churches must teach the iniquity of speculation in land and the fact 

 that the farmer who has made only cash has failed. 



Second. The ministers in Gibson County, however, are not helping 

 the farmer to stay in the country, because they themselves are moving 

 into town. This was not so in former times. The old-fashioned preacher 

 used to live with the farmer. There were no towns in those days. The 

 modern preacher has nothing for the farmer but a sermon. Three hours 

 a month is the stint he gives for the pay he gets. Of course he comes out 

 to a few weddings and funerals, but sermons and marriages and burials 

 are a dismal kind of religion. The minister if he is going to bring the 

 people in Gibson County into the Lord's ways must live with them and 

 walk with them in those ways himself. His wife will then be of more 

 use in the country, perhaps, than he will be, and certainly she will be 

 of more use to the people in the country than she is now when she lives 

 in the town. His children will have religious value if his home is with 

 country people; for they too have children. 



The churches of all denominations are alike in desertion of the country 

 by their preachers. How can the minister teach anything but an ab- 

 sentee religion when he lives an absentee life? He talks of course about 

 Heaven and Hell and Palestine, none of which the farmer has ever seen. 

 The Bible men talked about a holy land in which they lived with their 

 people, about cows and mules and camels, about grasshoppers and 

 storms and about rent, about ownership of land and other things that 

 are in the country. 



For the country churches to have pastors they must pay the bill. 

 Two or three country churches must be grouped together. This country 

 is full of Baptist Churches. It would be a blessing to Gibson County 

 if three Baptist Churches could be grouped together withing driving 

 distance of one another to support a pastor living among his people. 

 The Home Field says, "There are thousands of country churches in 

 the South that could easily employ a pastor for two Sundays in the 

 month and two of these churches by forming a field would find no trouble 

 in providing a comfortable support for the pastor. There are hundreds 

 and hundreds of country churches in the South that could easily support 

 a pastor for his whole time." We believe that any christian living in 

 such a neighborhood should give his support to such a Baptist pastor 

 in the country, because no greater help could be given to a country com- 

 munity than the service of a wise and devoted pastor living with his 

 people. The problem of country life for all people in Gibson County 

 will be greatly affected by such rural ministry. 



Third. We commend to the attention of Christian folk in Gibson 

 County that the churches of all denominations in this county are failing 

 to get hold of the men and the young men of the county. It is a bad 



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