Which Is the Better Way? by I. H. Evans

Review and Herald Publishing Association · Takoma Park Station, Washington, D. C. · Aug 22, 1907

Which Is the Better Way?

By I. H. Evans

The support of our denominational evangelical work in foreign fields is a question of no small magnitude. It is rapidly forging to the front, and is already becoming one of the greatest responsibilities resting upon those who believe in the third angel’s message.

It is indeed encouraging to know that in some of the countries outside of the United States, our work is already becoming self-supporting. This is true in some of the countries of Europe. The Scandinavian Union Conference receives no remittances from the United States, while it is also supporting the work in Iceland, Finland, and opening up the work in Abyssinia. The German Union Conference is already more than self-supporting, and is contributing a large amount of money each year for the work in Holland, Belgium, Hungaria, Bulgaria, Rumania, Russia, and other places, to say nothing of the mission that they have opened up and are sustaining from their funds in German East Africa.

Great Britain, too, while not entirely self-supporting, has ventured upon the support of a mission in the Uganda regions, and our British brethren are greatly encouraged by the privilege of helping outside their own territory.

The Australasian Union Conference does not ask for remittances from the United States for the support of its work in its own territory, and the remittances which we send to this field are for the support of the work in the islands of the Pacific Ocean.

There are several conferences in South America that are now entirely self-supporting, while others are rapidly approaching that point. As the work develops, more fields will pass from the line of receiving support from the General Conference to the ranks of those who are contributors to the general fund for work in other lands.

The policy of the General Conference is to organize all territory which it enters at the earliest possible moment, giving it autonomy in its administration, and encouraging it by appropriations of means, and the securing of help to build up the work in the field. Thus the General Conference is the active agency through which most fields secure both financial aid, when in need, and men to open up new stations. The attitude of the General Conference toward the work in all lands is that of fostering and expediting the work by securing workers to enter the fields, and by the raising of means with which to support these workers. The General Conference has an equal interest in the work in every field in the wide world, and does not aim to control nor direct, but rather to extend to each field autonomy and self-direction. The General Conference knows no preferred field, and is as much interested in one part of the wide harvest-field as another. It endeavors to treat the workers in all parts of the world on an equal footing, giving consideration to every petition that is sent in, taking into account in its appropriations the climatic conditions, the cost of living, rental, etc., and endeavoring to pass to each field an equitable proportion of the money that is raised for work in other lands.

The Organization of the Field

Each mission field is organized with a suitable head who acts as executive in the ministration of affairs, also a treasurer; and these brethren are generally supported by a committee of advisers. When there are many mission stations in one field, these are grouped together with one supervising committee for the whole field. This is true in China, India, South Africa, and many other places.

All money sent to the field from the treasury of the General Conference for the support of the work, is sent to the treasurer of the field, and the money is disbursed by the local committee on the ground. Each organized field audits the accounts of its own workers, submitting a copy of the audit to the General Conference Auditing Committee for its approval or suggestions of changes. All workers in a field receive their wages weekly or monthly, as the case may be, through the local treasurer, and not from the General Conference direct. The General Conference aims to send all remittances in lump sums, and pay no attention to the details of the distribution of the money, but receives from each mission field a monthly statement of receipts and disbursements.

The Mission Budget

Annually, each field not self-supporting makes out an itemized statement for its anticipated needs for the ensuing calendar year. This budget is to contain the name of each worker on the pay-roll, his probable expense, rate of wage, etc. Besides this, the anticipated expense in the publishing and circulation of literature, sanitarium work, and school work, is placed in the budget. This is sent to the General Conference Committee for its approval. When these budgets are all in from the various fields, the General Conference Committee meets and makes appropriations to each field according to the requests from the field and the prospects of securing the funds with which to meet these appropriations. The General Conference anticipates each year about what it will be able to receive, taking the previous year as a basis for its computation.

As an illustration of the appropriations of the General Conference Committee, our people will be interested to read the appropriation for 1907:—

European (including Levant) .. $ 18,000 Canadian Union Conference ........ 6,852 Australasian Union Conference ... 8,500 China:— General work $15,000 Publishing work 2,000 Total ....................... 17,000 India Mission field ................ 16,000 Japan and Korea:— General $7,239 Korean school 100 Japanese school 500 Total ......................... 7,839 Mexican Mission .................... 3,631 South African Union Conf. .......... 15,000 Southern Union Conference .......... 10,386 West Indian Union Conf. ............ 14,572 South American Union Conf. ........ 12,321 Southwestern Union, miss. work ..... 1,200 West African Mission ............... 1,700 Total .......................... $133,001

The funds upon which the General Conference relies are (1) annual offerings; (2) Sabbath-school offerings; (3) midsummer offerings; (4) the weekly donations given by our people for mission work; (5) special donations by individuals; (6) special donations by union and local conferences.

Some are inclined to make specific donations to individuals in a mission field. Is this the better way? Of course

any individual has a right to make a donation to any worker in any field that he may choose. No one can deny his right. However, we believe that the donations to mission work are usually made with a desire to help the cause and to facilitate the work. Now if individuals in a field receive specific donations which can not be charged by the Mission Board, then those individuals receive benefits and favors above others that do not receive these specific gifts. If several men are working in the same field, under similar conditions, and one man receives specific gifts to the amount of a few hundred dollars, it is plain that if he receives his full salary from the General Conference, he is receiving benefits and favors which the other workers can not receive. In the past this kind of giving, that is, churches or individuals giving specific donations to individuals instead of to the field as a whole, has brought embarrassment upon those who were conscientiously working, and the gifts did not prove a spiritual blessing to those to whom they were made. It tends to bring in independence of action, and an extravagance which is not helpful to the upbuilding of the work.

Most of our people, however, send what money they give to foreign fields through the regular channels of their conferences, and have the same applied to the support of the work as a whole. This helps all the workers in a field equally, is credited to the conference or individual who sends the donation, and is charged to the field to which the money is sent. In this way all remittances to foreign fields are entered upon the books of the General Conference, also upon the books of the mission field where the money is sent, so that any money can be traced from the donor to the field in this way.

Some have suggested that the regular channels are too slow and consume too much time in the transmitting of funds. When one stops to consider the actual situation,—that there are numerous fields that must have continual support throughout the year,—it does not matter much whether a specific donation takes one month or three months in getting from the giver to the fields, if the stream is kept flowing, so that there are funds on hand with which to supply the workers month by month.

Our people have given most liberally in the past for the development of our foreign mission work. This support has been much appreciated by those who have been responsible for securing funds with which to support the fields. We trust our brethren will continue their liberalities, and hope that all can see “which is the better way” in sending money, whether through the regular channels, or by making personal donations to individuals in a field. We believe that most people will prefer to send all donations for the work in other lands through the regular channels.

The General Conference treasury is in great need of funds. We hope our people will not forget their weekly offerings, but conscientiously bring an offering week by week to the Lord with which to sustain his work.

I. H. EVANS.