Our cover picture shows the Ministerial secretaries who, as evangelistic leaders in their respective union and local conferences, are leading out in the program of public evangelism. Guiding and inspiring this important phase of the church's work requires qualified and experienced men. In some of our overseas fields, in addition to the division Ministerial Association secretaries, union secretaries are regularly appointed to lead out in this work. Holding Ministerial institutes, conducting field schools of evangelism in connection with large public campaigns, and sharing the program with the pastor-evangelists inspires the workers to greater urgency in proclaiming the third angel's message.
Many years ago the messenger of the Lord wrote: "It is harder to reach the hearts of men today than it was twenty years ago. The most convincing arguments may be presented, and yet sinners seem as far from salvation as ever."—Evangelism, p. 178.
If that was true in 1908, how much more difficult is our task today. Where there was one barrier then, today there are twenty. This should not discourage us; it should rather challenge us to find new ways and devise better methods for reaching the multitudes. That is why we need specialists who can give inspiration and guidance in this most difficult but most rewarding work.
In a few instances our ministerial secretaries are also carrying some other responsibilities, such as radio or educational work. But most are giving their full time to ministerial work, and where they do, the results always justify the investment.
Evangelism has ever been the watchword of the Advent Movement. This was emphasized anew at the recent Spring Meeting held in Takoma Park when the union presidents of the North American Division reported the soul-winning results within their fields.
J. D. Smith of the Lake Union Conference reported that the Lake Region Conference had set for their evangelistic goal 1,000 baptisms for 1965. He reminded us that "one of our most difficult fields for soul winning is Wisconsin, but we are holding evangelistic campaigns all the year round. In our union we aim to reach 3,000 baptisms this year."
Neal C. Wilson of the Columbia Union emphasized that all conference presidents, institutional and departmental leaders, together with all the pastors, were mobilizing the whole church for evangelism. They have set as a goal for this union, 4,200 baptisms for 1965. "And we believe we shall reach that by God's help," he said.
W. J. Hackett of the North Pacific Union told of one minister who gives a Bible study right on the air in the Portland area. This is a television program. "Eighty per cent of the baptisms in that area have been traced to this program," he said. "The It Is Written program is doing well in Alaska right now under the leadership of G. E. Vandeman; 162 families near Fairbanks have expressed deep interest and are eager for further contact." Five or six of Alaska's cities are being opened to the program.
J. W. Bothe reported that the British Columbia Conference had doubled their baptisms last year, Alberta Conference having done the same the year before. "We have now succeeded in securing time on two radio stations, airing French programs," he said, "one in Quebec, the other in Montreal. This we feel is a very definite leading of the Lord."
F. R. Millard of the Atlantic Union told of big plans for that area. E. E. Cleveland of the General Conference is to be located in New York City, on Long Island, for a number of months, leading out in a large evangelistic program with a field school of 35 workers. "We have a ministerial secretary for our union," he said, "and he is carrying a big burden for evangelism in our territory."
R. R. Bietz of the Pacific Union Conference, with a membership of 88,521, told how they hoped to reach 100,000 by the time of the 1967 workers' meeting. "Last year we baptized 4,257 but in 1965 we hope to reach at least 5,000 baptisms. The Southeastern California Conference has a tremendous program with lay participation. They have ordered 15,000 Bibles for the project."
L. J. Leiske of the Southern Union said they had set their goal for 1965 at 4,500 baptisms. "Under the blessing of God we trust that our membership will pass the 51,000 mark this year. In the first quarter of 1964 we baptized 511; this year the number is 939. The reason? We believe it is partly due to our program of the "Pulpit Exchange," which we have put on throughout the whole union. Big things are being undertaken in our field, and we are of good courage."
Not all who spoke have been mentioned, but the note of confidence sounded by each was heartening.
Not long ago, with a view to encouraging the soul-winning program of our pastors and evangelists, the Ministerial Association gave special attention to those who baptized one hundred or more during the year, calling them Men of the Century. In Inter-America they call them Centurions. There were seventeen Centurions in the West Indies Union last year. In the world field 146 of our evangelists reached that high objective. Together these men baptized 17,701 souls! Eleven of the 146 were right here in North America. These eleven baptized 1,641 between them. Another encouraging feature was that one hundred thirty-one evangelistic campaigns were conducted in entirely new territories.
Introducing Ministerial Association Secretaries for North America
(1) HAROLD E. METCALF was graduated from Washington Missionary College, now Columbia Union College, in 1943 as a theological major. For a few months he assisted Pastors W. Riston and L. Coon as singing evangelist. In 1944 he held an evangelistic series in Martinsburg, West Virginia, baptizing 66 persons, which doubled the membership of the church. Later he held evangelistic meetings in Hagerstown, Maryland; Charlestown, West Virginia; Dover, Delaware; and elsewhere. Pastor Metcalf spent four years as the Oregon Conference evangelist, holding meetings in Medford, Oregon; Vancouver, Washington; and Portland, Oregon. Then he came to the Potomac Conference where he was associate pastor of the Sligo church, pastor-evangelist in Wytheville, Virginia, and later Georgia-Cumberland Conference evangelist. Pastor Metcalf was born in Akron, Ohio. He married Marjorie Gibson and they have two girls.
(2) EVERETT E. CUMBO was born in Washing. ton State and was graduated from Walla Walla College with a B.Th. in 1950. He attended the Seventh-day Adventist Theological Seminary, receiving his M.A. in 1951. From 1951 to 1960 he was a pastor-evangelist in the Greater New York Conference. Then he was called to the Kentucky-Tennessee Conference where he pastored the Highland Academy church in 1960 and 1961 and was conference evangelist from 1961 to 1963. Georgia-Cumberland Conference has been his field of labor since. Pastor Cumbo married Meryle Peavoy in 1947. They have three children—two girls and a boy.
(3) G. H. RAINEY is a native of the State of Virginia and a veteran of World War II, having served two and one-half years in the Navy. He attended Oakwood College where he received his degree in the field of religion. Pastor Rainey has spent the past thirteen years in public evangelism and has worked in such cities as Greenville, Leland, Hollandale, Belzoni, and Jackson in Mississippi; Richmond, Petersburg, Norfolk, Portsmouth, Roanoke, and Lynchburg in Virginia. He preached the Word also in Cincinnati, Ohio; Peekskill, New York; Hartford and New Haven, Connecticut; and Springfield, Massachusetts. His plans are for an evangelistic campaign in Buffalo, New York. He married Martha Ricks and they have three daughters.
(4) J. MALCOLM PHIPPS was born in 1930 in Camden, New Jersey, and received his early education in the church schools of Baltimore, Maryland, and Cincinnati, Ohio. In 1953 he received his B.A. degree in religion from Emmanuel Missionary College. His ministry began in the South Atlantic Conference and during his first ten months of internship he assisted in three evangelistic campaigns, working with L. E. Daniels in Spartansburg, South Carolina; E. C. Ward in Columbus, Georgia; and H. L. Cleveland in Tallahassee, Florida. Since 1954 he has pastored districts in South Carolina, Florida, and North Carolina. In 1961 he became conference evangelist for the South Atlantic Conference. Pastor Phipps accepted a call to the Lake Region Conference to become secretary of evangelism, which position he holds at the present time. He and his wife, Leola, have three children.
(5) KENNETH J. MITTLEIDER was reared in Idaho and attended church school in Boise and at Gem State Academy. He was graduated with a B.A. in Biblical languages from Walla Walla College in 1951 and served his internship in the Idaho Conference. For four and one-half years he was engaged in pastoral-evangelistic work but in 1958 he was called to the Washington Conference as conference evangelist. For three months he and his team were lent to the Wisconsin Conference, where they held two campaigns in the spring of 1964. Since then Pastor Mittleider has been union evangelist for the North Pacific Union Conference. He married Barbara Wagner in 1949 and they have three sons.
(6) J. REYNOLDS HOFFMAN was ordained in 1946 in Shreveport, Louisiana. He interned in Dallas-Tyler, Texas, and since then he has served the Lord as pastor-evangelist in Monroe, Louisiana; Little Rock, Arkansas; Shreveport, Louisiana; Hutchinson, Kansas; Arkansas-Louisiana Conference; and as director of New York Center. Pastor Hoffman received his B.A. from Union College, Lincoln, Nebraska, and the Diplome Superieure from Alliance Francaise, Paris, France. He married Mildred Comrie and they have a boy and a girl.
(7) ORLEY M. BERG was graduated from Pacific Union College in 1945 and was called to care for two small churches in California. After field experience in four churches he attended the Theological Seminary for further training. His ministry included pastorates in North Hollywood, Los Angeles, and Lynwood, California. He also served as religious liberty secretary of the Southern California Conference from 1951 to 1954. The large, modern church at Jacksonville, Florida, is a monument to Pastor's Berg's leadership. There he saw the membership grow from 475 to 660. Along with a church building program, an active campaign was conducted that produced this result. More recently Pastor Berg directed the work in Memphis, Tennessee, where he built a new church and watched the membership grow from 164 to 330. He was for two years a member of the General Conference Committee representing the pastoral work of the church. He married Olive Etter in 1942 and they have two boys and a girl.
The Ax Gets the Ax
HUMAN pride is a universal affliction. Said the barefoot tenant farmer being berated by his foreman, "I've still got my pride." To a lesser or greater degree, so do we all. The peculiar thing about it is, when it is least suspected, it is present. Like deadly carbon monoxide. it is present before detected, and equally fatal.
As it afflicts us, pride has a threefold expression: (1) pride of race, (2) pride of place, (3) and pride of grace. As to pride of race, all of Lucifer's praiseworthy origin will not save him now. As to pride of place, position may not be equated with salvation in any sense. Of pride of grace it may be said, Two men went to the temple to pray, only one left justified. It was not the one who prided himself in the fact that he was not "like other men."
Any pride robs the Creator of His rightful praise, for "it is he that bath made us, and not we ourselves." The role of the creature is to reflect glory to his Creator. Man is but an instrument in the hand of his Maker. He can claim no credit for a job well done or victory won. "Shall the ax boast itself against him that heweth therewith?" (Isa. 10:15). This seems to me the surest way for the "ax to get the ax."
E. E. C.
