OFFICERS AND MEMBERS OF THE BOARD 
 
 Pres. W. Douglas Mackenzie, D.D., Chairman 
 Mr. Fennell P. Turner, Secretary 
 Rev. Wm. I. Chamberlain, Ph.D., Treasurer 
 Rev. James L. Barton, D.D. 
 
 Prof. Harlan P. Beach, D.D. 
 
 David Bovaird, Jr., M.D. 
 
 Prof. O. E. Brown, D.D. 
 
 Prof. Ernest DeWitt Burton, D.D. 
 
 Miss Helen B. Calder 
 Prof. Edward W. Capen, Ph.D. 
 
 > Prof. W. O. Carver, D.D. 
 
 Rev. George Drach 
 •< Rev. James Endicott, D.D. 
 
 Rev. F. P. Haggard, D.D. 
 
 Pres. Henry C. King, D.D. 
 
 Prof. Walter L. Lingle, D.D. 
 
 Rt. Rev. Arthur S. Lloyd, D.D. 
 
 Rev. R. P. Mackay, D.D. 
 
 John R. Mott, LL.D. . ^ 
 
 Bishop W. F. Oldham, D.D. 
 
 Principal T. R. O’Meara, D.D. 
 
 ‘^Pres. C. T. Paul, Ph.D. 
 
 Prof. Henry B. Robins, Ph.D. 
 
 Prof.G. A. Johnston Ross, M.A. 
 
 Dean James E. Russell, LL.D. 
 
 T. H. P. Sailer, Ph.D. 
 
 Miss Una Saunders - > ^ 
 
 Prof. E. D. Soper, D.D. 
 
 Robert E. Speer, D.D. 
 
 ' Pres. J. Ross Stevenson, D.D. 
 
 Pres. Addie Grace Wardle, Ph.D. 
 
 Rev. Charles R. Watson, D.D. 
 
 Pres. Wilbert W. White, Ph.D. 
 
 Pres. Mary E. Woolley, Litt.D. 
 
 Rev. Frank K. Sanders, Ph.D., Director 
 25 Madison Avenue, New York City 
 
THE BOARD OF MISSION¬ 
 ARY PREPARATION 
 
 i 
 
 Its Origin 
 
 The Board of Missionary Preparation originated 
 at the World Missionary Conference of 1910 at 
 Edinburgh through the masterly report of Com¬ 
 mission Five on the Education of Missionaries. 
 Based upon a long-extended investigation this 
 report voiced with startling emphasis the views of 
 missionaries in the field and of mission experts 
 everywhere to the effect that far too much time 
 was being spent on the foreign field by young 
 missionaries in gaining proficiency. The very gen¬ 
 eral explanation of this costly condition was, on 
 the one hand, the failure of missionary candidates 
 to use to best advantage the years of preparation 
 in the homeland together with the first year or two 
 on the field and, on the other, the failure of the 
 institutions engaged in the training of mission¬ 
 aries to provide the education best adapted to 
 the needs of candidates. The report concluded 
 with the recommendation that Boards of Mis¬ 
 sionary Studies be created at the home base to 
 take the lead in placing the whole process of 
 preparation on a more satisfying and scientific 
 basis. 
 
 The discussion of the report of Commission Five 
 at Edinburgh brought out the administrative and 
 economic, no less than the religious importance of 
 this recommendation. It was readily seen that 
 
 i 
 
if the period required to-day for the development 
 of a competent missionary could be considerably 
 reduced the administrative benefit would be im¬ 
 pressive. At the same time the individual candi¬ 
 date would greatly profit by reason of the direc¬ 
 tion given to his studies and the anticipation of 
 many of his problems. 
 
 The outcome of this discussion was the prompt 
 organization in Great Britain of a Board of Mis¬ 
 sionary Study, which is rendering splendid service 
 to the Mission Boards of the United Kingdom. 
 
 In January, 1911, the Foreign Missions Confer¬ 
 ence of North America, responding to the recom¬ 
 mendation of the Continuation Committee of the 
 World’s Missionary Conference, appointed a 
 Committee of Nineteen empowered “to consider 
 whether a Board of Missionary Studies shall be 
 created in North America” and “to take any 
 action which it may consider desirable for the 
 creation of such a Board.” 
 
 On January 13, 1911, this committee met and 
 appointed a special committee to “study the whole 
 subject, present a scheme of organization, and 
 present a list of names from which may be drawn 
 a thoroughly representative Board.” 
 
 On June 8, 1911, the Committee of Nineteen 
 received and approved the report of its sub-com¬ 
 mittee, adopted a constitution for the new organ¬ 
 ization, appointed a Board of thirty-six members 
 representative of the various interests involved, 
 and designated officers to act until the next meet¬ 
 ing of the Foreign Missions Conference, when 
 they could be regularly elected by the Conference. 
 
 The next half year was devoted to a careful 
 study of plans of procedure. 
 
 2 
 
The first annual meeting of the newly created 
 Board was held on December 6, 1911. At that 
 meeting plans involving a fresh survey of the 
 problems underlying missionary preparation in 
 North America were determined. Four commit¬ 
 tees were set up to investigate and report, one on 
 Plans and Practise of Foreign Missionary Boards 
 as to the Preparation required of their Candi¬ 
 dates; one to study “The Present Facilities Af¬ 
 forded Missionary Candidates in Institutions and 
 Movements” and to discover what further facili¬ 
 ties were needed for the training of missionary 
 candidates; one on Courses of Reading for Candi¬ 
 dates under appointment for Foreign Missionary 
 Service and for Missionaries; and one to define the 
 “Fundamental Qualifications for Missionary 
 Work.” These reports were presented to the sec¬ 
 ond annual meeting held in New York City on 
 December 6, 1912. They are to be found in the 
 Second Annual Report of the Board. 
 
 The value of this method of procedure became 
 so manifest at this second annual meeting that 
 the Executive Committee was authorized to pro¬ 
 ject and organize a fresh series of investigations 
 relating to the special preparation necessary for 
 candidates preparing for different types of mis¬ 
 sionary service. Four committees were appointed, 
 one on the Preparation of Ordained Missionaries, 
 one on the Preparation of Educational Mission¬ 
 aries, one on the Preparation of Medical Mis¬ 
 sionaries and one on the Preparation of Workers 
 among Women. The reports of these committees 
 were presented to the third annual meeting held 
 in Kansas City, Mo., on January 5, 1914, and pub¬ 
 lished in the Third Annual Report of the Board. 
 
 The rapid broadening of the work of the Board 
 confirmed its members in their original conviction 
 
 3 
 
that a Director was essential to give his whole 
 time and experience to the leadership of the enter¬ 
 prise. On June 15, 1914, Dr. Frank K. Sanders 
 was called from the presidency of Washburn Col¬ 
 lege, Topeka, Kansas to be the Director of the 
 Board. 
 
 II 
 
 Its Program 
 
 The Board of Missionary Preparation soon dis¬ 
 covered that these investigations and reports led 
 on to its rendering on behalf of the Foreign Mis¬ 
 sion Boards, their missionaries and their candi¬ 
 dates a variety of services for which it would be 
 impracticable for most Boards to provide. 
 
 1. It constantly investigates and formulates the 
 Problems involved in Adequate Preparation. —As 
 stated above, the Board of Missionary Preparation 
 set itself promptly to the task of formulating reli¬ 
 able ideals of preparation for missionary service. 
 The first two series of investigations have been 
 described. In 1915 the Board completed and pub¬ 
 lished a series of six reports on Preparation for 
 Fields of Missionary Labor. These discussed the 
 special preparation needed by a missionary ap¬ 
 pointed to China, India, Japan, Latin America, 
 the Near East and Pagan Africa. They are to be 
 found in the Fourth Annual Report. During 1916 
 the Board has been at work upon a series of five 
 reports on Preparation for Dealing with Peoples 
 Professing Other Religions than Christianity. 
 Several of these reports will appear early in 1917, 
 but they require much time for completion. 
 
 Each of the reports in the four series already 
 issued have been in the first instance prepared by 
 a committee, carefully selected for its first-hand 
 
 4 
 
knowledge of the theme or for an authoritative 
 grasp of it. Each report as issued by its com¬ 
 mittee is printed and sent all over the world for 
 the searching criticism of those who are recognized 
 as experts. It is then carefully revised, often 
 twice. In consequence the reports are as nearly 
 as possible representative of the judgments of 
 the whole missionary world. They seem to be 
 read as eagerly by experienced missionaries as by 
 novices. 
 
 2. It makes These Results available for Mission 
 Boards, Educational Institutions' and Missionary 
 Candidates. —These reports are published at actual 
 cost. They are distributed by the various Mission 
 Boards to those who are looking forward to ser¬ 
 vice on the mission field. They may be ordered 
 directly from the Board of Missionary Preparation 
 at the prices indicated at the end of this pamphlet. 
 The Board is not provided with the means for 
 free distribution. 
 
 The reports are rapidly becoming a small library 
 of missionary preparation. Eventually they will 
 afford an answer to all questions naturally raised 
 by the keen, enthusiastic student of the missionary 
 enterprise. 
 
 3. It studies the Definite Needs of the Mission¬ 
 ary Candidate during his Days as a Student .— 
 Everyone who hopes to go to the mission field 
 requires much expert advice regarding his pro¬ 
 gram. Each candidate needs individual attention. 
 The Board aims to supplement and strengthen in 
 every feasible way the work of the candidate secre¬ 
 taries of the Boards in their study of the person¬ 
 ality, educational history and destination of the 
 candidates under their direction. 
 
 4 . It aids in studying the Needs of the Young 
 Missionary during his First Term of Service on 
 the Field. —This term of from five to seven years 
 
 5 
 
is the most critical period in the life of the young 
 missionary. He is in sore need of wise advice 
 born out of experience. The Board of Missionary 
 Preparation seeks to collate such counsel and to 
 make it available to the young missionary through 
 its publications. 
 
 5. It seeks to help Him to make a Fruitful 
 Use of His First Furlough .—The modern strategy 
 of missions calls for increasing specialization even 
 along with general ability. The able missionary 
 of the future will seek to he more or less of an 
 authority in some specific direction, of importance 
 to his field or suggested by it. The Board is 
 deeply interested in aiding the Foreign Boards 
 and their missions in promoting the selection and 
 encouragement of these studies and particularly 
 in helping the individual missionary to make a wise 
 use of a part of his first furlough in furthering 
 them. 
 
 6 . It cooperates with the Boards in persuad¬ 
 ing different Types of Educational Institutions to 
 provide the Courses required by candidates .—The 
 alert and zealous student may often be prevented 
 from making the wisest use of his time as a stu¬ 
 dent for lack of proper opportunities. The Board 
 through conference with leaders of each type of 
 educational activity, whether collegiate or pro¬ 
 fessional, seeks to assist in establishing certain 
 standards of equipment, organization and cur¬ 
 riculum, which will give to each institution its 
 maximum efficiency with reference to missionary 
 preparation. 
 
 7. It serves through its Office as a Central Bu¬ 
 reau of Information on Questions of Preparation 
 for Secretaries of Boards, for Missionaries on 
 Furlough, for Schools and for Candidates .—The 
 
 6 
 
questions which are legitimately raised by candi¬ 
 dates who seriously consider their problems are 
 innumerable and usually quite technical. To an¬ 
 swer them wisely taxes the resources of anyone 
 particularly of a busy Secretary. The Board of 
 Missionary Preparation places its resources at the 
 disposal of the Mission Boards for the careful 
 investigation of such problems and their helpful 
 solution. 
 
 The range of the Board is thus far-reaching. 
 As far as possible its work reflects the judgment 
 of the missionary experience of the world. It fills 
 a place of usefulness which no other organization 
 occupies. It occupies a unique field which taxes 
 its resources to the utmost, gives promise of steady 
 enlargement and broadening influence, and serves 
 as a fresh incentive to the spirit of friendly co¬ 
 operation among Christian believers for the fur¬ 
 therance of the Kingdom. 
 
 Any inquiries regarding its work or its publica¬ 
 tions and any request for its services should be 
 addressed to the Director, 
 
 Rev. Frank K. Sanders, Ph.D., 
 
 25 Madison Avenue, 
 New York City. 
 
 7 
 
Digitized by the Internet Archive 
 in 2019 with funding from 
 Columbia University Libraries 
 
 https://archive.org/details/boardofmissionarOOsand 
 
PUBLICATIONS OF THE 
 BOARD 
 
 PUBLICATIONS OF THE 
 BOARD OF MISSIONARY PREPARATION 
 
 The Second Annual Report (1912) 
 
 Containing the reports on ‘‘Fundamental Quali¬ 
 fications for Missionary Work” and on the “Facili¬ 
 ties for Training Missionary Candidates.” 
 
 Paper, price 25 cents, postpaid. 
 
 The Third Annual Report (1913) ' 
 
 Rich in suggestions concerning the special train¬ 
 ing which evangelistic, educational, medical, and 
 women missionaries should seek. It also contains 
 a report on the use of the missionary furlough, 
 a list of the institutions which offer special courses 
 for candidates and suggestions of valuable courses 
 of reading. 
 
 Paper, price 25 cents, postpaid. 
 
 The Fourth Annual Report (1914) 
 
 Containing reports on preparation for different 
 fields, such as China, Japan, India, Latin America, 
 the Near East and Pagan Africa. It also includes 
 full reports of the two important Conferences on 
 Preparation of Ordained Missionaries and Admin¬ 
 istrative Problems. 
 
 Paper, price 50 cents, postpaid. 
 
 The Fifth Annual Report (1915) 
 
 Containing reports of two important Confer¬ 
 ences on Preparation of Women for Foreign Ser¬ 
 vice and Preparation of Medical Missionaries, 
 besides other reports. 
 
 Paper, price 25 cents, postpaid.