The Publishers’ Convention by C. H. Jones; E. R. Palmer

Review and Herald Publishing Association · Takoma Park Station, Washington, D. C. · Sep 20, 1906

The Publishers’ Convention

By C. H. Jones; E. R. Palmer

ARRANGEMENTS have been made for holding a meeting of the General Conference Publishing Department at Takoma Park, Washington, D. C., Oct. 3-10, 1906. There are many important reasons why such a meeting should be held at this time:—

1. Our publishing work is developing rapidly, and is reaching out into all nations of the earth. As the truth spreads, the urgent demands are constantly being made for literature in additional languages, and for increased facilities for its publication. We need to counsel together and make broad arrangements for this rapidly developing work, in order that our plans may be unified and the needs properly met.

2. After several years of struggle and only partially successful labor in the United States, there seems to be, during the present year, a break in the clouds, and new and better times are now dawning. We need to meet together and study plans of work whereby we may go forward unitedly and build up our publishing interests in harmony with God’s opening providences.

3. During the past few years God has been speaking to us as a people by permitting judgments and calamities to come upon this department of his work. We need to meet together and humble our hearts before God, and inquire the meaning of these things, and the lessons he would have us learn, in order that the destroyer may depart from us, and the protecting hand of God again rest over our institutions.

4. It is necessary that members of the General Conference Committee, the managers of our publishing houses and their branches, and the leaders in our field work meet together for counsel and to study plans by which all may co-operate in building up the publishing department. There was a time in the early history of this message when the publishing work was a most vital and inseparable factor in every evangelistic enterprise. During recent years there has been a tendency to set it aside as an independently working factor of the message. That tendency has been its weakness. We need to come together and study means whereby the publishing work shall again take its rightful place as a leading factor in all evangelistic work.

The Place

Although Takoma Park is not a central point for holding this convention, there were good reasons for the selection:—

1. The last publishers’ convention was held in Omaha, which was perhaps as central as any place that could have been selected. Since that time bookmen’s conventions have been held in Mountain View, Kansas City, and Berrien Springs; and these territories were considerably benefited by the inspiration given to the local work by these meetings. It was thought that the far East and the South should have whatever good might be experienced locally from this meeting, and Takoma Park seemed to be the most central place for the accommodation of these two unions.

2. As it was desirable that we secure a large attendance of the members of the General Conference Committee, and as a meeting of that committee was to be held about that time in Takoma Park, it seemed advisable to appoint the convention so as to accommodate the General Conference Committee, and secure their attendance at this meeting.

The Time

October 3-10 was decided upon, as the camp-meeting season is then practically over, and union conference agents would be as free as at any time during the year from field work. It would be an advantage also to hold the meeting early, so that plans for 1907 might be well laid at an early date.

Who Should Attend

1. The members of the General Conference Publishing Department, particularly those located in North America, should be at this meeting. It is hardly expected that we can have with us representatives from abroad.

2. All the members of the General Conference Committee who will be at the fall council should be present.

3. Managers of publishing houses and their branches, and others closely connected with the publishing work who may not be members of either of the committees mentioned above, should be in attendance. These workers are very urgently invited to be present. We also extend an invitation to State agents and tract society secretaries, hoping that some of these who do not live too far away, and whose work may be such as to make it reasonable for them to attend, will be able to meet with us. We also extend an invitation to canvassers of long experience whose presence might add strength and help to the convention.

Questions to Receive Consideration

The work of the convention will cover a wide range of important subjects. In response to requests that have already been sent out, we hope to receive from the representatives of our publishing

work everywhere a list of the questions which they feel might properly be considered. Efforts will be made to arrange the work of the convention so as to include many important questions from all parts of the field.

We earnestly solicit the prayers of all God’s people to the end that a great blessing may rest upon the work of this convention.

C. H. JONES, Chairman, E. R. PALMER, Secretary, Gen. Conf. Publishing Dept.