mm "38 3n tfje $ teib of j|ome jfflts&tons What Is Going On Co-operatively HOME MISSIONS COUNCIL AND COUNCIL OF WOMEN FOR HOME MISSIONS 156 Fifth Avenue, New York, N. Y. OCTOBER 1922 3n tfje Jfielb of ^omt Jflts&iona What is going on Co-operatively The Home Missions Council represents forty-one Boards and twenty-seven denom- inations, and the Council of Women for Home Missions twenty-one Boards and twenty-one denominations. Together the two Councils represent sixty-two Boards and twenty-eight denominations. These Councils are essentially, in blended form, the Boards of ■ which they are com- posed. Through them, within recent months, the Boards have functioned in the following manner : I. Conferences. Many conferences, some formal, others informal, have been held, in which admin- istrators in special fields, and in some in- stances missionaries, have met to share experiences, exchange methods, determine policies, adjust overlapping and make definite allocations. 1. On Indian work, conferences have been held as follows: in Muskogee and El Reno, Oklahoma; Albuquerque, New Mexi- co; Phoenix, Arizona; Riverside and Sacra- mento, California; Salem, Oregon; Seattle, Washington; Billings, Montana; Sioux Falls, South Dakota; Buffalo, Syracuse, and New York, New York. 2. On Negro work, respecting better race relations, Home Mission policies of Negro churches, educational institutions for Negroes, theological and missionary training of Negroes, and the recruiting of suitable young men for the Negro ministry. 3. On the general policy of recruiting for Home Mission service, including the correlating of the recruiting agencies of different denominations, co-operation with the Student Volunteer Movement, the Young Men's Christian Association, and the Young Women's Christian Association; and the plans and policies of the Student Fellowship for Christian Life-Service, which took form February 19, 1922, for nation-wide activities among young people. 4. On the administration of Home Mis- sion finances, covering the subjects of ac- counting, budget-making, annuities, trusts, community trusts, the Uniform Trust for Public Uses, and legislation affecting funds and bequests for missionary purposes. 5. On the utilization of survey material left over by the Interchurch World Move- ment, some of which has been brought to completion by the Committee on Social and Religious Surveys. Conferences have been shared in in St. Louis, Missouri; Salem, New Jersey; Bloomsburg ? Penn.; Wichita, Kansas; Sheridan, Wyoming; Helena, Mon- tana; Eugene, Oregon, and repeatedly in New York City. 6. On church architecture and the ad- ministration of church erection, loans and grants. 7. On rural churches and rural pastors, including summer schools and courses of study, the Community Church, demonstra- tion parishes, the par standard, and comity and co-operation in the country. 8. On the problems of the city church, with reference to the objectives, the varie- ties in population and environment, and the program. 9. On New Americans, with reference to group studies about them, Sunday School helps and tracts for them, friendly minis- trations at Ellis Island, religious services at Ellis Island, and an adequate follow-up of those who pass through Ellis Island and go to various parts of the country. 10. On Orientals, both on the Pacific coast and in Eastern cities, with a view to consolidating competing e~fforts in the West and enlisting friendly attention in the East. 11. On Mormonism, with special refer- ence to a common Protestant Education policy in Utah, and the creation and dis- tribution of suitable Christian literature for Mormons. (A special study of the educational situation in Utah has been made by Dr. Robert L. Kelly, of the Council of Church Boards of Education, and has been printed for confidential use by the Boards.) 12. With representatives of Christian work in the Hawaiian Islands, with a view to securing closer co-operation among the Christian forces in those Islands. 13. On migrant workers, including lum- ber jacks, harvesters, oyster gatherers, and farm and cannery laborers. 14. On the Mexicans, who have come into the United States and need special aid in churches, schools and publications. 15. On the Mountaineers, both of the Ozarks and the Appalachians, for the pur- pose of ascertaining needs and allocating responsibility. 16. On the blind, with a view to as- certaining their religious condition and the need of creating, and supplying them with, a literature in raised type. 17. With prominent Jewish leaders with a view to promoting good-will, and thereby avoiding anti-semitic bitterness and hos- tilities. 18. On publicity, publications and lit- erature, with reference to the use of the press, the issuing of pamphlets, the selec- tion of themes and the preparation of manuscripts of text books on Home Mis- sion topics. 19. On the presentation of Home Mis- sion subjects at student conferences, sum- mer schools and on other public platforms. 20. On relations to the Government and law, especially with reference to Indian lands, Government schools, the use of Pey- ote, and co-operation between the Govern- ment and missions in Alaska. 21. Conferences, almost beyond number, have been held, about a great variety of subjects and relationships with representa- tives of the following bodies : — The Federal Council of the Churches of Christ in America, and its Commissions; the Foreign Missions Conference; the Federation of Woman's Boards of Foreign Missions; the Council of Church Boards of Education; the Committee on Co-operation in Latin America; the Sunday School Council of Evangelical Denominations (now the Inter- national Sunday School Council of Re- ligious Education) ; the Missionary Educa- tion Movement; the Committee on Social and Religious Surveys; the Church Peace Union; the Phelps-Stokes Foundation; the Indian Rights Association; the Inter-racial Commission; the Young Men's Christian Association, and the Young Women's Chris- tian Association. II. Pieces of Work Done by Single De- nominations for All Denominations. It is interesting to note how the recogni- tion of common interests and the spirit of generosity have resulted in several de- nominations actually doing work for other denominations, while working for them- selves. 1. The Board of Home Missions and Church Extension of the Methodist Epis- copal Church maintains in New York an office, with a secretary and two assistants, who have full information respecting all foreign-language publications in this coun- try and who help prepare literature needed for New Americans. The services of this office are available for all denominations. 2. Two years ago the Congregational Home Missionary Society loaned Rev. W. S. Beard for four months to make a pre- liminary trial of a joint plan of recruiting. Later, the Woman's American Baptist Home Mission Society permitted Miss Jessie Dodge White to use half time for six months for a similar service; and at the present time the Methodist Episcopal Board is permitting Rev. C. M. McConnell, as chairman of a committee, to direct a joint plan of recruiting in a selected num- ber of state universities. 3. The Protestant Episcopal Church, through its Domestic and Foreign Mission- ary Society, and its New York City Mis- sion Society, is lending Rev. Raymond E. Cole, and a stenographer, for two months to investigate Protestant resources and work out, if feasible, a plan of follow-up to their final destination of the immi- grants who pass through Ellis Island. This loan is accompanied with $400 in cash for incidental expenses. These two workers are now in the central office of the Councils. 4. Dr. Charles H. Sears, secretary of the Baptist City Mission Society of New York, by his own generosity and by per- mission of his Board, gave a large amount of laborious editorial supervision to the Race Group Studies, which, underwritten by several other Boards, are now being published by the George H. Doran Com- pany. 5. The Board of Home Missions of the Methodist Episcopal Church, South, main- tains on the Pacific coast Rev. W. A. Davis, who by visitation and the distribu- tion of literature among the Japanese is serving as a colporter for all. 6. This same Board is at present willing- ly proposing to permit Dr. R. H. Ruff to make a study of opportunity and needs of theological training for Negroes, which will be of benefit to all. 7. Rev. R. E. Magill, secretary of the Executive Committee of Publications of the Presbyterian Church in the United States, and Mr. C. H. Merrill, architect-secretary of the American Baptist Home Mission Society, have together written a pamphlet "First Steps in Church Building", which is used by all. 8. The officers of the Home Missions Council and the Council of Women for Home Missions, and the members of Com- mittees, especially chairmen, do a large amount of gratuitous work, which benefits all. These officers and committee mem- bers are themselves busy officials in their own denominations, yet are generously serving other denominations. III. The Co-operative Spirit. There are significant instances of wise and generous co-operation, none of which are as well known as they should be. 1. At the close of the Great War a bishop of the Protestant Episcopal Church, held in hand $2,000 from the balance of the war-time funds of his church, td ex- pend for work among the lumber camps in the Northwest. Having no organized work of his own in operation, he went to a Presbyterian superintendent of such work, and commissioned this superintendent, in behalf of Episcopalians to appoint a man, and supervise his activities; and realizing that there were overhead expenses for a joint committee on lumber camps, this Episcopal bishop paid $400 for these cen- tral expenses. 2. In Alaska friendly exchanges of territory have been made between the Congregationalists and Presbyterians; and between the Baptists and Methodists; and other adjustments, similar in character are under consideration. All the denomina- tions working in Alaska are co-operating as "The Associated Evangelical Churches of Alaska." 3. The Home Missions Council of Mon- tana holds meetings every three months, itself or through its Executive Committee, and follows up the allocations which it made in 1919, adjusting and changing as- signments of responsibility as changed conditions require. 4. In Ohio a state federation, efficiently supported by the co-operating denomina- tions, is working out programs of combina- tion and consolidation, county by county, so as to remedy the ills of the country church, which have been disclosed by care- ful surveys in that state. 5. When the United Presbyterians thought of undertaking work for the Mexi- cans in the Southwest, they turned to the Home Missions Council for advice as to the place and the type of work; when the Disciples proposed to begin work for In- dians they consulted the same central of- fice respecting certain Indians and certain tribes; when the Church of the Brethren planned a mission among the mountaineers of the Ozarks, they, too, wrote to the same office. All this indicates the co-operative spirit, in harmony with which these de- nominations wish to respect the rights of other denominations, and to relate their efforts to the efforts of others so far as possible, so as to help make a united whole for efficiency in the Kingdom. 6. Federations and Councils of Churches and Women's Church and Missionary Fed- erations in an increasing number of cities and states, Home Missions Councils in Montana, Idaho, Western Washington, Oregon, Utah and Colorado indicate a desire of Christian workers to see their tasks in their mutual relations and to do each his work with reference to the whole. IV. Actual Deeds Done As One. It has been discovered that there are certain things, desired by all and essential to the work of all, which no one denomina- tion can so well do for itself, or even per- form by itself for all the others. 1. In Porto Rico the Baptists, Congre- gationalists, Disciples, Methodists, Presby- terians, and United Brethren, under the admirable guidance of the Committee on Co-operation in Latin America, have allo- cated territory so that their churches are not in conflict or competition in any of the towns and villages or on the country- side. Together they maintain the Evangel- ical Seminary of Porto Rico for the train- ing of a native ministry; for pastors they carry on a correspondence school; and they publish one religious paper for all. 2. In Santo Domingo two boards of the Methodist Episcopal Church, two boards of the Presbyterian Church in the U. S. A., and one board of the United Brethren Church maintain a common mission, hav- ing one ownership of property, one staff of workers and one purse, administered by the Board of Christian Work in Santo Domingo. This work was begun under the stimulus of the Committee on Co- operation in Latin America. 3. In six Government schools for Indian youth, religious work directors are main- tained by the payment of money from ten general and women's boards of eight differ- ent denominations, which funds are sent to the Home Missions Council. This body receives these grants, engages, pays and supervises the work of these directors. _ In three other schools single denominations are maintaining religious work directors who serve in behalf of all denominations. At the Sherman Institute for Indians, six miles out of Riverside, California, land has been purchased and a church building is being erected for the benefit of Indian youth. The Church Federation of River- side has become incorporated in order that it may legally hold title to the property, and six denominations, through their church erection boards are proposing to make grants additional to contributions secured by the Riverside Federation. 4. The American Protestant Church in the Canal Zone, consisting of four congre- gations in four different places, though under the American flag, and yet really where foreign missions chiefly operate, has happily come under the legal and ec- clesiastical supervision of a committee of the Federal Council, which is composed of representatives of both Home and Foreign Mission interests. 5. Ten women's boards have co-oper- ated through the Council of Women for Home Missions in work among farm and cannery migrants in Italian truck farming communities and canneries employing Poles and Lithuanians. This past summer, the third season of the work, six stations in New Jersey, Delaware, Maryland and Pennsylvania, manned mostly by under- graduate college girls, have been open. 6. The Publication Boards of several denominations, acting through the Sunday School Council of Evangelical Denomina- tions, have worked out a plan of publish- ing Sunday School lessons in foreign lang- ages, so that one bi-lingual lesson quarter- ly will serve all denominations. The Life of Christ has already been issued. Under this plan the following languages and publishing houses have been arranged for: — Spanish, the Methodist Episcopal Church, South; Polish, the United Presby- terian Church; Magyar (Hungarian), the Presbyterian Church in the U. S. A. and the Reformed Church in the U. S.; Czech (Bohemian), Methodist Episcopal Church; Italian, Northern Baptists; Rus- sian, Southern Baptists. When issuing these lessons each publish- ing house calls itself, "The United Re- ligious Press", and gives its own address. 7. In 1903 the Women's Home Mission Boards began to publish interdenomina- tional text books through a committee which later became the Council of Women for Home Missions. For the past three years the books have been issued jointly by the Council and the Missionary Educa- tion Movement. 8. The Home Missions Council and the Council of Women for Home Missions, through their joint committees, and separ- ately, are publishing a considerable number and variety of pamphlets of common inter- est. 9. Through their Committee on Public- ity, news items of general interest con- cerning Home Missions are sent out to religious papers, and at times to the secu- lar press. I. 2M. 10, 1922.