This Week in Texas Methodist History March 8

Southwestern Christian Advocate Reports on Subscription Campaign, March 14, 1940

A previous post reported on the re-organization of the Texas Christian Advocate following the unexpected death of A. J. Weeks, editor and business manager.  The denominational organ encompassed Methodist churches in Texas, Oklahoma, and New Mexico.  Bishops met in Dallas in January, 1940 and developed a plan to revive the finances of the Advocate.  The plan assigned quotas to all the districts and offered a special subscription rate of $.50 for the next six months,  The bishops expected that when the South Central Jurisdiction met in July 1940, it would expand the scope of the Advocate to the other states in the jurisdiction.   

The duties of editor and business manager would be separated.  Retired Bishop John M. Moore would assume the duties of editor-in-chief and each annual conference would supply an associate editor.  Harry DeVore would serve as business manager.  All members of the new team would serve without salary. 

How did the subscription campaign work out?   Not very well, it seems.  Evidently Bishop Moore was not averse to using public pressure because on March 14 all of the churches with 1000 membership in Texas, New Mexico, and Oklahoma, complete with membership and number of subscriptions was published.  The pastor’s name was also published.  The results were a little embarrassing.   The quota had been one subscription per every 20 members, and the campaign had not come close.

First Methodist Houston P. W. Quillian pastor, had the largest membership of any Methodist church in the region in 1940  with 5264 on the church roll with only 6 subscriptions.  Other 1000+ Texas Conference churches with subscriptions in the single digits included Marshall First  with 4 and Jacksonville First with 9.  

The Central Texas Conference 1000+ churches with fewer than 10 members were Hillsboro and Waxahachie.  First Abilene and Polk Street Amarillo made the list for the North Texas Conference. 

On the other hand, there were a few examples of churches that exceed the quota.  First Wichita Falls where Paul Martin (later bishop) was pastor, reported 120 subscriptions in a 2100 member church.  Pampa First and Corpus Christi First also exceed their quota.  The star churches in the Central Texas Conference were Herring Ave. in Waco and First Fort Worth. 

The Jurisdictional Conference did not establish a jurisdictional newspaper.  The Advocate continued as a regional publication.