JULY 1-6 the yearly meeting of the Central European Conference was held in the city of Geneva.
The general attendance of our people was good, and the outside attendance was perhaps the largest ever had in our general meetings. A great interest was manifested, and it is now being followed up by a number of workers.
Besides the local conference officers, the following leading brethren were present, who helped considerably in the plans of the conference:— From America: Brethren Daniells, Cottrell, Flaiz, Nelson, Shultz, and Palmer. From Germany: Brethren Conradi and Oblaender; while Brother Sisley, of the British field, rendered timely counsel.
THE VILLAGE OF TORRE PELLICE
Our experience in the past having shown the impossibility of managing satisfactorily the work in such a vast field from one center, it was deemed best to divide the territory of the Central European Conference into one conference and three missionary fields. The division was effected as follows:—
The French part of Switzerland is to be henceforth the French-Swiss Conference; but in order to obviate legal difficulties, it keeps its present name until the property held by it in Pieterlen is disposed of.
France, with the French-speaking part of Belgium, having a population of over forty million souls, is to be known as the French missionary field. A large city of France is to be selected as a center for missionary operations in this field, and a school for the training of workers is to be established there.
France has already been provided with a number of workers who are ready to undertake missionary operations with new energy. As there are already churches organized in this country, this missionary field was organized somewhat as a conference.
It was not possible to do the same with Italy and Spain. Italy has only a membership of forty, and no worker who is able to speak the Italian language fluently. All that could be done for those fields was to recommend that they be organized as separate missionary fields as soon as circumstances permit.
The officers of the French-Swiss Conference , legally the Central European Conference, are:— President, B. G. Wilkinson; L. P. Tieche; P. Schild; A. Guenin; J. Robert; Treasurer, Librairie Polyglotte, Basel; Secretary, A. Guyot; General Canvassing Agent, Tell Nussbaum; Assistant General Canvassing Agent, H. Provin; Sabbath-school Secretary, Ulysse Augsbourger, Renan, Berne; Missionary Secretary, Melina Evard, Clos Brochet 15, Neuchâtel; Auditor, L. P. Tieche.
The officers for the French mission field are:— Superintendent, J. Curdy, Torre Pellice, Italy; J. P. Badaut; G. Roth; A. Jacquard; L. Roumajon; Secretary, Jeanne Bourquin.
The Mission Board is requested to select a strong man to take the supervision of the work in the Italian mission field, and organize it as soon as possible on the same basis as it is organized in France. As Brother Curdy, who has been in charge of the work in this field for the past two years, is to leave for France in the beginning of October, Brother Bénézet, a young Bible worker, will be the only laborer left in this field until help is provided from America.
A general organization was perfected to supervise the work in the various parts of the field. This is to prepare the way for a union of the Latin conferences as soon as such conferences can be organized in the different parts of the field. This Union Latin Mission Board was formed as follows:— Superintendent, B. G. Wilkinson; J. Curdy; Superintendent of the Italian field; Superintendent of the Spanish field; Tell Nussbaum; Dr. P. A. De Forest; L. P. Tieche; Secretary, Jeanne Bourquin; Treasurer, Librairie Polyglotte.
Special attention was given to the French paper, Les Signes des Temps. In order to make it a paper suited to the needs of both the French and the Swiss field, it was decided to have two or three pages, according to circumstances, devoted to local matters concerning France printed only in the French edition, and that this be replaced by local Swiss matter for the Swiss edition.
Brother J. Vuilleumier was chosen as responsible editor, and B. G. Wilkinson and J. Curdy as corresponding editors.
This paper is expected to be used freely as a pioneer journal, hence it is to have a wide circulation in both France and Switzerland.
It is not expected that France, with its one hundred Sabbath keepers for a population of over forty million souls, and Italy, with forty Sabbath keepers for a population of thirty-five million souls, will be self-supporting from the first. The French-Swiss Conference alone is expected to be entirely self-supporting. It has even pledged itself to support two workers in the French mission field for the present year.
The funds for the support of the work in the various mission fields are to come from the following sources: (a) the tithe of all tithes from local conferences; (b) the Sabbath-school offerings, annual offerings, and all general offerings; (c) all tithes of missionary fields; (d) appropriations made by the Mission Board through the medium of the European General Conference.
As a matter of education, those various mission fields are to pay their tithe to the European General Conference.
The present force of workers for this large field is rather small. It is composed of the five following ordained ministers:— B. G. Wilkinson, Weiherweg 48, Basel, Switzerland; J. Curdy, Torre Pellice, Italy; L. P. Tieche, Rue Jean Charles 1, Geneva, Switzerland; J. Vuilleumier, Onnens, Vaud, Switzerland; G. Roth, Nimes, France; also five licentiates: Tell Nussbaum, Crêt 20, Chaux-de-Fonds, Switzerland; J. P. Badaut, 39 Avenue de Romans, Valence, France; H. Provin, Rue de l’Ecluse 16, Neuchâtel, Switzerland; Chas. Augsbourger, Valleyres Sous Rances, Vaud, Switzerland; D. Lecoultre, Valleyres Sous Rances, Vaud, Switzerland; and the11three following Bible workers: P. Badaut, Rue Hans 13, Jumet, Belgium; L. Bénézet, Torre Pellice, Italy; A. Guyot, Rue Jean Charles 1, Geneva, Switzerland.
The various boards are contemplating increasing their force of workers. Several names have already been considered; but up to the present, the preceding names are the only ones acted upon. Laborers as well as means are expected from America.
Our people in this field are awakening to a sense of the necessity of educating their children and youth for usefulness in the cause. Up to the present, but little has been done in this direction.
A three months’ course held in Geneva last spring by Brother B. G. Wilkinson has already given very satisfactory results, but we must have something more permanent in the future.
The plan for France is to have a school that can be moved at any time from city to city. We expect to have it in rented quarters. The students are expected to earn part of their way by actual work, and also to devote about half of their time to study.
The necessary funds to start this work are to be drawn from the proceeds of the assets of the Basel house. Those funds are to be divided as follows:— Sixty per cent is to go to the Latin field, and forty per cent to the German Union Conferences. Of the sixty per cent assigned to the Latin field, fifteen per cent is apportioned to the French-Swiss Conference, and forty-five per cent to the Latin mission field.
All the deliberations were characterized by a spirit of harmony and thankfulness to God. To our brethren from America we extend our hearty thanks for their timely help in this hour of need. We all returned to our respective fields in the hope of a triumphant experience in our blessed Saviour, who is so soon to come.
