FOREIGN MISSION BOARD MINUTES
December 10, 1974
The Foreign Mission Board held Its regular monthly meeting at 3:00 p.m., December 10,
1974, in the Baker James Cauthen Chapel, Foreign Mission Board headquarters, Richmond,
Virginia. The President, W. 0. Vaught, Jr., presided.
PRESENT: State Members : Alabama: J. R. White; Arkansas : W. O. Vaught, Jr.; D. C. :
Kenneth E. Thornton; Florida: Don Mott; Georgia: Mrs. Lindsey Barron; Illinois :
A. F. Tuck; Indiana: Ronald P. Liesmann; Kansas: J. W. Pace; Kentucky: Mrs. Ray
Mullendore, Eldred M. Taylor; Maryland : Ralph D. Walls; Michigan: Hubert G. Keefer;
Mississippi: John Lee Taylor; Missouri: James W. Hackney; New Mexico: J. D. Ratliff;
North Carolina: Ray W. Benfield, Mrs. J. E. Collette; Ohio: W. Paul Payne; Oklahoma:
Robert L. Lynn; Oregon; William 0. Crews, Jr.; South Carolina: Ira Q. Craft; Ten¬
nessee: Joe L. Orr, C. Clifton Ward; Texas : Morris G. Cobb, E. H. Westmoreland;
Virginia: Mrs. James T. Cravens, Lonnie E. Quillen, Jr.
Local Members: Franklin D. Hall, Scott C. Humphrey, Neal T. Jones, Bruce H. Price,
M. Hunter Riggins, Jr., Mrs. Ross S. Shearer, Mrs. E. S. Stratton, Mrs. Thomas Whalen,
Robert B. Bass, J. Roy Clifford, Paul E. Crandall, Austin W. Farley, Gurney W. Grant,
John W. Patterson, Julian H. Pentecost, H. I. Willett.
Board '8 Attorney: John C. Williams.
Staff: Baker J. Cauthen, Charles W. Bryan, Louis R. Cobbs, J. Winston Crawley, Edna
Frances Dawkins, William K. Dawson, Samuel A. DeBord, Everett L. Deane, James G.
Edwards, Jesse C. Fletcher, Franklin T. Fowler, Cornell Goerner, lone Gray, W. Eugene
Grubbs, Ward S. Hildreth, Eugene L. Hill, Dwight A. Honeycutt, J. D. Hughey, W. David
Lockard, Floyd H. North, R. Keith Parks, Samuel M. Pittman, G. Norman Price, Sidney C.
Reber, Davis L. Saunders, Fon H. Scofield, Rogers M. Smith, Truman Smith, W. L. Smith,
Richard M. Styles, Wilbur N. Todd, Melvin E. Torstrick, E. L. Wright, Elizabeth Minshew.
The President called the meeting to order.
The audience joined in singing the Hymn: "0, Come All Ye Faithful"
Jesse C. Fletcher, director of the Board's Mission Support Division, read an excerpt
from his recent book, entitled Living Sacrifices : A Missionary Odyssey, and a Scripture
from Romans, the twelth chapter, and led in an opening prayer.
Board Minutes for November 5, 1974 were approved.
The President and Executive Secretary extended a cordial welcome to all Board members
and guests. Board members were commended for their excellent attendance.
The President recognized the Executive Secretary, Baker J. Cauthen.
Report of the Executive Secretary
The observance of the Week of Prayer for Foreign Missions has been
an outstanding event in thousands of churches. The Foreign Mission
Board staff has been busily engaged in many services in schools, associations,
conventions, and conferences. The spirit everywhere is exceptionally
high for support of missions through the Cooperative Program and the
Lottie Moon Christmas Offering.
The offering is just now being received, and it ts, of course, far
Coo early to have any measurement of it, but we are confident that it
will turn out to be a thrilling report and will strengthen the work of
missions all over the world.
We are also grateful to say that the report of sustained giving
through the Cooperative Program remains high and encouraging. These two
channels of support provide the basic resources for missionary outreach.
The coming of 23 missionaries for appointment today brings to a
close 1974 as one of the outstanding years in Foreign Mission Board
history from the standpoint of the appointment of missionaries. We are
grateful to our Lord that people continue to respond to God's calling
and offer their lives to our Lord for His service throughout the world.
It is evident that all we do in the appointment of missionaries
must be greatly increased in the years ahead. When we reach the year,
1980, we will enter into a period of escalating retirements. We will
not feel the effect of those retirements drastically in the first year
or two, but by the time we get to the mid-point of the decade we will
