman in the Naperville church, 111., was the excavating contractor who organized the engineering feat of draining a large quarry of eighty million gallons of water in connection with the search for two missing Naperville children. Equipment and labor for the operation were donated in an unusual community effort to locate the children who disappeared on Dec. 7. A catalog of recordings of folklore and ethnographic music has been released by the United Nations Educa- tional, Scientific and Cultural Organization. Some of the recordings listed are authentic folk music made by scientific missions in Mexico, Africa, the South Pacific and Asia. The new catalog is entitled Collection Musee de I'Homme and can be obtained through the Columbia University Press at one dollar per copy. Another Brethren European tour is scheduled for the fall of 1953, Sept. 18— Nov. 12. The group will cross the Atlantic both ways on the new ship, the United States. Nine days are allowed for the round-trip crossing and forty-five days in Europe. Countries visited will be Eng- land, Holland, Germany, Switzerland, Italy, Austria, and France. Brethren Service work in Europe will be observed in Austria, Switzerland and Germany. Twenty persons are desired for the party. Costs per person will not be more than $1,200. Your inquiry is welcomed. Write: L. W. Shultz, Milford, Ind. Clyde F. Hoch, an oil burner and furnace mechanic, and L. G. Mumma, an electrician, both active laymen in the Harrisburg church, Pa., will leave on Jan. 7 for Germany to spend ten weeks giving volunteer assistance in constructing the Kassel House, Brethren Service center in Germany. The men are giving their service without pay. Their transportation costs will be paid by organizations and individuals in their local church. In Europe they will be joined by other lay volunteers as well as regularly assigned Brethren Volunteer Service personnel and German exchange students — all of whom are helping on the Kassel project. The Church Woman, monthly interdenominational periodical for women, will have the following series of articles during this year: I Believe in God, Ralph W. Sockman; I Believe in Christ, Henry Sloane Coffin; I Believe in the Holy Spirit, Luther Weigle; I Believe in the Bible, William J. Faulkner; I Believe in the Church, Kathleen Bliss; I Believe in the Kingdom of God, Miche Kawai; I Believe in Immortality, Grace Elliott. Subscrip- tions to the Church Woman are $1.00 per year; foreign, $1.25. Samples may be obtained at 15c each, $4.50 for 50, $8.50 for 100. Local, district and regional women's work officers need this periodical. Why not write it into your annual women's work budget for your president? Ordained and Licensed to the Ministry Eugene Eisenhise, ordained, in the Garden City church, Kansas. Robert Sooby, licensed in the Garden City church, Kansas. John O. Wagner, licensed, in the Ottumwa church, Iowa. Brotherhood Theme: Win Men to Christ An article by Kermit Ehy on "The Brethren Genius" (see our issues for June 14 and 21) appears in the Win- ter issue of a quarterly magazine, Religion in Life. Of interest to Bible students is an article, "On the Writing of First Thessalonians," by Chalmer E. Faw, professor at Bethany, which appears in the December issue of the Journal of Biblical Literature. Thurl Metzger, executive secretary of the Heifer Project, announces that the agency is turning gradually from relief to long-range rehabilitation work. He re- ported that request for livestock from nineteen different nations have come to the national offices in New Wind- sor. Many of these requests now come from countries having backward agricultural sections in which breeding stock is needed for long-term improvement programs. The American Civil Liberties Union has protested the restrictions imposed by the Department of Justice on the religious liberty of the Rev. Michael Scott, Anglican clergyman attending the UN General Assembly in New York. Mr. Scott, former missionary to South Africa and long a champion of the rights of native African tribes, is serving as observer for the International League for the Rights of Man at the UN meeting. The National Christian Council of Korea has urged the United Nations forces to reconsider the use of such new weapons as the napalm or jellied gasoline bomb. This proposal was one of three suggestions that Korean Christians made to President-elect Dwight D. Eisen- hower. Other suggestions were concerned with opposi- tion to the withdrawal of UN forces from South Korea, and to the need for continued relief for millions, of cold and hungry war refugees and orphans. A Negro baseball pitcher and a prominent Negro churchman received the 1952 special achievement awards of the New York Bible Society. One recipient was Joe Black, Negro star of the Brooklyn Dodgers; the other was Dr. Channing H. Tobias, a former U. S. delegate to the United Nations General Assembly. The Bible Society awards is made annually to persons "performing a special service in the respective fields while exhibiting Christian character in pursuance of their objectives." A National Church Music Fellowship 'was formed in Chicago to promote "spiritual music for a spiritual church." Fifty representatives from fifteen theological schools and Bible institutes formed the fellowship with the purpose "to promote fellowship and co-operation among our schools, churches and other organizations in order that the music used in services will bring, through divine directions, the most powerful and permanent spiritual results." Donald P. Hustad, director of the sacred music department of Moody Bible Institute, was elected president. Eleven young Mennonite conscientious objectors have arrived in Germany for two years of rehabilitation work under the PAX service program set up by the Mennonite Central Committee. The group brings to fifty-one the total of PAX men working in Europe and the Middle East. They are engaged primarily in building homes for refugees. The purpose of the PAX program, as announced by the Mennonite body, is to "provide projects that offer opportunities to alleviate human need and to help resettle and rehabilitate displaced persons in various parts of the world." Willard Powers, layman of the Mt. Morris church, was elected recording secretary of the Board of Man- agers of the United Church Men at meetings held in connection with the National Council Assembly in Denver recently. The German Evangelical Church in the Polish-occu- pied part of Silesia has virtually become "a church with- out clergy." There are about 40,000 Protestants in some 100 scattered parishes in the area. But they are served by only two pastors, both of them ailing and overworked. Services and religious classes are being held by lay men and women. Before World War II, the Evangelical Church in Silesia had 2,300,000 members and was served by over 900 pastors. The first peace institute for high school age youth, fourteen to eighteen years, was held at Westernport, Md., Dec. 12-14. Leadership included Ed Crill, Dave and Eloise Hanawalt and Wilbur Mullen. The institute, held with representative youth from the churches of Western Maryland is one of ten projected pilot projects. Plans are projected for at least two or more such insti- tutes per region during the coming year. Districts and local churches are encouraged to give more time and attention to peace needs of this age youth. The Church Calendar January 4 Lesson outline based on International Sunday School Lessons; the International Bible Lessons for Christian Teaching, coipy- righted 1951 by the Division of Christian Education, National Council of Churches of Christ in the U.S.A. Sunday-school Lesson, Tracing Character to Its Source. — Matt. 15. Memory Selection: Keep thy heart with all diligence; For out of it are the issues of life. Prov. 4:23 CBYF Topic: Moral Problems Jan. 4-11 Week of Prayer Jan. 25 Christian Education-Bethany Seminary Offering Jan. 25— Feb. 1 Youth Week Feb. 3-5 Spiritual Life Institute, Bridgewater College With Our Evangelists Will you pray for the success of these meetings? Will you share the burden which these laborers carry? Bro. I. D. Lealherman of Elgin, 111., in the Winter Park church, Fla.. Jan. 6-18. Gains for the Kingdom Four baptized in the Mount View church, Va. One baptized and seven received by letter in the Central church, Roanoke, Va. Three baptized in the First church, Baltimore, Md. Nine bap- tized and two received as associate members in the Ridgely church, Md. Three baptized and one received by letter in the Newport News church, Va. Two baptized and five reconsecrated in the First church, Al- toona. Pa. Seven baptized in the East Fairview church. Pa. Six- teen baptized and two received on confession of faith in the Second church, York, Pa. Twelve baptized and one received on former baptism in the Spring Creek church. Pa. Four received by letter in the Lititz church. Pa. Thirteen baptized in the Springville church, Pa. Nine baptized in the Camp Creek church, Ind. Six baptized and four received by letter in the South Whitley church, Ind. Fifteen baptized in the Plymouth church, Ind. Three baptized in the Ft. McKinley church, Ohio. Three baptized in the North Winona church, Ind. Fourteen baptized in the Brookville church, Ohio. Nine baptized in the Astoria church, HI. Twelve baptized and two received by letter in the Garden City church, Kansas. Five baptized and one reclaimed in the Ottumwa church, Iowa. Four baptized and five received by letter in the Nampa church, Idaho. Four received by letter in the Albany church, Oregon. Five baptized in the Phoenix church, Ariz. JANUARY 3, 1953 17 Brethren Service Edited by Wilbur Mullen SUMMER SERVICE for 1953 A group of campers at a summer work camp in Fresno, Califor- nia, begin digging the foundation for a community building Community Service BALTIMORE, MD. Dates: June 20 to Aug. 15. Projects: Neighborhood rehabili- tation work in a sub-standard or "blighted" area in the city. The community consists mainly of Negro tenements. Twenty-five per cent of the population of Baltimore is Negro and most of these people live in slum and blighted areas. The project is one of recreation, educa- tion and community improvement. There will be visiting, manual labor, study, worship and recreation for the work campers. Number: Ten to fifteen mature people. Cost: $60. Some scholarship aid. MONROEVILLE. PA. Dates: July 8 to Aug. 19. Project: A new Church of the Brethren organization is being built into the life of a rapidly growing suburban community near Pitts- bvirgh. Work campers will do much home visitation, supervise play and 18 GOSPEL MESSENGER direct social activities and conduct a vacation church school for the chil- dren in the area. Number: Four to six fellows and girls. Cost: $1.00 a day. Some scholar- ship aid. MINE 42, WINDBER, PA. Dates: July 8 to Aug. 12. Project: To carry on work in this unchurched community which was begun by a work camp last summer. The work campers will lead recrea- tion, conduct worship services, Or- ganize social activities for the com- munity and hold a vacation church school for the children. There is a need to help mold divergent ele- ments in the community into one fellowship. Number: Two men, three women. Cost: $1.00 per day. Some scholar- ship aid. CHICAGO, ILL. Dates: July 6 to Aug. 14. Project: A church-community rec- reational program which provides summertime activities for boys and girls who normally play in the streets and alleys. Work campers will provide the leadership for this extensive day camp program. Work consists of teaching crafts, games, songs, and escorting the children on educational and industrial tours. Most of the children are from non- ; Brethren homes, many of foreign parentage and some are delinquents or with delinquent tendencies. Work campers will have opportunities for sightseeing and educational trips. Number: Twelve to fifteen work- ers, both fellows and girls. Cost: $10 per week. Some scholar- ship aid. KANSAS CITY, MO. Dates: June 28 to July 25. Projects: Carver Neighborhood Settlement House. This is a Negro settlement house. The work campers will do some repair and redecorating of the settlement house and work in an educational way with the boys and girls of the neighborhood. There will be some work with the day center, arts and crafts, recreational guidance, playground and game- room activities. There will also be some visitation in the homes. Oppor- tunities will be afforded for tours to industries and contact with local social workers and civic leaders. Number: Twelve to fifteen fellows and girls. Cost: $1.00 per day. Some scholar- ship aid. CLOVIS, N. MEX. Dates: July 26 to Aug. 22. Project: Supervise recreation, camps and crafts, stories and sing- ing, mostly with children, in a Spanish, Negro and Anglo-American area. Possible assistance on a com- munity construction project. Camp- ers will live together, doing their own cooking, housekeeping, etc. Some counseling on family life, building a better community spirit and improving general living condi- tions. Number: Eight to ten fellows and girls. Cost: $1.00 a day. Some scholar- ship aid. FRESNO. CALIF. Dates: June 28 to Aug. 1. Projects: Community rehabilita- tion. Work will consist of some con- struction work on the community building and decoration of the build- ing and grounds. There will also be work with the children in this semi- migrant interracial area on the out- skirts of Fresno. There will be storytelling, crafts, music, play- ground supervision. Number: Six fellows and four girls. Cost: $1.00 a day. Some scholar- ship aid available. For information on community service projects, write to Ora Hus- ton, 22 S. State St., Elgin, 111. Institutional Service BUTNER, N. C. Dates: June 7 to Sept. 5. Project: Occupational and recrea- tional therapy at the Butner state hospital. It will be the duty of those working in the unit to teach crafts, recommend reading, counsel with patients, direct games, supervise sports, direct music, plan fellowship programs, take patients on walks, organize dramatic and musical pro- grams for patients and community. The group will study, play and wor- ship together as well as work in the institution. Number: Fifteen, (fifty per cent girls), aged eighteen or older. Cost: Seven per cent of salary, plus living expenses. The imit mem- bers will receive the regular hospital pay for attendants. ELGIN, ILL. Dates: June 7 to Sept. 5. Project: Work as regular attend- ants in the Elgin state hospital. The work will consist of supervising patients, bathing and feeding, and taking care of those who are bedfast, taking patients for walks, personal conversation with patients. Unit members may sit in on staff consul- tation during off-duty hours. Group living program of study, worship and recreation. An interracial unit — some of members living at the hospi- tal, some at the Brethren Fellowship House. Number: Fifty, eighteen years or older. Cost: Seven per cent of salary, plus living expenses. Regular hos- pital pay for attendants will be re- ceived. ST. CHARLES, ILL. (tentative) Date: June 7 to Sept. 5. Project: Illinois State Training School for Boys. To direct recrea- tion and assist in counseling and cabin supervision. Number: Ten men. Cost: Seven per cent of salary, plus living expenses. Unit members will receive regular wages. For information on institutional service write Ora Huston, 22 S. State St.. Elgin, III. Relief Center Service NEW WINDSOR, MD. Dates: Any length of time during the summer. Project: Assistance with such ac- tivities of the Brethren Service re- lief center as are needed and within the individual's abilities. Cutting, sewing, sorting, mending, baling and shipping clothing, cooking or serving in the cafeteria, office work are types of jobs. Number: Five to ten persons. Cost: Maintenance-subsistence ba- sis. Contact: Roy Hiteshew, Brethren Service Center, New Windsor, Md. NAPPANEE. IND. Dates: Any length of time during the summer. Projects: Assistance with such ac- tivities of the Brethren Service re- lief center as are needed and within the individual's abilities. Sorting, MATERIAL AID STATISTICS The material aid program, which begins in the homes of Christians in America who decide to share their abundance of food and clothing with people made needy by war or some other calamity, has received con- tinued support. Workers in Germa- ny, Austria and Greece distribute these materials to the neediest places — refugee camps, transient camps for youth, institutions and bombed-out families and individuals — with the help of local organiza- tions such as the Red Cross, Hilfs- werk (Protestant relief agency) and CARITAS (Catholic relief agency). Some statistics are as follows: 3,925,323 pounds of materials (food, clothing, shoes, soap, medi- cines, bedding, special kits, seeds, etc.) shipped abroad by Brethren Service from March 1947 to March 1952. 11,179.061 pounds of materials processed by Brethren Service for other groups, such as Church World Service, American Aid to Korea, etc. Over 4^2 million dollars have been given to Brethren Service work from 1936 to September 1951. mending, baling and shipping of re- lief clothing. Making soap from used fats. Number: Five to ten persons. Cost: Maintenance-subsistence ba- sis. Contact: Owen Price, Brethren Service Center, Nappanee, Ind. NEWS NOTES AUSTRIA Thirty young refugee women are learning to sew and make their own clothes in the recreation room of the Brethren house in Linz. Mrs. W. W. Peters is serving as supervisor of this project which Frau Zimmer- mann, mother of our secretary, Mar- garet Reiter, is instructing. The garage at the Linz house is now completed. Credit goes to Mr. Inman and Volunteers David Bright- bill, David Rittenhouse, Carl Kime, Horst Behrendt, Keith Hinshaw and Clyde Nafzinger. Mrs. Irmian helped the cooks satisfy the ravenous hun- ger of the boys. Each day one of the fellows was spared from work on the garage in order to attend a meeting, a distribution in a refugee clinic, or to see the Austrian staff at work in other areas. GERMANY Niederkaufungen is a small, pic- turesque village near Kassel. Sam Robins and Earl Woodward in a chat with the village pastor. Pastor Stan- dau, found that even riu-al areas can be in dire need of aid. Approximate- ly one third of the 3,500 people in this community are refugees, and the average income for families with four to six members is ten dollars a week. There are more than 100 widows with children and 120 per- sons are unemployed. The villagers' greatest needs are wool for knitting, clothes, food but, perhaps most of all, they want interest shown in their plight. Brethren Service is the only group outside of the local wel- fare organization which helps in this community. A work camp will be conducted in this community in 1953. ITALY L. W. Shultz, Mr. and Mrs. M. R. Zigler and Mr. and Mrs. Jacob Dick visited in Carrara, Italy, investigat- ing the possibility of a work camp in that area in 1953. Joe Munda acted as interpreter as M. R. and Jake discussed plans for a Brethren work camp at the "Boy's Village" in Marina Di Carrara. The boys are in need; housing is inadequate. Work has been started on the con- struction of a new building to house these orphan boys. JANUARY 3. 1953 19 The Local Church Edited by Mildred M. Ettei IDEAS— PLANS— METHODS Mid- Year Inventory Is It Time to Take Stock? THE TIME: Thursday afternoon, Jan. 15, just far enough away' from Christmas holidays for that comfort- able relaxed feeling. THE PLACE: Living room of the president's home. PRESENT: The members of the Women's Work cabinet: president, vice-president, secretary -treasurer, and three program directors. The pastor sits in by invitation of the president. THE PURPOSE: Three months of the program year are gone; nine yet to come. However, plans are well under way, and this is a "stock- taking" meeting to discover what still needs to be done. PRESIDENT: It really took cour- age to invite you all here for a meet- ing today. I realize you are still getting your breath from your holi- day activities. Pastor B, we are par- ticularly grateful to you for taking time out to come. PASTOR B: Don't mention it. There are many things I get asked to do that are less important than this! I count it an honor to be invited. AID-SERVICE DIRECTOR (with a friendly gleam in her eye) : Come to think of it, we didn't have the minister in our cabinet meetings formerly. How did we get into this habit? PASTOR: To be honest about it, I've wondered about that myself. Being not exactly a beginner in pas- toral work, this is my first experi- ence in being invited to cabinet meetings. I've been curious to know how it happens. PRESIDENT: Several things brought it about. We went to a dis- trict institute for local officers two years ago, and the leader of our presidents' group suggested the idea. Hardly any group had ever invited its pastor; most of us said it wouldn't work. Ruth M. Shriver Director of Women's Work Elgin, Illinois HOMEBUILDER DIRECTOR: Yes, I heard about that discussion afterward from my cousin Sue, who is president over at Stony Ridge. "The pastor is too busy." "This is one thing the women are doing as women." "We wouldn't feel free to talk with the pastor there." They said all those things. PRESIDENT {reminiscently) : Yes, I remember the first heat of that discussion. We didn't "cotton" to it. But our leader tried to point up the values. Among other things at that institute, I got a new respect for the Manual for Women's Work Groups. Back home again, I read it through and felt a little surprised to find, at several places in it, the idea that the pastor, if invited to share, might often help tie the Women's Work plans to the larger programs of the church and to help us see where our services are most needed. PASTOR: Believe me, I am grate- ful for the friendly relationship. If I cannot always be with you, I fee? free at least to sit in when I can and to share. Your enthusiasm lifts mj spirit when I get low. ! PRESIDENT: Now to our busi- ness of the day. We have much tc do. It's three o'clock. Our husbands will all be here for a potluck suppei; at five, and we'll have to leave time for getting it on the table. SECRETARY-TREASURER: Yof said on the telephone we would trj to take inventory at this meeting What did you mean? I scurriec around to get my books all in order just in case! PRESIDENT: Just sit back anc relax. It wasn't our money I wa5 thinking most about. It was our pro- gram for the year. How do yot think we are doing so far? SPIRITUAL ENRICHMENT DI- RECTOR: It's a good idea to take; inventory. Do you remember those strenuous hours we put in last fall- mostly in September? Now we car see the results of our efforts unfold AID-SERVICE DIRECTOR: I car report progress in the work of m> department. Maybe you won't call ii 20 GOSPEL MESSENGER Staff Photo The Women's Work cabinet invites the pastor to share in planning work progress. But at the close of the last war, our women were tired. They liad sewed and canned and mended until they were ready to drop. They loved doing it, but their enthusiasm did taper off. Now, I feel we are •taking a fresh start, and it's good in this way: The calls that come ior help are being gladly received, but we are trying harder to weigh values and decide what causes need us most. PASTOR: If I might comment, I ieel it, too. You women are really beginning to see that our world is one big family — what troubles one part of the family troubles all. You are truly sensitive to need — and are slower to say, "I'll buy that," until you really know where your effort will count most to serve world prob- lems. VICE-PRESIDENT: I've only one •concern on our aid-service program — not everyone is helping. We have women who could but don't. Why don't they? Then, too, there's a new peace packet. Should our aid- iservice do something about this? PRESIDENT: Let's save the prob- lems for later. Mrs. C, you are our Homebuilder director. How are we doing, from your point of view? HOMEBUILDER DIRECTOR: ■Good enough! I can truthfully say our monthly study group is better attended than ever before. But I've ■a couple of problems, too — PRESIDENT: Can you hold those for a few moments? SPIRITUAL ENRICHMENT DI- HECTOR: I've been grateful for the new Key Leaflet and Packet of Spiritual Enrichment materials. But there's much thinking yet to be done in my area. There's Bible study in Sunday school; we have Bible study in our department. And now that "the new emphasis on evangelism is coming along, I find that some of the same plans suggested for the 'Abundant Life in Christ movement are also in our spiritual enrichment program. I'm puzzled to know whether we're going to duplicate efforts or not. PRESIDENT (looking out the window): Goodness! There come the children home from school. They'll smell food in the oven and be asking for a snack. How about a word from our secretary-treas- urer? SECRETARY - TREASURER: I can report favorably too. We seem, to be getting into the swing of pay- ing our share to our district and regional and national projects, and still have plenty to do with here at home. We were a little slow getting going, but it works all right now. PRESIDENT (after a moment in the kitchen with the children and a peep at the food in the oven) : Time's getting short now. Why don't we simply list our unsolved prob- lems, our unfulfilled dreams? May- be we can strengthen the next year's program my admitting our short- comings. Why doesn't each of you suggest a solution along with the problem? AID-SERVICE DIRECTOR: Not all our women participate. Why don't they? My suggestion! Let's ask them by written questionnaire, or individually, what they like — and do not like — in our present program. Next year's officers could use our findings. VICE-PRESIDENT: On the other hand, some of us are too busy. We go to too many meetings. My recom- mendation: "Let's not give any one woman more than one job in the church; interest and responsibility go together. HOMEBUILDER DIRECTOR: There is a concern as to whether we are doing enough in our Home- builders' program to serve the total church need. Brother Pastor, could we have a session with the church cabinet, or a meeting of all the workers in our church and Sunday school to consider the family life needs of our church? PASTOR: I think it could be done. In fact, a good many workers would welcome the opportunity. Our children's workers have a stake in the parents of the church. Like- wise, our youth leaders often feel they need counsel with the parents. • SPIRITUAL ENRICHMENT DI- RECTOR: In fact, I covet such a session relating to all the things we women are doing. We are trying to broaden out our program to include the total church. How do we know when we are doing something need- ful, or when the church would rather we would simply co-operate in the total program? Once in a great while, I feel we are criticized for doing too much — for being a sort of "women's church" — all to our- selves. How do we get at that? PRESIDENT: Ten more minutes and then we must stop! Could you not. Pastor B, point up the solution for us? PASTOR: I'll grant I've a concern there. We need you women so badly in so many spots in the church pro- gram— to teach classes, work with youth, head up church committees. On the other hand, many of the things you are doing now are in- dispensable. Here are two possibili- ties: Why not a session of your cabinet with the total church cabinet some- time? You could ask the cabinet to think with you. I can assure you that they will have many good things to say of your work. And they might have an idea or two as to how we can better dovetail our ef- forts together. The other possibility is this: We need to get our workers' conference on its feet again. Just why it totters and falls so often, I do not know. I do know that if we could really stick together, month by month, taking some of the big concerns and problems of our church as our theme, we could unify much of our work, and actually have energy left over to do some things nobody's doing yet. PRESIDENT: Would our cabinet favor these two recommendations? I see hands all around. Thank you, Pastor. You helped us by being here! In closing, could I just read the statement of aims and several Of the principles for program building that are listed in our Women's Work Manual? "The total Women's Work pro- gram aims to include, conserve and develop the talents and interests of every woman in the congregation. It encourages the women to co- operate with the local church cabi- net or governing group. It attempts to create a sense of responsibility toward the home, the church, the community, the nation, and the world, which expresses itself in active Christian service. Through worship and personal devotional living, through education, fellowship and service these aims are achieved. "First, the program will be tailor- made to fit the group of women in each individual church. "Second, the program will truly take account of every scrap of time, talent, and energy any woman can spare to contribute to Christian service. "Third, women need a laboratory or seed bed for strengthening their leadership talent for the wider serv- ice of the church. "Last of all, in an increasingly complex society, where many calls come for activity, the women's work program of your church will need to be formulated to contribute with a minimum of effort the maximum of value to your women and to the world they serve." JANUARY 3. 1953 21 /^ Our Mfssfon Work The Church Abroad Edited by Anetta C. Mow "The man who is happy is the one who digs; The man who is happy is the one who tends his crops." Hazel M. Landis La Habra, California AFRICAN NEW YEAR TO THE African, as to the writer of Eccles. 3, there is a time for everything. Since the New Year in Africa was established long before its people were affected by writing or by calendars, either Gregorian or Julian, it was placed in its own logical season. This was not in midwinter or midsummer. It was at the beginning of something. To the African the reasonable be- ginning of the year is at the time of planting, for this is the season the earth comes to life, and all things seem to be made new. To be specific. New Year's Day is the day that the planting rain comes. In Northern Nigeria this may be in April or it may be in May. In that country there is no rain from the middle of October until the rain in the springtime. The grass dies. The earth becomes dry; it cracks open with the dryness. The humidity drops to zero. Streams dry up until even the large rivers have only a very small flow. For six months there is no rain. At the same time the temperature mounts until it reaches a peak during the vernal equinox in March, as the sun passes 22 GOSPEL MESSENGER directly overhead in its journey toward the north. During this time men build new houses and fences, and repair their old ones. They spin the cotton and weave it into cloth. They go on journeys. They go to the mission hospitals and dispensaries to be cured of the year's ills, because when planting time comes there is no time to be sick. Finally a cloud! Days become sul- try. It is too warm to sleep inside the house; everyone sleeps outside his door. Then comes the wind! It is slashing, tearing off some of the roofs, blowing down any feeble fences which did not get repaired. But who minds the wind, for the wind brings the rain. There is very little run off to this first rain. The thirsty earth, the cracks, dry trees and grass drink it all up. Men, wom- en and children clear the corn stalks off their farms. Everyone looks up his seed and buys new hoes. The Christians gather in the church and ask a blessing on the seed and hoes. Presently the planting rain comes. This time there is enough to wet the ground thoroughly. It is cool and refreshing after the long, hot, dry months. The next morning everyone goes to plant. School is out, whether the thirty-six weeks are finished or not. The old year is finished. This is the first day of the new year. There is a fever of excitement. Any- one can tell that planting time is the true beginning of the new year. Is it not the time that the grass comes up green, new leaves come out, the grain comes up? We in America carmot change our new year to planting time. But our new year, as in Africa, can be a time of new beginnings, a time to leave the old and plant new crops in newly prepared soil. Let's plant these seeds: A new awareness of God always near, with power to make things new. A new trust in the goodness and greatness of God, in his ability to receive our cares. A new sureness that we can rest in him, that we can relax after having turned our bur- dens over to him. A new consciousness of how Our words and attitudes are planted in the hearts of those with whom we live and work, to lift or to push down. A new joy in our work, because we work as unto the Lord. Each one must choose his own seeds, but having cut out and burned our old self-centeredness and self- saturation, let us plant anew, watch the weeds, and tend our new crops. The Singing Heart Mildred Grimley I.assa, Northern Nigeria, W. Africa THE moon is a golden ball to- night, and the village is alive with music. A full moon changes the dark, somber atmos- phere of an African night into an enchanted fairy world all of its own. A night with a full moon gives ev- erything a halo — and it is hard to believe that that white glow which covers ground and tree is not snow. The village is alive with new life. Voices are singing, hands are clap- ping, drums are beating. The rhy- thm is most intriguing. The time and tempo change without warning, leaving an untrained European ear lost in its maze of "times." The drum is the favorite African instrument. Its rhythm and tempo speak a definite language. Never would a drummer confuse his songs. There are rhythms for death, for hoeings, for breaking new ground, for weddings, for play, for old peo- ple, for young people, for royalty. I once asked an expert drunmier to demonstrate his various songs — some he did gladly, but some were too sacred to be flaunted in such manner. To watch the faces of the group listening, to see the subcon- scious tapping of feet and to see the bodies sway slightly in response to that irresistible call to the dance made me realize the power of the African drum. The Msirgi has other instruments too — ingenious arrangements of stretched goats' skins and gourds; horns of roan antelope and other bush animals; fifes made out of corn stalks, clay whistles. Scottish bag- pipes, xylophones, zithers, flutes, kettle drums, guitars, fifes — all can be foimd in a crude fashion tucked away in some African village. But the instrument the African uses mostly is the voice. He is al- ways singing. The scale is six-toned and most of the songs end on mi, sol or la. This lends to the dirge- like nature of most of the songs. A Margi does not need a memorized pattern of words in order to sing. He makes up his words as he goes along. He covers a gamut of sub- jects— a recent trip and the things he saw and did, a hoeing he attend- ed, the complexity of a present problem he faces. One of the young men with whom we have had close association was singing one day, "My trouble is great. How did I get into this? No one else has such trouble. Will it never end?" Two young men often use song as a medium for in- sulting one another. They fling in- sults back and forth in song — im- promptu and original. But not all their singing is pleas- ant. One of the most chilling sounds in all the world is the initial death wail and the ensuing song of lament in which the mourner recounts the life of the deceased, the manner of death perhaps, the family he leaves and a general tale of woe. The girls "practice" these death songs when they are quite young. The wail car- ries far — especially in the quiet of a dark night. But sometimes one wonders if their philosophy is not a wise one. All the pent-up emotions are released with great drama, and very rarely can one find an individ- ual who has carried the grief over the loss of a loved-one for years and years. The African has always sung, but he has not always sung the songs of Christ. Now he is beginning to sing about him. A Lassa tax collector stopped at the market in a Moham- medan village nine miles from Las- sa. The market ^yas practically de- serted, but in one corner sat about eight young boys "singing their hearts out" — not about a hoeing or a death, but about Christ. What a testimony in a Mohammedan village. It is heart-warming to sit in one's house, and in the still of the night to hear What a Wonderful Savior or Jesus, Keep Me Near the Cross be- ing sung in some remote part of the village. The African in our area has a singing heart. We must teach him sqngs of Christ; we must take his tunes and put Christian words to them. Some may never have the oppor- tunity to hear the words we say; many will not remember the mes- sage we speak, but the story of sal- vation will be sung. It will be remembered and preserved. It will be sung by their children and to theii; children's children, for they will "be filled with the Spirit, ad- dressing one another in psalms and hymns and spiritual songs, singing and making melody to the Lord with all [their! hearts." Make a joyful noise unto the Lord, all the earth: . . . Sing unto the Lord with the harp; With the harp, and the voice of a psalm. With trumpets and sound of comet Make a joyful noise before the Lord, the King.— Pso, 98: 4-6. United Nations Commission Visits Gulak James B. Bowman Gulak, Northern Nigeria, W. Africa WEDNESDAY, Nov. 12, was a day that those of Gulak and Lassa will remember for a long time. The United Nations mis- sion came to Gulak. The group was composed of Chairman Peachley of AustraUa, Mr. Quiros of San Salva- dor, Mr. Yang of China and a mem- ber from Belgium. The lady secre- tary was from Canada. The United Nations mission was to tour in the area which is now under the United Nations trusteeship. The Yedseram River, near Lassa used to be the border, but when the Cameroons were taken from Germa- ny after the 1914-1918 war, part of the area was given to France and a couple of smaller areas to Britain. Gulak is in this territory. The Lassa people came in force to be at Gulak when the "mission" came through; the Biebers, Grim- leys, Miss Florence Miller and Dr. Pfaltzgraff. We were very glad for them to come, even though for a brief visit. Mrs. Pfaltzgraff stayed in Lassa to care for some O. B. patients. We expected to have only a scheduled ten minutes, and per- haps that quite late, but the "mis- sion" was just eight minutes behind schedule. We all waited under the big tree by the rest house. The teachers and pupils of Gulak school were all there, too. When the "mission" arrived they came into the shade, and after pleasant introductions and handshaking all arotmd, began to ask questions and were quite inter- ested in the Lassa hospital, which, although not in the Trust area, serves many hundreds of people from that area. The public relations man was taking his pictures. The resident of Adamawa Pro- vince and Mr. Peachley went with me to meet the teachers and to greet the school children. I think they saw some firsthand evidence that other people of the world are actu- ally interested in their land and are trying to help them in as many ways as possible. Some of the local people seemed to think that it meant a lot of additional prestige for the mission station and those connected with it. If it will increase their interest in the things we have to teach them and do for them, then we are pleased. JANUARY 3. 1953 23 The Church at Home Edited by Alberta Yoder Americon Indian Mission Work io Begin Charles E. Ziinkel IN THE November General Broth- erhood Board meeting approval was given to begin mission work among our American Indians of the Southwestern United States. This opens the way for a ministry long over-due to these backdoor neigh- bors of ours who have suffered so much at the hands of white men — our forefathers. The plan is to purchase some avail- able mission property, if possible, for this work. We conceive the min- istry to be of a fourfold nature, as most of our foreign misison work. First, there is the gospel ministry which is at the very core of all that is done and which permeates all ef- fort. Second, a small school for Navajo children is needed. Public school education is a very urgent need among the Indians, particularly the Navajos. Many missions have schools of tweney-five to forty pupils. These give needed basic educational in- struction, religious instruction and Open doors to larger ministries to the families of the children. Third, a health service is consid- 24 GOSPEL MESSENGER ered another basic requirement. The health needs are tragically unmet. Ministering to diseased bodies gives a marvelous witness and opportunity to minister to soul needs also. A small clinic with ministries in the homes of the surrounding area seems to be the way for vital service. Fourth, there will be need for ministry in material aid. Clothing, some food and other things need to be provided. From the best infor- mation obtainable thus far, it seems wisest to make a small charge for material aid. This makes the recipi- ent feel he has done all he can to help himself and eliminates the more undesirable aspects of charity or dole. With these basic principles in mind the attempt will be made to begin our work in a modest way, allowing it to expand as we learn and as support makes expansion pos- sible. During this fiscal year we are now in, financial support given to this work cannot be credited to the Brotherhood Fund. We are confident there are sufficient funds available for this work, which would not be given for any other work of our church, to make initial investments in property and equipment. Next Mullarky Studio fiscal year the project will be a part of the Brotherhood Fund work and all giving can be so credited. Plans are being made through children's work to allow daily vacation Bible schools this summer to provide ma- terial aid for this work. Dessie Mil- ler, director of children's work for our denomination, will be making suggestions as to the kind of mate- rial aid which can be used. In addition to our own mission station, approval has been given to provide Brethren Volunteer Service help at Intermountain Indian School, Brigham City, Utah. There the National Council of Churches, through the Indian Com- mittee (which formerly was under the Home Missions Council), is giv- ing an excellent religious training and ministry to more than eleven hundred Navajo boys and girls. Probably Brethren Volunteer Serv- ice help will later be needed in our own mission station as well. This new project in home mis- sions in our church will provide the way for those of our church who have long wished for a chance to minister to our American Indian friends. It deserves your prayers, your spiritual and financial support. The Year in Religion Winired E. Garrison Professor of Philosophy and Religion, University of Houston FREQUENT AND FERVENT dur- ing the year have been the appeals to the name of God and the expres- sions of reliance upon divine provi- dence in the most serious addresses on public affairs by eminent states- men. It would be cynical and unjust to suppose that this was mere verbiage used for political effect. Even if it were that, it would still be evidence that those who know the American mind best are convinced that we are a believing people. Many indications support the opinion that even the secular mind is more inclined to recognize religious values now than a few years ago. The old theme of "the conflict between science and religion" is seldom heard. Inability to accept a particular inherited pattern of belief is less frequently a reason, or excuse, for rejecting religion. Outside critics of the churches indict them for fail- ure to live up to what the critic thinks the true principles of religion, more often than they attack religion. It appears that religion has a better press and a higher place in popular regard now than formerly. Increase in Membership Church statistics are compiled in July for the previous year. At the end of 1951, membership of all reli- gious bodies in the United States was 88,673,005, or 2.12 per cent more than a year earlier. This is fifty- eight per cent of the total popula- tion. Protestants number fifty-two million, Roman Catholics twenty- nine million, Jews five million. In estimating membership most Prot- estant bodies count only adult or confirmed members; Roman Catho- lics, Episcopalians and some Luther- ans include also baptized infants. These statistics are valid as show- ing the general pattern and extent of church growth, but they must not be taken too literally. There is a little exaggeration, apparently fairly evenly distributed. Every church has on its rolls some inactive or lost members. It was recently reported of one very large Protestant body that one fourth of the members in- cluded in its count were not now resident members of any congrega- tion. Roman Catholic statisticians have a similar problem in regard to marginal or "nonpracticing" mem- bers. New Revisions of Bible Versions A notable event in the Protestant world was the publication of the complete Revised Standard Version of the Bible. The New Testament had appeared in 1946. This transla- tion, produced by a company of American scholars enlisted and spon- sored by what is now the Division of Christian Education in the Na- tional Council of Churches of Christ in America, comes as near to being an "authorized" version as it is pos- sible to have in the present divided state of the Christian world and in view of the differences of opinion as to who has the right to "authorize" a translation of the Bible. Less publicized has been the revi- sion of the Roman Catholic Douay- Rheims version by the Confraternity of Christian Doctrine. The New Testament of this version was pub- lished in 1941; the first section of the Old Testament was released in 1952. A new Dutch translation of the Bible, the first since 1637, was published in January by the Nether- lands Bible Society. World Conference on Failh and Order The World Conference on Faith and Order, at Lund, Sweden, August 15-29, was the third in the series — following Lausanne 1927 and Edin- burgh 1937 — and the first since the Faith and Order organization became a division of the World Council of Churches. It brought together 250 theologians representing more than 100 churches in 40 countries, not to make or discuss a specific plan for the union of the churches, but to explore the grounds of separation and the deeper grounds of unity. Relief Church World Service, channeling the beneficence of many American denominations, sent thousands of tons of clothing and medical supplies to needy areas, especially Korea, India, Greece, Germany and Leba- non. During the first seven months of the year the rate of giving and sending was one-fourth greater than in 1951. CARE continued its good work of sending food and farm equipment from private donors to selected individuals. Several de- nominations operate their own relief agencies. War Relief Services — Na- tional Catholic Welfare Conference channeled millions of dollars' worth of relief supplies contributed by American Catholics. Change in Foreign Missions Foreign missions have undergone radical change in recent years. Emphasis now is upon giving aid to and through the "younger churches" — that is, the autonomous Christian churches in mission fields. Even the unfriendly can no longer with any plausibility describe missionary operations as "religious imperial- ism," though of course the Chinese Communists still do so. Movements Toward Union of Churches Movements toward the union of churches have been paralleled by efforts of denominations to consoli- date their positions, improve their internal organization and stimulate the loyalty of their members. The merger of the Congregational Christian Churches and the Evan- gelical and Reformed Church was halted on the brink of consumma- tion two years ago by an adverse Brooklyn Supreme Court decision. That decision was reversed April 14 by the appellate division of the New York Supreme Court. Opponents of the merger have filed notice of a further appeal, and the National Council of Congregational Christian Churches voted (twenty to one) to press the case for union. The union of the three largest Presbyterian churches — U. S. A., U. S., and United — is a live prospect. All three took favorable action this year, and a plan of union is being prepared for submission to the three general assemblies in 1953. Northern Baptists (now called the American Baptist Convention) and Disciples of Christ held simultaneous conventions in Chicago in May with an interchange of fraternal courte- sies, but specific negotiations for union have been suspended. Over- tures between Episcopalians and Presbyterians, U. S. A., which lapsed in 1946, have not been resumed. Evangelistic activity has continued to be general and vigorous. It has included a growing use of "visitation evangelism" by local congregations, special "crusades" by several de- nominations, and some conspicuous city-wide undenominational "cam- paigns" by such popular evangelists as C. B. Templeton of Canada and Billy Graham. Religious Liberty It is questionable whether the in- dex for religious liberty in the world at large is going up or down. JANUARY 3. 1953 25 Sweden's liberalized religious law, effective January 1952, virtually- abolished all limitations on the civil and religious rights of Protestant nonconformists and Roman Catho- lics. The only remaining restrictions are that Catholics cannot become teachers of religion in the public schools and cannot build monasteries closed to public inspection. While Spain's tight restrictions on the activities of Protestants continue unrelaxed, Cardinal Segura Seville periodically criticizes the govern- ment for not making them tighter and responds hotly to American Catholics (e.g., the Jesuit weekly, America) who venture to say a good word for religious liberty. The closing of some Protestant mission churches in Italy by act of the gov- ernment became an occasion for diplomatic intervention. In Colom- bia there have been repeated acts of mob violence against native Prot- estants and their church property. Roman Catholic Activities At the end of November, Pope Pius XII created 24 new Cardinals, including one American, to bring the Sacred College up to its full strength of 70. The American Cardinal-elect, Archbishop J. Francis A. Mclntyre of Los Angeles, becomes the first West Coast prelate to be elevated as a prince of the church. There are now four American cardinals. Of the new appointees eleven are Italians and thirteen non-Italians, the Sacred College now comprising twenty-seven Italians and forty- three non-Italians. The Roman Catholic bishops of the United States in their annual state- ment issued in November warned that the country faces a real and imminent danger from "irreligious" decay of its social institutions. The bishops said that the threaten- ing disintegration of the country's social life was due to the weakening of religious influences. And they coupled their warning with a vigor- ous attack on secularism, particular- ly in the field of education, which they said is contributing to the danger. Communism and the Church Behind the Iron Curtain, Bulgaria was the latest Communist satellite to bring Roman Catholic leaders to trial. Bishop Eugene Bossilkoflf, C. P. of Nikopol and three priests were sentenced to death by a Bulgarian Communist court in a trial involving some forty Catholic clergy and lay- men. All were charged with espi- onage and "anti-State activities." Those not condemned to die were given prison terms ranging from twelve to twenty years. The action of the Bulgarian regime wiped out the effective Catholic leadership in that country in a man- ner reminiscent of similar action already taken in Romania and Al- bania. In all three countries Catho- lics form a small minority. Developments in Judaism A significant development in Ju- daism in America was the growing interest in Jewish religious thought and practice. This was reflected in the publication of articles on the subject in Jewish magazines, the ap- pearance of new publications, and the large audiences that attended lectures of Martin Buber, noted re- ligious thinker, on his tour of the U. S. early this year. All three wings of Judaism in America maintained an increasing interest in the progress of Judaism in the new state of Israel. The Con- servative and Reform groups took steps to establish congregations there, over the strenuous objections of Orthodox elements, both in the U. S. and in Israel. Synagogues in America became in- creasingly outspoken in condemning Soviet totalitarianism and aggres- sion and denounced especially the Soviet anti-Jewish campaign in the Iron Curtain countries. Copyright 1952 by Religious News Service 26 GOSPEL MESSENGER Around the World Austrian Church Plans Nation-wide Peace Movement As a means of counteracting Com- munist propaganda, the Roman Catholic church in Austria, in co- operation with Protestants, is start- ing a nation-wide peace movement. The movement will be known as Pax Christi meaning the peace of Christ. It will be associated with the Catholic movement which started in France in 1945 and which seeks to promote a world crusade of prayer and work for peace. German, French Protestants Vote to Promote Understanding A group of French and German Protestant leaders have joined together to promote better under- standing between their respective churches and to demonstrate the unity of the Protestant churches beyond their national frontiers. The Franco-German Brethren Council, which was formed in 1950, has so far concerned itself with arranging exchange visits by pastors, laymen and representatives of youth, work- ers' and students' groups in the two countries. Two Cabinet Appointees Long-time Church Workers At least two of the men whom President-elect Dwight D. Eisen- hower has selected for his cabinet have a record of service to Prot- estant churches. John Foster Dulles, who has been designated as the new Secretary of State, is a Presbyterian. He served as chairman of the Com- mission on A Just and Durable Peace and also on the policy committee of the Department of International Justice and Goodwill of the former Federal Council of Churches. He is now connected with three divisions of the National Council of Churches. Many churchmen praised him highly for his efforts to apply Christian principles in the preparation of the Japanese peace treaty. Ezra Taft Benson, named as the new Secretary of Agriculture, is a member of the Quoriun of the Twelve Apostles, the top church ' governing body of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-Day Saints. Mr. Benson served as a Mormon missionary in England and Europe from 1921 to 1923. For a short time after Worfd War II he served as ^ mission president in Europe. Virginia Church Colleges Form Foundation Twelve church-related colleges in Virginia formed the Virginia Foun- dation for Independent Colleges in order to facilitate joint solicitation of funds and promote better under- standing by the public of their aims, functions and needs. Dr. Warren D. Bowman, president of Bridgewater college, is vice-president of the Vir- ginia Foundation. The headquarters for the foundation will be at Lynch- burg, Va. Reports Over Million Copies of Revised Version Sold A total of 1,600,000 copies of the Revised Standard Version of the Bible were sold in the first eight weeks after it was published. The total is regarded by booksellers as a publishing record unsurpassed in the history of bookselling. Two other editions of the revision are now in preparation. One is a Sun- day-school edition which has been scheduled for publication within a year at a greatly reduced price. The other is a pulpit edition in large type which will be ready for publication within the next few months. Weddings Akers-Caster. — Lowell E. Akers of Lib- erty, m., and Mary E. Caster of Over- I brook, Kansas, Sept. 28, 1952. in the Llb- ' erty church by the undersigned, father of 1 the bride, assisted by Donald Ford. — S. E. Caster, Overbrook, Kansas. Blosser-Holderbaum. — Harvey Blosser and Gertrude Holderbaum, both of Waka- rusa, Ind., Nov. 15, 1952, by the under- signed, at his home in Goshen, Ind. — Irvln Miller, Goshen, Ind. Bowman-Ankrunt. — J. Willard Bowman of Boones Mill, Va., and Mary Alice Ank- nim of St. James, Md., in the St. James Brethren church, Sept. 6, 1952, by the undersigned. — Freeman Ankrum, St. James, Md. Bowmasler-Brandt. — Guy Bowmaster of Utitz, Pa., and Lola Brandt of Manheim, Pa., in the East Fairview church, Nov. 8, 1952 by the undersigned. — H. A. Merkey, Manheim, Pa. Burkholder-Albright. — Thomas Lee Burk- holder and Shirley Mae Albright, both of Sphrata, Pa., in the Ephrata church, Sept. 13, 1952, by F. S. Lewis.— Mabel M. Myers, Ephrata, Pa. Cook-Baker. — Jay W. Cook and Vivian M. Baker, both of Dillsburg, Pa., in the Evangelical United Brethren church In Franklintown, Pa., June 21, 1952. by the undersigned.— J. Albert Cook, Dillsburg, Pa. Coy-Nelson. — Donald Max Coy and Mar- gie Ann Nelson, both of Kokomo, Ind., Aug. 30, 1952, at the church parsonage, by Rev. Harry Rea of Young America.- Mrs. Lillie Bailey, Kokomo, Ind. Desch-Kreider. — William Desch of Leb- anon, Pa., and Patricia Kreider of Pal- myra, Pa., in the home of the bride, July 31, 1952, by F. S. Carper.— Mrs. Mahlon Oroff, Palmyra, Pa. Evanson-Heusinkveld. — Duwane Evan- son and Beth Heusinkveld, Nov. 8, 1952, at the Greenleafton Reformed church, the undersigned assisting. — Warren W. Hoov- er. Preston, Minn. Friend-Lambert. — Raymond Elmer Friend of Friendsville, Md., and Ethel Grace Lam- bert of Accident, Md., by the undersigned, Nov. 22, 1952.— Ross Speicher, Accident. Md. Fulwider-CUne. — Glenn Allen Fulwid- «r of Staunton, Va., and Ruth Elizabeth Cllne of Waynesboro, Va., in the Middle River church, Nov. 15, 1952, by the under- signed.—John W. Gosnell, Grottoes, Va. Gampe-Kimes. — Walter L. Gampe and Joan M. Kimes, both of Altoona, Pa., Nov. 22, 1952, in the First church in Altoona, by the undersigned.— S. G. Margush, Altoona, Pa. Gibble-Healwole. — Lamar Gibble of Man- heim, Pa., and Nancy Heatwole of Pal- myra, Pa., in the Palmyra church, Aug. 17, 1952, by F. S. Carper.- Mrs. Mahlon Groff, Palmyra, Pa. Goode-Tale.— George Goode and Pauline Tate in the Green Hill church parsonage, Salem. Va., July 26, 1952, by the under- IBlgned.— Edward G. Wenger, Salem, Va. Graham-Cook.— Clair Graham and Sue Cook, both of Palmyra, Pa., in the par- sonage, June 28, 1952, by F. S. Carper.— Mrs. Mahlon Groi?, Palmyra, Pa. Hankii^-Kuilz — WiUiam E. Hankins and Jime E. Kurtz, both of Phoenix, Ariz., in the Glendale church, Nov. 15, 1952, by the undersigned.— Walter S. Coffman, Glen- dale, Ariz. Hoffman-Binkley.— Wilbur Hoffman and Lucile Binkley, in the East Fairview church, Aug. 2, 1952, by the undersigned. — H. A. Merkey, Manheim, Pa. Holmes-Brewer. — Raymond Charles Holmes and Elian Jean Brewer, both of Ft. Wayne, Ind., in the Ft. Wayne church, Nov. 1, 1952, by the undersigned.— W. Har- lan Smith, Ft. Wayne, Ind. Hoppes-Thompson. — Lewis Hoppes of Long Beach, Calif., and Shirley Thompson of Greenriver, Utah, Nov. 5, 1952, in the home of the groom's uncle, by Galen Walker.— Mrs. Homer E. Fike, Long Beach, Calif. Kramer-Rice. — Gerald Kramer of Pleas- ant Valley, Pa., and Grace Rice of Spring- town, Pa., Sept. 20, 1952, in the Christ Lutheran church in Springtown, Pa., by the Lutheran pastor. — Conway E. Bennett, Bethel, Pa. Lancasler-PUlow.— Robert Lancaster and Nancy Pillow in the Green Hill church, Salem, Va., Nov. 15, 1952, by the under- signed.—Edward G. Wenger, Salem, Va. Terndrup-Harrison.— Herbert Terndrup of Philadelphia, Pa., and Verda Harrison of Johnstown, Pa., in the Pleasant Hill church, Sept. 20, 1952, by the under- signed.— William L. Gould, Johnstown, Pa. Tomlin-Johnson. — James Wesley Tom- lin of Buena Vista, Va., and Mary Moore Johnson of Greenlee, Va., Sept. 24, 1952, in the parsonage, by the undersigned. — John F. Graham, Buena Vista, Va. Trolell-Crull — Femoin Trolell and Dona CruU, both of Wabash, Ind., at the home of the bride's parents in Wabash. Oct. 26, 1952, by the undersigned.— J. E. Smeltzer, Akron, Ind. Wagner-Hosletter. — Wilmer Wagner of Palmyra. Pa., and Arlene Hostetter of Fredericksburg, Pa., in the Palmyra church, July 6, 1952, by F. S. Carper. — Mrs. Mahlon Groff, Palmyra, Pa. Wenger-Smith. — Earl H. Wenger of Bare- ville. Pa., and Nancy Lee Smith of Pal- myra, Pa., in the Palmyra church, June 1, 1952, by F. S. Carper.— Mrs. Mahlon Groff, Palmyra, Pa. Winn-Rhodes — Edward L. Winn, Jr., of Richmond, Va., and Alice May Rhodes of Buena Vista. Va., Nov. 8, 1952, at the home of the bride, by the undersigned. — John F. Graham, Buena Vista, Va. Young-Kuhn.— John Young and Ella Mae Kuhn, both of Akron, Ind., in the Akron church, Aug. 17, 1952, by the undersigned. — J. E. Smeltzer, Akron, Ind. Obituaries Bachman, Mary, daughter of John and Sarah Hottel Funk, was born in Bucks County, Pa., Jan. 16, 1875, and died Nov. 2, 1952. She was preceded in death by her husband, Titus Bachman. She is survived by one son, one grandson and one brother. She was for many years a member of the Springfield church. Serv- ices were held in the Springfield church by the undersigned. — Conway E. Ben- nett, Bethel, Pa. Beard, Thomas Lincoln, was born near Arcadia, Ind., Feb. 21, 1862, and died in the St. Joseph hospital. Ft. Wayne, Ind., Nov. 20, 1952. He was united in marriage to Melinda Morris in October 1885. To this union were born eleven children. He is survived by two sons, five daughters, thirty-eight grandchildren, fifty-six great- grandchildren and four great-great- gr^dchildren. Funeral services were held from the Ft. Wayne church, with the undersigned officiating. Interment was made in the Prairie Grove cemetery, near Ft. Wayne.— W. Harlan Smith, Ft. Wayne, Ind. Blyly, Emanuel, son of Fred and Mary Warner Blyly, was born in Elkhart Coun- ty, Ind., Nov. 30, 1866, and died at his home in Nappanee, Ind., Aug. 20, 1952. His first wife, Mary Ann Blosser, died early in life. He was then married to Hettie Miller. He was a member of the church for many years. Surviving are his wife, five children, three grand- children, two great-grandchildren and one brother. Funeral services were con- ducted at the Wright funeral home by Paul Brenneman of the United Mission- ary church in Nappanee. Burial was in the South Union cemetery. — Hazel Grasz, Nappanee, Ind. Booth, Glen Vern, was born near Flora, Ind., April 19, 1890, and died Oct. 10, 1952. He was a faithful and life-long member of the Bachelor Run church. Surviving are his wife, Ada, two foster daughters, two grandchildren and two brothers. Funeral services were con- ducted by Herbert Fisher of Nappanee, Ind., in the Leiter funeral home in Flora, Ind. Burial was in the Maple Lawn cemetery. — Lewis Deardorff, Bring- hurst, Ind. Brehm, Harry E., was born Aug. 20, 1893, and died Nov. 20, 1952, at the General hospital in Lancaster, Pa. He was a member of the East Fairview church. He is survived by his wife, five children by a former marriage his mother and two sisters. Funeral services were conducted by the home ministers. — H. A. Merkey, Manheim, Pa. Brenneman, Sarah E., daughter of John and Mary McNeal of Tennessee, died at the York hospital, York, Pa., at the age of sixty-nine years. She left no surviv- ors. Funeral services were conducted by the undersigned at the Green funeral home in York. Interment was in the Union cemetery, Manchester, Pa. — M. A. Jacobs, York, Pa. Burger, Ira S., son of Christian W. and Elizabeth Shaffer Burger, was born near Libertyville, Iowa, March 6, 1866, and died at Perryton, Texas, Nov. 13, 1952. He was united in marriage to Mae Pope. To this union were born twelve children. Surviving are four sons, six daughters, thirty-eight grandchildren, fifty-two great-grandchildren, two broth- ers and one sister. Services were held at the Waka church, by Albert Williams of Thomas, Okla., assisted by the un- dersigned.— Alvin F. Klotz, Waka, Texas. Chiltum, Andrew, of Buena Vista, Va., died Nov. 3, 1952, at the age of 103 years. He was 'the oldest resident of Buena Vista, and had been a member of the Church of the Brethren for many years. He is survived by seven children, fifty grandchildren, ninety-one great-grand- children and nine great-great-grandchil- dren. Funeral services were held in the Pentecostal Holiness church by C. E. Wood, assisted by John F. Graham, Buena Vista, Va.— Mrs. John F. Graham, Buena Vista, Va. Crook, Charles E., son of Mr. and Mrs. George Crook, was born in Virginia, July 27, 1882, and died at his home in Indiana, Nov 4, 1952. He was a member of the Bachelor Run church. He is sur- vived by his wife, Ida, one daughter, one brother, four half-brothers and two half- sisters. Funeral services, conducted by T. A. Shively of Peru, Ind., were in the Howard church. Burial was in the Maple Lawn cemetery near Flora, Ind. — Lewis Deardorff, Bringhurst, Ind. Eberly, Sallie W., daughter of Samuel and Anna Disler Wolf, was born in Clay Township, Pa., and died at her home in Lititz, Pa., Nov 16, 1952. She was a mem- ber of the church for many years. Be- sides her husband, she is survived by one son, one daughter, one foster child, three grandchildren and one sister. Funeral services were conducted in the Lititz church by Earl M. Bowman and John Hevener. Interment was in the Machpel- ah cemetery. — Mrs. Louis Huebner, Lititz, Pa. Fitz, Harvey C, son of Daniel and Martha Fitz, was born in Waynesboro, Pa., Sept 26, 1881, and died at his home, Sept. 3, 1952. He was a lifetime member of the Church of the Brethren, a charter member of the Madison Avenue church, and sexton from the time of its organiza- tion until his death. He is survived by his wife, Anna Sellers Fitz, and six sons by a previous marriage. Funeral services were at the Anstine mortuary in York, Pa., by the undersigned, assisted by Chauncey F. Trimmer and Jesse O. Jen- kins. Interment was in the Black Rock church cemetery. — M. A. Jacobs, York, Pa. Hart, Elizabeth Ann, daughter of Susana and Isaac Wagoner, was born at Lafayette, Ind., Dec. 25, 1864, and died at her home in McPherson, Kansas, Nov. 10, 1952. In 1911 she was united in marriage to James Stephen Hart. Hav- ing no children of their own they adopted a son. She is survived by her husband, one son and two granddaughters. Funeral services were conducted in the McPher- son church by the undersigned. Burial JANUARY 3. 1953 27 was in the McPherson cemetry. — James H. Elrod, McPherson, Kansas. Hess, Harry, son of Abram and Kate Keller Hess, was born July 10, 1878, and died Oct. 18, 1952, at his home. He was a member of the Middle Creek church, having served as Sunday-school teacher for thirty-seven years and dea- con of the church for the past twenty-two years. His only survivor is his wife, the former Ada Gibble. Funeral services were held in the Middle Creek church by the home ministers. Burial was in the adjoining cemetery. — Emma L. Zook, Lititz. Pa. Hollinger, Hiram S., of the Neffsville Brethren Home, was born Dec. 26, 1868, and died Oct. 31, 1952. in the St. Joseph hospital in Lancaster, Pa. He was a mem- ber of the East Fairview church. Sur- viving are his wife, Sarah, and two sons. Funeral services were held at the Beck funeral home and the church. The home ministers assisted by Frank Layser, Stewart of the Home officiated. — H. A. Merkey, Manheim, Pa. Keller, La Verne Francis, son of Venith and Ida May Keller, was born March 20, 1895, in Bernard, Mo., and died in Long Beach, Calif., Nov. 11, 1952. In 1918 he was married to Vivian Dodd. He is sur- vived by his wife, two daughters, one son, seven grandchildren, his mother, one brother and four sisters. Funeral serv- ices were conducted by Frank D. How- ell in the Long Beach church. Interment was in the Sunnyside Memorial Park cemetery in Long Beach. — Mrs. Homer E. Fike, Long Beach, Calif. Kline, William E., son of Joseph and Susanne Linebaugh Kline, was born near Wolfsville, Md., and died at the home of his daughter near Boonsboro, Md., Nov. 6, 1952, at the age of seventy years. He was a retired farmer. Surviving are his wife, Melissa Naille Kline, one daughter, two sons, eight grandchildren and three sisters. Funeral services were conducted in the Grossnickle church, with S. F. Spitzer officiating, assisted by Cyrus Strite. Interment was in the church cemetery. — Esther V. McCormick, High- field. Md. Knupp, Emma Alice, daughter of Gideon and Cathryn Shirkey, was born Feb. 2, 1873, near Broadway, Va., and died at the home of her daughter in Lima, Ohio, July 17, 1952. She was united in marriage to Daniel L. Knupp, who preceded her in death. She was a mem- ber of the Sugar Creek church for sixty years. Funeral services were held from the church by Gale Freed, assisted by Samuel Keller. Interment was in the church cemetery.— C. I. Alger, Lima, Ohio. Leckrone, Oscar V., died Nov. 13, 1952, in the city hospital in Newark, Ohio, at the age of fifty-five years. In early life he united with the church. Surviving are his wife, Florence, four daughters, nine grandchildren, one brother and one sister. Funeral services were conducted in the funeral home in Thornville, by Quincy Leckrone, assisted by Kenneth Hollinger. Burial was in the Highland cemetery, Glenford, Ohio.— Mrs. Edith Leckrone, Thornville, Ohio. Reese, Effie C, daughter of Samuel and Mary Craun Evers, was born March 3, 1887, near Dayton, Va., and died at her home near New Springfield, Ohio, Nov. 13, 1952. She was united in marriage to William Hansel Reese. She is survived by her husband, two sons, one daughter, six grandchildren and one brother. In- terment was in the Forest Lawn ceme- tery at Youngstown, Ohio.— Alvin C. Cook, Woodworth, Ohio. Rhodes, Freda, daughter of Mr. and Mrs. John Stutzman, was bom Jan. 28, 1903, on Benshoff Hill, and died Oct. 4, 1952, in the Memorial hospital, Johnstown, Pa. On Aug. 12. 1922 she was united in marriage to Blaine Rhodes. To this union were born eight children. In 1919, 28 GOSPEL MESSENGER she united with the Pleasant Hill church near Johnstown. Funeral services were held from the Pleasant Hill church by the undersigned. Interment was in the ad- joining Benshoff Hill cemetery. — Wil- liam L. Gould, Johnstown, Pa. Sanger, Hattie Long, daughter of Wil- liam Henry and Eliza Carpenter Long, was born May 27, 1883, near Port Repub- lic, Va., and died in November 1952. She united with the church in 1903, and was active in the church until the time of her death. She was married to Charles David Sanger in 1906. Surviving are one son, three grandchildren, three brothers, and one sister. Funeral serv- ices were held Nov. 6, 1952, at the Pum- phrey funeral home in Silver Spring, Md., by the undersigned, assisted by J. H. Hollinger.— Dewitt L. Miller, Wash- ington, D. C. Church News Northern California Lindsay — Several from our church at- tended camp during the summer. Our young people sponsored evangelistic meet- ings with Rev. Louie Rhoden as the speak- er. On Sept. 17, a reception was held for our new family, Mr. and Mrs. Herman Bergman and son Ronnie of Danzig, Ger- many. Over $1,200 was given in memory of Ernest Stoltenberg to be used in build- ing a Lindsay room in the Brethren House in Kassel, Germany. Edna Switzer of Waterford, Calif., showed slides and talked of her work as a BVS worker in Germany. Our congregation is divided into three areas with prayer captains who are respon- sible for prayer meetings once a month in their area. In an emergency the pastor calls the three prayer captains and they in turn call the prayer warriors in their area. Prayer meetings are held at the church the fourth week of each month. Our pastor conducted a study of the life and work of Paul on Sunday evenings. — Mattie J. Kennedy, Lindsay, Calif. Southern California La Verne — Robert E. Richards of La Verne College conducted a series of evan- gelistic meetings Sept. 28 — Oct. 12. The meetings closed with our fall love feast. Fifty-three members were added to the church roll during 1951-52. Twenty of these were by baptism and thirty-three by letter. On Nov. 2, we celebrated our 62nd anniversary by dedicating our new Chris- tian education unit. Dr. Harlem Hogue of Claremont Men's College was our guest speaker. The pastor is teaching an adult class during the Sunday-school hour on the history, the ideals, the rites and ordi- nances and the program of the church. Bob Oyler, a guidance couselor at the Chino Institute for men, has been con- ducting a series of discussions for the high school young people on Sunday evenings. Prior to the election a panel discussion on election issues was held in the church at the evening worship hour. The women's work group of the church has organized a class to study Our Churches and Human Rights. Mrs. Willard Bartlett of La Verne College is the leader. The pastor has been giving a series of sermons on the Sermon on the Mount. Susan Stoner Shull, mis- sionary to India, was with us Nov. 30, at which time we received our Thanksgiving offering for the Brotherhood Fund. — Mrs. Lowell D. Brandt, La Verne, Calif. Iowa and Western Montana Fruilland — The Idaho and Western Montana district conference was held in our church Oct. 31 — Nov. 2. The young adults of the district plan to support a full-time missionary on the foreign field. The McPherson quartette recently pre- sented a program at our church. M. S. Frantz was our guest speaker at home- coming services, Nov. 30. Once a month the young people are in charge of the evening worship service. Our communion services were held Oct. 5. — Reina Down- ing, Fruitland, Idaho. Colorado Haxtun — Our pastor attended a rural life church conference at Columbus. Ohio. In his absence the laymen had charge of the services. Several attended regional conference at McPherson. Our Thanks- giving Offering was taken Nov. 23. On Nov. 18, the WCTU held its family night dinner and program at our church. Our union Thanksgiving service was held in the Evangelical United Brethren church. — Mrs. Warren D. C. Wood, Haxtun, Colo. Northeastern Kansas Morrill — Our church has been without a pastor since the latter part of August. Bro. Henry Stover was elected elder. We have had a number of guest speakers. Ralph Hoover of Grand Junction, Colo., conducted a two weeks' special meeting. On Nov. 23, Bob Mays of McPherson Col- lege and a woman's trio and pianist were with us for the morning services. Our district meeting was held in our church this fall. We are looking forward to the coming of our new pastor, Bro. Milton Early and family.— Mrs. C. P. Guilhams, Morrill, Kansas. Northern Missouri Wakenda — At our fall council on Aug, 28 Miller Van Pelt was elected moderator. Wayne Minnick and Allen White are in charge of the resettlement committee. Anyone wishing to settle in this part of the country write to them at R. 1, Hardin, Mo. Delegates selected for district meet- ing were Ralph Summers, Frances Van Pelt and Miller Van Pelt. Our evangelistic meeting was held Sept. 15-28, with Wil- burn Lewallen of Quinter, Kansas, as evan- gelist. Four were baptized and one was received by letter as a result of these meetings. The ladies' aid sent a barrel of canned fruit to Mercy hospital in Kan- sas City, Mo. Our fall communion was postponed until spring because Rocking- ham invited our church to share in its communion, Nov. 2. — Mary Etta Minnick, Hardin, Mo. Nebraska Bethel — Several of our number attend- ed family and young people's camp at Camp Schwarzenau. In October, the dis- trict conference was held at our church. The Sunday-school presented our new junior class with the Revised Standard Version of the Bible. A German student is living in the home of Eldo Griffith. On Nov. 9, we observed our annual birthday dinner. The offering went for Brethren Service. The union Thanksgiving serv- ices were held at our church on Nov. 26. Brother Shannon of Carleton was the guest speaker. Brother and Sister Naylor attended the regional conference at Mc- Pherson.— Mrs. Elbert Rothrock, Daven- port, Nebr. Oklahoma, Panhandle of Texas and New Mexico Guthrie— On Sept. 7, Bro. Albert Will- liams brought the morning message and conducted the installation service for Bro. Nathan Heffley. A fellowship dinner was held in the church basement after which we had our council meeting. The women have taken as their project the redecorat- ing of the church basement. Our church purchased a new parsonage which was completed Nov. 1. Mrs. DuBoise and Mrs. Kasper attended the children's workers' conference at McPherson. Our pastor at- tended the regional conference. Brother and Sister L. S. Shively were with us for a leadership course on Dec. 4-7. — Mrs. Lois Green, Guthrie, Okla. Texas and Louisiana Texas and Louisana District met in con- ference in the Roanoke church, La., July 17-21. Twelve delegates represented five churches. Officers of the conference were Edward Murray, moderator; Wendel Har- ris, reading clerk; and Mrs. Paul Metz- ger, secretary. Desmond Bittinger, president of Mc- pherson College, was with us and turned our thoughts to the Christian home. Mrs. Desmond Bittinger led a study of the Par- I ables. Mr. and Mrs. James Elrod and W. ' Harold Row were also with us. 1 A district budget of $1,447.50 and Fal- j furrias industrial school property budget of $3,000 were adopted by the conference. A goal of $4,005 was set for the Brother- hood Fund. New members elected to the district board were Jake McCarty. Brethren Serv- ice secretary, and David Bowers, finance secretary. Delegate to the Standing Com- mittee is Edward Murray; alternate is Rubye Butson. Joe Shelton was elected as trustee to Falfurrias Industrial School Property. Martin Gauby of Falfurrias and Glen Bellah of Nocona were licensed to the ministry this past year. The next conference is to be held at Rosepine, La., with Glenn Harris as mod- erator and Lee Spitzer, alternate. — Mrs. Paul Metzger, secretary. Northern Illinois and Wisconsin MilledgeviUe — At our council meeting our pastor, Melvin Rilchey, was elected elder. A number of our juniors, interme- diates and young people attended the dif- ferent camp programs during the summer. Eight persons from our church attended the regional conference at Manchester. C. F. Robinson of the Illinois Temperance League was guest speaker on Nov. 2. On Nov. 3 several of the women attended the district children's workers' meeting at the Franklin Grove church. On Nov. 14, our women's work had an instructive program on the selecting of reading material. Carl Peter Thomas, a student from Germany, is living in the home of Carl Patterson. Two Puerto Ricans, who had been working in our community and attending services, re- cently returned to their home. We had our annual Thanksgiving service on Nov. 23, —Mrs. Clara V. Fike, MilledgeviUe: III. Polo -On Oct. 3. a reception was held at the church for our new pastor, Hubert Newcomer, and his family. Walter Young conducted a hymn sing on Oct. 12. Fall communion was held on Oct. 5, with Bro. Newcomer in charge. Several women at- tended the district leadership day at Camp Emmaus, Oct. 9. The women have re- ported that they have given more than $125 to the nurses' home at Bethany hos- pital from their thank offering boxes. Dale Blough, who has been at New Windsor, has left for Cassel, Germany, to work with the program there. The men are helping with the work at Camp Emmaus. The father and daughter banquet was held, Nov. 28. We co-operated with the Polo churches for the union Thanksgiving serv- ice. Harold Hoff of Mt. Morris, conducted a workers' conference at the Polo church on Nov. 10.— Mrs. Fred Krum, Polo, 111. Southern Illinois Martin Creek— We are using now the envelope system. One new member has been added to the church by baptism since our last report. Our Achievement Offer- ing was lifted at the Sunday services, Sept. 14. In the absence of a pastor, our elder, Dow A. Ridgely, is conducting our regular worship services. Members of the church have redecorated the interior of our church. Bro. C. O. Brubaker of Hollans- burg, Ohio, will conduct our evangelistic services in the spring. — Mrs. Roy A. Hol- linger, Fairfield, 111. Woodland — Several of our members at- tended district meeting at Champaign. Our delegates were Brother and Sister Russell Kessler. Homer Kiracofe is our elder for the coming year. Our evangeUst, Lester Fike, officiated at the love feast on Sept. 20. Since our last report, fifteen have been received into the church by baptism and six by letter. Barbara Jean Derry has gone into B.V.S. The church is supporting her year of service. The CBYF have erected and painted two church signs with Scripture verses and church welcome. On Nov. 23, we dedicated our Lord's Acre project offering. I. J. Gibson and Delmar Moyer were with us in the absence of our pastor. The women are making comfort- ers and girls' dresses for relief. — Fannie B. Stambaugh, Astoria, 111. Northern Indiana Cedar Lake — Our entire churcli house was remodeled during the past year. Since we did not have daily vacation Bible <H«H5^KH>iKH>^KH«H:KKHKH><HKHft<HKHKHKH>{^^ // HYMNS OF FAITH" sacred recordings CB3 By the McPherson College a cappella choir Lo! How a Rose E'er Blooming Now Thank We All Our God When I Survey the Wondrous Cross The Rose of Sharon CB4 By Bethany Biblical Seminary male voices Beautiful Saviour ^ All Hail the Power of Jesus' Name Thine Is the Glory Nearer My God to Thee Each record is of twelve-inch size, is semi-breakable, records four hymns, and sells for $1.50. Order by number now. Limited quantity available. BRETHREN PUBLISHING HOUSE ELGIN. ILLINOIS 1953 Edition The Minister's Manual (formerly Doran's) by Hallock and Heicher Now Available Price $2.75 Brethren Publishing House Elgin, Illinois school, Bible study classes for aU ages are in progress on Sunday evenings. One-week revival meetings were held in September by Warren Shumaker of Ply- mouth, Ind. The church was represented at district meeting by the pastor and his wife. Brother and Sister Wm. Loucks, as well as by laymen. — Mrs. Ethel Fifer, Wa- terloo, Ind. Nappanee — Our church bought an elec- tric power generator for a Y.M.C.A. In Jerusalem, for use in working with dis- placed Arabs. One Sunday evening the people who attended camps presented a campfire service in the basement. Bro. Longenecker attended regional conference at Manchester College. Special programs have consisted of pictures of Puerto Rico showed by John Metzler, Jr., a talk by Chen Fu-Sheng, a college student from Formosa, and a junior boys' choir from White's Institute. L. S. Shively and his wife held a teacher-training school here. On the Sunday afternoon of the school there was a district rally for members of local boards of Christian education. The Christian service outreach of the church was emphasized at the first family night of this year. Several of our members at- tended the National Christian Teaching Mission held in our city. In January our revival meetings will be conducted by Charles Stouder of the Elkhart VaUey church. — Hazel Grasz, Nappanee, Ind. Southern Indiana Nettle Creek, Brick— On Oct. 18, C. Ernest Davis officiated at the communion service; he also spoke at the Sunday morn- ing service. On Oct. 24, our members met for council meeting. A committee was chosen to make plans for a parsonage. The CBYF sponsored the film. The Guid- ing Star. Oscar R. Fike of Boones Mill, Va., was our evangelist. Five were bap- tized. Dr. Barbara Nickey, retired medi- cal missionary, gave a talk and showed slides of the Dahanu hospital, its work and influence on surrounding communi- ties. On Nov. 23, John Eberly spoke on Brethren Service at home and in Europe. — Mrs. O. D. Working, Hagerstown, Ind. New Hope — On Sept. 26. we held our regular council meeting. Dr. Barbara M. Nickey, missionary in India, showed pic- tures and talked about her work. On Nov. 22, Ruth Shriver from the National wom- en's work office gave a talk on home and family life. Our Thanksgiving program was conducted by the Gospel Aires of Freetown. Our Sunday-school will be at JANUARY 3. 1953 29 Five Hundred Sermons by G. B. F. Hallock This volume has been prepared especially for those ministers and laymen who have had little training in the art of sermon construction. For that person serving a church on a part time schedule, the outlines will be stimu- lating. The author since 1926 has edited the widely-used Doran's Ministers' Manual. 448 pages. Cloth. Price $3.75 BRETHREN PUBLISHING HOUSE ELGIN. ILLINOIS 9:30, regardless of fast time or slow time. We have a seventy-five per cent Messenger club again this year. — Mrs. Hazel Hilde- brand, Seymour, Ind. Northeasteom Ohio Alliance — On Oct. 12, council meeting was moderated by our elder, F. Blake Million. At this meeting Leo Stuckey and Don Meyers were elected to the office of deacon. The outside of our church has been painted. Several of our class rooms were redecorated as class projects. Bro. Arthur Hess, pastor of the East Nimishil- len church, conducted a preaching mis- sion for a week. — J. W. Fyock, Alliance, Ohio. Danville — The women's work sponsored the sending of seventeen Christmas kits for children overseas. At our Sunday eve- ning services, we have been studying the Book of Genesis. On Nov. 14, the film. The Second Chance, was shown at our an- nual family night. The young people were host to the subdistrict young people at a Halloween party, Oct. 27. The women's work group has chosen secret sisters for the coming year. Our annual communion was held Oct. 2, with Bro. King, pastor of Ashland church, officiating. — Mrs. Richard Currens, Danville, Ohio. Northwestern Ohio Black Swamp — In September, we had four cottage prayer groups meeting once a week to prepare for our week of evan- gelistic services, Oct. 6-12. They consisted of a CBYF group, men's group, women's group, and an older adult group. Kenneth Hartman of the Lafayette church, Ind., was our evangelist. Three persons were baptized and two rededicated their lives. On Oct. 26 T. Wayne Rieman of Manches- ter College was the leader in a Lake Township Sunday-school convention. Stev- en churches co-operated in this program. The college male quartette provided spe- cial music for these services. Orville Noff- singer of Defiance filled the pulpit on Nov. 2. Several members of our church at- tended the regional conference at Man- chester College. Our women's work group presented a play at the district meeting in Toledo. — Mrs. Leonard Carlisle, Perrys- burg, Ohio. Southern Ohio Eversole — Twenty of our boys and girls attended camp this summer. Our vacation Bible school was held two weeks during 30 GOSPEL MESSENGER the summer. The district youth workshop and the intermediate rally waS held in our church. Our church co-operated with the churches of the community in the vespers services each fourth Sunday throughout the summer months. During the absence of our pastor the following brought us messages, Raymond R. Peters, Earl Shank and Hugh Cloppert. Bro. Nor- man Wine delivered our home-coming message on Sept. 28. Communion service was held Nov. 5. — Miriam Kissell, Dayton, Ohio. Eastern Pennsylvania Big Swatara— Mrs. Robert Hess of the Chiques congregation spoke at our chil- dren's meeting at the Hanoverdale house. Galen Crumrine showed colored slides of his work and experiences while serving with Brethren Service in Europe. Galen Heckman was guest speaker for our har- vest day services. A. Lester Bucher of Myerstown was the speaker at the chil- dren's day services at the Paxton house. He was also our evangelist for a ten-day meeting in the Valley church. Our church was host to the district Labor Day meeting. At our September council meeting. Elder Hiram Frysinger was re-elected for an- other three-year term. Evangelistic serv- ices were held in the Hanoverdale house by D. I. Pepple of Woodbury, Pa. On Oct. 12, the deputation group from Elizabeth- town College had charge of the evening services. Jesse Hoffman, Earl Kipp and Vernon Grimm served at our love feast in October. The young people sponsored the Chiques men's chorus and quartet on Nov. 9. Robert Hess delivered the evening message. On Nov. 16, our morning service was broadcast on the "Brethren Hour" over station WLBR. — Naomi Deitz, Hum- melstown. Pa. Fredericksburg — Several of our mem- bers attended the leadership school for Sunday-school workers held at Lebanon Valley College this fall. On Sept. 28, Hi- ram J. Frysinger of the Hanoverdale con- gregation delivered the message on our temperance program. He also conducted a brief dedication service for towels pre- sented by the junior class to the Hillcrest School in Africa, and $100 presented to the district budget of missions. A short dedi- cation service was held on the afternoon of Oct. 5 for the relief heifer purchased by the Willing Workers class. A number of our people participated in the Eastern Pennsylvania district chorus concert. S. K. Wenger, B. G. Staufter and Norman Weaver officiated at our love feast. Mark Wampler and M. L. Lineweaver served as delegates to district meeting. — Grace E. Meyer, Ono, Pa. I Brethren Placement and Relocation Service . . This column Is conducted as a free service to our people. The right to edit and reject is reserved. Since no verifica- tion of ads is made no responsibility can be assumed. Unless otherwise specified address all correspondence to Brethren! Service, General Brotherhood Board, 22 S. State St., Elgin, lU. No. 723. Wanted: Woman to live in home and to aid in housework for room and board. Would be- free to obtain work elsewhere during day. Four miles to Lind- say, would need to furnish own transpor- tation. 2V4 miles from Church of the Brethren. Write: Mrs. Hazel Spuhler, R. 2, Box 599, Lindsay, Calif. No. 725. For sale: 200-acre farm, clay loam soil, houses, 3 barns (one a 32-stan- chion dairy barn), silo, electricity. On mail, milk and school bus route, 5 miles to Church of the Brethren. Write: John Filbrun, 505 S. Main St., Scottville, Mich. No. 727. For sale: Eight tenths of an acre, good stucco house, seven rooms and bath. Garage with two rooms. Fifteen walnut trees, city water, one mile from school and Church of the Brethren, paved roads. Priced cheap. Write: Ira Martin, R. 1, Box 131, Waterford, Calif. Nd. 728. For sale: The following books, Leather-bound Indexed Wave's Topical Bible; Matthew Henry's Commentaries, Vol. 1-6 inclusive; Browning's illustrated Bible Encyclopedia; Book of Christian Martyrs; Potter's Approved Donay Edition of the Holy Bible — translated from Latin Vulgate 1582-1609. First three in perfect condition, last two extremely old books, but in good condition. Write: Mrs. Frank Clingan, 1073 Haverhill, Detroit 24, Mich. No. 729. For sale: Three-bedroom home with IV2 bath, hardwood floors, wall-to- wall ca'rpet. Basement, wall furnace, sprinklers, 2 car garage. Less than V* block to Church of the Brethren, La Verne, Calif. Write : Brethren Service Commis- sion, 22 S. State St., Elgin, HI. No. 730. For sale : 200-acre farm, located six miles from college town of 8,000, just . off state highway. V4 mile to school, six miles to Church of Brethren. 100 acres of plow land, level to rolling, real alfalfa land, running water in pasture, good buildings. Farm, $15,000 or $22,500 with 25 heifers, machinery and feed. Immediate , possession. Write: Howard Peden, 832 N. Broadway, Menomonie, Wis. No. 731. For rent: Three rooms, fur- nished, reasonable cost. Write: Robert Metzler, Glotfelter, Pa. i No. 732. Wanted Immediately: Married ■ couple with farm experience and single man with farm experience to help operate 200-400 acres, general farming, stock feed- ing, milking. Located in a Brethren com- munity one mile from Franklin Grove Church of the Brethren. Write: Jay E. Miller, R. R. 1, Franklin Grove, HI. No. 733. Wanted: Registered nurses, nurses aids, and a linen room attendant at Bethany Hospital. Jobs open Immedi- ately. Write: Personnel Department, Bethany Hospital, 3420 W. Van Buren, Chicago, 111. No. 734. Jobs available: (1) Farm job, $150 per month, modern house, plus other considerations; Christian man to work for. (2) A man to run and service school bus system, good salary. (3) Janitor at school, good salary. Write: Orion Stover, Mil- ' ledgeville. 111. No. 735. For sale: Hybrid popcorn, yel- low or white. In 5 pound bags or quart jars. Excellent projects for church or Sunday-school classes. Delivered any- | where in Iowa. Write for particulars: C C. Persons, R. 2, Ames, Iowa. No. 736. Am collecting material for Cox ^ family history and would like to hear from progeny of Clarence Cox, son of James S. : and Hattie (Bascomb) Cox. Clarence left i Huntingdon County, Pa., about 1875 and went back to his mother's people in north- ern Illinois. Write: H. Paul Cox, R. 4, Tyrone, Pa. I I Lebanon — The ladies of the missionary society packed bags of cookies and candy for each patient in the Lebanon County home. Our men were well represented at the fall fellowship held in the Annville church. At a special council meeting Brother and Sister Light Bomberger and Brother and Sister Roy Fahnestock were elected to the officf- of deacon. A church planning committee was also elected to study the need for additional church and Sunday-school rooms. A candlelight in- stallation service was held for the new officers. Twenty-three of our women at- tended the women's district work meeting at the Mohler church in Lancaster County. — ^Mrs. Ruth B. Reinhold, Lebanon, Pa. Mingo — Robert Hess of Manheim, Pa., conducted our evangelistic services at the Shippack house on Oct. 5-11. On Oct. 25 J. Calvin Bright, missionary to China, brought the mesasge. On Sunday after- noon, Nov. 2, the CBYF held a songfest. On Nov. 9, Jacob Meyer of Manheim, Pa., showed pictures of the work being done on the Brethren House in Kassel, Ger- many. Martha Martin of Elizabethtown held a two-session Bible institute on Nov. 16. Four persons were added to the church by baptism. Our Thanksgiving program was held at the Shippack house. — Mrs. C. E. Linsenmaier, Royersford, Pa. Middle Pennsylvania Altoona, Twenly-eighlh Street — Broth- er C. H. Cameron has been serving us as pastor since July. The women's mis- sionary society has sponsored several fam- ily nights. Our pastor is conducting church membership classes — one for adults and one for juniors and Intermediates. A mission study class is planned for January. Mrs. Eleanor Carter, missionary to India, is being supported by our church. Our church has co-operated with the churches of the sixth ward in daily vacation Bible Books of Fiction THEY KNEW ABE LINCOLN by Freuices Cavanah In this book the author creates a fresh and extraordi- narily appealing picture of Lincoln's boyhood for boys and girls. Based on the personal recollections of people who actually knew young Abe, these warmly human stories show him growing from a child of seven to an ambitious youth of twenty-one. The events and people of the period are brought vividly to Ufe by the author. 256 pages. Cloth. Price $2.50 CHEROKEE BILL by Jean Bailey Here is a book of high adventure about a boy and a horse. The boy, a twelve-year-old, and his parents waited for the opening of the Cherokee Strip. David makes the acquaintance of a stray horse which he names Cherokee Bill. This is a fast moving, well written story and is based on family records, thus adding realism. 192 pages. Cloth. Price $2.50 PARTY FOR SUZANNE by Cecile Edwards The story of a girl making new friends in a new com- munity. The setting is in Massachusetts but the experiences are typical of any community which adopts new families into their way of life. A warm story of family life and of a girl's new-found pride in her family heritage. 192 pages. Cloth. Price $2.50 PRAIRIE SCHOOL by Lois Lenski A Story of the Great Blizzard of 1949. Factual incidents are brought to life in this volume. The author lived in the region about which she writes. This is truly a story of the American scene as it is lived by the boys and girls on the prairie. Miss Martin, a school teacher is a lovable character. 208 pages, 46 illustrations. Price $2.75 Children 8 to 14 will appreciate the above books. BRETHREN PUBLISHING HOUSE ELGIN, ILLINOIS school, services for the Revised Standard Bible and union Thanksgiving services. This group includes a Negro church and a Jewish synagogue. Bro. Nevin Fisher was with us on Nov. 7-9, to help us be- come better acquainted with our new hymnals. Dedication services were held Sunday morning for our hymnals. In the afternoon rededication services were con- ducted for the church and the parsonage, which had recently been repaired, painted and decorated. Bro. T. F. Henry, our newly elected elder, was one of the speakers. — Martha Mentzer, Altoona, Pa. Southeastern Pennsylvania, New Jersey, E. New York and N. Delaware Recently the Southeastern district, through the men's organization, assisted by the Elizabethtown church, raised ap- proximately $2,300 for a jeep station wagon for Paul Petcher, a medical missionary stationed at Garkida, Africa. We jitst re- ceived a report from Paul, stating that the jeep had arrived and is a great help in his work. On Nov. 1 the first joint men's and women's banquet was held at Whispering Pines. The high-light of the evening was a talk by Donovan Beachley, of Hagers- town, Md., followed by pictures taken by him during a recent trip to the Holy Land and to some of the Brethren Service sta- tions in Europe. The offering of $102 was given for our new project, the Kassel House, which is now being constructed for the use of our people in Germany. — Mrs. C. M. Rosenberger, Philadelphia, Pa. Philadelphia, First — Two girls from our junior department and two from the young people's department spent a week at Camp Swatara this summer. Henry Eckenrode has returned to Manchester College. Ben- ton Burritt, another of our young men, is spending a year in B.V.S. At our Wed- nesday night prayer services, a six o'clock dinner is prepared by various women of the church for the convenience of those who wish to come directly from business. On Oct. 28-29, our church was host to the forty-second annual conference of the Southeastern district. Brother and Sister J. Calvin Bright, returned missionaries to China, were our guest speakers. — Mrs. C. M. Rosenberger, Philadelphia, Pa. Western Pennsylvania Arbutus — Our vacation Bible school was held for two weeks during the sum- mer with Mrs. Walter Kopka as director. A number of things were made for the children at the children's home. Our prayer meeting is Wednesday evenings. A homebuilders class has been organized with the pastor, G. E. Yoder, as teacher. A nursery class was also organized to care for the small children. — Elda Wertz, Johnstown, Pa. Penn Run — At our council meeting, we retained John Clawson as our minister and elder for another year. This fall we sent donations to the Hillcrest school, old folks home and New Windsor. Two per- sons have been baptized in the last year. The young people of the circuit pre- sented a. Thanksgiving program in our church on the evening before Thanksgiv- ing. We had union service on Thanksgiv- ing morning in the Methodist church in Penn Run. On Oct. 31, Bro. J. M. Blough gave a talk about his work in India. — Eliz- abeth Amond, Penn Run, Pa. Pleasant Hill — Our new organ was In- stalled and dedicated this summer. Dur- ing the absence of the pastor in evangelis- tic meetings, our pulpit has been filled by John Hopkins, Arthur Croyle and the Rev. Olaf Carlsen of the Cambria City Mission. D. Alfred Replogle of Philadel- phia was the evangelist for our meetings. The choir under the direction of Mrs. Al- bert Eassett gave their annual Christmas cantata. We are making plans for a lead- JANUARY 3. 1953 31 MY NEW ADDRESS IS Name R. b. or St. P. O Help us to keep your Gospel Messenger promptly. Please do not remove old address, Zone State coming by reporting any change in address ership training school to be conducted in our church at the beginning of the new year. Bro. Ralph Schlosser was with us in a Bible institute Jan. 2-4. Our training school begins in January with meetings one night each week for a period of six weeks.— Mrs. William L. Gould, Johns- town, Pa. Florida and Greorgia Kghland Community — Dur- ing the past three years several families have purchased homes in the southern part of the city of Orlando. They expressed the desire for a Church of the Brethren in that area. In July of 1952, eight families living in the area purchased a building and converted it into a chapel accommodating about 100 peo- ple. On July 13, they began services with twenty-five mem- bers, all former members of the Winter Park church. The church was organized by the district. Floyd Biddix is the pastor and elder. Attendance has increased during the four months until it is necessary to build a new church. The new church will be built within the next three or four months and will accommo- date 200 people. The attendance is at the seventy-five mark for Sunday-school, over eighty for morning worship and an average of sixty for the evening serv- ices. Every family is tithing. The church is located in a needy field and near a new high school. — Dorothy Bowman, Orlando, Pla. Clay County — Our elder, A. D. Crist, conducted our council meeting on Sept. 14. He was retained as elder for the coming year. A number of our young people attended Camp Ithiel during August. Bro. Crist conducted our revival in October. At ovir communion service on Oct. 26 twenty-seven members participated. We lost one of our members who has been ac- tive since the early days of the church et this place. — Maude B. Jenkins, Doctors Inlet, Fla. Eastern Maryland Universily Park — Construction on our new church began in June of this year. During the summer months an over-all work and prayer meeting was held each Wednesday evening at the church. A number of the men worked on Saturdays and special work days. We are making plans for the dedication of the entire building on Feb. 1, with Jesse H. Ziegler, former pastor, as speaker. A week's evan- gelistic meetings, held by J. H. HoUinger, will follow. Forty-nine new^ members were received into the church by baptism and letter, since our last report. Our church has had Ralph Schlosser for a week-end Bible institute; Jacob Dick for a week of evan- gelistic services; and Alvin Brightbill for a music institute. Our church choir has rendered music for other churches of the district on special occasions. The young people helped with the local building pro- gram, and served as leaders in summer camps. Several of the group have gone into B.V.S. and alternative service. Our pastor, Lee Weaver, is serving as direc- tor of intermediate work in the district. — Mary H. Smith, College Park, Md. Washington City — Our foreign ex>- change students, Gerda Feischl and Man- fred Winkler, who spent a year in ou midst, have returned to their respective homes in Austria and Germany. Duane H Ramsey from Bethany Biblical Seminar; succeeded George H. Tinsman, Jr., as ou: assistant pastor in September. Several o our women who attended the women' workshop at Bridgewater, Va., gave re ports at our local women's coimcil meet ing. The relief truck from New Windsor Md., makes regular trips to our area fo relief materials. Bro. Harl L. Russel] Brotherhood Fund secretary, visited us oi his tour of eastern chiu'ches. Our churcl participated in the National Capital BibL Observance at the National Guard Arm ory, Sept. 29, at this time especially pre pared copies of the new Revised Standarc Version of the Bible were presented to tojj government officials. A telephone brigad' has been formulated whereby all mem bers may be promptly informed of emer gencies and important events. We alsi have in operation a contact-visitation pro gram contemplating that all of our mem bers, friends and prospects will be con tacted once a month by phone or card o with a personal visit. Karl Both fron Luebeck, Germany, is in our midst unde the exchange program. Our church co operated with other churches in Southeas Washington in a community Thanksgivinj service. Twelve babies have been conse crated and seven new members have beei added to our church since our last report — Mrs. Mary M. Hinshaw, Washington D. C. Eastern Virginia Manassas — A farewell party was hel( for Brother and Sister Conrad Snavley Our new pastor, Carl Smith, and hi; family arrived the first of September. / reception was held for them on Sept. 18 Installation services were conducted fo: Bro. Smith on Sept. 21. Our church m.e in regular council on Sept. 7, with ou: elder, Paul Swigart, presiding. The meii of the church are raising fifty heifers The profit is to be used for the build| ing fund. We are giving funds to heli purchase and send goats to Korea. Ou pastor conducted a local preaching mis sion on Nov. 9-16. We have four appli cants for baptism and five persons wer( received by letter. — Mrs. J. M. Garber Manassas, Va. I 32 GOSPEL MESSENGER NEW YEAR'S RESOLUTIONS We resolve — To increase our efforts to bring to the Church of the Brethren the best of printed matter and religious supplies for your use. -To improve our serv- ices to you by supply- ing up-to-the-minute information, maintain- ing stock, and prompt handling and shipping of orders. -To Serve Y O U— our customers. BRETHREN PUBLISHING HOUSE ELGIN. ILLINOIS ■t. . .t. - » - .|. . >:■ - ,1. - ,1, - .t. . ,t> - »:< - »- >i< « <i> - >:■ - >i< - » - >i> - -t- - » * » ■ 'i- - 1- - 't' • » - » - »-*' teSpMISStnGER F. Wayne Lawson Gospel Messenger "Thy Kingdom Come'' KENNETH MORSE Editor ELIZABETH WEIGLE - Editorial Assistant ROY D. BOAZ Cloverdale, Va. S. LOREN BOWMAN . Wenatchee, Wash. A. G. BREIDENSTINE Lancaster, Pa. A. R. COFFMAN La Verne, Calif. IVAN FETTERMAN Oaks, Pa. HOWARD H. KEIM . . N. Manchester, Ind. MRS. JOHN D. LONG Dayton, Ohio MARTHA MARTIN ... Elizabethtown, Pa. R. H. MILLER North Manchester, Ind. KURTIS F. NAYLOR Denver, Colo. FOSTER B. STATLER Elkhart, Ind. THE GOSPEL MESSENGER, official organ of the Church of the Brethren. Published weekly by the General Brotherhood Board, Norman J. Baugher, General Secretary, and the Brethren House, Earl H. Kurtz, Manager, 16-24 S. State St., Elgin, 111., at $3.00 per annum in advance. Life subscription, $50, husband and vrife, $60. Entered at the post office at Elgin, 111., as second-class matter. Acceptance for mail- ing at special rate of postage provided for in section 1103, Act of October 3, 1917, authorized Aug. 20, 1918. Printed in U.S.A. READERS WRITE to the editor The Gospel Messenger welcomes letters commenting on editorials, articles and news. Letters should be brief and brotherly. JANUARY 10. 1953 Volume 102 Number 2 In This Number . . ., Editorial — Be Still and Listen 5 For a World Christian Peace Conference 5 A God Who Works 5 Kingdom Gleanings 16, 17 The General Forum — The Christian Hope. Nevin H. Zuck . . 3 What the Minister Needs. Edward K. Ziegler 6 God's Living Letters. Kirby Page .... 9 In Exchange. Ruby Shearrow 10 The Family Counselor 12 Ashland College Fire. C. Ernest Davis 13 Suspicious of the Miracles. Roy L. Smith 14 Christ and the Family. Isaac Grillo . . 14 Reviews of Recent Books 15 Brethren Service — Working for the Church in the Nation's CapitaL A. Stauffer Curry 18 Looking Ahead 19 New Notes , 19 The Local Church — Trustees Serve God's Landlord. Philip H. Lauver 20 Our Sons Go to Hillcrest. Violet Pfaltzgraff 2Z Winning Men for Christ. Clara Harper 22 Bumkir-Ville. Grayce Brumbaugh .... 23 Opportunity for Teachers at Intermoun- tain. Charles E. Zunkel 24 News — Around the World 25 "Rejoice always, pray constantly, give thanks in all circumstances; for this is the will ol God in Christ lesus for you" 2 GOSPEL MESSENGER Open or Secret All of us know that the Church of the Brethren has always opposed secret societies and membership in secret societies. Brethren have believed that man is more likely to do good — if there is no attempt to hide his conduct. There are limits to "openness," of course. Congress is open to the pub- lic, but there are a limited number of seats in the public balconies. Any organization that faces some special peril from without may justify a special, secret session. At times, a secret session seems necessary to protect the reputations of persons who may be under discussion. But do these limits excuse the Church of the Brethren from policies that, at present, (1) keep all meetings of the Standing Committee secret, and (2) forbid distribution of any of the minutes of the General Brother- hood Board to Brethren not members of official boards? — ^Wilbur Dunbar, North Manchester, Ind. General Brotherhood Board meet- ings are open to the public except when executive sessions are called to discuss personnel changes or other confidential matters. The Board be- lieves that minutes need to be read in the light of the discussions that accompany action. For that reason Board minutes are not made gener- ally available but the Board is al- ways ready to provide information on specific actions when it is re- quested. The Gospel Messenger has attempted to report as quickly as possible on Board and commission meetings. (See our issues for Nov. 29 and Dec. 6.)— Ed. New Version I wonder if some of our churches were in too much of a hurry when they adopted the new Bible pub- lished and copyrighted by Thomas Nelson and Sons. We are hearing considerable criticism. I was sorry to see in John 2: 11 the word "sign" was used instead of "miracle." Surely a miracle means more to our children than a sign. Then my husband and I regret very much that in Matt. 6:13 the beautiful climax ending to our Lord's prayer is omitted. — Lizzie Horner, Fresno, Calif. No Room in Our Heart The Christmas plays and sermons that are being presented in our churches can teach us the true mean- ing of Christmas but I believe that we Brethren have been Santa Claus minded too long. Our hearts are stirred and touched as we hear the Christmas sermons, see the Christmas plays and sing the Christmas carols at church. Our hearts are stirred and touched as we hear the Christmas sermons, see the Christmas plays and sing the Christmas carols at church. I believe if we receive the true message from our Christmas pro- grams we must take them home with us to meditate upon. Instead, we leave the church, pick up our ex- citing Christmas plans, packages, ribbons and Christmas feasts, to take back home with us to meditate upon, thus Christmas is spent in a whirlwind of excitement. There is no room in our hearts for the Christ- child spirit. I believe that if we possessed some of the Christ-child spirit we would be much less self-centered and give more to missionaries and needy causes of the world. Thus we would feel the thrill of Christmas that we , try so hard to find without the j Christ-child spirit. When will we Brethren learn to sing from our hearts, "Peace on earth, goodwill toward men"? — Mrs. Timothy Cannaday, Bassett, Va. Translate Inspiration Into Action It was very interesting in reading "The Bible in Our Day," by Bro. Fetterman (Dec. 13 issue) to note the concrete suggestions offered for in- creasing our understanding and ap- preciation of the Scriptures. ; In this and other areas of the Christian life we very often forget or neglect to give people concrete suggestions. We talk about praying more, reading the Bible more, wor- shiping more reverently, being peacemakers, being evangelists, etc., but we fall down on translating the: idealistic inspirations into definite' procedures, or as has often been said offering the handles for people tc grasp. ; Perhaps that is why men's anc' women's work projects, Lord's Acres; work camps and volunteer service have been so well received. Thej have been things by which we ar< able to merge our physical anc mental powers with the spiritual Let us continue to emphasize th(, techniques for better Christian liv ing.— William P. Nyce, Lansdale, P" I "Test everything; hold last what is gooc abstain from every form of evil" — Pov Whatever hope the Christian has for today and tomorrow is bound up in the nature of God as re- vealed in his Son, Jesus Christ Nevin H. Zuck Painting by Carl Bloch Camera Clix THE CHRISTIAN HOPE IN A campus religious group a student suggested, "Wouldn't it be appropriate and helpful for us to discuss hope?" Here was a sensitive lad who knew a little about the world's darkness and who wanted a Christian answer to some current fears. All of us have felt the need for the con- firmation of our Christian hope. Life has meaning for the j| Christian because he believes in God, the God who revealed him- self and his purpose in his Son, Pastor of the Elizabethtown church, Pa., Bro. Zuck contributes the last of the ar- I tides in the doctrinal series. Jesus Christ. Whatever hope the Christian has for today and tomorrow is bound up with the nature and character of his God. This hope, based upon the trust- worthiness of God, is both per- sonal and social. It is personal, in that the gospel claims that individual men can be changed, regenerated, made new crea- tures (2 Cor. 5:17). Our Lord looks deeply into our hearts and says, "You are a sinner! You may become a child of God!" The believer may have victory in his inner life. This hope is social in that it believes in the extension of God's kingdom over the earth. By the very na- ture of Christian experience, we give ourselves to such tasks as improving race relationships, feeding the hungry, clothing the naked and giving homes to the desolate (Matt. 25:35-45). Christians at their best always join their Lord in making this earth a place where men can more happily live with God and with one another. Again, the Christian hope can be described by a theological word, as eschatological, as being a part of the teaching on "final JANUARY 10. 1953 3 things." This present discussion will be limited to the interpre- tation of this aspect of our hope. When our Lord left this earth, following his ministry, his work was incomplete. The question was, "Will he return to finish it?" The unanimous answer of the first century church was: "Yes, he will return; he will come back personally to finish that which he had begun" (1 Thess. 4:16; Heb.9:28). It is in- teresting that these same Chris- tians preserved for us, under the inspiration of the Holy Spirit, certain parables in the New Testament like that of the must- ard seed (Matt. 13:31), the leav- en, (Matt. 13:33ff.), the grain growing into the harvest (Matt. 13:36ff.) , all of which point to the growth and development of the kingdom, rather than the sudden coming of the King at the end of time. With this concept, they also held, as Jesus himself had said, "Then shall they see the Son of Man coming in the clouds of heaven with power and great glory" (Matt. 24:30). Across these years of Chris- tian history, the return of Christ has been cherished as the su- preme hope of the church. The final triumph of righteousness has been connected with the doctrine known as "the blessed hope" (Titus 2:13), the return of Jesus Christ the Lord. Sincere Christian people have differed widely about the time of Christ's coming, the method and manner of his return, and the order of God's future pro- gram. Some Christians believe sincerely that Christ will not come personally in the future because he has come in the Holy Spirit and he has promised his personal presence until the end of the age. Before Jesus left his disciples he said, "I will not leave you comfortless, I will come to you" (John 14:18), and he did that on the day of Pente- cost when the Spirit came upon 4 GOSPEL MESSENGER the disciples. Whenever we think of the Holy Spirit as a guide and companion of the way, we are in the realm of com- mon Christian experience. Christ has come again in the inner life of the believer. Most of us believe more than this. Other Christians anticipate that' the progress of the gospel will be such that when the knowledge of the Lord shall cover the earth as the waters cover the sea, then the earth shall be ready for the return of the Lord. These Christians emphasize the growth of the kingdom; they look for the day when "every knee should bow" and "every tongue confess that Jesus Christ is Lord" (Phil. 2: 10) . There is truth in this point of view. One of the best illustra- tions of the Bible view of his- tory is in the parable of the wheat and the tares. There is a development of both good and evil in this present world, but, as our Lord says, there is "the harvest" (Matt. 13:37). Then again, others read in their Bibles "that evil men and seducers shall wax worse and worse" (2 Tim. 3:12). These folks believe evil will not be overcome simply in the growth of the Lord's kingdom, but that there must be finally the return of the King. Even in the three general points of view presented here, there are many variations in thought, having to do sometimes with the "millennium" (Rev. 20) , the various phases of the judg- ment, and the Reinhold Niebuhr — Arnold Toynbee thinking which carries us beyond this planet into the larger universe where God will finally triumph. Having noted these variations of interpretation, it is well to conclude that this is not a doc- ' trine over which Christians should quarrel. Our relationship Continued on page 9 Religious News Service An estimated 5.000 pounds of clothing for Arab refugees in the Middle East was collected by members of the youth senate of the New Haven Council of Churches during a week-long drive throughout the city and its suburbs. The clothing was turned in by some 300 youths at a clothes dedication service which was recorded for broadcasting overseas by the Voice of America. American Relief for the Middle East will supervise the shipment and distribution of the clothing EDITORIAL Be Still and Listen THE doctor told a housewife that if she rested her vocal chords for six weeks she might avert a delicate operation. How she managed to continue as wife and mother while maintaining absolute silence is related in a recent magazine article. More important than the ad- justment to not speaking was her discovery that silence is indeed golden and listening can be a delight as well as an art. Maurice Maeterlink once told of a school- teacher who asked him to remain after school. But rather than scold or punish him, she sat quietly with him until he became gradually aware of her as a person. At first resentful and rebellious, he began to view his teacher in a new light as they remained in the same room in silence. Both pupil and teacher reached a new understanding of each other without saying a word. The most apparent values of silence are neg- ative. If we but kept a more watchful guard over our lips we would not have so often to re- gret the careless remarks we make thoughtlessly. Nor would we have so many mistakes to correct, so many wrongs to right, so many hurts to heal. And the advice we give freely would be more helpful if we first stopped to listen. But far more important is the constructive use of silence. Once we have learned to calm our spirits we can begin to listen. Perhaps no dis- cipline is so rewarding as those practices which help us to "be still and know" the presence of God. How much easier it is to discuss and debate than to "study to be quiet." Yet only as our hearts are stilled and our ears made alert can we hear the voice of God. We must learn the art of listen- ing.—K. M. For a World Christian Peace Conference BOTH the Presbyterian and Methodist churches in New Zealand voted in recent annual conferences to urge the World Council of Churches to call a Christian peace conference. For this action both churches should be commended. We hope the leaders of the World Council take the suggestions seriously and consider ways of setting up and promoting a world-wide gathering to study and act on the question of world peace. In recent years the position of the historic peace churches has been set before the member churches of the World Council and we are grate- ful that leaders of the world churches no longer dismiss lightly the convictions of Christian paci- fists. Yet we believe the peace churches have a responsibility also to commend and urge such a proposal as this which comes from New Zealand. Both pacifist and nonpacifist Christians can support an effort which seeks by bringing to- gether representative Christians from around the world to bind more tightly the bonds of fellow- ship and to find the mind of Christ with respect to the tragic conflicts which separate us. No one can overlook the difficulties which such a world conference would encounter even in the effort to organize it, not to mention the problems that would appear on its agenda. But even if its total witness against war would fall short of what Brethren might prefer, it would be a step in the direction we must go. The time for Christian action on a world scale is shortened by every new crisis in world affairs. Here is a specific proposal which could be acted on by our next Annual Conference and, if approved, referred to the World Council offices through our own representative in Geneva. We would be interested in discovering whether our readers regard the New Zealand proposal as ap- propriate and urgent for World Council action. — K.M. A God Who Works THE Bethany chapel window pictured on our cover calls our attention to Christ the worker. His entire ministry, of course, and not only his apprenticeship in Joseph's shop, was a ministry of work. We do well to regard him as "the Master Workman of the race," whose labor- ing was not confined to shop or farm but reached out to heal and save. Our chief calling, whatever our vocation may be, is to be a worker with God. For God, as Jesus reminded us, is himself a worker who continues in his work. In Jesus' words we catch an in- sight into the dynamic nature of the world God made and of the one who continues to work in it and to labor with his children. Working with God means sharing in the suc- cesses and failures which reward the effort to do his will. Even more, it means the richest kind of fellowship that man can enjoy, the companion- ship of joint endeavor in the creating of a king- dom where men will work not as laborers seeking wages, nor as merchants seeking profits nor as slaves obeying a tyrant, but as free men serving their Lord with happy hearts. — K.M. JANUARY 10, 1953 The minister and his iamily need privacy vrithin the walls oi the parson- age, which should be considered their home ond not a parish house WHAT THE MINISTER NEEDS WE HAVE been writing of the ministers' ideals and of what we can do to help him to have a great minis- try. Let us now consider some of the specific needs of the min- ister as he comes to share in the life of the church and com- munity. The minister needs friends. Jesus needed them. That was one of the reasons why he called the twelve, that they might be with him in his hours of triumph as well as in his hours of perplexity and burden. There ought to be a group to whom the minister can go, and in the fellowship of this small group refresh his spirit in their understanding and sympathy. It is difficult for a minister to have 6 GOSPEL MESSENGER Edward K. Ziegler a group of close friends, but he must have them somehow. He must find a group in which he can feel free to express him- self, a group that will surround him with understanding, with compassion, with sympathy and with wholesome criticism. Many ministers will have to find this fellowship in a group of other ministers, but there ought to be in every congrega- tion some people who are his peers and who will share in his life in a special manner. This should not be the occasion of jealousy on the part of the rest of the congregation, nor should the minister give his entire time to this group. Let us not be afraid of our minister's having friends. He needs them just as Jesus did, perhaps even more! Your minister needs leisure. He will be a working man, it is true. I heard Oscar F. Black- welder say some years ago that any minister who in these days of crisis does not work fourteen hours a day is not worthy of the ministry of Christ. I know that many pastors are working an average of twelve to four- teen hours a day, working far longer into the night and earlier in the morning than many mem- bers of their, congregation work. It is true that far too many ministers have had to retire with broken health in middle age be- cause they had not learned to relax. You must see to it that your minister has leisure to get away occasionally from the pressing demands of the parish, so that he may be fresh and eager and strong to carry the burdens. You must see to it that your minister takes one day of each week as a Sabbath to get away from work and refresh his spirit through true recreation and lei- sure activities. He needs also to spend much time in the presence of God, to study and enrich his mind so that he may bring the greatest treasures of all ages in- to the great work which God has called upon him to perform. The third need of your minis- ter is one that is difficult to ex- press. Perhaps we may say that he needs freedom from petty things. Often people call upon the minister for things that are exceedingly trivial or they bring to him problems that they ought to solve themselves, or they criticize him on petty is- sues. The minister needs free- dom from the trivialities which so often burden him. Your min- ister is not a perfect man; no minister will ever be. You will find things about the way he dresses, about his mannerisms, about certain things that he says that you may not like. Every church has a pastoral committee. It is one of the func- tions of this committee to be a counseling group for the pastor. If there are things that annoy you about the pastor, talk to the pastoral committee about them, but let us not dog our minister to death with all sorts of pettiness. He has a right to expect of the congregation that they will rise to great heights of service and consideration. The minister needs a real home and a living. Perhaps you provide a parsonage for your minister. Let us remem- ber that the parsonage is the pastor's home! it is not a parish house. He ought to have priv- acy. He ought to have the op- portunity to fix up the parson- age so that it will be a true home for him and for his family. One of the sacrifices which pas- tors make is that they often never have a place they can call their own, and in many congregations there is criticism of the design of the wallpaper, the arrangement of the furni- ture and pictures and books. Let us remember that a part of our responsibility is to provide him and his family with a place that they can truly call home and then to give them a free hand in its arrangement. Of Eva Luoma course, most ministers will in- vite individuals and groups to share in the lovely hospitality of their home, but it must be by invitation and not by de- mand. Let the parsonage be a home. The fifth need of the minister is a working fellowship. He must know that his work is made truly effective by a con- gregation of people who love one another, who believe in one another and who are open for guidance, a group of people who are equipped to serve the Lord and to be organized for his serv- ice. The finest support you can give your minister is to give him a united active congregation, ready to be led, compassionate in service, kindly in ministry to all sorts of people, a congrega- tion that can be guided into the E. G. HofT The minister needs one day each week to get away from the de- mands of his work and to relax and to refresh his spirit through true recreation and other activities JANUARY 10, 1953 high trails of self-denial, of com- passionate service, to meet the hungry needs of all people everywhere. The minister also needs an adequate salary. He must have enough support so that he can truly hold up his head among the people of the community. There are great demands upon him. Your minister will tithe his income just as the rest of us are expected to do. In fact, there is a far higher proportion of ministers who are tithing than of laymen! The minister has many demands on his in- come in order that he may grow professionally. He must buy books: he must go to confer- ences, and he must refresh his spirit with good music, good magazines, so that he may grow intellectually and spiritually. It is important that he be free from anxiety. Even in the days of the earliest church the leaders were deeply concerned that the ministers have an adequate liv- ing. This wage ought to be the equivalent of that of other pro- fessional men in the community who have spent years getting adequate training for their work. He ought to be able to send his children to college, to clothe them adequately, to feed them well. Some churches have been generous in their support of their minister. Even though they were not able to pay a very large salary in terms of money, they have been quick to sense the need of their minis- ter and have shared the produce of their gardens and orchards and flocks with him. They have kept his refrigerator and cellar full of good things. This is a gracious thing to do and in many rural churches this is one of the compensations which a minister has a right to expect. The minister does not want to be a beggar. He does not want to go to stores and ask for a 8 GOSPEL MESSENGER Religious News Service Rev. Donald Mathews, pastor of the North Presbyterian church in Kalamazoo, Michigan, works as a machinist in the plant of a manu- facturing company where he is employed on the night shift for forty hours a week. Mr. Mathews is the first Presbyterian minister in the U.S. to enter industry in order to reach the men and women in the wage-earning group who no longer are regular churchgoers. He is there to learn of the workers' spiritual needs and serve as a familiar bridge between their working lives and religion. "I'm a worker," says Mr. Mathews, "but also a minister. If we can start in the shop, maybe the rest of the route to church will be easier" ministerial discount. He has much more self-respect and can be a better minister, if he receives an adequate salary and pays his bills as he goes. And finally, the minister needs your prayers. He can do his best work when he knows that his arms are being held up and his work supported by a host of people in the congregation who are remembering him every day at the throne of grace. You may be sure he is remembering you. Let us reciprocate by assuring our minister of the constant and steady support of our daily prayers, praying that he may have strength and grace and vision to lead us to the throne of grace and to be our true minis- ter sent from God. There is no task in our world today that is a greater challenge than that of the pastoral minis- try. I know of no work to which a man may be called that offers greater reward or that has greater responsibilities. There is no task to which God calls men that has greater possibili- ties for the eternal welfare of men than that of the pastor. The burdens of the pastorate are heavy. They may utterly break the body and spirit of a man, but members of the congrega- tion can help him. You can help him to the infinite rewards that there are in the ministry. We may have here a great ministry if we will truly support our minister. You remember the great words of the Oxford Conference in 1937 when in speaking of the ministry of the church in our modern world they said, "First of all let the church be the church." As you call to the service of the church a man to be your minister, "let your min- ister be your minister." Sup- port him with prayer, hold up his arms with fellowship, sur- round him with a group of peo- ple who love him and who are concerned first of all about the church and the Lord and you will have a great ministry. The Christian Hope Continued from page 4 to Christ and his church is not at stake. Beyond our interpretations, and all of us can learn, there is important truth involved in this doctrine that gives it signifi- cance in this time and any time. The important thing is not any person's theory of the circum- stances attending the Lord's coming. The essential fact is ! that Christ will come in the full- ness of his power! There will be the complete establishment of his rule! Those who trust in Christ will not be let down! He will triumph over all his ene- mies and make good his promises of deliverance! God is winning now and the final word must be with him! He shall be tri- umphant over death, pain, evil and suffering! All the wars of history, all the denials, contra- dictions and evils of this pres- ent life cannot defeat his majes- ^c purpose of love and goodness! jod's program for the redemp- ion of man will then be success- ul! The much discussed report of he special committee of the ^orld Council of Churches in kugust of 1951 describes aptly I'ow this doctrine meets our eed: "It is essential that we ecover a sense of the great hope 'hich is involved in the simple :atement. . . 'He shall come ?ain.' ... As the Lord of the iture who will come again as idge and Savior, he gives us e assurance that our work is )t in vain, and at the same time ys upon us the necessity to work while it is day Having this hope, we are to be as men who watch for their Lord, with loins girt and lamps lit, active in the Master's service and con- stant in prayer, knowing that our labor is not in vain in the Lord. . . . There is no hope ex- cept in the crucified, risen and coming Lord." It is important to say, finally, that if this hope causes us to want things "to get worse so they can get better," if it leads us to fold our hands and wait for God, if it causes us to spend time making charts from the books of Daniel and Revelation, if it leads us to make slighting remarks about the United Na- tions and every other effort that man has made for human better- ment, if it holds us back in all our endeavors to practice brotherly goodwill now, then we misunderstand it. Running through all of Paul's letters was the element of expectancy, and yet the apostle went on work- ing—founding churches, super- intending churches, explaining spiritual truth, admonishing per- sons to do their full duty in this world, as if the coming of the kingdom depended wholly on human effort. "Blessed are those servants whom the Lord when he cometh shall find watching" (Luke 12:37). This is no idle "sky gazing"; it is faithful and devoted service to the task at hand. As the old hymn put it, "we'll work 'til Jesus comes." The future is with God, and despite all of the prophets who are ready to tell us all about it, we are not too sure how he will act and certainly we do not know when. It is ours to trust in the Father's gracious purpose and in his power to carry it out, and meanwhile to let God work in our midst, to allow his rule to come in our hearts, and to offer ourselves to do his will. GOD'S LIVING LETTERS ... George Lansbury FOR four weeks I traveled constantly with a saint in politics. He was at that time seventy-seven years of age. We were engaged in a strenuous cru- sade for world peace. The spirit he displayed throughout enabled me 'to understand why "G. L." was the most beloved member of the House of Commons. George Lansbury was born in 1859 and died in 1940. From early childhood, he was accustomed to privation and hard work. He shoveled coal, worked on the stone pile, drove a truck for a meat-packing plant, ran several small businesses, became a Guar- dian of the Poor, mayor of the borough of Poplar in London. The first time he was Labor candidate for the House of Commons, he received only 347 votes. Not until his sixth attempt did he succeed in winning a seat. After two years his strong support of woman suffrage caused his defeat. Then for a decade he was editor of the Daily Herald, organ of the Labor Party. He was re-elected to Par- liament in 1922. From 1931 to Kirby Page 1935 he was chairman of the Labor Party. Two passions of his life were the ending of poverty and the pre- vention of war. He was opposed to war and violent revolution, and strongly committed to represent- ative government. Opposition to the Boer War brought persecu- tion upon him. He looked upon the system of imperialism as the primary cause of international warfare. He stood not only against German and French im- perialism, but more vigorously against British imperialism also. For thirty-five years George Lansbury devoted his week ends to speaking engagements through- out the British Isles. Without payment he spoke on Saturday night and three times on Sunday. Later he wrote: "Our meetings were like revival gatherings. We were very happy in those days. Somehow our hearts kept young. We worked and looked for a future which would be bright for us and for others." JANUARY 10. 1953 9 In Exchange Ruby Shearrow ^atie4ijce' IF we sent old clothing, could you use it?" "Can you use soaps?" "We want to do. something for the Navajos. Can you use shoes?" "We've heard of the poverty among the Nava- jos. Can you use medicines?" These are excerpts from the letters that come into the mis- sionaries' homes on the Navajo Indian Reservation. They all boil down to one big question, "What can we do to help the Navajos?" Did it ever occur to folks out- side the reservation, and on it, that the Navajos can help us? That we can learn many lessons from them if we only take the time and are not too proud to Having become interested in the plight of the Navajo Indians when they spent some time in the Southwest because of their son's health, the Shearrows later moved from their Ohio home to Gallup, N. Mex., where they are working part-time with an Independent mission. Irene Hoskins teaches two Navajo Indians to read in theii own language — ^the each-one-teach-one process at worl 10 GOSPEL MESSENGER say, "I learned it from an Indi- an"? It is very true, the missionary has much to offer, materially and spiritually. Living, work- ing and loving on the reserva- tion among the Navajos is not all sacrificial giving but ex- changing virtues. We are only infants in the great work here but let me tell you of some of the lessons we have learned from the Indians. One of the first things folks offer is clothing; missionaries hand it out by the ton each year. We sort all the boxes in order to have clothing in two groups, useful and useless. You think us ungrateful? No, just practi- cal. Our Navajo lady's clothing consists of a long, ankle-length skirt and a bright velveteen blouse. This is topped with a Pendleton blanket and worn with sturdy shoes o • with squaw boots. We find in the first box ; pretty nylon dress of the lates style, a coat that is innerlinec with warm flannel, a felt ha with a beautiful and costl; plume from an almost extinc bird, a pair of toeless and heel less sandals, and here tuckeii in the corner is a smart, but di£| carded, handbag and a pair cj gloves. ' When you packed this box yo probably visualized at least on' well-dressed squaw. Let us s€' what Nez Bah, Mary Chee, Lad Manygoats, or some other Nav; jo lady would do. She would hold up the nylc dress and say, "Jonie! Joni'i (Pretty! Pretty!)" and lay | aside. The skirt is much t(' short. Part of every day is speii at the rug loom where the squa sits on the ground to weave, she chose the dress with tl short skirt she would have forego the weaving every d; that she wore it. The skirt would be so short that as she sat at her loom her knees would be bared to the hot, burning sun we have here. Within a short time her knees would be burned severely. If the wind would begin to blow it would carry with it a lot of sand. This wind-driven sand would cut her already burned knees so that she might suffer for days. Even if she decided to wear the dress and not weave there would still be meals to be cooked. Since these are cooked over an open fire either outdoors or in the center of the hogan the dress is not practical. A Navajo lady is not to show her ankles even while getting in the saddle and not only her ankles but her knees would be bared if she were stooping over the fire. No, she thinks the dress is pretty but she will leave it because it will be indecent and impractical for her. "How about the coat? Can it replace her blanket?" When you take her blanket you take her hat, her gloves, her coat, her raincoat, her baby's protection aj against the wind and sand, and st her bed. She wears her blanket jiover her head, pulls it around at her shoulders over the baby in ;lj her arms and folds it over her ic' hands as she holds the edges. el When night comes she lays her J blanket on the dirt floor of the lisjhogan and it becomes her bed. You wonder is she wants the coat? "Oh, yes! It is very warm with the flannel lining and it will be an exceptionally good jjl nightgown. When night time j| comes and the sun has gone Hown some member of the Nava- jio family builds up the fire in he middle of the hogan. Each 'ndian lies on the dirt floor mth his feet toward the fire o that if the hogan were photo- praphed from the top it would •esemble a huge wagon wheel vith human spokes. The warm oat covers her head and shoul- on lylO! warm nightgown — pardon me — coat. We still have a fashionable hat with an ornamental plume, a purse and gloves. She holds up the hat, strokes the fine feather, smiles and lays it aside. All Navajo ladies spend some time in the saddle herding sheep or merely walking with them to the nearest water station. One day in the saddle and the beauti- ful plume would hang bedrag- gled and forgotten on the limb of a pinion tree. She thinks you white ladies look very nice carrying the pretty purse but it is not very good for the Indian. She needs a bag with draw- strings so she can hang it on a saddle horn when she rides to the trading post or to church. It is handy to hang over her arm while she struggles with several small children on foot and a cradleboard in her arms if she is going someplace with her whole family. The gloves? She is happy for them. They will keep one of the children from having frozen fingers while they herd sheep in the sub-zero temperatures. Children, often times as young as six and eight years old, are sent to herd sheep all day long in all kinds of weather. In order to save time and to assure comfort we must build miles and miles of sidewalks before Nez Bah or one of the other ladies would choose the sandals. The reservation is mostly sand that would find its way into the open toes and this would necessitate stopping every few steps to empty the sand. Even if she had all the time in the world to do this there would be the problem of the prickly buffalo grass. Her feet and ank- les would be scratched raw be- fore she had gone the first mile. So, until time, money and en- ergy can be found to build the sidewalks she will not use the shoes you can send unless they are good, sturdy, low-heeled, closed-toe oxfords that will in- sure her protection. Coats, gloves, sensible shoes and yard goods to make her own jlers, the fire warms her feet. '>he thanks you kindly for the JANUARY 10. 1953 Dodd from Ewing Galloway The choir in the chapel of the Ganado mission, an institution operated by the Presbyterians at an oasis on the Arizona desert 11 skirts will suit Mrs. Indian. Mr. Indian wants warm jackets, shoes and gloves. All the little Indians need underwear, coats, gloves, shoes and socks. What do they give us in ex- change for the used clothing? To style-conscious, keep-up- with-the-Jones folks they give a lesson in gratitude and practical living. When little children walk barefooted to church in the snow we can learn the lesson of faithful church attendance and put forth a better effort to ride in our heated cars. When we ask Indians about their bare feet they tell us they like to go barefooted the whole year and not just in summer; they are proud. We can learn the joy of sharing when these same chil- dren reach eagerly for the shoes and socks you have sent and they declare they do not need. Their already bright eyes will shine even brighter if we can slip a shiny toy into their hands; not a big one, just any small toy your children have thrown in the junk because it lost a wheel. Our next box is an assortment of soaps, medicines, bandages, cotton, aspirins, and cough syr- up. These are all welcome items to any missionary. Would you care to accompany us to a camp meeting? A camp is two or three hogans built within seeing distance of one another. Usually relatives occupy these homes. Before we leave in the jeep we will load some of the medicines, soaps, bandages, etc., that you have shared with our friends. We must pack the breakable things well because the trip will be a rough one into the canyon, over the rough trails and perhaps in- to an arroyo where the latest road crew forgot to put a steel bridge. After we have jostled, bumped and bounced to our destination we find we are miles from a The Family Counselor I Naomi Will H. K. Zeller. Jr. Jesse Ziegler, The Family Counselor welcomes letters of inquiry. They may be addressed: Family Life Department, General Brotherhood Board, 22 S. State St., Elgin, 111. Dear Counselor, We have always tried to make our home a friendly one. My husband brings home guests for meals un- announced, always knowing there will be an extra bean in the pot, and a family cordial to guests. I have my own circle of friends and acquaint- ances. Each of our children brings an assorted collection of pals into the kitchen or yard or living room, daily. An afternoon snack or an impromptu party with simple refreshments can usually be relied on. Overnighl guests come often, and it is under- stood that beds are given up to them while the family sleeps around in various spots in the house. In addi- tion, we have tried through the years to invite guests of other races or underprivileged homes, and of all ages. Of late, I have begun to wonder whether there is a limit. Our house is very seldom quiet; never in com- plete order. It is not only the matter of extra meals and the money they cost. Nor is it the giving up of beds — although this too has its trying aspects. The real problem is that we have so little time to be alone, either as a family or as individuals. I get the feeling that we are going along without niuch sense of direction, and that our zest for living gets bogged down with irritability from fatigue. Yet we seem to owe friendliness to all these people. So I ask you the question: Is there a limit to Chris- tian hospitality? And if so, how and where do we draw the lines? A Tired Mother. Dear Friend: You sound as though you are a bighearted mother who at this point is feeling tired and discouraged. It would be easy to paraphrase some of Shakespeare's words and say, "The quality of hospitality is not strained but droppeth as the gentle dew from heaven." This would be too easy. From what you say it is quite clear that having many people come into your home is something that you think you ought to do, but also that there has been a lot of enjoyment in it also. It has become a questionable practice as you have found it inter- fering with your own sense of direc- tion and the stability of your home. There is a way in which the inti- mate family circle is the spring of all good and kindly impulses. It is the refuge to which husband, wife, son or daughter may go for the re- building of the spirit wearied by many contacts which have been tiring and wearing. If the intimate family circle is of this much impor- tance, then it is necessary to find time when the fellowship is culti- vated, nurtured and renewed. There must be a balance worked out between giving of oneself and of one's hospitality and experiences of renewal when our own spirits are made able to continue to give what is worth while to others. I would suggest taking adequate time within your own intimate family circle so that your hospitality may be sponta neous and meaningful. Jesse H. Ziegler. 12 GOSPEL MESSENGER hard-surfaced road. The chil- dren and dogs dash out to meet the Ednishodi or missionary. Our eyes go to the door of the hogan; there the father is hob- bling out to meet us on his home- made crutches. We cringe when we see the burlap-wrapped foot because underneath we know is a wound about a year old. Behind him is Kee, a piti- fully thin little boy who is dy- ing a slow death with tubercu- losis. If you will help us sing in their language we will start our services. Perhaps they will smile occasionally but that is not making fun of the hymns; it is their grand sense of humoi showing when they smile at oui Navajo. Just smile back and let them know we enjoy a joke and that we know our way o] saying their words is not righi but we are trying. It will giv( them courage to say a few wordi in our language if we try t( teach them. Our pastor wil preach through an interprete: because no one in this cam] speaks English, yet. After the services we use tb soap and water we have brougb k to bathe and cleanse the sore foot. We give him some of the aspirins you have sent to ease the pain. We leave fresh band- ages, medicines, and give Kee some of the cough syrup for the rasping T. B. cough. We will begin our rough journey back to the mission with prayerful and grateful hearts for the lessons we have learned in long-suffering, patience and faith. The Indians suffer a great deal but they remain a happy, uncomplaining people. We poor mortals who are surrounded by doctors, nurses and germ-free hospitals do not know the mean- ing of plain grit-your-teeth suf- fering until we kneel in a fly- infested chi-indee hogan. Our aches and pains get smaller and smaller when we meet their problems face to face. Our pa- tience, during an illness, gets very thin and we console our- selves by being grouchy, hard- to-get-along-with creatures. We call the doctor at regular inter- vals and then complain about his services. A Navajo patiently waits his turn without com- plaints. If he is a converted per- son he will allow a doctor to be summoned or allow us to take him to the hospital. If he does not believe in our ways he will call a medicine man. If, after the medicine man has held a "sing," he is not better, we can offer our medicines and prove that our ways are better. Show- ing them is more convincing than telling them, and after they are relieved physically we can heal them spiritually. If we look at this in the right manner it can be a wonderful lesson in faith. If we can absorb some of their faith in what they believe to be right and instill it in our hearts for what we know to be right we will have been well paid for the medi- cines and aspirins we have given in exchange. They are well qualified to give us lessons in handicrafts; in re- turn let us give them lessons in cleanliness. In exchange for their loyalty, sacrificial sharing, their lessons in practical living, in happiness, contentment and faith in their belief, and pati- ence let us give them education, medical attention, spiritual guidance and a chance for sal- vation. When one of the Navajo leaders was asked what could be done for the Navajos he used one word to answer, "Under- standing!" If we will under- stand them and love them we will be in a position to exchange virtues. As we work toward better understanding we pray we may become as one people — a Christian people. Courtesy Brethren Youth Magazine The Administration Building as it looked the day after the fire Ashland College Fire C. Ernest Davis ASHLAND COLLEGE suf- fered a severe loss on Sunday, October 19, when Founders Hall, the central building on the campus, was destroyed by fire. Not only the building but much valuable equipment and some irreplace- able records were lost. Found- ers Hall, although a seventy- four-year-old building, was in excellent condition, for it had undergone extensive repairs only three years ago to bring it up to requirements set by the state fire marshal's office. The monetary loss is estimated at $200,000 with perhaps half that amount recoverable from insur- ance. The college quickly arranged for temporary quarters and President Glenn L. Clayton re- ports that the school is now op- perating on a fairly adequate schedule. The trustees of the college met in emergency session and auth- Secretary, Christian Education Commission General Brotherhood Board JANUARY 10, 1953 13 orized the erection of a new structure to replace the burned building. It is to be hoped that this new structure can be well under way in time for the cele- bration of the seventy-fifth an- niversary of the college in 1953. Ashland College is the one col- lege of the Brethren Church. The church's seminary also uses the same plant. It is im- perative that the college not be crippled if it is to continue to give effective service to its con- stituency. We feel certain that the membership of the Brethren Church will rise to this emer- gency with their characteristic enthusiasm and devotion. The community in which the college is located can also be counted upon to be generous. It oc- curred, however, to our General Brotherhood Board, that this would be an opportune time for the Church of the Brethren to lend a hand and give some help in this emergency. To do so would be an expression of the warm fraternal feelings we have for our sister denomination, bound to us by many ties of history and ongoing co-opera- tive missionary activities. Indi- viduals or congregations who desire to share with the Breth- ren in this hour of need and thereby help Ashland College recover from this staggering blow so she can celebrate her seventy-fifth anniversary with glad rejoicing should send their contributions direct to Ashland College, Ashland, Ohio. Suspicious of the Miracles And when he had come to Jerusalem he attempted to join the dis- ciples; and they were all afraid of him, for they did not believe he was a disciple — Acts 9; 26 Roy L. Smith WE WILL have to be rea- sonable with those Jeru- salem Christians. They had known Saul as a fanatical foe, running them down to earth like a beast of prey. There were probably those among the mem- bership of the church who were still nursing wounds that might never heal which had been in- flicted upon them as a result of the young man's frenzy against the faith. It is easy to understand how difficult they would find it to believe that a moral miracle had actually taken place within him. They had not been with him on the Damascus way; they had not witnessed the transformation which had overtaken him; thej' had not heard him preach with the power of the Holy Spirit. And they were very slow about receiving him into the Chris- tian fellowship. Who can blame them? 14 GOSPEL MESSENGER But there is this disposition to doubt the miracles of grace which are worked inside the souls of men by the incoming of the Holy Spirit. Only God knows how many trophies have been lost because the Christian church has been suspicious of the miracle that has actually attended its own preaching. "I was never so sure of any- thing in my life as that some- thing had happened to me, mak- ing me a new creature," he said, "but it was awfully hard to make the church believe that I was a different man. As much as ten years after my conver- sion some of them were still saying, 'Yes, we knew him way back when . . .' and that was enough to damn me." "I think I could have made good if I had only had the help — just a little help — from some of the good women of the church. God knows how I longed for encouragement, and he also knows how ready I was to do my best. But they could not believe I was any different." And that was why she backslid! Christ and the Family Isaac Grillo THE fundamental concept of all Christ's teachings is the kingdom of God. This kingdom he regards as being composed of humankind itself, the various families of which form one whole unit, the great family of God. These various families are as important as the individual members comprising them, for out of the family kings and presidents, ecclesiastical as well as political leaders are produced. It is the foundation of society, the individual bricks and blocks that constitute the world. Love is the foundation of family life. This love, according to Christ is not the spasmodic romantic smoke raised with the fumes of sigh, Being purged, a fire sparkling in lovers' eyes, Being vexed, a sea nourished with lovers' tears, a madness most discreet, A chocking gall and a preserving sweet. Love is that aspect of God's character which forms the foun- dation of the universe itself, which sustains man and the world even when man has fallen, and which continues to live even when life itself apparently has ceased. It is the foundation of life. It is not only the bond of affection between husband and wife, but the divine element which unites man and woman together as children of one Fath- er. It is the divine characteristic in man described by Paul in his thirteenth chapter of First Corinthians: Love insists not on its own ; It does not rejoice at wrong; Love does bear all things alone, Love thus hopes and waxes strong. There is not an end to love. Love as a foundation of the family does not justify polygamy or polyandry. "For this reason a man shall leave his father and mother and be joined to his wife and the two shall become one" (Mark 10:7). The bond is between a man and a woman and not between a man and some women, or a woman and some men. The two and not the multi- ple shall become one. The bane of modern society is divorce. Love as the founda- tion of the family is too strong an element to yield to divorce unless there is an evidence of unfaithfulness, for "whoever divorces his wife except for unchastity and marries another commits adultery" (Matt 19:9). And adultery is not the overt act of immorality, but that lustful look such as prompted David to perpetrate the death of Uriah in order to marry Bathsheba. Where drunkenness, apathy, in- humanity, desertion and the like vices strain one's patience al- most to the yielding point, prayer, perseverance, tolerance, and unyielding love may win back the erring party. In such a case as given above, separation may be granted without divorce until social pressure bears on the erring party to correct his or her ways. This is not an easy task: but it is good Christianity, and Christianity is not an easy, smooth road. "Love insists not on its own." It is not assertive. This is the fundamental principle for the ■equality of man and woman in the family. Christ preached and practiced this equality. Women are as important as men in the great family life. We may here remember that Christ accepted "the ministry of women, promised a perpetual and undying mem- ory to the woman who anointed his head with oil shortly before his death, and first appeared to a woman after his resurrection. Love is reciprocal. It should {"flow between spouses as well as 'between children and their par- <ents. "Honor thy father and Reviews of Recent Books Books are reviewed here as a service to the church. A review does not necessarily constitute an unqualified recommendation. Purchase can be made through the Brethren Publishing House, Elgin, Illinois. Titles recommended for church libraries are marked with an asterisk (*). — Editor. You Can Believe. Frank Hanft. Bobbs-Merrill, 1952. 192 pages. $2.75. A lawyer presents a convincing case for Christianity. He helps the reader to see the issues in the strug- gle between faith and materialism, and demonstrates the reasonable- ness of faith. Besides thus deepen- ing faith, he throws light upon the meaning of our religion at many points. Thinking laymen will find it challenging and ministers and teachers will find it stimulating. —E. G. Hoff. The Noon Balloon. Margaret Wise Brown. Harpers, 1952. $2.00. Once a little cat went up in a bal- loon. All day he drifted and saw many sights and at last he came down in the place where he wanted to be. — Hazel Kennedy. *They Knew Abe Lincoln. Fran- ces Cavanah. Rand McNally, 1952. 256 pages. $2.50. Boys and girls who read this book will feel they know Abe Lin- coln too, so vividly are these stories written. They tell about his boy- hood, his poverty, his struggle for an education. The neighbors had great respect for Abe Lincoln and this book tells why. — Hazel Ken- nedy. * Everyday Wealher and How It Works. Herman Schneider. Mc- Graw-Hill, 1951. 192 pages. $2.50. "Everybody talks about the weather," said Mark Twain, "but nobody does anything about it." Here is a book about the weather which would-be weather men of all ages will enjoy. It explains simply with words, pictures and diagrams how heat, air and water make up the weather. — Hazel Kennedy. *In Yards and Gardens. Margaret Waring Buck. Abingdon-Cokes- bury, 1952. 72 pages. $3.00. This book is full of information, including drawings, of the birds, in- sects, other animals, flowers, trees, vegetables that grow in yards and gardens. It is written and illustrated with simplicity and accuracy. — Hazel Kennedy. Speckles Goes to School. Grace Berquist. Abingdon-Cokesbury, 1952. 48 pages. $1.50. Speckles went to the new school with Jerry. Jerry and his school- mates learn much about chickens while Speckles sat on thirteen brown eggs. Best of all, Speckels helped Jerry make friends at school. Beginning readers will enjoy read- ing this book about Jerry and Speckles. — Hazel Kennedy. thy mother" to Christ is not a rule of the letter, but a practi- cal injunction which condemns the Jewish "Corban" practice as it does modern youths' cal- lousness in sidetracking the care of their parents. But obedience to Christ's teachings about family life is not the all-and-only require- ment for membership in the great family of God. Family life, as it obtains here, is secu- lar. "For in the resurrection they neither marry nor are given in marriage, but are like angels in heaven" (Matt. 22:30). Mar- riage is not the end, but one of the means to attain the end. Men who do not hate their parents and family for the kingdom's sake are not worthy to be Christ's followers. What an ir- reconcilable paradox! But it is true. "If any one comes to me and does not hate his own father and mother and wife and chil- dren and brother and sister, yes, and even his own life, he cannot be my disciple" (Luke 14:26). What we need are not war armies but peace armies, offered freely to all nations alike for the repairing of the ravages of war and the raising of the life stand- ard of half -starved millions. That "strange valor of goodwill to all nations" which John Ruskin called on us ninety years ago to make the basis of our strength and safety is still the call which we most need today. That and that alone, I believe, will save us from another war. — Lawrence Housman. From Peace News. JANUARY 10, 1953 15 KINGDOM GLEANINGS An Easter tour of Palestine, sponsored by the Brethren Service Commission and directed personally by John Barwick, has been planned for the spring of 1954. Inquiries should be addressed to the Commission offices. Pension Plan assets topped one million dollars on Nov. 30, 1952. As of that date $1,000,742.94 was in hand to provide present and future benefits for ministers and missionaries. Churches in the District of Eastern Pennsylvania have pledged themselves to purchase the furnishings for all the rooms on the fourth floor of the proposed Nurses Home at Bethany Hospital, Chicago. At present $88,000 has been donated toward this project approved by the Church at Ocean Grove in 1949. Time Magazine in its leading news articles for De- cember 29 reports on the manner in which the citizens of McPherson, Kansas, have responded to the presence of African students on its two college campuses. Six of these students, including a contributor to this issue, are enrolled at McPherson College. Thirteen Brethren delegates, representing the col- leges, the seminary, Bethany hospital and the General Brotherhood Board, attended a conference on wills, annuities and special gifts at Cincinnati in December. H. Spenser Minnich was chairman of the conference. Calvert N. Ellis spoke on "Approaching the Prospect," and Earl M. Frantz discussed the "Transfer of Real Property with Life Reservation." Eastern, Southeastern and Central Regions will have personal representatives in the winter work camp at Kassel, Germany, Jan. 19 to Feb. 25. These men working as skilled craftsmen will be doing the interior finish work in the Brethren house. The following persons have volunteered their services — in some cases men's work, local churches and friends are assisting in transportation: Clyde F. Hoch, Harrisburg, Pa., Charles E. Hunn, Day- ton, Ohio, L. G. Mumma, Harrisburg, Pa., Ford Secrist, Easton, Md., Philip Snell, Auburn, 111. One member of the Church of the Brethren from the Eastern Region, a building contractor unable to be in Europe personally, has made a contribution sufficient to support a German craftsman on the project during the winter work camp. Dr. Marcus Bach, author and teacher at University of Iowa, spent a week in December with Esther Nies, one of our American girls in a German home for a year, getting the story of German life as seen by an American teen-ager. Dr. Bach is a specialist on rela- tively unknown small religious sects and is on his way to Africa to talk with Dr. Albert Schweitzer in hopes of finding material for a book. With his wife. Dr. Bach visited the children's hospital at Lictenau, attended a material aid distribution, shared with the volunteers some of his past research, learned about other Brethren Service programs, and drove over to Schwarzenau. As associate director of the School of Religion at the Univer- sity of Iowa, Dr. Bach teaches one year and takes the alternate year to make investigations into the other religious faiths, using this information to write books, articles for the Reader's Digest and Coronet, and prepare his class lectures. 16 GOSPEL MESSENGER Fifteen more adults of the Pulaski Church, Southern Virginia, have been added to the Brotherhood's Fellow- ship of Tithers. This increase is an outgrowth of a recent tithing emphasis. One of the contributors to this issue, Isaac Grillo, is a Nigerian student attending McPherson College. His home church is St. David's church in Lagos, where he attended a Baptist academy. He plans to return to Africa either as an engineer or a teacher. Robert L. Byrd, pastor of the Winter Park, Florida church, was in a car accident on December 12 and was seriously injured. He is now at home but confined to the parsonage and will be unable to fill the pulpit for some weeks. Doctors report that his injuries, while pain- ful, will probably not be of lasting seriousness. However, his car is a total loss. He will appreciate the prayers of the church. Esther Nies of Rocky Ford, Colo., had appendicitis and was operated on Dec. 9 in Bocholt, Germany. So writes her German foster father. Everything is fine and she is recovering quickly. Already she has had numer- ous visitors. Letters will reach Esther at Bocholt in Westfalen, Herzogstrasse 11, Germany. She will have a unique experience seeing German life as a patient de- pendent on German nurses. More than 300 delegates representing Christian youth and student organizations of 55 nations attended the opening of the third World Conference of Christian Youth in Kottayam, India. The conference which ended on Christmas Day, was set up to allow discussion in small groups of Christian strategy for meeting the world's needs. With many delegates from Asia, the accent was on Far Eastern problems. The conference was sponsored by the World's Alliance of Y.M.C.A.'s, the World's Y.W.C.A., the Youth Department of the World Council of Churches, the World's Student Christian Federation and the World Council of Christian Education. The Christian Farmer and His Government is the theme for the vocational seminar to be held in Washing- ton, D. C, Feb. 10-12. Sponsored by the Department of the Church and Economic Life of the National Council of Churches, with speakers like Raymond W. Miller, a consultant of the Food and Agriculture Organization, this conference offers unusual opportunity to farmers, rural pastors and other Christian workers in rural areas for information on the nation's agricultural program and policies. Meal and lodging costs will be reasonable, according to your desires. Further information and a copy of the tentative program are available from the Brethren Service Commission, General Brotherhood Board, 22 S. State St., Elgin, 111., or Rev. Cameron P. Hall (Conference Director), Department of the Church and Economic Life, 297 Fourth Ave., New York 10, N. Y. Dedication University Park Church, Md., will have dedication services for its new and remodeled building on Sunday, Feb. 1. Jesse H. Ziegler, former pastor of the church and now professor at Bethany Biblical Seminary, will be thei guest speaker for the day. The formal dedication will bei at 2:45 p.m.; other services are church school at 10:00i a.m., morning worship at 11:00 a.m. and evening services at 7:30. A week of evangelistic meetings will follow with J. H. Hollinger of Washington, D.C., as the evangelist. Brotherhood Theme: Win Men to Christ Charles B. Templeton. national evangelist, will be holding meetings at the following places the first four months of this year: Jan. 4-18, Oakland, Calif.; Jan. 25 — Feb. 8, Canton, Ohio; Feb. 15 — March 1, Richmond, Va.; March 8-22, Indianapolis, Ind.; March 29— April 3 (Holy Week), Chicago, 111.; April 12-26, Columbus, Ohio. Pie will speak at Bethany chapel on April 8. Elizabethtown College Seven members of the board of trustees took office Jan. 1, 1953. Four of these are new members and three were re-elected. Members elected wer: David C. Stam- baugh, vice-president and general manager, Bulova Watch company; Carl W. Zeigler, pastor of the Lebanon Church of the Brethren; William Leiter, Greencastle, hardware merchant; and Cyrus Bucher, Biglerville, assistant sales manager, C. H. Musselman Co. Re-elected for another term of three years were S. Clyde Weaver, East Petersburg; Howard A. Merkey, cashier of the Key- stone National bank, Manheim; and J. Aldus Rinehart, tax consultant. West Englewood, N. J. The forty-voice a cappella choir under the direction of Prof. Nevin W. Fisher will begin a tour of Eastern and Southern Pennsylvania churches in February. Their repertoire this season will include with the choruses new hymns from the new Brethren Hymnal by con- temporary Brethren composers. The men's and women's college quartets are an integral part of the choir and will appear in these programs. Lorraine Stehman, an ad- vanced organ student, will accompany some of the num- bers. Second semester classes will begin Tuesday, Jan. 27. Nine weeks of summer session courses will be offered instead of the usual twelve weeks. The intersession will begin June 8 and summer session June 29. Conference Business Identiiication Symbol for Brethren We the Pleasant Hill congregation met in regular council July 11, 1952, and agreed to ask this district meeting to pass the following on to General Conference 1953. (1) Ask General Conference to place the following in the hands of a special Committee to study for one year. (2) Ask General Conference to make legal and avail- able, (not compulsory) a lapel badge or button of identi- fication for its members, colored according to rating. (3) Also place one with its identification in every hospital or charitable institution in the United States. Orpha F. Martin, clerk Fred R. Clayton, elder Passed to Annual Conference. Fred R. Clayton, moderator Ada Scrogum, secretary Proposed Adoption of the Revised Standard Version The following query was passed by the Northwestern District of Kansas in its district meeting held at Quinter on Oct. 18, 1952. "The District of Northwestern Kansas petitions the Annual Meeting assembled at Colorado Springs to adopt the Revised Standard Version of the Bible as the author- ized version for our church." Samuel Bowman, temporary writing clerk Short Term Foreign Mission Projects "Inasmuch as the present Volunteer Service program has proved itself successful in various projects under the Brethren Service Commission, we, the First Grand Valley church, petition Annual Conference of 1953 through the district conference of Colorado to give con- sideration to the matter of short-term missionary projects under the direction of the Foreign Mission Com- mission, the program being a supplementary work of the ongoing mission program." E. F. Weaver, executive head Pearl Lapp, church clerk Answer of Colorado District Conference: Approved and passed to Annual Conference. Vernon C. Rhoades, district writing clerk Regular Locations for Annual Conference Because it is becoming more and more apparent that there are but few cities in our five regions that can ade- quately carg for our Annual Conference, therefore, we the Anderson church in regular quarterly council, July 9, 1952, petition Annual Conference, through district meet- ing held at the Four Mile church, Southern Indiana, Aug. 19-21, 1952, to ask the General Brotherhood Board to make a study of the possibilities of choosing a location in the Eastern Region, such as Ocean Grove, and the West- ern Region, such as Colorado Springs, where they are adequately equipped to handle our Conferences, and to alternate between these locations. This would eliminate the need for the locating committee to search out a place in one of the five regions each year. John Showalter, clerk Elden M. Petry, elder Passed by unanimous vote. Wm. J. Tinkle, writing clerk of district meeting The Church Calendar Lesson outline based on International Sunday School Lessons; the International Bible Lessons for Christian Teaching, copy- righted 1951 by the Division of Christian Education, National Council of Churches of Christ in the U.S.A. January 11 Sunday-school Lesson, Confessing and Following Christ. — Matt. 16. Memory Selection: You are the Christ, the Son of the living God. Matt. 16: 16 (R.S.V.) CBYF, Moral Problems Jan. 25 Christian Education-Bethany Seminary Offering Jan. 25— Feb. 1 Youth Week Feb. 3-5 Spiritual Life Institute, Bridgewater College Feb. 8 Race Relations Sunday Feb. 11-15 Pacific Coast Region conference, Nampa, Idaho With Our Evangelists Will you pray for the success of these meetings? Will you share the burden which these laborers carry? Bro. Charles Stouder, Jr., of Elkhart, Ind., in the Nappanee church, Jan. 18-25. Gains for the Kingdom One baptized in the Empire church, Calif. Two baptized in the Iowa River church, Iowa. One baptized in the Blue River church, Ind. Seven baptized and five received by letter in the Bachelor Run church, Ind. Twelve baptized in the Beech Grove church, Ohio. Four bap- tized in the Woodworth church, Ohio. Six baptized in the Richland church. Pa. Eleven baptized and one received by letter in the Troutville church, Va. Thirteen baptized in the Spray church, N. C. JANUARY 10. 1953 17 Brethren Service Edited by Wilbur Mullen Wcikinc joh, ike Gltuiclt in ike Tiations Gapdal I WILL have to be out of the office several hours, Miss Jones, to visit the Hill and talk to a half-dozen senators again. When you have a chance, will you have mimeographed this three-page tes- timony prepared by Moderator Schlosser, who needs seventy-five copies when he appears before the Armed Services Committee tomor- row? And will you phone Senators Sparkman and Smith again about those speeches on foreign policy to the churchmen's seminar? Oh, yes, please tell Elmer the Reverend Wa- ters of Tennessee will be here with two boys from his parish. He may A. Stauffer Curry need to take them to the Pentagon or Selective Seirvice — or even the Department of Justice. If Dr. Thomas of the Baptist headquarters phones from New York, tell him the meeting of the forty denominations on our Consultative Council will meet three weeks from next Monday at ten. And another thing, call Gen- eral Hershey's secretary and ask for an appointment for our board mem- bers at eleven the day following the council meeting. By the way, remind the other girls in the office to ar- Lois M. Rupel >^'^ 18 GOSPEL MESSENGER range their work so we can mail 8,000 Reporters coming from the printer tomorrow. I should be back by four o'clock." With the assurance that these mat- ters will be adequately cared for, I am running down the stairs heading for Capitol Hill, fourteen blocks away. There another church worker, in town for the day, and I will see senators — in their offices or by call- ing them off the floor — from states having strong constituencies from certain church groups. These sena- tors will ultimately use their in- fluence with the chairman of the Judiciary Committees (as events later developed) to protect the prin- ciple of religious freedom in the nationality bill. These on-the-run remarks il- lustrate the multiplicity of activities that devolve upon our office, in which it is my opportunity and re- sponsibility to serve both as Wash- ington representative of the Breth- ren Service Commission and execu- tive secretary of the National Service Board for Religious Objectors. I work with Associate Secretary El- mer Neufeld, four or five office secretaries, a part-time lawyer, and a part-time accountant. Our office is one of about twen- ty maintained in the capital city by denominations and interchurch bodies, including the Friends, Pres- byterians, Baptists, Methodists, Con- gregational-Christians, National Lutheran Council, Lutheran Church- Missouri Synod, National Council of Churches, Commission on Chaplains, National Association of Evangelicals, and others. One of our challenging and enjoyable experiences is meet- ing regularly with the Washington representatives of these groups in joint church staff meetings. We plan the annual seminar programs, dis- cuss common problems and share recent information on legislative and administrative developments. Each year about twenty political education seminars are planned by these groups. Last season a total of 143 persons attended two Brethren seminars. Sessions with legislators, specialists in various governmental departments, newspapermen, diplo- mats from other countries, and other observers are featured. Themes covered are foreign policy, the United Nations, relief, rehabilitation, militarization, and some domestic problems. A major function of church repre- sentatives is to keep in touch with day-to-day developments in the legislative, administrative and judi- cial branches of the government. This can be complicated. For exam- ple, one year a tentative draft of new Selective Service civilian work regulations. An even more difficult task is to follow a proposed bill through Con- gress. On the recent immigration bills, in which freedom of religion seemed about to be abrogated in one section, we first of all expressed con- cern to the Judiciary Committees of the Senate and of the House. When the bills come to the Senate and House floors, we interpreted the churches' position to many congres- sional leaders. And, finally, we were in contact with Senate-House con- ferees who ironed out differences be- tween the two versions of the bill. Every few months brings such a legislative drive of concern. Last winter it was UMT, a year ago draft extension, two years ago the doctors' draft, and other legislation. To discover firsthand the strategy, psychology, and cross-currents of various forces entering into a hotly contested bill is a liberal education in itself. On one occasion I testified to the Senate Armed Services Committee on the doctors' draft, urging recogni- tion of conscience. The testimony stated that certain doctors have scruples against military service, but would go to the ends of the world in sacrificial civilian service. In a few days World Health phoned, at the suggestion of a medical official who heard the testimony, for three of these doctors to go to Korea next week! I sent a flash to a half-dozen friends in the medical profession, and in a few days Dr. Franklin Cas- sel was on his way to that unfortu- nate land. The Selective Service System, Justice Department and Defense De- partment have, since 1941, recog- nized our board as the co-ordinating agency for all religious bodies of the country in making overtures on be- half of men with scruples against military service. Some of these men face jail, some are seeking recogni- tion in noncombatant military serv- ice, some have problems in securing LOOKING AHEAD Brethren Youth Seminar, Washington. D. C Feb. 2-5 The Christian Farmer and His Government Seminar . Feb. 10-12 Brethren Adult Seminar, Washington. D. C April 27-30 European Work Camp Tour June 17 — July 8 (sailing date approximately June 7) International Work Camps July 11 — Aug. 14 Reserve These Dates — Make Plans Now recognition of their beliefs in draft classification, and others are seeking civilian assignments. In this connec- tion we work not only with Prot- estant leaders, but Jewish also, who negotiate through our office on be- half of their members. In this con- nection we make periodic contacts with the Attorney General, Assistant Defense Secretary and the Board of Chaplains, and regular contacts with the Selective Service director, and their staffs. In addition to these many activi- ties our office is deluged with a large "mail-order" load. Men all over the country constantly write for infor- mation regarding specific situations. Many of these requests require de- tailed research into laws, regula- tions, court opinions, decisions and the like. One case may take days of work. And like the teacher's perennial stack of papers to be graded, a monthly printed news release needs to be edited and always seems due! And raising the budget always takes a big portion of time. It is a busy, sometimes frustrating, usually interesting and always chal- lenging experience working for the church in Washington. News Notes ITALY M. R. Zigler has been in Italy in- vestigating possibilities of a work camp in Carrara, this summer. In a dimly lighted printing office an aproned and bespectacled printer greeted him. At first the light was too weak for the printer to recognize the "warrior of peace," but soon a flood of memories came back. Turn- ing, he reached a wooden drawer; his fingers went hurriedly over many back-dated cuts, until he came to one in the shape of a cross. Dusting it off, he went to his press and swiftly ran off the universal emblem of love and brotherhood, the Brethren Serv- ice insignia! GERMANY The treat of Thanksgiving day at Kassel was talks by the three Ameri- can girls living in German homes for one year — lona Million, Irma Gall and Esther Nies. Everyone sat fascinated as the girls related their various experiences in their very dis- similar German communities. Charles Mueller returned to his home in Kassel, Germany, after a year in America in the B. V. S. pro- gram. Charlie reported to work after returning, just to see if he might get to teach school later in the term. The superintendent said, "How about starting to work immediate- ly?" As a result Charlie started teaching immediately. Volunteers Keith Hinshaw, Earl Woodward, Clyde Nafzinger, Dave Rittenhouse and Dave Brightbill have each become a member of a German family and Gerry Lininger also had such good memories of her life with a German family that she returned to them. One volunteer said that the parents in his home have a hard time deciding which one shall have the honor of helping with his Berlitz lesson. Besides learning the language, these volunteers are becoming acquainted with family customs and culture and can, in turn, interpret American living to their families. The volunteers and Mr. Inman have finished their task of making the Kassel House a warmer place to work this winter. They, along with the ten skilled Brethren coming from America to install plumbing, heating and wiring, will appreciate protection from the wintry blasts. The celebration of the Christmas season began on Nov. 30, the first Sunday of Advent. Many of the vol- unteers and the Sniders were invited to German homes to help light the first candle on the Advent Kranz. It is a family affair in Germany. JANUARY 10, 1953 19 The Local Church Edited by Mildred M. Eller IDEAS— PLANS— METHODS r.-^^^BWWe ,1 Trustees Serve God's Landlord Philip H. Lauver Greenville, Ohio I love thy kingdom, Lord, The house of thine abode — The church our blest Redeemer saved With his own precious blood. I love thy church, O God: Her walls before thee stand, Dear as the apple of thine eye, And graven on thy hand. HOW often we enthusiastically sing this fine hymn! Have you ever wondered who sees that this house of God is kept clean? Who orders the coal? Who takes care of obtaining the insurance on the structure? Who gets the leaky faucets repaired? Who cares for all the many small details of maintain- ing a church household? The trustees are those officers of the church whose responsibility it is to see that the congregation con- serves, protects and cares for its physical property. In most of our churches this includes the church building, its equipment and the par- sonage. Legal Custodians The trustees are the legal custodi- ans of the title to the property of the church. They ought to make sure that the title to the real estate E. G. Hoff Laymen of the church work under the direction of the trustees in the remodeling and painting of the church 20 GOSPEL MESSENGER is clear. Some of our older churches would be surprised to know that, ac- cording to courthouse records, their buildings do not belong to the Church of the Brethren. Titles may be recorded in the name of the Ger- man Baptist Brethren Church, or in some other name equally incorrect. In order to avoid any possible future difficulty, the trustees should take the necessary steps to correct the record. Trustees should be familiar with all the building and safety regula- tions of the city, the county and the state. Heating, wiring, plumbing in- stallations and other construction features should conform in every way, so that in case of fire or acci- dent the congregation is protected from liability. To see that the church is adequate- ly protected by insurance against loss by fire or other disaster is another duty of the trustees. Planning Budget Askings If the local church votes on a bud- get at the autumn council meeting, the trustees will make an inspection of the church property before that date and plan what upkeep, repairs and improvements ought to be pro- vided during the coming year. They will prepare an itemized list of ask- ings which includes the compensa- tion for the custodian or sexton, the estimated cost of fuel, utilities, taxes, janitor supplies, and those repairs and improvements which appear necessary in order to keep the house of God and the dwelling of the pastor at the highest point of economy, comfort and usefulness. The finance board will include these askings in the budget proposed to the council meeting. At the coun- cil, the trustees will explain their askings. These may be accepted or modified by action of the council. By adopting the budget, the congre- gation approves of the expenditures and directs the trustees to proceed with the work. It is the church in council which makes the final deci- sions. The trustees have no authori- ty to go beyond what the church has decided to have done. The trustees are obliged, however, to carry out the decisions of the church as promptly as possible. Trustees who delay or r'efuse to do what the church has directed them to do may be a serious obstacle to the progress of the work of the church. How the Work Gets Done! The actual labor is not the re- sponsibility of the individual mem- bers of the trustee board any more than of every other member of the church. If your church is accustomed to hiring professional labor, the trus- tees will let the contract, and all the members of the church will contrib- ute the money necessary to enable the treasurer to pay the bill prompt- ly. In most of our churches, much of the work is done by volunteer help. The trustees will recruit help- ers, perhaps with the aid of the offi- cers of men's work, women's work and the organized Sunday-school classes. They will set the date, pro- vide the materials and tools and, when the volunteers arrive, direct their work. An inconspicuous task of the trustees is the overseeing of the week-by-week care of God's house. They hire a custodian to perform the essential duties of sweeping, dusting and firing the furnace. From time to time the trustees will discuss with the custodian the details in- volved in this work. Out-of-the-way corners and storage cupboards need occasional housecleaning, so that they do not become cluttered with worthless odds and ends. In summer months, the custodian will keep the church lawn mowed and trimmed. Throughout the year, he will arrange the chairs and tables for the Sunday- school sessions. The trustees should make an effort to maintain a mutual .understanding between the custodi- an and the Sunday-school leaders as to what is involved in this regard. The Church — God's Landlord In his book, God Is My Landlord, Raymond J. Jeffreys points out a very important fact — God is indeed the owner of our farms and of the houses in which we live. But it is also true, in a very real sense, that the local congregation is God's land- lord. Those of us who rent our homes from others expect the land- lords to keep our roofs in repair and to have the rooms redecorated from H. Spenser Minnich Youth, too, willingly lend a hand in a church improvement project time to time. He is a good landlord or a poor landlord according to his faithfulness in caring for the proper- ty in which we live. The house in which God meets his children when they come together to worship him has been placed in our care. He entrusts it to us. Whether it is clean, neat, comfortable and beautiful, or the reverse of these, depends upon the members of the congregation. I have known families who gave themselves no rest each spring until their houses had been cleaned from top to bottom, but on Sunday they went to church in a building where the colored glass windows had not been washed for more than eight years. I know families whose own living rooms are furnished with the most comfortable davenports and chairs, carpeted with thick rugs, illuminated with lovely lamps and graced with beautiful pictures on the walls. Yet they go to church where the old carpets have been worn into dangerous holes, where walls are heavily smoked or badly cracked, and sit on benches their grand- parents paid for — hard, stiff, marred and uncomfortable benches, now creaking threateningly with age, and full of splinters. Do not misunderstand. The wor- ship of God does not depend upon the surroundings. I have worshiped in a tar-paper covered shack, heated by a rusted iron stove, where the congregation sat on rough un- painted wooden benches. God was there, and we knew that we had met with him, and we received from him the strength to meet the problems of our days. But the people who worshiped there lived in houses no better than their church. And as soon as their circumstances per- mitted, they built a church house that was more attractive and better furnished than many of their homes. I am not advocating fine, elaborate or ostentatious church structures. What I do advocate is that the mem- bers of the church should not be satisfied until the house of God is as well cared for as their own homes. God's reputation is in our hands. People judge by what they see. If the church house is unkempt, neg- lected and forlorn, men will not be attracted to the God who is wor- shiped there. Such a church indi- cates that, in the opinion of that congregation, the church is not very important, what it does is not very significant, and just anything is good enough for God. If Christians have no more regard for the church than this, why should non-Christians ex- pect to find anything helpful there? We do not invite guests into our own homes until we have made every room as neat, as comfortable and as attractive as we can. How can we invite men and women to attend, much less to join, a congre- gation that meets in a building which, by its very appearance and physical condition testifies that we do not love it or feel proud of it? God expects us to be as careful of his house as we are of our own dwellings, and to be as diligent in his business as we are in our own. The church is not only the land- lord to God in the house of worship, but it is also the landlord to God's servants who live in the parsonage. How does God want your pastor to be housed? My own guess is that he is pleased when the members of a church strive to make the parson- age as adequate and as comfortable as their own homes. A Well-kept Church Helps in Soul Winning The church is a fellowship of be- lievers in Christ who are busy doing what he wants done. Everything that Christ wants done is the re- sponsibility of all the members equally. Some of these things seem a bit closer to the central goal of saving souls than the work of the trustees. But when we recognize that the church building is the tool by which most of the other tasks are done, and when we understand how the condition of the building affects the morale of the congregation, we see the great importance of this part of the work of the kingdom. Trustees will seek to labor as unto God, and they will welcome the suggestions and the co-operation of every mem- ber earnestly concerned for the wel- fare of the church of God. JANUARY 10. 1953 21 i^# Our Mission Work The Church Abroad Edited by Anetta C. Mow Our Sons Go to Hillcrest DEAR ANN: We have been thinking about you and Jim a lot, especially since we are here in Jos on our vaca- tion. In your last letter you said that you and Jim have definitely decided not to come to Africa because of the sacrifice of having to part with your children. It is most difficult to send your children away when they are so young, especially when it is your youngest. It was quite a number of weeks after David, our youngest left, that I again found peace in my heart. To this day Roy and I are seldom at home except when we must be. We just about live at the hospital. However, Ann, there are some compensations. Ann, I definitely believe that once you receive the call of God, there is no turning back. You and Jim may go into that pastorate you talked about but how can you expect God's blessing upon you and yours if you turn aside from that to which he definitely called you? Our choice, too, would be to work somewhere where we could all enjoy a normal family life. But we are impelled to follow where he leads. So we are very thankful to him and his church for providing a wonderful school for our children here in Ni- geria, where our work lies at present. On our way here to Jos we stopped at Numan to visit the Danish mission. Next year they are hoping to send seven of their children to Hillcrest if there is room for them. They are so glad that they can plan to have their children in the country with them, for at present their chil- dren are separated among various relatives. I was thinking what a wonderful opportunity our three boys have to understand world brotherhood. For their playmates come not only from the United 22 GOSPEL MESSENGER Violet Pfaltzgraff Lassa, Northern Nigeria, W. Africa States and Denmark but from all over the world. I will never forget when Roy Edward came home for one of his first vacations very much concerned about the experience of an English playmate who lived through the bombing of his home- land. ■ While we are in Jos for our vaca- tion the children live with us and go to school in the daytime. It is wonderful to be with them again. We see them three times a year by coming to Jos on our vacation. They enjoy school very much and all the youngsters seem to be quite happy. We visited school several times just to see for ourselves if the school is as good as we think. Really, it is even better than we expected. Mrs. Cover is just wonderful to those little tots. They run up and hug her and love her whenever they see her. All of us feel better, knowing that Jean Wine will have help. You just try to imagine how it would be to try to take care of a family of fifty or more children. I had fun myself, visiting school. I was very much impressed with the school, Ann. For in addition to having all the classes and regular curriculum that we have in America, we have excellent Christians as our teachers. How much it means to us who have given our lives in His service to have our children under the best of Christian teachers. Before Miss Schrag and Miss Ober began classes they had a devotional period and all of the pupils (some of them from Mohammedan homes), even the youngest of them, had por- tions of the Scriptures ready to re- cite from memory. At recess the children ran outside to play games such as they would play at home in the States. They learn to play with citizens of vari- ous nations from all over the world. and with all shades of complexions. What is more, they learn to play the games taught and played in differ- ent lands. I ended my visit in the classroom with a full and thankful heart. For even though we must be separated from our children when they are so young, we see that they are with the best of teachers. After the evening meal, the chil- dren assemble for prayers. I enjoyed that, too. Mr. Traub read Bible stories to them after they sang several hymns. The Traubs are mis- sionaries from the United Mission Society. They became houseparents while the Wines were home on fur- lough. They did an excellent job. They are planning to open a home in Jos for the children of their mis- sion who go to Hillcrest. We are all anxious to have the Wines back with us again. I am sending you some pictures of the staff and of the children at play. The man is Mr. Notley, the principal of the school. Of course, you know Miss Schrag and Miss Ober. The couple whom you do not know are the Traubs, who took over while the Wines were gone. You know Mrs. Cover. Do consider again. We are all asked to give up something for his kingdom. He was asked the supreme sacrifice of life itself. Love, Violet Winning Men for Christ Clara Harper Marama, Northern Nigeria, W. Africa THE other evening while we were on a trip, a pressure lamp was loaned to us to use. It gave a strong, steady light. When time came to retire we could not put out the light because we did not know where to turn off the pres- sure and let the air out. The lamp burned on all night long. Before I went to sleep I had to think that there should be some- thing within me that continues to shine; that no matter what happens I would still shed the light of Jesus Christ to others. We have come to Nigeria to tribes of people who know nothing about Christ. We try to carry out the teaching of Jesus, "Go and teach and show by example" (Matt 28). So in our schools, in the religious classes, in the pulpit and midweek meetings and in our hospitals we teach and teach and sow the seed. Also in our personal visitation in the homes we try to show the love of Jesus and his teaching. In a country like this the big job is to help the people to see that sin is sin and understand why Jesus came into the world and then help them to want to be freed from the bondage of sin. Satan has such a grip on them that it is not easy for them to give up the satanic ways and walk in the new way. Sometimes the men, women, boys and girls come to us anci say that they want to be taught more defi- nitely the fundamental teachings of the church so they can take their stand for Christ. Other times we ask some people personally if they do not think they should let Jesus come into their lives. Much needs to be done by personal work, by going to them and helping them. One day a missionary went to a village and began teaching about Jesus and his work and soon some one said, "We know him, we have seen him." After some questioning it was learned that years before a doctor had visited in this section of the country and had done the things which Jesus did when he was on earth. So these people felt that they knew him. This is what we try to do. We want Jesus to be seen in us daily. A large per cent of our members come from the teaching in classes and by personal visitation. Just now we have a few homes who are at- tempting to teach their children about Christ. Many of these Chris- tians come from homes where the influence is for the world and not for Christ. Sometimes it seems that people are slow to accept Christ. They think the new way is hard and that so many familiar things need to be given up. It takes determination to take the stand to follow Christ. One day a man who had said Mohammedan prayers came and said that it was doing him no good; he wanted to learn more about Christ as his neighbors were doing. We rejoice that some come this way. We are pushing adult reading so many can read the Word of God. Some are coming into the church because they can read for themselves and see his truths. They read John 3: 16, about God's love. This love is what the Buras and other Africans need. Also the world needs this love. Let us be faithful in showing this love and help many to see Jesus. We long for many others. I am sure if we are faithful in sowing the seed God will care for the harvest. We must let our light so shine that many will see and want to follow Christ. Our light must never grow dim or go out. Bumkir-Ville* Grayce Brumbaugh Chibuk, Northern Nigeria, W. Africa GO THROUGH the market place, and on past the last compound on your left, until you see a monkeybread tree; then you will see where the people are." Going through the market place was simple enough, then pushing on up the sandy road on my bicycle, won- dering just how a stranger should know when he passed the last com- pound on the left, and also which monkeybread tree, for there are numberless monkeybread trees in and around Chibuk village. Those were the thoughts going round and round in my head as I made my first trip out to the meningitis camp, try- ing to follow the instructions given by the dispensers. Had a traveler made frequent trips out that road, one day he might have noticed a grass mat shelter there xonder the monkeybread tree, but as the days passed he would have noted that more and more of these houses were made, so they were almost like a small village off to themselves. It was the first of January and our cool season here. I had moved from Garkida just a few days earlier to help in the medical work at Chi- buk. During the regular morning dispensary hours, we noticed a group of people coming down the path toward us. Four young men and an older woman were walking, while two men were on a horse. We saw immediately that the one young man was very ill — so ill that he was un- able to sit on the horse alone, but was held on by the other rider by having a strong cloth tied around the chests of both men. Again and again within the next two months we were to see this same picture — a horse with two people on it, the one a strong person, the other one desperately ill, probably uncon- scious, but brought to the dispensary in hope that there would be some medicine to restore this member of the family to health. When this first group arrived at the dispensary, the rider of the horse untied the cloth which held his patient firmly in place, and then the other young men of the group, all brothers, eased him to the ground. As they sat on a log they told us that on the previous day the patient had been well and had been digging peanuts, but that late in the day he became ill very suddenly. This was a story which was to be repeated many, many times, and one which always pointed to the same dreaded illness — meningitis. Can you imagine an epidemic of meningitis in your town, and no hos- pital within a day's journey, and no conveyance to take the patient other than to be bumped along on horse- back, or on the back of someone if the sick one happened to be a child? There is no hospital at Chibuk, but the patients came. Where to put them was the question. It did not take the men long to find a few posts, tie the mats around the posts, and put cornstalks and dry grass over the top for a roof. At first, we had only a few temporary shelters, but as more patients came the num- ber of shelters increased. Later, because of the danger of fire, several mat houses were made which were much larger and more comfortable. The patients were not provided with beds, but somehow there always seemed to be a grass sleeping mat which could be put on the ground for the patient to use as a bed. Near by, too, were a pot for water and a small pot for cooking food. With each patient was one member of the family — a mother, father, wife or daughter to stay by the one who was ill, to bring water, to cook gruel and give it to him, and to keep the fire burning, for it was the cool sea- son. You wonder about medicine. Yes, there was medicine. But can you imagine how you might feel if there were some twenty patients (who ap- peared in a short time) needing medicine four times a day, some of them desperately ill, and you real- ized that the supply of medicine was dwindling rapidly, so that there was enough for just one more day? We had tried without success to get a messenger to go to Lassa to get medicine from the doctor. Those •"Bumkir" is the Bura and Margi name for meningitis. JANUARY 10. 1953 23 messengers have not yet learned the joy of helping some one in need — their own people in need. However, having heard that we needed the medicine, one of our most loyal workers came after a day of work and offered to go to Lassa that eve- ning on his bicycle. It is a hard journey, taking at least ten hours for the round trip, but he returned the following morning with the much needed medicine. As always happens in epidemics, some patients did not recover, but it was a real joy to see so many of them respond to the treatment and be able to walk back to their own villages and homes. It was a privi- lege to serve these people in their hours of distress and concern for their loved ones. Fear is ever present with them, and to go among them, giving medicines and helping here and there, made me appreciate more and more the "way of life" which has been my inheritance, and which I hope will become theirs. • • • When doctors advised that Rebecca Ann, three-year-old daughter of Benton and Ruby Rhoades who had been quite ill for several days, be brought to the States for expert medical care, Ruby flew home with her and their son on Dec. 18. Let us pray for her and the family. The Church at Home Edited by Alberta Yodex Intermountain Indian school build- ings and surrounding land Charles E. Zunkel OPPORTUNITY for TEACHERS at INTERMOUNTAIN THOSE of our young people who would like to invest their lives in teaching the American Indians can find that opportunity at Intermountain Navajo Indian School at Brigham City, Utah. This year there are more than twenty-three hundred Navajo boys and girls between nine and nineteen years of age in the school there. In- termountain is housed in the build- ings which during World War II were the plant of Bushnell military hospital. At the close of the war the buildings were boarded up and abandoned. The Indian Service asked for them for an Indian school. The gift was made. Here are buildings which originally cost around twelve million dollars. Three millions more were spent for a large auditorium, men's gymnasium and a swimming pool. They are as modern and well equipped as anyone could imagine or hope for. The Navajo boys and girls are brought by bus to the school from the reservation and here they live for nine months. The dormi- tories are beautiful and are kept clean and shining by the pupils 24 GOSPEL MESSENGER themselves. It was marvelous to see even the boys cleaning the halls, doing their own washing, ironing and mending. Let our youngsters take note of that. The kitchen has the very most modern equipment and the dining halls quickly care for the food needs of all the students. The superintendent of the school. Dr. George A. Boyce, is a fine churchman. So, also, is the principal, Mr. Paul Bramlet. At the very in- ception of the program, now in its fourth year of operation, provision was made for Christian instruction and ministry to the students. Of this year's twenty-three hundred ten students, eleven hundred fifty-five are listed as Protestant, nine hun- dred twenty-one as Roman Catholic, nearly one hundred as Latter Day Saints (Mormon), thirty-three as Navajo Gospel Mission, and seventy to eighty as unclassified. Each re- ligious group named above comes in on Thursday afternoons for one hour of religious instruction after school hours, and on Sunday each holds Sunday school, worship and other religious services. In September when R. E. Mohler, H. M. Coppock, and I visited the Intermountain Na- vajo Indian School we saw nearly eight hundred Protestant boys and girls in the second morning service of worship and almost that many at a religious film and worship service in the evening. The Protestant mis- sionaries supplied by the National Council of Churches through the In- dian Committee are Rev. and Mrs. Arthur M. Gillespie and Miss Augus- ta Jackley. With volunteer teachers from the surrounding area churches they are doing a marvellous work of religious training . In the public school program teachers are secured by application through Civil Service examinations. This year the Brethren are fortunate to have one teacher serving at In- termountain School; she is Miss Bertha McKinney of Pomona, Calif., a graduate of La Verne College. The teachers' dormitories are spa- cious and well furnished. Those who care to give themselves to this work can secure information by writing me, or the superintendent. Dr. Boyce, Intermountain School, Brigham City, Utah. There is real desire on the part of Dr. Boyce to secure able teachers of fine Christian character. Around the World I Schweitzer Returns I to Lambarene I Dr. Albert Schweitzer, world-fa- mous Protestant medical missionary, philosopher, musician and author, has returned to French Equatorial Africa after a six-month furlough in ji Europe. Now seventy-seven years ji old, Dr. Schweitzer has been a mis- f sionary in Africa for the past thirty- I eight years. During his furlough he , was inducted into membership in the French Academy. Also shortly before sailing Queen Louise of Swe- den presented him with the Prince Carl medal awarded annually for in- ternational achievement in humani- tarian work. Boston Churches Hold Festival of Faith Two hundred churches in the Boston area participated in a week- long inter-denominational Festival of Faith, sponsored by the Massachu- setts Council of Churches. Addresses by nineteen prominent American •' and Canadian clergymen at union ■ revival services in Protestant churches in the area featured the observance. Dr. Frank Jennings, executive secretary of the Massachu- ' setts Council, said that two years had been spent in planning the fes- tival. Minister Organizes Congregation of Railroad Workers When a pastor of an Evangelical United Brethren church in Amherst, Ohio, discovered that sixty Negro right-of-way workers living in box- jcars alongside the New York Cen- jtral's main line were without any church of their own, he worked with [them in an off-duty project to clear in area near their quarters and build a chapel. The railroad and the mem- bers of his congregation helped to provide it with a pulpit and benches. The minister arranges his schedule to enable him to hold services at the camp each Sunday. The officials of the railroad say that they know of no other such project on their entire system. Protestant Church Literature Survey Launched by Yale Yale Divinity School has launched a two-year survey to determine the extent of racial and religious preju- dice in Protestant church literature in this country. Dean Liston Pope announced that the school has re- ceived a grant from the American Jewish Committee for the project. Curriculum materials of most Prot- estant denominations will be studied as well as literature prepared by smaller denominations and also liter- ature published by independent re- ligious publishers. The findings of the survey will be gathered together in an over-all report and will be made available to church groups, re- ligious educators, writers, publishers and others. News Breifs A daily newspaper. The Norwalk Hour, published in Norwalk, Conn., turned over the entire front page of its Nov. 19 edition to an editorial urging Americans to strive for a Christian world and to "give a little more of yourselves to God's pur- pose." This unusual action brought the newspaper a flood of congratu- latory letters, telegrams and phone calls from laymen and clergymen of all religious groups. Dr. E. Stanley Jones, a noted Prot- estaht missionary-evangelist, is now making plans for a third postwar evangelistic crusade in Japan. The campaign which will run from Feb. 1 to the end of April will be under- written by Dr. Jones himself. Zurich. Switzerland, has started construction of a garden city for peo- ple of sixty-five and older who have not been able to provide homes of their own. In India, Sunday-school materials are avilable now in ten different languages. Over 400,000 Bible pictures have been sent to Korea. Army chaplains are making wide use of them and they are accepted gladly by Chinese prisoners of war. In 1953, the Sunday School Union of England and Wales celebrates its "Triple Jubilee"— 150 years of co- operative effort in Sunday-school work. The Department of Defense has given its approval to a proposed evangelistic tour in Korea by Billy Graham. Although the evangelistic effort is not sponsored by the gov- ernment, chaplains of the armed forces may invite Dr. Graham to speak at religious services where it suits their pleasure and convenience to do so. The UN has helped increase goodwill in Spanish-speaking coun- tries by voting to make Spanish the third working language of the Economic and Social Council. The John Carroll Catholic paro- chial school in Washington, D. C, a $2,000,000 institution, is running without any racial segregation what- soever. Co-operation between Northern Ireland and the Irish Republic has made it possible to build a large electric power plant that serves peo- Religious Float Wins Parade Prize This religious float bearing the slogan, "Keep Christ in Christmas," won first prize in a Christ- mas parade sponsored by the Cedar Rapids, Iowa, Chamber of Commerce. The float was entered by the pupils of the Trinity Lutheran parochial school students. The choir members dressed in white robes sang carols as they passed along the parade route Religious News Service JANUARY 10, 1953 25 pie on both sides of the disputed border. By unanimous vole, the Austrian cabinet has decided to follow the example of Western Germany in making restitution to Jews who were victims of Nazi tyranny. A racial unity movement is now functioning in Great Britain, under the leadership of Mary Attlee, sister of the former Prime Minister Cle- ment Attlee. Its aim is to counteract color prejudice and discrimination. An American Presbyterian maga- zine, Presbyterian Life, and a Eng- lish religious journal, The British Weekly, have jointly proposed in their editorial columns that Roman Catholics, Protestants and govern- ment representatives in Colombia meet to end persecution of Prot- estants in that country. The Church of the Brethren Formerly Called Dunkers 1. This body of Christians origi- nated early in the eighteenth cen- tury, the church being a natural outgrowth of the Pietistic movement following the Reformation. 2. Firmly accepts and teaches the fundamental evangelical doctrines of the inspiration of the Bible, the personality of the Holy Spirit, the virgin birth, the deity of Christ, the sin-pardoning value of his atone- ment, his resurrection from the tomb, ascension and personal and visible return, and the resurrection, both of the just and unjust (John 5: 28, 29; 1 Thess. 4: 13-18). 3. Observes the following New Testament rites: Baptism of penitent believers by trine immersion for the remission of sins (Matt. 28: 19; Acts 2:28); feet-washing (John 13:1-20 1 Tim. 5: 10); love feast (Luke 22: 20 John 13: 4; 1 Cor. 11: 17-34; Jude 12) communion (Matt. 26:26-30); the Christian salutation (Rom. 16: 16, Acts 20:37); proper appearance in worship (1 Cor. 11: 2-16); the anoint- ing for healing in the name of the Lord (James 5:13-18; Mark 6:13); laying on of hands (Acts 8: 17; 19: 6; 1 Tim. 4: 14). These rites are repre- sentative of spiritual facts which ob- tain in the lives of true believers, and as such are essential factors in the development of the Christian life. 4. Emphasize daily devotion for the individual, and family worship for the home (Eph. 6: 18-20; Phil. 4:8, 9); stewardship of time, talents and money (Matt. 25: 14-30); taking care of the fatherless, widows, poor, sick and aged (Acts 6:1-7). 5. Opposes on Scriptural grounds: War and the taking of human life (Matt. 5: 21-26, 43, 44; Rom. 12: 19-21; Isa. 53:7-12); violence in personal and industrial controversy (Matt. 7:12; Rom. 13:8-10); intemperance in all things (Titus 2: 2; Gal. 5: 19-26; Eph. 5: 18); going to law, especially against our Christian brethren (1 Cor. 6:1-9); divorce and remarriage except for the one Scriptural reason (Matt. 19:9); every form of oath (Matt. 5:33-37; James 5:12); mem- bership in secret, oath-bound socie- ties (2 Cor. 6:14-18); games of chance and sinful amusements (1 Thess. 5:22; 1 Peter 2: 11; Rom. 12: 17); extravagant and immodest dress (1 Tim. 2: 8-10; 1 Peter 3: 1-6). 6. Labors earnestly, in harmony with the Great Commission, for the evangelization of the world, for the conversion of men to Jesus Christ, and for the realization of the life of Jesus Christ in every believer (Matt. 28: 18-20; Mark 16: 15, 16; 2 Cor. 3: 18). 7. Maintains the New Testament as its only creed, in harmony with which the above brief doctrinal statement is made. Weddings 26 GOSPEL MESSENGER Barrows-Glazier. — Richard L. Barrows and Marjorie A. Glazier, both of Pacoima, Calif., in the San Fernando Valley church, Oct. 3, 1952, by the undersigned. — John I. Coffman, Van Nuys, Calif. Bright-Ramer.— George Duane Bright of San Pedro, Calif., and Vera Louise Ramer of Shelocta, Pa., Nov. 29, 1952, in the Plum Creek church, by the undersigned. — Ray- mond R. Boose, Shelocta, Pa. Buchkovich-Rogers. — S. Lewis Buchko- vich of Windber, Pa., and Emma Jean Rogers of Ogletown, Pa., Nov. 26, 1952, in the Rummel church by the under- signed.—A. Jay Replogle, Windber, Pa. Conrad-Campbell. — Richard F. Conrad and Jeannine L. Campbell, both of Reed- ley, Calif., at the church, Oct. 29, 1952, by the undersigned.-^oe E. Campbell, Out- look, Wash. Coshun-Miller. — William Coshun and Betty Miller, Nov. 16, 1952, by the under- signed.— Paul Fike, New Windsor, Md. English-McDowell. — Perry W. English and Marilyn McDowell, both of Newport News, Va., Oct. 22, 1952, in Deleron, N. C, by Rev. Paul F. Burke.— Mrs. Daniel W. Knoll, Hampton, Va. Flook-Jarrels.— Samuel Walton Flook of Harrisonburg, Va., and Mary Frances Jar- rels of Mt. Crawford, Va., in the Mill Creek church, Va., Nov. 29, 1952, by the undersigned.— Cecil O. Showalter, Port Re- public, Va. Fox-Jones.— Kenneth Fox of Staunton, Va., and Phyllis Jones of Waynesboro, Va., Feb. 15, 1952, at the parsonage, by the undersigned.— Virgil V. Brallier, Waynes- boro, Va. Groah-Via.— Raymond Groah and Mary Via, both of Vesuvius, Va., in the Main Street Methodist church, Aug. 23, 1952, by the undersigned. — VirgU V. Brallier, Waynesboro, Va. Herring-Jones.— James Herring of Char- lottesville, Va., and Juanita Jones of Waynesboro, Va., June 4, 1952, at the par- sonage, by the undersigned.— Virgil V. Brallier, Waynesboro. Va. Hevener-Hanger.- Harry Havener of Fishersville, Va., and Margaret Hanger of Waynesboro, Va., April 12, 1952, at the Waynesboro church, by the undersigned. — Virgil V. Brallier, Waynesboro, Va. HoUinger-Wolfe.— J. Earl HoUinger of Mt. Joy, Pa., and Ruth M. Wolfe of Leb- anon, Pa., Nov. 30, 1952, in the Salem Evangelical United Brethren church by the undersigned, assisted by Rev. C. C. Hol- lingsworth.— Nevin H. Zuck, Elizabeth- town, Pa. Leiler-Hines. — Lewis Harold Leiter of Ashland, Ohio, and Jean Elizabeth Hines of Wellington, Ohio, in the Ashland church, Nov. 23, 1952, by the under- signed.—Bernard N. King, Ashland, Ohio. Leverknight-Royer. — Clyde Leverknight of Johnstown, Pa., and Joan Royer of Palmyra, Pa., in the Palmyra church, June 8, 1952, by F. S. Carper.— Mrs. Mahlon Groff, Palmyra, Pa. Little-Derry. — Phillip Little and Joan Derry in the Astoria church, Nov. 19, 1952, by the undersigned. — Homer Kiracofe, As- toria, 111. Mausl-Failinger Carl William Maust of Springs, Pa., and Betty Louise Failing- er of Grantsville, Md., by the under- signed, Nov. 29, 1952.— Ross Speicher, Accident, Md. Mills-Hartman.— Paul Mills of Greens- field, Ohio, and Sara M. Hartman of Palmyra, Pa., in the parsonage, Sept. 4, 1952, by F. S. Carper. — Mrs. Mahlon Groff, Palmyra, Pa. Morello-McKlroy.— Anthony Morello and Joyce McElroy, both of Pottstown, Pa., in the Pottstown church, Nov. 22, 1952, by the pastor, Ralph R. Frey.— Anna Frey, Pottstown, Pa. Myers-Erwin.- J. Robert Myers and Frances E. Erwin, both of Lancaster, Pa., Nov. 15, 1952, by the undersigned.— S. Clyde Weaver, East Petersburg, Pa. Neff-Reider.— Jacob Neff of Ephrata, Pa., and Joan Ellen Reider of Palmyra, Pa., in the Palmyra church, Oct. 25, 1952, by F. S. Carper.— Mrs. Mahlon Groff, Palmyra, Pa. Orr-Peace. — Harley Orr and Velma Peace, both of Dayton, Ohio, Oct. 22, 1952, by the undersigned.— John D. Long, Dayton, Ohio. Patches-Keeney.— Henry G. Patches of Lebanon, Pa., and Helen E. Keeney of Rehrersburg, Pa., Oct. 19, 1952, in the Midway church, by the undersigned. — Conway E. Bennett, Bethel, Pa. Peterson-Hildebrand. — Thurman Peter- son of Muncie, Ind., and Helen Hilde- brand of Seymour, Ind., in the New Hope church, Nov. 9, 1952, by Rev. James Hunter, assisted by Bro. Keimeth Fisher.— Mrs Hazel Hildebrand, Seymour, Ind. Rager-Easterbrook. — Laird Rager and Jean Easterbrook, both of Johnstown, Pa., in the Pleasant Hill church, Nov. 9, 1952, by the undersigned.— William L. Gould, Johnstown, Pa. Roberts-Long.— Roger Albert Roberts of Ebensburg, Pa., and Janet Arlene Long of Carlisle, Pa., in the Carlisle church, Nov. 22, 1952, by the under signed.— J. Albert Cook, Dillsburg, Pa. Roberts- Warlitner. — Haywood Roberts and Betty June Warlitner, both of New- port News, Va., Nov. 8, 1952, in the New- port News church, by L. W. Blackwell.— Mrs. Daniel W. Knoll, Hampton, Va. Sale-Tyree.— Herschel E. Sale and Odie Marie Tyree, both of Buena Vista, Va., Sept. 27, 1952, in the parsonage, by the undersigned.— John F. Graham, Buens Vista, Va. Shepard-Akers.— WUliam W. Shepari and Mary Akers, Nov. 14, 1952, by L. W Blackwell, in the parsonage.— Mrs. Danie W. Knoll, Hampton, Va. Stewart-Raney.— Russell L. Stewart o: Mansfield, Mo., and Wilma Fae Raney o: Hartville, Mo., in the Mountain Grov< church parsonage, Nov. 14, 1952, by th< undersigned.— D. Eugene Lichty, Moun tain Grove, Mo. Tanksley-Gibson. — Wilbur Tanksley an( Myrtle Gibson, both of Waynesboro, Va July 3, 1952, at the parsonage, by the un dersigned.— Virgil V. Brallier, Waynesboro, Va. Teeter-Gray.— Frederick KeUer Teeter of Taneytown, Md., and Helen Priscilla Gray of Harriman, Tenn., Aug. 30, 1952, in the Episcopal church, Westminster,' Md., by the undersigned.— M. A. Jacobs, York, Pa. Thorp-Harmon.- John Thorp and Betty Harmon, both of Kansas City, Kansas, Nov. 28, 1952, in the First Central church, by the undersigned.— Milton C. Early, Kansas City, Kansas. Vornauf-Harbert Fred Vornauf of Richmond, Ind., and Etta Harbert of Hol- lansburg, Ohio, in the Cedar Grove church, Nov. 22, 1952, by the undersigned.— Clar- ence O. Brubaker, Hollansburg, Ohio. Warlitner-Sauls.— Charles Warlitner and Hazel Sauls, both of Newport News, Va., Nov. 8, 1952, in the Newport News church,' by L. W. Blackwell.— Mrs. Daniel W. Knoll Hampton, Va. Weber-Becker.— Cletus Weber of Col- umbia, Pa., and Sara J. Becker of Man- heim, Pa., in the East Fairview church, Nov. 8, 1952, by the undersigned.— H A Merkey, Manheim, Pa. WeUs-Winuner — Forest Wells and Lil- lian Wimmer in the Green Hill church -Salem, Va., Oct. 25, 1952, by the under- signed.—Edward G. Wenger, Salem, Va. Wiseman-Davis.— Kenneth Wiseman of Staunton, Va., and Phyllis Davis of Waynesboro, Va., Nov. 13, 1952, in the bride's home, by the undersigned.— Vir- gil V. Brallier, Waynesboro, Va. Obituaries H. N. Butler Henry Newton Butler, son of Jacob and Emaline Butler, was born Nov. 14, 1875 in Mahaska County near Leighton, Iowa, and , died on Sept. 11, 1952, at his home in Mount Morris, 111. On Oct. 2, 1902, he was united in mar- rage to Mary Elizabeth Brower of South English, Iowa. At the age of nineteen he united with the Monroe County church He was elected to the ministry in 1900 iHe served in the free ministry of the Keo- , kuk church for twenty- two years. He was ordained to the eldership on Jan. 3, 1914 In December of the same year, he was chosen presiding elder. \J",l^^ ^^^ °* ^^24, the family moved to Mt. Morris, 111., where he had charge of the Mt. Morris College farm. In the spring of 1938, he and his wife moved to Brook- lyn, Iowa, where he served as pastor of ithe Brooklyn church. He is survived by his wife, one daughter Mrs. Ruth Hayes, three sons, David L El- mer and Floyd, and seven grandchildren. Funeral services were held in the Mt Morris church in charge of Dean Frantz' Burial was in the Oakwood cemetery at Mt. Morris, Ill.-Mrs. H. N. Butler, Mt. Morris, 111. ■ Balzel, Sarah Elizabeth, daughter of tsaac and Freelove Bennett Hymes, was 3orn Jan. 5, 1892, in Artemas, Pa., and lo^o ^i^^"^ ^"""^ ^^ Everett, Pa., July 5, ias<i. bhe was united in marriage with rohn B. Batzel. To this union were born en children. She is survived by eight ■hildren, thirteen grandchildren, and nine ■;reat-grandchildren. Funeral services were leld at the Bethel church with Bro D I epple officiating, assisted by Percy Keg- (irise. Interment was in the church ceme- |ery.— Mrs. D. I. Pepple, Woodbury, Pa. i Becker, John E., was born May 3 1892 I nd died in the St. Joseph hospital in Lan- caster, Pa., Nov. 23, 1952. Funeral serv- :es were conducted from the Miller fu- •eral home by his pastor, the undersigned iiurial was in the West Greentree ceme- |2ry.— Nevin H. Zuck, EUizabethtown, Pa. I Boitnolt, Mamie Ethel, daughter of lames and Emma Wood, was born at )cheyedan, Iowa, July 6, 1886, and died 1 a local hospital in Wenatchee, Wash ept. 24, 1952. In 1910, she was married 3 Charles E. Boitnott of Hancock, Minn, o this union were born five sons. She IS survived by her husband, four sons three grandchildren, one brother and one sister. Funeral services were conducted by S. Loren Bowman. Burial was in the Memorial Park Cemetery.— Geneva Shoe- maker, Wenatchee, Wash. Bowman, Morris, son of David and Sarah Bennett Bowman, was born in Marvand Jan 16 1884, and died at his home near Martinsburg, Pa., Nov. 9, 1952. He was a member of the Martinsburg church Sur- viving are his wife, seven children eight- een grandchildren, three great-grandchil- dren two sisters and three brothers Fu- neral services were conducted by C O Beery Roy S. Forney and Rufus McDan- nel, at the Martinsburg church. Interment was in the Fairview cemetery —Mrs r r> Beery, Martinsburg, Pa. Connelly, Lizzie Shearer, died at the home of her daughter in Palmyra Pa ?eL'\^T- '' '''' ^'^ "^ sXniy^s?^ years. She was a member "of the church for many years. Her husband, Joseph Connelly, preceded her in death She '^s survived by one son, one daughter and two brothers. Services were conducted from the Beck funeral home by C w Gibble and Ollie Hevener. Interment' was .^1^ <^^raybill cemetery .-Susan M. Cas- sel, Manheim, Pa. Detrick Sarah K., daughter of Jacob and ZZ^'^'n^'^'T^^' ^^" ^°™ "ear Brook- rooH ?^°' ^."^- J"' ^^^3- ^""^ d'ed at the Good Samaritan hospital in Dayton, Ohio ^T.-J\l^^^ }"" ^«^5 '^^ ^^s married to ?eath ^. °^*"^'^' .who preceded her in danlhtPv /^ survived by one son, one daughter, two grandchildren and two brothers. Funeral services were held in Dayton at the Bradford and Connelly fu- anri T ^^^ v?,^ her pastor, Percy Miller, and J. W. Fidler. Burial was in the Par- ish cemetery at Arlington, Ohio.-Ezra J Kimmel, Brookville, Ohio. Dyre, William A., son of John W. and vllf T ^''t,', ^^^ ''°™ Sept- 25, 1875, at East Lynn. 111., and died at his home in Independence, Kansas, Nov. 20 1952 He was united in marriage to Le'na Manar He was a member of the church for fortv- five years, and served as a deacon for ±orty-two years. Surviving are his wife two sons, one daughter, seven grandchil- dren seven great-grandchildren, one brother and one sister. Funeral services were conducted by Claude Dadisman Burial was in Mt. Hope cemetery— W E Burroughs, Independence, Kansas. Eby, Hattie I., daughter of Abraham and Sarah Erbaugh, was born June 21 1879 near New Lebanon, Ohio, and died at the home of her daughter in Brookville, Ohio Nov 2, 1952. In 1891, she was married to Ira Eby. To this union were born three children. She had been a member of the church for over sixty years. Surviving are one .daughter, one son, three brothers ten grandchildren and eight great-grand'chil- dren. Funeral services were conducted by James Boitnott and J. W. Fidler at the Brookville church. Burial was in the Bear Creek cemetery.— Mrs. W. Russell MUler Brookville, Ohio. Eckrolh, Oliver, was born June 19, 1872 and died Nov. 17, 1952. He and his family were part of the Church of the Brethren in Sweden and came to this country early in this century to avoid compulsory mih- tary training. They settled in Ehzabeth- town and raised a family of five children. Funeral services were held in the Miller funeral home by the undersigned and J. F. GraybiU. Burial was in the Mennonite cemetery.— Nevin H. Zuck, Ehzabethtown Pa. Embich, William, was born May 14, 1873, and died at his home in Myerstown, Pa Oct. 17, 1952. On May 30, 1903, he was married to Lizzie Crouse, who survives. He was a member of the church for forty- six years. Funeral services were held in the Myerstown church by his pastor, Ber- key Knavel. Burial was in the Union cemetery.— Beulah Balsbaugh, Myerstown, Pa. Fahnestock, Emma M., daughter of Na- than B. and Elizabeth Mohler Fahnestock, died in the St. Joseph hospital in Lan- caster, Pa., Nov. 5, 1952, at the age of seventy-six years. She is survived by two brothers and one sister. Funeral services were held at the GraybiU house. Inter- ment was in the adjoining cemetery— Su- san M. Cassel, Manheim, Pa. Gillam, Mary Susan, daughter of John and Elizabeth Eby Gable, was born Feb 27, 1862, and died Sept. 25, 1952. On March 4, 1883, she was united in marriage to Benjamin FrankUn Gillam, who preceded her in death seventeen years ago. She is survived by one brother, two daughters two sons, fourteen grandchildren and thirty-two great-grandchildren. Funeral services were held in the South Keokuk church by her pastor, Harley Yates. In- terment was in the Brethren cemetery — Mrs. Howard WiUiams, Ollie, Iowa. Henke, Nelson F., son of William D. and Lora Henke, was born July 31, 1892. at Blue Island, 111., and died at the St. Luke hospital in Pasadena, Calif., Nov. 27, 1952. He was always interested in religious and community activities. He is survived by his two children and two brothers. Mem- orial services were conducted at the Ives and Warren funeral home in Pasadena by the undersigned and Don Rowe. Burial was in the Mount Greenwood cemetery at Morgan Park in Illinois.— I. V. Funder- burgh. La Verne, Calif. Hoon, Everett E., was born Sept. 22, 1893, in Huntington County, Ind., and died of a heart attack, Oct. 9, 1952. In 1913, he was married to Mabel Rittenhouse. He served in the office of deacon for many years and as a member of other boards. He also was a faithful worker in the Sunday school. Surviving are his wife, Mabel, three chil- dren, eight grandchildren and one broth- er. Funeral services were conducted by the undersigned. Burial was in the Pil- grims Rest cemetery.— E. R. Fisher, Hunt- ington, Ind. Leedy, Elda, son of William D. and Ellen Cripe Leedy, was born near Pierceton, Ind., May 12, 1878. At the age of fifteen, he united with the church. In 1899, he was married to Maggie Bingaman. He is survived by his wife, two brothers and two sisters. Funeral services were con- ducted by the undersigned, assisted by R. H. Miller. Burial was in the Oak Lawn cemetery.— H. F. Richards, North Man- chester, Ind. McGaffey, Frank Gordon, son of WiUiam and Ruth McGaffey, was born Feb. 13, 1868, at Milmine, 111., and died at McPher- son, Kansas, May 25, 1952. He was mar- ried to Phebe Frantz in 1889. To this union ten children were born. His wife preced- ed him in death seven years ago. He united with the church in early life and was elected a deacon at the South Bea- trice church, Nebr. The memorial service was held in the McPherson church with Harry K. Zeller, Jr., in charge. Burial was in the McPherson cemetery. — Mrs. H. R. Stover, Sabetha, Kansas. McGaffey, William Gordon, son of Frank and Phebe McGaffey, was born near Vir- ginia, Nebr., March 21, 1893, and died at his home in Tampa, Fla., Oct. 25, 1952. He was married in 1915 to Mary Toms. Two daughters and a son were born to this union. In 1938 he was married to Doris Fogleman in Washington, D. C. To this union two daughters were born. He is survived by his wife, four daughters, one son, five grandchildren, seven sisters and one brother. The memorial service was held in Tampa, Fla. — Mrs. H. R. Stover, Sabetha, Kansas. Miller, Milton K., died at his home in Penryn, Pa., Aug. 16, 1952, at the age of eighty-three years. He was a member of the Church of the Brethren for many years. He is survived by his wife, one son, one daughter, seven grandchildren, two brothers and two sisters. Services were held at the GraybiU church. Interment was in the adjoining cemetery. — Susan M. Cassel, Manheim, Pa. Myers, Wilson Edgar, was born June 4, 1883, and died Oct. 10, 1952, at his home in East Berlin, Pa., where he had lived practically all his life. He is survived by his wife, Clista Myers, nine children, ten grandchildren, one great-grandchild, two JANUARY 10, 1953 27 brothers and two sisters. Funeral serv- ices were conducted from the Cocklin fu- neral home by the undersigned, assisted by the Rev. Hage, pastor of the Lutheran church of Dover, Pa. Interment was in the Strayer's church cemetery. — J. Albert Cook, Dillsburg, Pa. Niedenlhol, Harriet M., daughter of Eli- hu and Mary Lynch Shahan, was born in .Bristol, W. Va., July 21, 1887, and died in the hospital in Waynesboro, Pa., Nov. 18, 1952. She was a member of the church. She is survived by her husband. Max A. Niedenthol, two brothers and two sisters. Funeral services were held in the Grove funeral home by her pastor, George L. Detweiler. Interment was in the Green Hill cemetery. — Sudie M. Wingert, Waynes- boro, Pa. Perrin, Alvin J., son of Reuben and Dessa Hoover Perrin, was born at Saxton, Pa., May 5, 1920, and died Sept. 19, 1952, at Eaton Rapids, Mich. He was united in marriage to Lillian Hill of England, March 1, 1945. He was a member of the Raven Run church. Surviving are his wife, two daughters, his father, seven brothers and two sisters. Funeral services were held in the Raven Run church by his pastor, Percy R. Kegarise. Interment was in the Bunker Hill cemetery. — Hilda Hoover, Saxton, Pa. Reed, J. Lewis, son of William and Mary C. Walters Reed, was born at Riddlesburg, Pa., July 18, 1884, and died Oct. 7, 1952, at his home at Saxton, Pa. He was united in marriage to Alda Parks on Aug. 30, 1906. Surviving are his wife, two sons, three grandchildren, two brothers, and one sister. Funeral services were held in the Raven Run church by his pastor, Percy R. Kegarise, assisted by Paul Billing. In- terment was in the Brumbaugh cemetery. — Hilda Hoover, Saxton, Pa. Shipley, Sarah Ann, daughter of Wil- liam and Mary Emswiller Simon, was born Feb. 19, 1878, in West Virginia, and died Oct. 24, 1952. She was a charter member of the Michigan City church, Ind. She was united in marriage to David Shipley, who preceded her in death. Surviving are five sons, six daugh- ters, two sisters, four brothers, fifty-four grandchildren and forty-three great- grandchildren. Burial was in the Green- wood cemetery, Michigan City, Ind. — Mrs. Florence Summers, York, N. Dak. Stewart, Lydia Olive, daughter of Abijiah and Mary Ann Crewse Fagg, was born March 12, 1889, in Chase County, Kansas, and died Nov. 9, 1952, at her home in Pasco, Wash. She was married to Arthur Stewart. To this union five children were born. Surviving are her husband, three daughters, one foster son, eight grandchildren, three great-grand- children. Funeral services were held at the Lee funeral home in Pasco, Wash., with A. R. Fike officiating. Interment was in the City View cemetery, Pasco, Wash.— A. R. Fike, Sunnyside, Wash. Stinnett, Harry of Buena Vista, Va., died at the home of his daughter, Nov. 8, 1952, at the age of fifty-one years. He was a member of the Oronoco church. He is survived by three children and eight grandchildren. Funeral services were conducted in the Buena Vista church, by John F. Graham.— Mrs. John F. Graham, Buena Vista, Va. Thornton, Frances Stover, was born in Pennsylvania, in 1871, and died in Sabetha, Kansas, Nov. 27, 1952. She was united in marriage to A. C. Thornton in 1894. She is survived by one daughter, three grandsons, one greatgranddaugh- ter and two sisters. Services were con- ducted at Morrill, by the undersigned, assisted by John Freisen. Interment was in the Morrill cemetery. — H. R. Stover, Sabetha, Kansas. Turner, Sarah, daughter of Samuel and Caroline Fike, was born near Meyersdale, Pa., Sept. 8, 1863, and died at the home of her son, Milledgeville, 111., Oct. 10, 1952. She was united in marriage to Frank Turner of Pine Hill, Pa. She is survived by two daughters, one son, six grandchildren and six great-grandchil- dren. Funeral services were conducted by Melvin Ritchey. Burial was in the Milledgeville cemetery. — Clara V. Fike, Milledgeville, 111. Wales, George E., was born April 18, 1868, near Freeport, 111., and died Oct. 12, 1952, at the General hospital in Enid, Okla. In 1890 he was married to Leora Sealock. To this union five children were born. He is survived by two daughters, two sons, three sisters, fifteen grandchildren and seven great-grand- children.—Mrs. G. E. Wales, Pond Creek, Okla. Weaver, Alvin, son of Stephen and Eliza- beth Weaver, was born April 17, 1880, in Ionia County, Mich., and died at the home of his daughter in Ogemaw County, Mich., Nov. 30, 1952. He was united in marriage to Mary Lite, who preceded him in death. He served as a deacon until the time of his death. Surviving are nine children, eleven grandchildren and five sisters. Fu- neral services were held in the Zion and Elmdale churches. Interment was in the Elmdale Mennonite cemetery. — Clifton Leckrone, Prescott, Mich. Church News Northern California San Francisco, Community — Guest speak- ers during the past few months have been Dr. Craig Morris, a Negro dentist and formerly a minister of the Episcopal church; I. V. Funderburgh, executive sec- retary of the Pacific Coast Region; Harlan Mummert, a student at La Verne College; and Rabbi Saul E. White of Congregation Beth Shalom. Our adult group has been divided into two classes according to their interest rather than by age group. Mays Heiny is leading a study of the Gospel of Matthew. The other class is studying Kir- by Page's The Will of God for These Times, under the leadership of Herbert Jaquysh, a layman from the Park-Presidio United church. The film. Again Pioneers, was shown at our Thanksgiving dinner.— Barbara Alger, San Francisco, Calif. CAP GOODS We furnish highest quality ny- lon and silk nets, nylon and ninon chiffons and organdy. All stiff finish. Reduced prices on nylon. Samples free. R. E. Arnold, Elgin, Illinois 28 GOSPEL MESSENGER Washington Lakewood. Community. — During the ab- sence of our pastor, B. P. Eastman, a re- tired missionary to China, was our guest speaker. Work on our church is being done on Tuesday and Friday evenings. The women are responsible for our bam- boo draperies and new tables in the basement. The pastor is conducting a Bible study class on the second and fourth Wednesday evenings. Our monthly fel- lowship dinners are helping us to become better acquainted with the new neigh- bors of the community. Moving pictures are provided for the children. Our Sun- day-school Christmas program was on Sunday evening, Dec. 21.— Mrs. J. W. Ral- ston, Seattle, Wash. Northwestern Kansas Maple Grove — Our young people had second largest attendance at summer camp this year. Floyd Crist, our elder, presided at the council meeting, which voted that we have a farm replacement board. The ladies' aid has been tying comforters and making felt shoes from old felt hats. On harvest Sunday Bro. D. W. Bittinger from McPherson College delivered the message. The college quartet presented special mu- sic. Our special Thanksgiving program was cancelled because of bad weather. During the winter months, Bible study has been resumed for the young married peo- ple's class.— Mrs. E. W. Applegate, Nor- catur, Kansas. Oklahoma, Panhandle of Texas and New Mexico Clevis — Our CBYF has been reorganized and plans have been made for regular meetings. The junior choir meets on Sun- day evenings and will soon be participat- ing in our worship services. Various proj- ects of the women's work are the mission at Falfurrias, the Navajo Indian mission, district camp and foreign relief. Adult study classes are being conducted on the ordinances and doctrines of the church. The young adult group sponsored the re- decorating of the nursery, primary and junior departments. Alvin Klotz of Waka, Texas, conducted a week of revival meet- ings. On Nov. 11, a large group drove 115 miles to the home of an isolated church family for a day of Christian fellowship. —Mrs. W. A. Stroud, Portales, N. Mex. Texas and Louisiana Falfurrias. — At our last council meeting, we elected our pastor, K. O. Thralls, as elder for the coming year. Bro. Harold Schertz was elected Sunday-school super- intendent. Our attendance is increasing since most of our members have returned from work farther north. We are having midweek prayer meetings. Miss Margaret Diller is teaching our kindergarten. On Nov. 1, sixty persons took part in our love feast service. Bro. C. D. Eager of Grants Pas, Oregon, officiated.— Mrs. C. M. Whisler, Falfurrias, Tex. Northern Illinois and Wisconsin Franklin Grove — Our new pastor and his wife, Brother and Sister R. C. Wenger, began their work on Nov. 30. Walter Young of the Sterling church conducted the installation service for our pastor on Dec. 7. Our annual Thanksgiving supper was held Nov. 26. This was followed by a . reception for the new pastor and his wife. ', W. Harold Row held evangelstic meetings during the week of Nov. 16. As a result of the meetings five new members were added to the church fellowship by bap- : tism. — Mrs. Jay E. Miller, Franklin Grove,! 111. < Middle Indiana Logansport — Grant E. Weaver is serving as our pastor. Bro. H. L. Hartsough and his wife of North Manchester were with us the first week of November. Bro. Hart- sough conducted our revival service. Two persons were added to the church by bap- tism. The meetings closed with our an- nual communion service conducted by Bro. Hartsough and our elder, T. A. Shive- ly. Our home-coming was Nov. 23. Bro Richey was our guest speaker. — Mrs. Fayc Martin, Logansport, Ind. Northern Indiana Bethany — Lester Fike of Dayton, Ohio conducted two weeks of evangelistic meet ings in November. As a result of thi meetings, six persons were baptized. Thi included our DP family. Our communiot service was held Nov. 26, followed will breakfast on Sunday morning. We have , 100% Messenger club again this year. On' of our girls is in Germany, as an excliang student. Another girl is serving a yea in B.V.S. in Flat Creek, Ky. The men' work harvested their popcorn. — Mrs. Har old Whitehead, New Paris, Ind. Bethel — Brother and Sister Lewis Deai dorff. Brother and Sister Arthur Dodg and Brother and Sister Estel McCulloug were with us this fall. Our music corr mittee has planned for a special numb* each Sunday. On Nov. 16 our area your people met at the Pyrmont church. A tal was given by Armon Steininger, an eji change student from Munich. German On Nov. 23, we had our family night -[ the church with a fellowship supper. Tl union Thanksgiving services for the L doga churches were held in our church. Our women's work is sewing baby layettes for relief.— Mrs. Robert L. Heeter, Ladoga Ind. Ft. Wayne — Our church joined in the city-wide dedication service for the Re- vised Standard Version of the Bible. Brother and Sister L. S. Shively directed our leadership training school during the week of Oct. 5-12. Our evangelistic serv- ices were held Nov. 3-16, by Samuel Long- enecker of Nappanee. One person was reclaimed. The Thanksgiving offering went to CROP for the purpose of buying plows for India. The young people pre- sented a Christmas play. The men's work was in charge of the New Year watch night observance. January will be de- voted to missionary messages in various ways. Charles Anderson has recently been licensed to the ministry and is now a student at Bethany.— Mrs. Rex. O. Fultz Ft. Wayne, Ind. Southern Indiana Windfall — Our church met in regular quarterly council Dec. 1, with our elder, Alva Hewitt, presiding. At a called coun- cil meeting Arthur Dodge, representative of the district ministerial board, relicensed Keith Hewitt to the ministry. The young people's conference of the Southern Dis- trict was held at our church on Nov. 28 and 29. Beginning Jan. 4, J. F. Baldwin of North Manchester, conducted our two- week revival meetings. Jesse Henry will be our Messenger agent for the coming year.— Mrs. Beulah Johnson, Sharpsville Ind. Northeastern Ohio Zion Hill — Our council meeting was held Oct. 3, with our elder, Harlan Grubb, pre- siding. The church has been remodehng the basement and it is nearing completion. We held our revival meetings Nov. 10- MEN, WOMEN and MORALS by Sylvanus M. Duvall This is a new book by the well-known author of BEFORE YOU MARRY. It is an approach to a workable sex code. In this book, perhaps for the first time, straightforward, realistic, but ethi- cally oriented, answers have been at- tempted. It is a new, logical approach based on scientific evidence and expert opinion. and . ' MEN, WOMEN AND MORALS con- siders the problems and the conduct of moral young people and adults— the married, the unmarried, the older married. It makes a detailed examination of the personal effects of sex conduct, and of sex morality in a variety of specific situ- ations. This book will help parents, teachers and leaders focus moral standards on sex conduct without a blind appeal to mherited taboos. 336 pages. Price, $3.75 BEFORE YOU MARRY by Sylvanus M, Duvall All those who realize that marriage is a serious and important step in life will hke the guidance given in this book in answer to many natural ques- tions. The wholesome philosophy and frankness with which the author faces the problems make this a very good book for young people. Advisers of young people will also find help in answering the questions which often come to them. This book could well be used widely. It is easily read and gives some really _ good advice to youth. Church libraries should not be with- out a copy or two. 172 pages. Price, $2.50 BRETHREN PUBLISHING HOUSE ELGIN, ILLINOIS 23, with Wilmer A. Petry as the evan- gelist. Five persons were baptized as a result of the meetings. In October G S Strausbaugh began a Sunday evening Bible study class. On Sunday evening Nov. 30, our young people entertained a group of students from Manchester Col- lege, who were on their way home from the conference at Juniata College.— Mabel E. Strausbaugh, Columbiana, Ohio. Northwestern Ohio Adrian- Several intermediates attended Mountain Lake Camp, A number of our juniors attended Camp Mack. Dedication services were conducted for twelve babies. Our revival meetings were held the first two weeks of September by Brother and Sister I. D. Leatherman. On Sept. 17, communion services were conducted. Five persons have been baptized. Several from our church attended the district meeting. Our Christmas program was presented Dec. 21.— Lulu Kintner, Adrian, Mich. Sugar Creek— On Nov. 20 our ladies' aid honored our pastor and his wife. Brother and Sister F. E. McCune, who have worked with us for the past five years, with a cov- ered dish dinner. A Thanksgiving pro- gram was given. On Nov. 21, a farewell party was held at the church for our pas- tor and his wife. Mrs. Edison Moonaw was in charge of the program. On Nov. 30, Bro. F. E. McCune gave his farewell sermon, just before leaving for his new charge in Southern Illinois. The work here will be in charge of W. D. Fisher of Baltic and Edward Shepfer of our church, until a new pastor is secured. — Mrs. P. H. Domer, Sugar Creek, Ohio. Eastern Pennsylvania Harrisburg — Our Bible school gave sixty dollars for the purchase of an ox for India missions. Special speakers on mis- sions have been William Sleep of the Ger- mantown Whosoever Gospel mission and Brother and Sister J. C. Wine, who showed slides and spoke of their work in Hill- crest School, Africa. Several of our mem- bers attended the Christian education con- ference at Elizabethtown. Mary Grace Martin gave an address on Our Children and Christian Education. Five delegates were sent to the Pennsylvania State Sun- day-school convention meeting here. Our temperance director sponsored the films. No Smoking and Alcohol and the Human Body. The men's and women's work groups both contributed to Bethany Hospi- tal. The men gave toward Dr. Petcher's jeep and the women set up a $300 college loan fund for local students in colleges. The intermediates and juniors helped with the Thanksgiving services. — Lillian F. Willoughby, Harrisburg, Pa. Schuylkill — Visiting ministers who have filled our pulpit have been William Forrey, Paul Forney, David Gibble and Curtis Zeigler. Bro. Calvin Wagner spoke about the heifer project. A heifer was donated by Abraham Stump of the Schuylkill church. Calvin Bright told of his experi- ence in China under the Communist rule. Our revival was held with Emra Fike of Terra Alta, W. Va., as the evangelist. Three members have been added to the church by baptism. Special music was furnished by members of neighboring churches. Ira Gibble, S. B. Hawbaker, Mark Wolfe and Lester Bucher were pres- sent at our love feast. On Nov. 9, our chorus presented a musical program. Bro. A. C. Baugher of Elizabethtown College conducted a Bible institute in our church on Nov. 23. Aaron Heisey of the Midway church was the guest speaker for our Thanksgiving services. — Mrs. Arnold Zech- man. Pine Grove, Pa. Middle Pennsylvania Yellow Creek — Our revival meeting at the Yellow Creek house was held the last two weeks in October. Five were baptized. Our love feast was Nov. 1, with D. I. JANUARY 10, 1953 29 ^♦— ♦—♦—<?♦■ THANK YOU GOD Devotional Stories and Prayers for Children I Why? When? How do we pray? This book answers these questions and helps a 3-to-8- year-old child discover his own way of thanking God for all that is good. A book for the home and the family. Reading time: 10 minutes a day. Size S^A x 10% inches. 28 pages with printed endsheets. All beautifully illustrated in colors. Price $1.25 BRETHREN PUBLISHING HOUSE ELGIN, ILLINOIS Pepple officiating. Bro. J. H. Clapper, our elder, who has been serving the church at Akron, Ohio, expects to return soon. Bethel and Yellow Creek churches gave Christmas programs. ^Mary Stayer, Hope- well, Pa. Southern Pennsylvania Waynesboro — Robert Knechel was guest speaker at our annual Sunday-school of- ficers and teachers' fellowship supper on Oct. 2. Our women's work organization sponsored first-aid kits for Austria as their Christmas project. One hundred kits were given by Sunday-school classes and indi- viduals. We participated in a community Reformation service. Thirteen children were presented to the Lord in a consecra- tion service. On Nov. 2, the evening serv- ice was conducted by the men's work and the junior department. The film, Bible on the Table, was shown. A copy of the new Revised Standard Version of the Bible was presented to each boy and girl of the junior department. On the evening before Thanksgiving, we united with our local churches in a Thanksgiving service. We held our Thanksgiving services in the morning. An offering for home and for- eign mission work was taken at that time. One half of the offering will be used to help support Mrs. Paul Hoover, our repre- sentative in India. — Sudie M. Wingert, Waynesboro, Pa. Western Pennsylvania Fairchance — Rally day was observed on Sept. 21, with the Grove sisters from West Virginia, in charge of the morning and evening worship services. On Sept. 28, Bro. DeBerry of Kingwood, W. Va., preached for us in the absence of our pastor. We had a good representation from our church at the district meeting in Un- iontown. Our revival meetings were con- ducted by Joseph E. Whitacre of Luray, Va., Nov. 4-16. The various churches from surrounding communities presented musi- cal numbers during the meetings. Our re- vival closed with a love feast on Nov. 17. Twenty persons were baptized, eight re- claimed and one was added to the church by letter. — Miss Betty Miller, Fairchance, Pa. Eastern Maryland Broadiordin? — Our revival meetings were held Oct. 5-9, with Bro D. I. Pepple as evangelist. Thirteen persons were re- ceived into the church by baptisra. Our men's work group harvested its Lord's Acre of corn. They planted wheat 30 GOSPEL MESSENGER for next year. We have prayer meeting every Wednesday evening. Bro. Newton Poling officiated at our love feast on Nov. 8. On Dec. 7, special dedication services were conducted by Ora De- lauter for our new organ. — Harry C. Myers, Hagerstown, Md. Brownsville — Since our last report thirty-three new members have been received into the church. Nine were baptized as a direct result of the South Brownsville evangelistic meetings held by Ralph Bowman of Eglon, W. Va. Our church called four new deacons, John Harrison, Preston Phillips, Edgar Youn- kins and John Younkins. Vacation Bible school was held one week in each of the three churches. Several of our pupils attended Camp Peniel this summer. Prof. Alvin Kurtz of Shepherds College, W. Va., was the guest speaker on laymen's Sunday. On Aug. 31, we observed the 100th anniversary of the construction of the Brownsville church. Samuel A. Har- ley of Linwood, Md., deliverel the morn- ing message. Our elder, John S. Bowlus gave the history of our church. Bro. Austin Cooper of Berlin, Pa., gave a talk on the relation of the Brownsville Breth- ren to the Pennsylvania Brethren. Greet- ings came from former pastors, Henry C. EUer and Virgil Brallier, and from Fred Spitzer, Rowland Reichard and Freeman Ankrum. At the evening service Virgil Brallier of Waynesboro, Va., was our guest speaker. The CBYF Achievement banquet was held at the parish hall on Sept. 15. Our love feast was held Oct. 11, with Bro. I. S. Long presiding. Dedi- cation service for babies was conducted by our pastor on Oct. 12, at the morning services. Evangelistic services were held Oct. 12-19, by I. S. Long of Harrisonburg, Va. Mrs. Long told stories to the cliil- dren each evening about their work on the India mission field. As a direct result one was received into the church fellow- ship. A leadership training school was held for all three schools at the Browns- ville church in November. — Mrs. John Jennings, Brownsville, Md. Pipe Creek — On Oct. 7, our church held a community service in celebration of the publication of the Revised Standard Ver- sion of the Bible. Dr. Meyer from the Gettysburg Seminary was the guest speak- er. Plans have been completed for the remodeling of our church. Philip Weller and Wava Lightner were married at the parsonage by our pastor. On Nov. 13, our iadies' aid was host to four other aid groups. Our annual Thanksgiving supper was held Nov. 25. The offering went to Brethren Service. — Edna Fike, New Wind- sor, Md. Brethren Placement and Relocation Service . . This column is conducted as a free service to our people. The right to edit and reject is reserved. Since no verifica- tion of ads is made no responsibility can be assumed. Unless otherwise specified address all correspondence to Brethren Service, General Brotherhood Board, 22 S. State St., Elgin, lU. No. 729. For sale: Three-bedroom home with 11/2 bath, hardwood floors, wall-to- wall carpet. Basement, wall furnace, sprinklers, 2 car garage. Less than V2 block to Church of the Brethren, La Verne, Calif. Write: Brethren Service Commis- sion, 22 S. State St., Elgin, 111. No. 730. For sale: 200-acre farm, located six miles from college town of 8,000, just off state highway. V4 mile to schooi, six miles to Church of Brethren. 100 acres of plow land, level to rolling, real alfalfa land, running water in pasture, good buildings. Farm, $15,000 or $22,500 with 25 heifers, machinery and feed. Immediate possession. Write: Howard Peden, 832 N. Broadway, Menomonie, Wis. No. 731. For rent: Three rooms, fur- nished, reasonable cost. Write: Robert Metzler, Glotfelter, Pa. No. 732. Wanted Immediately: Married couple with farm experience and single man with farm experience to help operate 200-400 acres, general farming, stock feed- ing, milking. Located in a Brethren com- munity one mile from Franklin Grove Church of the Brethren. Write: Jay E. Miller, R. R. 1, Franklin Grove, 111. No. 733. Wanted: Registered nurses, nurses aids, and a linen room attendant at Bethany Hospital. Jobs open immedi- ately. Write: Personnel Department, Bethany Hospital, 3420 W. Van Buren, Chicago, 111. No. 734. Jobs available: (1) Farm job, $150 per month, modern house, plus other considerations; Christian man to work for. (2) A man to run and service school bus systems, good salary. (3) Janitor at school, good salary. Write: Orion Stover, MU- ledgeville. 111. No. 735. For sale: Hybrid popcorn, yel- low or white. In 5 pound bags or quart jars. Excellent projects for church or Sunday-school classes. Delivered any- where in Iowa. Write for particulars: C. C. Persons, R. 2, Ames, Iowa. No. 736. Am collecting material for Cox family history and would like to hear from progeny of Clarence Cox, son of James S. and Hattie (Bascomb) Cox. Clarence left Huntingdon County, Pa., about 1875 and went back to his mother's people in north- ern Illinois. Write: H. Paul Cox, R. 4, Tyrone, Pa. No. 737. Wanted: Doctor to locate in thriving farming community of over 200 families in central New York state, east side of Cayuga Lake. Good central school, substantial Brethren church, 20 miles from hospital. Write: Mrs. Dale Stoner, R.N., King Ferry, N. Y. ! No. 738. In Brethren home— large, quiet, comfortable rooms in attractive, modern country home for elderly folks and senu invalids. Healthful meals, congenial sur roundings, approved by doctors. Excellent references. Centrally located. Write: Mrs D. H. Hoover, R. 6, Lawrence, Kansas. No. 739. Male nurse wants job in private home or an old folks' home. Write: A. R Rodeffer, Dandridge, Tenn. No. 740. For sale: 18 acres rich garden soil, 5-room house with up ground basfr ment and wood house attached. A few outbuildings, hot and cold running watej with bath, IV2 miles from Beaverton, ! miles from Church of the Brethren. Pavec highway with good bus service. Price $5,800. Write: Katie P. Rieley, Beaverton Mich. No. 741. Tourist guest cottage completely furnished, on quiet street near businesi] district. For rent by day, week or month Reasonable rates. For reservations write| C. E. Kimmel, 9931 E. Flower Ave.. Bell flower, Calif. North and Soulh Carolina The District of North and South Caro- lina met in conference in the Rowland Creek church on Aug. 14-16. Officers of the conference were: Holt Griffith, mod- erator; Fred F. Dancy, assistant moder- ator; K. B. Farrington, reading clerk; Vergie McYntire, secretary. All except three churches were represented. The conference voted to raise the Brotherhood Fund goal to one dollar per member. A query recommending a dis- trict budget was referred to the district board for study. Coy Anders was recom- mended for ordination to the eldership and Donal Richardson and William P. Leftwich were recommended for licens- ing to the ministry. Taking part in the conference were Harl Russell, secretary of the Brother- hood Fund; Ora DeLauter, secretary of the Southeastern Region; Mrs. S. Earl Mitchell, president of women's work. Southeastern Region; Brethren Volun- teers Vivian Hardman and Elizabeth Bruckhart; Walter Longnecker, summer pastor at Mt. Carmel; Ferdie Rohrer, fieldman for Tennessee. Sunday-School Lesson Commentaries, 1953 TARBELL'S TEACHER'S GUIDE $2.50 Lesson outlines, exposition, comments, explanations, as well as a full discussion of the lesson background and adequate coverage of biographical and historical data. Written especially for the age groups from intermediate through adult, this Guide is coming into wide use among teachers of other departments and age groups. PELOUBET'S SELECT NOTES $2.75 This volume is complete in every respect, containing bibliographies, editorial material, illustrations in the text, maps, full-page reproductions of famous religious paint- ings in color, and a comprehensive index. Seventy-ninth edition. BROADMAN COMMENTS $2.25 Preachers, teachers and other serious Bible students have discovered the distinctive value of this volume. It is concise and practical in its application. HIGLEY'S SUNDAY SCHOOL LESSON COMMENTARY $2.00 For teachers of all age groups. It is conservative and presents illustrations, seed thoughts, and keyed plans for development by the teacher. Evangelistic. ARNOLD'S PRACTICAL COMMENTARY $2.00 Concise, comprehensive, conservative, practical and evangelical. Alert teachers and Bible students will be im- pressed with the vital aspects of the practical, everyday Christianity as presented in this commentary. POINTS FOR EMPHASIS 75c Written by a new editor, Clifton J. Allen. Concise, clear and helpful. This writer follows the same general plan as the former writer. Both analytical and explanatory. THE GIST OF THE LESSON 75c R. A. Torrey again presents concise points of the lesson in a handy pocket size book. The one who uses this book will like the conservative scholarly presentation of the material. Brethren Publishing House Elgin, Illinois Officers for next year's conference will be Fred Dancy, moderator; Andrew Yel- ton, assistant moderator; Vergie McYn- tire, secretary. Fred Dancy was elected to the 1953 Standing Committee; K. B. Farrington is the alternate.— Bert G. Richardson, fieldman, Alleghany area. Tennessee Mountain Valley — Eight neighboring churches participated in a week of re- vival meetings, which were held in our church by Sullins Dosser of Greeneville, Tenn. As a result of these meetings thirty- five persons were baptized. Our daily va- cation Bible school was held during the summer with instructors from the Chil- dren's Bible Mission of Elizabethton, Tenn. Guest speakers during the past year have been Vas Henry, state Secretary of the United Dry Forces of Knoxville, Tenn.; Miss Irene Bewley, nationally known reader of mountain folklore; F. C. Rohrer, Tennessee district fieldman; and Ray Sho- walter from Bridgewater College. Our love feast was held Oct. 4, with Ora De- lauter presiding. Bro. Delauter was also guest speaker at the dedication services for our remodeled church on Oct. 5. — Mrs. Ray Wine, Greeneville, Tenn. New Hope — Bro. F. C. Rohrer con- ducted our revival meeting and Ova Edwards, our full-time pastor led the singing. Since our last report, twenty- nine persons have been baptized, five received on former baptism and four received by letter. We had vacation Bible school this summer. We are now using the envelope system. At our last coun- cil meeting, Ray Clark was elected elder for one year. We also voted to have religious pictures shown in our church. We have preaching services every Sun- day morning and evening. Bible study is also on Sunday evening. Prayer meeting is every Wednesday night. J. Monroe Danner and Allen Herr of East Berlin, Pa., were guest speakers at the services on Nov. 23. — Mrs. Charles Rhudy, Jones- boro, Tenn. Eastern Virginia Hollywood — The missionary committee presented a program. The offering was used for world-wide missions. The Meade family gave a musical program of sacred music. We held our fall council meeting in September. The ladies' aid made stuffed toys and baby quilts for relief. On Nov. 2, Brotl-'er and Sister Howard Myers spoke on missions. The offering went to help in the support of the McDowell family. On Nov. 23, Brother and Sister O. R. Hersch were with us. Bro. Hersch officiated at our communion services in the evening. — Bertha M. Quann, Fredericksburg, Va. First Virginia Roanoke First — On Oct. 1, a workers' conference was held for the installation of teachers and officers for the coming year. The film. The Teacher, was shown at that time. A number of our members attended the district music and worship institute at the Central church on Oct. 13-17. Our council met on Oct. 20. Rufus B. King of Bridgewater College, showed the film, The Difference. Prior to our evangelistic meetings, the pastor instruct- ed the deacons and others interested on visitation evangelism. Our meetings be- gan on Nov. 2, with Bro. Frank Williar, pastor of the North Baltimore church, as the evangelist. Eight members were received into the church by baptism. One Sunday morning, Bro. Warren Bowman, president of Bridgewater College, ex- plained the development plan at Bridge- water. Our communion was on Nov. 16; our elder, John S. Showalter, officiated. — Mrs. Lula Shickel, Roanoke, Va. Second Virginia Beaver Creek — We had home-coming in celebration of the 125th anniversary of the Beaver Creek church on Sept. 14. JANUARY 10, 1953 31 MY NEW ADDRESS IS Name R. D. or St. P. O. Help us to keep your Gospel Messenger promptly. Please do not remove old address, Zone State coming by reporting any change in address At the same time, we dedicated the memorial lights in the sanctuary of the churcli. Bro. D. H. Miller was guest minis- ter for the day. We had a banquet for the children at the time their promotion was held. Our pastor, Robert Earl Houff, and his wife have been ordained to the eldership. On Nov. 23, our pulpit was filled by E. M. Wampler, a returned mis- sionary.— Louisa Shirkey, BIridgewater, Va. Buena Vista— On Sept. 14, Bro. Ray Showalter of Bridgewater was our guest speaker. Bro. William Kulp of Kittanning, Pa., conducted meetings on Sept. 15-28. As a result of these meetings, ten were baptized. The district young people held their fall rally in our church on Oct. 12. At this time, installation services for the new officers were held. Our dis- trict meeting was held in our church, ■Oct. 24-25. In addition to used clothing, the women recently sent new bedding for overseas relief.— Mrs. John F. Graham, Buena Vista, Va. Staunton — On Sept. 28, Norman Baugher -was the guest speaker at our installation services. Ernest E. Muntzing conducted our evangelistic meetings Oct. 19-26. Nine persons were received by baptism and one Tvas received by letter. Prior to the evan- gelistic meetings, we held twelve cottage prayer services and one mass prayer service. In the absence of our pastor, Ouy Stump, Herman Craig and Jacob Huffman preached for us. On Nov. 16, the Jllk Run parents' club presented the play, What Man Hath Put Asunder. On Dec. 21, our youth groups presented the Christ- mas play. The Message of the Christmas Angels. — Mrs. J. N. Glover, Staunton, Va. Southern Virginia Bassett — Our fall revival meeting was held on Sept. 14-28, with Carroll Ringgold of the Peters Creek congregation as the evangelist. During Christian education week the church participated in a com- munity observance of the publication of the Revised Standard Version of the Bible. Galen Crist of the Mt. Hermon church presided as guest minister of our love feast on Oct. 18. On Nov. 8, three new deacons were elected. The CBYF is presenting the play. No Room in the Hotel, as its Christmas play. Charlotte Craun is directing the children's - choir ■consisting of twenty members. The young adults are studying a series on the Christian home. The men and women's work have sponsored several gift baskets to sick members of the church. Kathryn Karicofe, missionary to India, was with us Nov 30— Dec. 7.— Ethel Stone, Bassett, Va. 32 GOSPEL MESSENGER Boones MUl— The young people of our church are meeting once a week for song practice. On Nov. 16, our church enter- tained the district youth roundtable. On Nov. 30, Eugene Kahle, director of tem- perance in the Southern District, spoke at our services. A union service is held with the other churches in town on fifth Sundays. The ministers of the different denominations take turn in bringing the message. The offering on that Sunday goes for relief. Since we are still without a minister, our home ministers will continue to take charge of the services in each of the three churches in our congregation. — Mrs. Owen Ikenberry, Rocky Mount, Va. Fiist West Virginia Bethel — Our church met in regular council the first of September with Bro. Robert Strickler presiding. M. L. Riggleman was elected moderator for the coming year. Herbert Sions and Minnie Sions served as delegates to district meeting. Our evangelistic meetings were conducted by our pastor, Robert Strickler. As a result of the meetings ten persons were received into the church by baptism. We have had the films, My Peace I Give, and Like a Mighty Army. Howard Alley showed picture slides and gave a talk on the work in India. On Sunday even- ings when there is no church services, we are cooperating with a neighboring EUB church, in alternate hymn-singing services.— Mrs. Mary Hinkle, Old Fields, W. Va. Old Furnace — Bro. M. R. Wolfe of Bridgewater College conducted our two weeks' revival meetings. Our elder, Bro. Robert Strickler, was with us for our love feast in October. The men of the church received $214.33 from their corn this year. The women have sent clothing, grease, comforters and towel kits to relief. Several members attended the work rally at Shady Grove. We were also represented at district meeting in Keyser, W. Va.— Mrs. Irvin Whitacre, Ridgeley, W. Va. Tear Coat.— Brother and Sister Leonard Blackwell of Newport News, Va., held our revival meeting. Nine persons were re- ceived into the church by baptism. A number of our young people attended the family life emphasis program presented at the Beaver Run church near Burling- ton, W. Va. Elder M. L. Riggleman con- ducted our regular council meeting. On Oct. 1, Harley Myers brought the conse- cration service preceeding communion and the love feast. Four of our girls attended Camp Galilee at Terra Alta, W. Va., this summer. Our Sunday-school is growing with an attendance increase of thirty to forty per cent. The Tear Coat ladies' aid was one of the aids in the district to make all the goals for the year.— Mrs. Harley Myers, Augusta, W. Va. Wiley Ford.— Vernon Beckman, our pas- tor who resigned Sept. 1, was succeeded by Allen Pugh of Grottoes, Va. On Sept. 24, installation services were held for our new pastor. M. L. Riggleman and Robert Strickler officiated at this service. The young people have organized a choir for the church worship services. The women's work packed an infant's kit for relief. On Oct. 12 twelve of our BYF members at- tended the district round-table at Eglon, W. Va. On Oct. 13-26 we held our revival meetings. Howard Bernhard of Mt. Joy, Pa., was our evangelist. Three were bap- tized and three were reconsecrated as a result.— Darl Hinkle, Wiley Ford, W. Va. Your daily devotional book by E. Stanley Jones How to Be a Transformed Person Each of these three hundred sixty- five daily devotions brings a Scrip- ture text, a brief meditation, a prayer, and an affirmation for the day— log- ical day-by-day steps out of self- centered frustration and futility into a transforming Christian experience. Price, $1.50 BRETHREN PUBLISHING HOUSE ELGIN. ILLINOIS ^persoB- Mmm JANUARY 17. 1953 F. Wayne Lawson Gospel Messenger ^'Thy Kingdom Come" KENNETH MORSE Editor ELIZABETH WEIGLE - Editorial Assistant ROY D. BOAZ Cloverdale, Va. S. LOREN BOWMAN . Wenatchee, Wash. A. G. BREIDENSTINE .... Lancaster, Pa. A. R. COFFMAN La Veme, Calif. IVAN FETTERMAN Oaks, Pa. HOWARD H. KEIM . . N. Manchester, Ind. MRS. JOHN D. LONG .... Dayton, Ohio MARTHA MARTIN . . . Elizabethtown, Pa. R. H. MILLER North Manchester, Ind. KURTIS F. NAYLOR Denver, Colo. FOSTER B. STATLER Elkhart, Ind. THE GOSPEL MESSENGER, official organ of the Church of the Brethren. Published weekly by the General Brotherhood Board, Norman J. Baugher, General Secretary, and the Brethren House, Earl H. Kurtz, Manager, 16-24 S. State St., Elgin, III, at $3.00 per annum in advance. Life subscription, $50, husband and wife, $60. Entered at the post office at Elgin, 111., as second-class matter. Acceptance for mail- ing at special rate of postage provided for in section 1103, Act of October 3, 1917, authorized Aug. 20, 1918. Printed in U.S.A. JANUARY 17, 1953 Volume 102 Number 3 In This Number . . . Editoiiol — Saving the Surface 5 Saving Face 5 Kingdom Gleanings 16, 17 The General Forum — The Love Feast Has Meaning for Me. Ruth Griggs 3 Some Questions Cannot Be Answered. Roy L. Smith 4 The Significance of Rural Life Hymns. Lyle M. Klotz 6 The Family Counsellor 8 The Upward Path for Womanhood. Martha M. Martin 9 God's Living Letters. Kirby Page .... 11 Observation of a Church Mouse 11 The Right to Life and Liberty. J. S. Dell 12 "The Century of the Homeless Man" (poem). Ruth Griggs 13 The Value of Bible Study. I. S. Long . . 14 Prayer (poem). Linda Young 14 Reviews of Recent Books 15 Brethren Service — Brethren Ideals and Our Daily Work. Donald Royer 18 Items and Comments 19 News From Greece 19 The Local Church — The Church Resolves 20 Missions — "We, the Undersigned — ." James Bowman 22 Growing Up in Chibuk Land. Clara B. Myer 23 The Wings of the Morning. Marianne Michael 23 Glendora Observes Fiftieth Year. Galen K. Walker 24 The Year in Retrospect. Harl Russell . . 26 2 GOSPEL MESSENGER Around the World United Student Christian Council Holds Study Conferences Three study conferences for Christian students in American col- leges and universities were held simultaneously from Dec. 27 to Jan. 3, at Leland Stanford University in California, Park College in Missouri and Morgan State College in Maryland. The conferences were sponsored by the United Student Christian Council. The conferences were designed to train students in the ways of effective group study, and to confront them with three urgent problems of the day: the students' role in the church, in the university and the world's political and social struggle. World Council Issues Study Pamphlets The Study department of the World Council of Churches has issued four pamphlets which will be used by churches around the world in preparing for the second assembly of the World Council at Evanston, 111., in 1954. The pamphlets are Evangelism — The Mission of the Church to Those Outside Her Life, Social Questions — The Responsible Society in a World Perspective, In- tergroup Relations — The Church Amid Racial and Ethnic Tensions, and The Laity — The Christian in His Vocation. Special commissions have been set up by the World Council to report on these subjects at the as- sembly. The over-all theme of the Evanston assembly will be con- cerned with "the Christian hope." The exact wording of the over-all theme is being formulated by the World Council's Central Com- mittee at its meeting in Lucknow, India, this month. UN Emergency Fund Aids Children on Four Continents Since 1946 the United Nations In- ternational Children's Emergency Fund has spent about $175,000,000 to feed and cloth children, and to bring them medical supplies and shelter in the under-developed coun- tries of four continents. Each nation receiving aid has in its turn had to provide some aid in the form of food- stuffs, equipment or services. In Europe, nine nations that once received emergency drymilk sup- plies have now set up, with U.N. help, their own milk conservation projects, which enable them to sup- ply their own milk to their needy children. Plans are under way to transfer emergency aid into perma- nent welfare programs in Latin America and in the Mediterranean area. Central American countries that used to spend $52,000 a year for child feeding are now raising their own funds to the extent of more than $500,000 a year for food for hungry children. African Women Plan Service For World Day of Prayer Christian women in Africa pre- pared the World Day of Prayer serv- ice to be held on February 20 in churches of more than a hundred na- tions. The service, based on the theme, "Walk as Children of Light," begins with a call to worship accom- panied by drums, which are used throughout Africa to assemble the people for worship. Other parts of the service include responsive read- ing, hymns, offering, dedication, and silent and spoken prayers, together with a guided meditation. Last year World Day of Prayer services were held in more than 17,000 communi- ties of the United States and 113 \ other nations. Seven Out of Ten Are Protestants According to a national survey of American religious beliefs and practice sponsored by Catholic Digest, more adult Americans count themselves active members of a church than even the churches real- ize. According to the survey, out of every ten Americans, seven are Protestant, two are Catholic, and the odds are even that the tenth is either Jewish or has no religious preference. Seventy-three per cent of the Americans over eighteen say that they belong to some church. Law to Protect Buildings for Worship Any attempt to attack a church, synagogue or mosque in Egypt will be regarded as high treason accord- ing to an official announcement of the new Egyptian government. The warning followed widespread rumors that some churches had been burned down and desecrated in the provinces. Plan to Celebrate 100th Year of Protestant Missions Plans for the one hundredth anniversary of Protestant missions in Japan were made at the annual meeting of the National Christian Council of Japan. The preparatory committee for the celebration, which will be held in 1959, will seek \ the co-operation of all Protestant organizations in Japan for this project. Artist: Carl Bloch Camera Clix Symbol of humble sewice and Christian brotherliness and fellowship The Love Feast Has Meaning for Me AT ONE church which our peace caravan visited we ran into this line of thinking about our communion service: "Parts of the Brethren communion service are out- moded. We are looked upon as queer because we wash feet and ! eat an Oriental meal of bread and sop! These queer customs are a barrier to some would-be members — they don't want to join a church in which they'll "have to do odd things that em- Ibarrass them." I did some thinking about i communion. "Why do I value I the distinctive Brethren inter- jpretation of it? It's not enough Ruth Griggs for me to go through the service just because it's something handed down as a custom. What real meaning does communion have for me now — in this kind of a world?" When I was a little girl, so small in fact, that I could not do anymore than just watch at communion, mother would take time before she went to the church to help prepare the sop to say, "Ruth, let's read about the very first communion serv- ice." Then she would read from The author is the wife of the director of the migrant work at Pahokee, Florida. the New Testament and explain how our church tried to remem- ber Jesus and the things he had taught by observing the Lord's Supper. I remember the feeling of ex- pectancy I had then as a pre- school child as I watched the communion service and saw everything being done as Jesus and the disciples had done it so long ago. Because I loved Jesus with childish adoration, I was thrilled to see my church carry- ing out the love feast as he had done it. As I grew older, mother pre- JANUARY 17, 1953 3 pared me for each spring's com- munion by telling me what Jesus was trying to teach through the various symbols. She put fundamental Christian ideals into language which a child could understand. "Now when we wash feet, it means we should be humble, willing to do anything that needs doing, even the lowliest of tasks. Sometimes we need to do things to help people even when the job is one we'd rather not do. After each one finishes washing his neighbor's feet you'll notice that we kiss each other. That means that we're brothers and sisters, and we love each other. "When the whole church eats the meal of bread and meat to- gether it's something like our family eating around the table here at home. It's our church- family sharing food around the Lord's table. The grape juice and the unleavened bread re- mind us of Jesus' courageous death. He loved the way of right too much to try to escape even when the people turned against him and his death seemed near." I remember feeling the family unity of our church around the communion tables, feeling a re- spect for and a willingness to do common jobs that need doing for people's welfare. And when we'd sing, "Blest be the tie that binds our hearts in Christian love," I'd get a lump in my throat. I felt what those lines meant. The communion service has increased in meaning to me as I have grown. Now I have words for some of the meanings: fel- lowship, love, service, loyalty to ideals, vicarious suffering. I want it to continue to deepen in meaning. While we could and should and do teach these virtues in ways other than the communion service, I hope our church holds onto our distinctive interpreta- 4 GOSPEL MESSENGER tion of the service because, I feel, the symbols will help us parents fasten in our children's minds some very fundamental ideals. I am sure we should respect other churches whose interpreta- tion is different from ours; but I do not feel that we need to be self-conscious because ours is dif- ferent. All churches recognize the sacraments as important symbols. I feel the additional symbols of loving service in the feet washing and fellowship around the Lord's table have a message our world needs. A world in which success, prestige and "important" work seem to matter more than simple, kind- ly lives of service needs the mes- sage of the Master bent in the lowest servant's task. We should try to make our lives harmonize with our symbol of service. Our world is one in which a great many people, though they belong to many organizations, feel lonely and unloved. Often serious personality problems develop as people feel less and less that they are loved mem- bers of solid, small groups. Such a world needs the message of the love feast: brethren who love God and each other and the world in fellowship around the Lord's table. I am not bothered if our com- munion is different, or even if some people call it "queer." I feel that it symbolizes our phi- losophy of humble service and Christian brotherliness and fel- lowship. I hope we keep it and try always to deepen its mean- ing for ourselves and our chil- dren. Most important of all, we need to be sure we are living out these meanings every day. Some Questions Cannot Be Answered Roy L. Smith As you do not knaw how the spirit woman with child, so you do not know thing — Eccles. 11:5. HE WAS a brilliant young college man who had grown up in a religious home, but he was adrift because he could not find the answers to some unanswerable questions. "I would like to believe," he said, "but religion does not give me scientific answers. As a thinking man I insist upon an- swers; I think I have a right to them." But his unbelief was not pro- viding him with answers, for the very good reason that there are some questions which the finite mind of man cannot an- swer, being finite. The answers are all over on the divine side of the line, beyond the reach of man's understanding. Unbelief has more questions to answer than faith has, and leaves many more questions unanswered. The book of Ecclesiastes is, perhaps, the most cynical writ- comes to the hones in the womh of a the work of God who makes every- ing in all the Scriptures, but oc- casionally it declares for a great principle of faith. This remark- able text is one such declaration. How does that strange, indefin- able thing, called personality, get inside the unborn? How can it be that mashed potatoes, black bread and a bit of roasted mutton can be trans- formed into a Beethoven sym- phony or a Bach chorale? Why is it that a man will die for a cause, is able to create that which has never before existed, lives for ideals, makes moral choices, dreams of a better world, and shares with his Creator the powers of creation? If any man could explain these problems, or answer thesei questions, he would be God him- self. These are queries whose solutions are to be found in the mind of the Infinite. Faith is willing to wait. EDITORIAL Saving the Surface SAVE THE surface and you save all." As an advertising slogan for paint products, the advice is well taken. You can prolong the usefulness of tables and chairs and you can Guarantee longer life for the siding on your house Dy carefully saving the surface. But we question he wisdom of this philosophy when applied to ;he experiences of daily life. You are urged on every hand to keep up ap- pearances no matter how inwardly distraught you nay be. You must tell your hostess how much you mjoyed her cookies even if they made you sick. STou must look pious and prayerful in church even f you would have preferred to sleep and your ;houghts keep running to the details of Sunday iinner. You must seem to be prosperous, and iress accordingly, even if you are overwhelmed ivith unpaid bills. But our salvation must go far deeper than saving the surface. A home in which husband and wife succeed in avoiding any public clashes, any ':open breaks or courtroom scenes is not necessar- ily a Christian home. Within the four walls that ,look so cozy to the outsider one may find the cruel conflicts and selfish passions that can disrupt any family. And the mistakes for which children are ipunished in public are often conveniently over- looked at home. It is surprising how many good churchmembers are more concerned with appearances than with realities. Reading the letter columns of most church papers gives one the impression that matters of form in worship, the strict observance of customs and details of church practice loom large in too many small minds. Both ministers and laymen are tempted to emphasize non-essen- itials, forgetting that the best forms and the most ! helpful practices originate deep within the hearts of men who faithfully serve their God. We do not save the church by clinging to a familiar tra- dition; we save only surface appearances. Repentance comes slowly to the home or church or nation that values appearances above its own soul. God can renew our hearts and in- stitutions if we forget the surface, allow the tears of honest remorse to fall, and turn to him for help. His prescription is aptly phrased in the words of Jesus to one who came secretly (for ap- pearances' sake) to ask about eternal life. Nico- demus learned that he must be born again. Sal- vation comes from God and begins where the difficulty lies— in our hearts. Surface improve- ments are sure to follow.— K.M. The fruits of the spiritual life last all the year. Each season has its own appropriate produce. Childhood has its trust, and youth has its hope, and manhood has its mellow love. They tell me that in old age the night Cometh when no man can work; it is true there is no cause for sorrow in it. Every season should have its own fruit, and work is not the fruit of old age. — George Matheson Saving Face SO FAR as national leaders are concerned, saving the surface often means saving face. The Cleveland Plain Dealer carried a thoughtful editorial in a November issue pointing to the refusal on the part of most government heads ever to admit that their country might be wrong and commending Prime Minister Nehru of India for admitting that on at least one issue India may not always have been on firm ground. The editorial asserts that such an admission may open the door to an early settlement of a danger- ous conflict. This "new note in international affairs," as we would certainly agree, ought to be sounded all over the world. India's willingness to confess that her hands may not always have been clean with regard to the Kashmir controversy is con- sistent with her persistent attempts to find a peaceful solution to the Korean conflict. In each case she has revealed a claim to moral leadership that the United States and Russia, bitterly involved in perpetuating the cold war, have missed. With the inauguration of a new president and with the rethinking of policy that a new ad- ministration brings, now is the time for our own leaders to study our position, to admit freely that some mistakes were made and to renew efforts for peace. The Korean question permits of no quick or easy solution. Until we have ex- hausted every Christian and honorable alterna- tive we cannot pin all the responsibility for con- tinuing the war on the other side. Christians might well ponder the fact that a nation we have recently regarded as a mission field shows a more Christian spirit of penitence and reconciliation in public affairs than does our own where seventy-three per cent of our a- dults claim to be church members. — K.M. JANUARY 17. 1953 5 Cy LaTour and Son 'God calls to man, his acres to prepare When springtime comes — new hirrows for the grain" Lyle M. Klotz THERE may be some ques- tion in the minds of many as to the significance of anything rural in these days when the rural population of our country has now dropped to an all-time low of about fifteen per cent. Yet, aside from the fact that there are still many of us who love the country, this rela- tively small percentage of people is important, for it is from them that our city churches gain a large portion of their people and leadership. Many people in even our largest cities sing with a meaning a hymn such as We Plow the Fields and Scatter be- cause their roots go deep into The author is pastor of the Stony Creek church, Northwestern Ohio. 6 GOSPEL MESSENGER The Significance of Rural Life Hymns that kind of a setting. It is fitting that we find a large number of hymns of the rural spirit in our Brethren Hymnal, for it is a spirit very close to the heart of our church. The significance of any hymn lies in at least two areas. The first is that it provides a means of expressing a thought, a feel- ing or emotion that is already present within the individual and seeks expression. The sec- ond is that it may serve as a stimulant to create or intensify a feeling, a thought or an emo- tion that ought to be present within us. It would be conveni- ent if we could consider rural life hymns in the hymnal from these two standpoints; but the two are so intermingled that it would be impossible to separate them. Therefore, let us keep these two purposes in mind as we consider three significant areas in which rural people want and need a meaningful expres- sion in song. For on Outburst of Gratitude and Joy One of the finest graces that can be cultivated in the heart of man is that of gratitude, an overflowing joy in aU of God's blessings. Who has greater op- portunity to be reminded of these things through nature than coiintry folks? Rising early in the morning ". . . when purple morning break- eth, When the bird waketh, and the shadows flee" (no. 45), who can fail to have a feeling of joy in God's presence and his blessings? The stars and the heavens, the fields and the har- vests and all the beauties of God's creation are lifted up as reminders to break forth in praise and thanksgiving in the sections, Adoration and Praise of Christ, Adoration and Praise of God, Morning Hymns, Evening Hymns, Thankfulness, Thanks- giving, Table Graces, as well as some of the hymns in the section. The Changing Year. The many plots of land scat- tered over our Brotherhood on which dedicated hands have placed little signs reading "Lord's Acre" are an indication that we are finding a new joy in working together with God and with one another in the Lord's Acre plan. A new hymn, num- ber 590, We Care for Our Lord's Acres, will help us find expres- sion for this feeling and will continue to inspire us even as its writer, Dumont Clarke, has inspired us in this whole move- ment. So, serving well our church life, a holy joy we find, j With hands and hearts advanc- ing Christ's mission to man- kind. And we who do in reverence the task God daily sends, Grow kindly, just and helpful, as neighbors and his friends. No hymn summarizes this re- lationship with God in a broader way than a hymn that may be new to most of us, number 589, God Calls to Man. God calls to man, his acres to prepare When springtime comes— ^new furrows for the grain! This is a sacred call; and as we labor with God and rely upon him, we are led to sing: "Thy Word proclaimis man's life is more than bread ; We shall not live, save by the grace God yields." We rural people think that Jesus must have been a farmer. Strange, is it not, that a carpen- ter should never once mention a hammer, a saw or any of the other tools of his trade, but rather that he should talk re- peatedly about plows, yokes, sheep, grass and lilies of the field, barns, wheat, sparrows and a multitude of other things of the farm? But the argument is rela- tively unimportant. The signifi- cant thing is that he appreciated the commonplace things of life. O Son of Man, Thou madest known, Through quiet work in shop and home. The sacredness of common things, (Number 381. See also num- ber 382.) So we shall want to continue to sing our joy in the common- place things of life. Values of Rural Living As man works patiently with the things of nature and waits for God's plans to unfold in their own good time, he gains patience and trust; he looks forward with anticipation. He has confidence that just as God drives away the darkness with the early morning rays, so he will "dispel with purest light all our night" (num- ber 414) . The manifold witness of all of nature, "summer and winter, and springtime and har- vest, sun, moon and stars in their courses above," is that God is dependable; so he can sing: "All I have needed Thy hand hath provided — Great is Thy faithfulness. Lord, unto me !" (Number 429) He knows that just as God has sent the past year of "setting suns," of "springing grass," "tender buds," "summer glow," "autumn's gold and brown" that Eva Luoma 'Where winds the road o'er hill and dale, . . . We see the imprint of thy hand" JANUARY 17. 1953 another year lies before him (Number 581). That sense of hope and eternity enables him to pray: . . . "Dear Father, let it be On earth or else in heaven, Another year for thee." (Number 580) Nor can we overlook the significance of the twelve hymns listed in the Index of Scriptural Allusions that make reference to the Twenty-third Psalm, as rural hymns lifting up the stabilizing aspects of rural living. A Challenge to Stewardship and Service To lift up this final value of rural hymns let us refer once more to hymn, number 590, for in it we sing, "We care for our Lord's acres, and think of Jesus' way; His goodness and his purpose in- spire us day by day. We dedicate these acres, like fields the Master trod. And join with one another in willing work with God." Something of the urgency of a field "white unto the harvest" is expressed in 558 and with it a commitment to our task: Lord of the living harvest that whitens o'er the plain. Where angels soon shall gather their sheaves of golden grain. Accept these hands . to labor, these hearts to trust and love, And design with them to hasten Thy kingdom from above. We who have had our roots in the soil will feel moved to sing from the hymnal these hymns and others that are filled with the rural spirit, and as we sing them, they will help us to keep alive the unique values inherent in our rural setting. Naomi Will The Family Counselor H. K. Zeller. Jr. Jesse Ziegler The F^ily Counselor welcomes letters of inquiry. They may be addressed: Family Life Department, General Brotherhood Board, 22 S. State St., Elgin, 111. Dear Counselor, My husband and I have been mar- ried for a number of years — years Ihat have been good and bad. He drank when we were married, but only recently has his drinking be- come progressively worse. He has always been a good husband, pro- viding for us. He has gotten in trouble several times and in jail a few times. Recently he has become a member of the Church of the Brethren. The minister and Sunday- school class are understanding and helpful. My problem is how to keep my husband satisfied so he won't drink. I just can't seem to trust him when he is away from me. ... He is a very good and lovely husband in every other way. He never gives credit or encouragement any more. We have no children. We have our own apartment and furniture. I may be wrong or he may — I don't know. I feel it is my responsibility to un- derstand and help him. What can I do? A Loving Wife. Dear Friend, Your problem is one which is faced 8 GOSPEL MESSENGER by many people in America today. Many persons, with a deep concern like yours, find the answer to their problem. The concern to find the answer is the first and basic step on the way to a solution. First: I put down the major com- mendable traits in each of you. From your letter I gleaned that your hus- band has always provided for you, has been making progress in many ways, is a "good husband," and is seeking a satisfying relationship with God. You have commendable traits in your attempt to understand the problem your husband is facing and to be patient; you "stay by" your husband, and you are willing to share the burdens as well as the joys of your marriage. Second: I list the major adjust- ments you feel should be made. Your husband has been a social drinker in years past. Now, he must face his problem. You would appre- ciate an expression of love and en- couragement from him. You are wondering about his inability to pray audibly. You recognize your nervousness can be irritating and upsetting. You realize you do not place enough trust in him. You ques- tion the possibility of forcing religion on an individual. I would suggest some things for you to ponder and act upon. Basic- ally, an alcoholic is a person who re- lies on alcohol to be normal or to help solve his problems. He is an insecure, immature person. He tries to answer adult problems with an immature mind. Paul suggests, "Brethren, if any man is overtaken in a trespass you who are spiritual should restore him in the spirit of gentleness" (Gal. 6: 1). Kindness and loving assistance are essential. Most of all the alco- holic wants to direct his own life. Force cannot be used effectively, ex- cept in extreme situations. Alcoholic Anonymous suggest that the individual begin with his own conception of God. Prayer may be silent or audible — but it should be. Begin where we are now and grow. The major problem is to live each day as Christ would have us live it. The adage is "Easy does it" — live each twenty-four hours fully. Trust is the key to many such situations. Trust build trust. Trust in small things builds a basis for trust on greater matters. The wife of one alcoholic said, "It was amaz- ing how I found my trust growing in my husband as he trusted me, and his trust in me growing as I trusted him. I've learned that we must put our trust in the Lord and in each other and our problems can be worked out together." Patience is always a must. Prob- lems from alcohol are hard, stub- born ones to overcome. Much time and effort are required. Patience and understanding go hand in hand. It is indeed a wise person who will place good reading materials in a convenient place for the alcoholic to find. Pledges to do certain things are not too effective. To recognize the problem is the first major step. Trust, which pro- ceeds from understanding, begets trust. Patience and kindness bear results. Love, all the love in the world, is not too much for an alco- holic. Two excellent books that will enlarge upon your problem and the solution are Alcoholics Anonymous, and How to Help an Alcoholic, by Clifford Earle. — James Renz, tem- perance secretary. I am not bound to win, but I am bound to be true; I am not bound to succeed, but I am bound to hve up to what light I have. I must stand with anybody that stands right; stand with him while he is right, and part with him when he goes wrong. Abraham Lincoln The Upward Path for Womanhood Martha M. Martin Women are light bearers on the Christian way when they have the light of Jesus Christ within staff photQ •w: OMEN have always had an important place in God's plans. God created woman as a companion and as a suitable help to man (Gen. 2:18). Although suffering and sorrow have been the lot of women since sin marred human iiife, yet God has provided re- iemption and grace for all who lave faith in him. Very early jod promised that someone oorn of woman should conquer ;he Serpent (Gen. 3:15). He provided a way that leads up- A'ard. It is often a difficult way, ■ough and winding, but it leads 0 the sunlit heights of vision, of Tod's favor, and of reward. Even n Old Testament times, the up- vard path of loving faith in jod and of devotion to pure lome life made possible the im- neasurable influence of woman- lood. Let us notice certain aspects f life on the upward path as it 3 marked out by the Bible. It is jo be a pathway of prayer. Han- ah, the consecrated believer, eacher of Bible at Elizabethtown College )r many years. Miss Martin has now re- red, though she still has some evening asses. "poured out her soul" before the Lord. Her petition was granted. Her son Samuel was consecrated to God for life and became judge, prophet and priest — treading the upward path of faith as had his prayerful moth- er. A thousand years later, Mary, the mother of John Mark, had a prayer meeting in her home in Jerusalem. Through that open channel came God's deliverance of Peter, the man wh6 strenghtened countless be- lievers directly in person and also indirectly through his epis- tles. The Bible points out many noble qualities of womanhood. Psalm 128:3 gives a fine word picture of a true wife and her family. The husband is blessed because his wife is like a fruit- ful vine by the side of the house, and the children like olive plants round about the table. She clings to her home as the supreme place of service; she is useful and fruitful. The children are normal, orderly, growing beings nourished at home. What a contrast to the condition of the wicked woman as pictured in Prov. 9:13 and 22:14. The clamorous, foolish woman is a menace to her en- tire community. In Psa. 144: 12 we find an ideal for girlhood, "daughters as cor- ner stones, polished after the similitude of a palace." In Prov. 31 we have a superb de- scription of a godly woman. The qualities mentioned are sign- posts on the upward path. The Bible also gives us ex- amples of worthy women who by faith climbed to the heights of usefulness. Jochebed was a wise and fear- less mother of faith (Ex. 2 and Heb. 11:23). She and her hus- band were not afraid of the king's decree or of Egypt's glam- orous worship. They and their daughter Miriam co-operated in caring for the child Moses and in hiding him through the in- genuity of an unwavering faith which took hold of God's power. When God's providence permit- ted Jochebed to nurse her own child, she used the opportunity to implant in his mind the true JANUARY 17. 1953 9 faith. In this way, he later over- came the temptations to choose Egypt's wealth and ease. Amram and Jochebed had the joy of treading the upward path and of having their three chil- dren follow in this way of life. Deborah was a prophetess and mother in Israel (Judges 4:4 and 5:7). She was sensitive to the will of God in the wild times of unrest among the Israelites because of their constant depar- ture from God. She was im- pelled to resist the enemy. She sent word to a man who was capable of delivering his people, but afraid to do so. She had the courage to tell him that God was sending him and that she was willing to grant his request that she go with the group into the conflict. Has she lived in the full light of the gospel, she would likely have been a power for good in spiritual warfare. Naomi was another godly woman who must have found joy in following the upward path of faith, because she at- tracted Ruth to it (Ruth 1:8- 22). Naomi's life must have glowed with the beauty of holi- ness or Ruth would hardly have chosen to leave her people, her friends, her country, and her gods. Ruth had no assurance that she would be accepted so- cially by the Israelites at Beth- lehem. It was Naomi's strong character that drew forth from Ruth's self-sacrificing spirit the immortal words of loyal friend- ship in Ruth 1:16-17. In Ruth also we discover the loyal daughter-in-law, who with Boaz established a home that God could use. She became the In spite of duties ihat never seem to end. Christian mothers, like the notable women of the Bible, take time to pray great-grandmother of Israel's greatest king and an ancestress of Jesus. Esther was a self-sacrificing queen who risked her life in be- half of her people. Through her faith, the Lord used even her non-Jewish husband to save the lives of multitudes of the Jews. Lois and Eunice were saintly women who helped to provide a Christian home life for the man Timothy who became the spiritual son and co-worker with Paul. We should mention also the Bethany sister who provid- ed a restful home for Jesus when he so much needed a quiet retreat. There were others like Joanna and Susanna, and many others not named who had a part in God's great plan for womanhood. Certainly the supreme ex- ample is Mary, the mother of Jesus. She was highly favored to become miraculously the mother of the Son of God Among her qualities were those of purity, of humble service, o; knowledge of God, of devotion thoughtfulness, concern for hei children and prayerfulness, anc a capacity and willingness tc suffer. It is refreshing to not< the attitudes of humility anc thoughtfulness in Mary. Ir whatever sphere Christiai women may exercise, being i "handmaid of the Lord" is th( highest position approved o. God. It is the mark of a stable worthy woman to ponde] strange things in the heart rath er than boldly to pour out j stream of gossip or of superficia snap judgments. Mary'i strength as she witnessed the crucifixion of her son was re markable. Truly, the sword hac pierced her soul. She endurec the strain and lived to see he: son risen and victorious. Fiftj days later on Pentecost, her joj Eva Luoma 10 GOSPEL MESSENGER must have been full when, many miles from her Nazareth home, she was given the full power of ;he Holy Spirit. The train of noble Christian \vomen who follow in the steps ')f Mary continues to bless the vorld. We see the marvel of jod's grace in the transforma- ion of such strong Christian Ivorkers as Mary Moffat Living- ;tone or Ann Hasseltine Judson. n contrast, we see many Christ- ess women of today who are utterly blind to the beauty, vorth and service of true wom- mhood. Christian women 'hould be lightbearers and also ')urden bearers on the Christian i^ay of life. This is possible nly by having the light of Jesus 'hrist within. Strength of 'ody, mind, and spirit must be inked with divine power if urdens of loving service and lacrifice are borne. I "The most important thing we year is our expression." Beauty f character must be genuine : it shall be reflected in a grac- )us personality. An aged lady, pen being asked what she used lat kept her complexion so eautiful, replied: "For my ps, truth; for my voice, prayer; )r my eyes, pity; for my figure, prighteousness; or my heart, •ve." What an effective anti- Dte for thoughtless, selfish in- algence and careless waste of tne on passing superficialities! nd what a splendid beauty of laracter is revealed when the ght of ■ Jesus Christ dwells ithin. Dbservation of a Church Mouse DNCE upon a time I was loitering in a church house. I was there at a tne when it was almost full of : iople. They had had a worship ,;rvice which seemed to move ■em greatly. But since I could )t see all the people — due to : y smallness of stature — I want tell you about two men who GOD'S LIVING LETTERS Kirby Page Frances Willard THE most glowing personal- ity of the long list of notable women in the nineteenth century is the estimate placed upon Frances Willard by a biog- rapher. She has been honored with a memorial statue in the na- tion's capitol, and with a special United States postage stamp. Frances Elizabeth Willard was born in 1839 and died in 1898. Aft- er teaching school in New York and Illinois, she was chosen presi- dent of the Ladies' College at Evanston and later became dean of the Woman's College of North- western University. She resigned in 1874, to become president of the Chicago branch of the Wom- an's Christian Temperance Union, and corresponding secretary for the national organization. She was interested in the entire movement for the emancipation of women. The course of her life was changed by experiences gained in Europe during two years of travel and study, financed by the father of her most inti- mate friend. The cost of her tour was six thousand dollars, and rarely has an investment pro- duced bigger dividends for hu- manity. Frances Willard became the most powerful and magnetic speaker produced by the women's movement. She was the tireless organizer of the mightiest wom- en's organization of the century. She spoke in practically every city of ten thousand population in the country, and traveled thirty-five thousand miles a year, in a day when travel was slower, more dif- ficult and less comfortable. From 1879 until her death, she was elected president of the W.C.T.U. each year. Her work for temperance was part of her passion to liberate women. From 1876 she was a foremost advocate of woman suf- frage and did more to win adher- ents among conservative church women than any other suffragist leader. She won the affection and released the energies of un- counted thousands of women throughout the land. were sitting side by side in the same pew with me. One of these men had a good looking, almost new suit. My secretary checked into his rec- ord and found that he was a very prosperous farmer. He had just had a record harvest. He had most of the comforts of life in- cluding a shiny new car. It was really larger than he needed since his children were all grown. The second man, sitting next to the first, did not wear such a fine suit. I expect it was the only suit he had ever owned, and that he wore it only on very special occasions. He too, was a farmer. But the year had not treated him so well. He lived in one of the "disaster areas." His home was very plain with but few of the comforts of life. He did not own a passenger car. Besides, he was young in years with young children eating regularly at his table. It was now time for the offer- ing. The ushers were quietly passing the plates through the pews. As it came to the first man, he fumbled around in his pocket, pulled