248 MONEY AND THE KINGDOM. 



hundred dollars and one gentleman gave three hundred.'' 

 If church collections were analyzed, it would appear 

 that, as a rule, by far the greater part is given by a very 

 few persons, and they not the most able. The great 

 majority of church-members give only a trifle or nothing 

 at all for the work of missions. 



During the year 1889-90 contributions in the United 

 States for foreign missions were $3,977,701.' A total of 

 $10,695,259 for home and foreign missions sounds like a 

 large sum. But great and small are relative terms. 

 Compared with the need of the world and the ability of 

 the church it is pitiable indeed. Look at that ability. 

 The Christian religion, by rendering men temperate, in- 

 dustrious, and moral, makes them prosperous. There 

 are but few of the very poor in our churches. The great 

 question has come to be: "How can we reach the 

 masses ? " Church-membership is made up chiefly of 

 the well-to-do and the rich.^ On the other hand, a 

 majority of the membership is composed of women, 

 who control less money than men. It is, therefore, fair 

 to say that the church-member is at least as well off as 

 the average citizen. In 1890, one in every 4.7 of the 

 population was a member of some evangelical church, 

 that is, 21.92 per cent, of all the people. We may 

 reasonably infer, then, that this percentage of the 

 wealth of the United States, or $13,076,300,000 was in 

 the hands of evangelical church-members at that time ; 

 and this takes no account of the immense capital in 

 brains and muscles. Of this great wealth one thirty-sec- 

 ond part of one per cent, or one dollar out of 3,287, was 

 given in 1890 to foreign missions for the salvation of 

 seven or eight hundred million heathen. Vf e do not 

 know what the income of our church-members is, but if 

 in 1890 they had spent every cent of wages, salary and 



*. Almanac of the American Board for 1891, p. 35. 



5 The Century says that, of the fifty leading business men of Columbug, 

 Ohio, and Springfield, Mass. (if we are not mistaken in the unnamed cities), 

 four-fifths are attendants upon the churches and supporters of them, while 

 three-fifths are communicants. 



