Report of the Biennial Council of the General Conference Committee
By W. A. Spicer
The Asiatic Division Conference
WITH great interest the council discussed the plan for the organization of a division conference in the Far East, where the remarkable ingathering of souls has called for a strengthening of the administrative force, as well as an increase of laborers in the local fields. Literally by hundreds the believers are coming into our ranks in these lands every year. The constitution adopted for the new division is modeled after those in other divisions, so need not be reprinted here. Some extracts from it, however, will be of general interest:— This organization shall be known as the Asiatic Division Conference of Seventh-day Adventists. The territory of this division conference shall consist of that portion of the world included within the following boundaries; viz., commencing at the Persian Gulf, thence north and east along the east side of Persia and the south side of Siberia to the Pacific Ocean, thence east to the international date line, thence south and west so as to include Australasia and such islands of the Pacific as are under the supervision of the Australasian Union Conference, thence north to the place of beginning. Representation at Biennial Sessions
ARTICLE 4, SECTION 3.— Delegates at large shall be—
a. The members of the executive committees of the Asiatic Division Conference and of the General Conference.
b. Such other persons as may be recommended by the executive committee, and accepted by the delegates in session. SEC. 4.— Regular delegates shall be such persons as are duly accredited by the union conferences and union missions, on the following basis:—
a. Each union conference and union mission shall be represented in the Division Conference sessions by delegates chosen on the basis of one for each union conference and one for each union mission, and one for each two hundred members.
b. Delegates representing unorganized mission fields shall be appointed by the executive committee of the division conference. The following officers for the Asiatic Division were appointed by the council:—
President, R. C. Porter; vice president and secretary, J. E. Fulton; treasurer and auditor, Henry W. Barrows. The desirability of having local fields, wherever possible, placed in union conference or union mission organization, led to the following action, taken with the concurrence of the Atlantic Union officers:— Voted, That the Bermuda Islands be transferred to the territory of the Atlantic Union Conference. The secretary of the General Conference Home Missionary Department, Miss E. M. Graham, presented a report, which we abridge as follows:—
The General Conference Home Missionary Department was reorganized after the General Conference of 1913. There being no provision for this department in the constitution of the General Conference, it is called a branch of the Publishing Department, but is really a department in itself just as definitely as any other department. When the first reports were gathered in at the close of the third quarter of 1913, the following conferences and mission fields were sufficiently organized for this work to report what was being done:— Ten conferences in the North American Division, representing four union conferences. Six union conferences in Europe, and one mission. The Australasian Union Conference. Eighteen months later, at the close of the first quarter in 1915, the fields reporting were as follows:— Sixty-seven conferences in the North American Division, representing twelve union conferences, and including all but four conferences, one of which has reported for the second quarter. Seven union conferences in Europe. Three mission fields in the Asiatic Division. The Australasian Union Conference. The South African Union Conference. The South American Union Conference. The Brazilian Union Conference. The little mission of Guatemala. Elder Paap will report the work of the North American Division. In the European Division the work was found to be quite well organized, though in some fields the members had become somewhat slack in their efforts. With some encouragement, these are taking hold with renewed energy. During the war, it has been impossible to collect reports from Russia, the Levant Union, and some other parts of the division, but our people have maintained their home missionary work surprisingly well in the fields directly concerned in the war. The South African Union Conference has organized all its conferences, and appointed a union home missionary secretary. The South American union has organized its two conferences and one mission field, and has a union home missionary secretary. The Brazilian Union Conference has its home missionary secretary, and has organized six of its conferences and missions. These three fields have been having very encouraging results from the efforts of their members. The Indian Union Mission has organized its divisions, and has a secretary in charge of the work. Although its work began with the English people, the natives are being enlisted in service. In the Asiatic Division four fields have been organized, though only three reported for the first quarter. They are the Malaysian Mission, Japan, Korea, and the Philippines. In the volume of work done and in the results, the reports from these fields compare favorably with those from more favored lands. Fresh fields are being added to the list each quarter. In the next report the South Caribbean Conference and the Porto Rican Mission will appear. Other fields where the members are5being set to work systematically are the Bahamas, Hawaiian Islands, Mexico, Haiti, and the Inca Union Mission. Reports are promised from these as conditions improve and the work is more thoroughly organized. A pamphlet on “Lessons for Home Missionary Institutes” has been printed, and sent to all ministers and conference workers except Bible workers. A series of leaflets for the churches is being issued, and Nos. 1-9 are now in use. Some of these have been translated into Spanish and Portuguese for use in South America. The Church Officers’ Gazette is nearing the end of its second year. A similar paper is being issued in Great Britain, and the Missionary Leader is issued in Australasia. A Home Missionary department has been opened in the REVIEW. There is also one in the South American church paper. Articles on different phases of the home missionary work have been sent from time to time to all the union conference papers in the home field, and others to the foreign papers, and these have been largely used. Something should be got out to give instructions to conference home missionary secretaries. Some manuscript has been prepared for this purpose, and we hope the council will arrange for it to be printed. Another need of the department is that there should be added to the ministerial courses in our colleges, instruction in church missionary work. The aim of the department is that every man and woman who belongs to the Seventh-day Adventist denomination shall be enlisted in soul-winning service. As believers come out from every nation, tongue, and people, our object is to make workers of them for the Lord, and unite all together to quickly finish the work. The following is the report of work done during three years, ending March 31, 1915: Number reporting, 19,180; letters written, 95,845; letters received, 37,080; missionary visits, 323,687; Bible readings, 155,695; subscriptions, 27,862; papers circulated, 4,031,065; books circulated, 122,157; tracts circulated, 3,710,943; hours Christian Help work, 200,888; articles of clothing given away, 62,086; meals provided, 29,803; treatments given, 17,649; signatures to pledge, 4,001; offerings, $38,660.75; conversions, 1,920. Recommendations on Home Missionary Work
In the consideration of the home missionary work, the following actions were taken:— Whereas, We find in the Testimonies the following definite statement: “The work of God in this earth can never be finished until the men and women comprising our church membership rally to the work, and unite their efforts with those of ministers and church officers;” and the further statement: “If every church member were a living missionary, the gospel would speedily be proclaimed in all countries, to every people and nation and tongue;” therefore,— 1. That every conference and mission field throughout the world, give attention to training its members in methods of soul-winning work, and that in all fields of sufficient membership, a secretary be appointed to give full or part time, according to the needs of the field, to organize churches and companies for work. and to teach the members how to work. 2. That in all our colleges, academies, and training schools, some lessons on the various phases of church work and duties of church officers be made a part of the course for all field workers. 3. That in order to have uniformity in the reporting system, the different blanks in use in various parts of the world be brought into harmony as rapidly as is consistent. The needs and progress of the work in Mexico were presented by Prof. G. W. Caviness, the superintendent. Even in war time, colporteurs have had good success, in places, in taking subscriptions for the paper and selling books. Appeal was made for two or three evangelists. Elder A. J. Haysmer, president of the union, reviewed the field, and listed calls for four ministerial workers and several other laborers. He stated that the union committee had at first included a call for one laborer for Nicaragua, where there is not a worker. But when they saw how large their call for appropriations was growing, listing needs that were even greater than this, they withdrew their call. The list of workers asked for was referred to the committee on distribution of labor, where all the calls from the fields are being considered. The whole world of our work is appealing for messengers to preach the word and gather in souls, for the harvest fields are white.