Magnitude of Our Work by Editor

International Tract and Missionary Society · Oakland, California · Oct 9, 1884

FromSigns of the Times, Vol. 10, No. 38.

Magnitude of Our Work.

By Editor

OUR camp-meetings are becoming so large, and the amount of business to be done is so great, that it is becoming impossible to do full justice to every interest connected with them. Those who have the most experience in the camp-meetings are the ministers who have traveled from State to State to hold such meetings. Consequently the burden of the business to be done falls largely on them. In our late meeting we became painfully conscious of the fact that a man cannot spend his time, day and night, under a pressure of business cares, and do justice to his ministry. Not that the Lord did not help and strengthen in the camp-meeting through which we have just passed. He surely did. But if ever there is a time when the minister needs to enter the desk with consideration, with study, and with his powers fresh for the important work of feeding the flock and instructing the people, it is in such a meeting as this. But our camp-meetings are becoming so large, there is so much Conference and missionary business to transact, the Sabbath-school interest is very properly commanding more attention, there are so many accounts to settle and so many complaints to hear and perhaps difficulties to adjust, that it seems as if there must be some means devised to lessen the amount of labor falling upon the few who have the necessary experience to take charge of all these duties. As this will inevitably demand the attention of our people, and require much thought, we now make a few suggestions:—

Let all matters of church discipline, which are in danger of being brought into the camp-meeting, be referred to the Conference Committee before the camp-meeting takes place. We refer only to those cases where it seems impossible to settle them at home.

Let the ministers make their reports up to a month before the meeting and forward them to the secretary, that they may be examined and understood before the meeting comes on, and thereby save much time in the work of Auditing Committees.

If the Executive Committees have not time to do all this work and make proper preparations for the meetings in other respects, let them appoint competent and faithful men to examine accounts, reports, etc., and have everything in shape for the more speedy transaction of business in the meeting, and save the ministers the labor of racking their brains over these perplexing questions.

And enlarge the camp-meeting committees, and have their duties more clearly defined, and let them, to a greater extent, bear the burdens which are now generally borne by the ministers.

There never will come a time when the counsel of experienced ministers will not be sought in our camp-meetings. They are best qualified to decide many important matters connected with large religious meetings, and especially where they spend much time in such meetings. But to make them counselors, executives, accountants, arbitrators, routine workers, and expect them to be ready and clear-minded ministers at the same time, is requiring too much of human nature. As long as this is done, some things must be poorly done, and some things necessarily neglected. We make these few suggestions that our brethren may have time to enlarge upon them and work out these problems before another season's camp-meeting work comes on.