NOT “MISSIONS,” 
 BUT CHURCHES, 
 FOR WORKINGMEN 
 
 By the Rev. Charles Stelzle. 
 
 i 
 
 It has long since been discovered that the 
 average “ mission,” as a means for reaching 
 workingmen, is a failure. The women and 
 the children may be attracted, but the men 
 will not come. 
 
 The very name “ mission ” repels the inde¬ 
 pendent mechanic. It savors too much of 
 patronage or paternalism, and there are few 
 things that the workingman hates more than 
 these. Mr. Moody learned this lesson early in 
 his work. He never called any of his ven¬ 
 tures a “mission.” His first enterprise was 
 known as a “Tabernacle.” Then it became 
 a church. When he organized a so-called 
 “ rescue ” mission in the slums of Chicago he 
 insisted that it become known as “ Institute 
 Hall.” 
 
 If the workingman is to be reached, it must 
 be done through the Church — a church in 
 which he will .feel a personal interest because 
 - he has a part in its management. There is a 
 place in our city work for the rescue mission 
 — a very important place, sometimes. But we 
 are dealing just now not with the man who 
 has become an outcast, but with the bona-fide 
 workingman, who has a home and usually a 
 family. 
 
Such a Church sliQuld become the center 
 of the lives of the people of the community, 
 and its work should be pushed with vigor. 
 But the averrge church in a workingman’s 
 district is poorly equipped for aggressive 
 work, although it usually has a corps of work¬ 
 ers who will respond to trained and intelligent 
 leadership. If the same amount of money 
 which is spent in the average mission were put 
 into a regularly organized church, the result 
 would be a church equipped to do a splendid 
 work for the community. The money should 
 be spent only for special work, the people 
 themselves paying for the regular work of 
 the church. This should be insisted upon, 
 and should be made a condition upon which 
 the money for special work may be received. 
 
 There is many a city mission enterprise 
 supported by a wealthy church, the people of 
 the mission having no responsibility or care 
 as to the financial obligations of the work, with 
 the result that the people are being pauperized 
 and the work impoverished. 
 
 While personal service by those who have 
 had superior advantages — mentally, socially, 
 and spiritually — is of the utmost importance 
 in reaching and helping workingmen, it some¬ 
 times happens that there are many members 
 in the wealthier church who, for various 
 reasons, cannot render the service they would 
 like. The next best thing is to have a sub¬ 
 stitute in the city mission field. If a sufficient 
 number have a sense of responsibility in this 
 connection, it will he an easy matter for a 
 particular church to assume the care of an¬ 
 other church, situated in a mission field, and 
 to form something like a collegiate relation¬ 
 ship with that church, having perhaps two 
 elders and a similar number of trustees in an 
 advisory capacity, on its boards. 
 
This will be found far more satisfactory 
 than the old method of supporting a “ mis¬ 
 sion,” as there will be a healthier response on 
 the part of the people, and probably no greater 
 expense on the part of the larger church. 
 
 It is sometimes urged that competent of¬ 
 ficers cannot be found among the men in the 
 average mission, and this is offered as an ex¬ 
 cuse for non-organization. The trouble is 
 that we do not credit the average young man 
 in the mission with the good judgment and 
 general ability which he really possesses. The 
 people in a mission field mature much earlier 
 than those in the ” up town ” district. They 
 brush against men sooner. They have respon¬ 
 sibilities thrust upon them earlier. And their 
 judgment is about as good. 
 
 In a certain church (with which I am 
 familiar), where some of the best work in 
 this country is being done to-day, the elders 
 were all under thirty when the church was 
 organized, and of the seven deacons, only one 
 was over twent3^-one. The success of that 
 enterprise is due very largely to the devotion 
 of these workers. 
 
 Place the responsibility upon the shoulders 
 of the young workingmen in your mission 
 churches, and something will be done. They 
 will not be handicapped because of the pres¬ 
 sure of social duties. They will live for that 
 church which trusts them with office. They 
 understand the needs of the community better 
 than those who come from “ up town.” They 
 will be more enthusiastic because it is now 
 their work. They haven’t as many fears or 
 prejudices as their elders. 
 
 This is, therefore, commended as a workable 
 plan — a non-pauperizing church: a church 
 equipped with a strong force of competent 
 workers under intelligent, paid leadership; a 
 
church in such collegiate relationship as will 
 give the supporting church a friendly over¬ 
 sight,'bringing its officers and members into 
 touch with the problems of the workingman 
 through conference and frequent intercourse, 
 so that there will be a better understanding, 
 and, therefore, a more cordial relationship 
 between them; and the expenditure of a suf¬ 
 ficient amount of money to permit the doing 
 of the work which the neighborhood warrants 
 and really demands. 
 
 Other Leaflets by the Rev. Charles Stelzle. 
 
 “ Class Spirit in America.” 
 
 “ Has the Minister a ‘ Closed Shop *? ” 
 
 “ Is the Church Opposed to Workingmen? ” 
 
 “ Jesus Christ and Rich Men.” 
 
 “ Labor Leaders in the Church.” 
 
 “ One Pastor, One Church, One Year and One 
 Hundred Dollars.” 
 
 “ Special Work among Workingmen by the Pres¬ 
 byterian Board of_ Home Missions.” 
 
 “The Organization of an Anti-Poverty Society.” 
 
 “ The Plan of Campaign in the Interest of Work¬ 
 ingmen.” 
 
 “ The Relation of the Church to the Labor Move¬ 
 ment.” 
 
 The Board of Home Hissions of the Presbyterian 
 Church in the U. 5. A., 156 Fifth Avenue, New York 
 
 No. 206.—1st Ed.—12, 1904.