General Conference Departmental Resume
By C. M. S.
The Religious Liberty Department is giving considerable attention in its department meetings to the issues raised by the Federal Council of the Churches, the National Reform Association, and the World's Christian Citizenship Conference. In the first meeting of this department held at this Conference, these matters were ably discussed by Elders K. C. Russell and W. F. Martin, who showed the power of the gospel to accomplish, without state aid, the purpose for which it was sent into the world. They showed conclusively that true Christian citizenship is manifested in the life of the individual and not in the enactment of laws to compel the observance of religious formulas. In the second meeting of this department the special topic considered was the importance of religious liberty institutes and campaigns, and the best methods of conducting them. The unanimous sentiment was that hereafter union and local conference religious liberty secretaries ought to spend all their time in the work of organizing and advancing the interests of this department. In the campaigns against Sunday legislation, the holding of mass-meetings was542strongly recommended, and extensive advertising of such meetings was urged. In the second meeting of the Sabbath School Department, those in attendance were taken back to the time when there was no regularly organized Sabbath-schools among us, and no prepared lessons, each teacher preparing his own lessons. Elder William Covert presented the interesting reminiscences of this period in the development of our work. Prof. M. E. Olsen followed with a well-prepared paper on the importance of a faithful study of the Sabbath-school lessons, urging the necessity and the importance of a seven-day program in the preparation of the lesson, for both teacher and pupil. The third meeting of this department was devoted principally to plans, plans for preparing the lesson, for interesting the pupils, for securing attention, for increasing the students' interest. These problems were discussed by Dr. G. H. Heald, of Takoma Park, D. C.; Miss E. Graham, of New Zealand; Mrs. R. D. Quinn, of New York City; and Mrs. Mettie Lenker, of Tennessee. Miss Graham spoke of her experience in studying the lesson until she could recite it without reference to the Quarterly or the Bible; and her experience had influenced others to do the same, with excellent results. She had found that even new Sabbath-keepers are able to do this after a few months' effort. She testified to the fact that the more the lesson is studied, the deeper the interest grows in it. The topics considered in the second meeting of the Educational Department were: "Our Schools and Our Message," "The Bible as an Educator," and "Getting Results From Devotional Hours." Prof. F. Griggs, speaking on the first topic, emphasized the fact that the only excuse for the existence of Seventh-day Adventist schools is that the denomination may have trained men and women for the work committed to its charge. This being true, it follows that our educators must understand the great three-fold message. The heart of that message is a call to worship God the Creator of all things, to reestablish as a prime doctrine of the Christian faith that God is Creator. That article of faith has been largely broken down by modern higher criticism and the evolutionary teachings of the age. It is our duty to emphasize again before all the world that fundamental article of faith. As this message will be carried by vigorous, determined, and obedient men, it was made apparent at once that in our schools there must be done hard, exact, and diligent work in the matter of discipline. "If the teachers properly appreciate the meaning of this message," said he, "if they have the Pentecostal power which should accompany it, they will carry into the class-room a spirit of devotion that is bound to influence the lives of the students." Prof. M. E. Kern laid stress upon the fact that earnest devotion is a prime factor in the preparation of our young men and women for places of usefulness in this cause. He had noted that those students who had taken time for devotion and missionary work are the ones who are now occupying places of responsibility in connection with this work. As a factor in bringing this spirit into the lives of our students, he emphasized the importance of thorough preparation on the part of the leaders of the devotional meetings. He maintained that the success of a devotional meeting is largely in proportion to the amount of prayerful preparation bestowed upon it by the leader. The fourth meeting of the Publishing Department was devoted to the problem of the preparation of literature for foreign fields and the teaching of the foreigners among us with literature which they can understand. Elders L. R. Conradi, W. C. White, and O. A. Olsen spoke to these topics. The great necessity of more literature of this character and of more attention to the work of circulating it was laid before the delegates in a very emphatic way. All emphasized the necessity of the missionary feature of this work on the part of both the circulators and the publishers. At the fifth meeting of this department a recommendation was passed to the effect that steps be taken at once to publish "Patriarchs and Prophets" in Portuguese, Italian, and Polish, and "Great Controversy" in Finnish and Russian; and that, as soon as possible, subscription books be provided in the other predominant languages in the United States and Canada. Elder W. A. Spicer spoke of the importance of literature circulation in the opening of new fields to the message. A field well covered with our literature is a fruitful one for our evangelistic workers. The third meeting of the Religious Liberty Department was devoted to a consideration of the Standard Bill for One Day of Rest in Seven, prepared by the Federal Council of the Churches, and introduced in many of the State legislatures during the past year. An excellent paper was prepared on this bill by Elder W. M. Healey, of California, which showed the utter inconsistency of the measure. The presentation of this paper was followed by a fifteen-minute talk by Elder J. E. Jayne, relating his experiences in connection with hearings on this bill in several State legislatures. So far, the bill has been defeated in every legislature where it has been introduced, except Ohio and Pennsylvania, it having been favorably reported out of the committees in these two States, but not yet passed. "The Papal Program for America" was the topic under consideration at the fourth meeting of this department. The paper prepared on this topic by A. J. S. Bourdeau was a very interesting and instructive one. He showed that the program of the Roman Church for America is a very definite program, but might be summed up in the few words. To make America dominantly Catholic. And this is not merely a program of a prospective work, but of a work that is actually in progress at the present time. "So confident indeed have the papal leaders become," said he, "that they regard the Catholic conquest of the United States as imminent." Many forceful and valuable quotations were given, showing something of the detail of the program. One authority was quoted as saying that Roman "Catholic truth will travel on the wings of American influence, and with it encircle the universe." Some of the plans for accomplishing this undertaking are: the union of church and state functionaries in public processions and public gatherings; securing positions of power and influence in the government for the upbuilding of the church; censoring all public libraries so as to eliminate all Protestant books, magazines, and papers; the control of the police force of our cities, etc. The fourth meeting of the Medical Department considered topics that are of vital importance to the successful prosecution of the work committed to this people. The main topic was this: "The Relation of Health Reform to a Preparation for the Latter Rain." There was much reference to Scripture and Testimony to show that the purpose of God is to translate a people who shall be "in the likeness of him." At the fifth meeting of this department Elder I. H. Evans spoke of the qualifications necessary to successful missionary work in foreign lands. The first requisite is Christianity on the part of the missionary; and if this is not manifested at home, it is not likely to be in the foreign field. Medical missionaries should be good Seventh-day Adventists. To make converts to the truth, one must be a lover and a doer of the truth. A medical worker ought to be able to lead men to a belief in Jesus Christ, and his first motive ought to be to win souls. These thoughts were also emphasized by Elders F. H. De Vinney and C. L. Butterfield and by Drs. A. B. Olsen and H. C. Menkel. The sixth and seventh meetings of the Publishing Department were devoted to a consideration of the circulation of our literature among the millions of Asia. It is an encouragement to know that the circulation of our literature is increasing in Asiatic countries, and that the natives who have themselves been converted out of heathenism are acting as our colporteurs in bearing the message to their countrymen. One striking feature of this General Conference is the size of these departmental meetings and the interest manifested in them all. Each of these departmental meetings is a good-sized camp-meeting, and the questions that are there being discussed are vital to the progress of our work. The attendance, the enthusiasm, and the deep conviction manifested at these meetings indicate that we shall see advance moves all along the line in the months to come.
C. M. S.