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RELIEF AND ANNUITY BOARD 447
denominationally employed persons. No additional plans are now contemplated.
For illustration, we are calling your attention to the boards, agencies, and institutions
now being served by our several plans and the several groups within
these institutions and agencies that are participating. We are serving 7 general
boards and agencies of the Southern Baptist Convention (all Southern agencies
save one); 20 state conventions; 20 state boards and their S.S., B.T.U., B.S.U.,
Brotherhood and evangelistic staffs; 20 state W.M.U. staffs; 6 Baptist Book
Stores; 20 colleges and seminaries; 16 orphanages; 20 denominational papers;
one old folks' home; one Foreign Board publishing house; 4 Baptist Foundations;
6 hospitals; and the pastors and many other workers of over 12,000
churches.
The answer is no if it is meant to inquire whether or not our cords have
been lengthened to the nth degree in the matter of enlistment of members.
There are literally thousands of denominationally employed workers, and this
includes several thousand pastors, who are not participating in any one of our
plans.
Amplitude is a word which challenges us to heroic endeavor in bringing into
these plans the multitude of our preachers and other workers who have not
been enlisted. Surely, our proffered plans should rapidly become the accepted
means whereby employed denominational workers would have the sheltering
care of our commodious Southern Baptist House of Protection. More and more
this result is being realized. From January 1, 1945, to March 15, 1946, over
2,200 new members have been secured. Since 1919, 16,600 members have been
enrolled.
Now, for the record, we will say that all of our eleven new annuity plans
were set up within the framework of the Board's charter, and with the approval
of the Southern Baptist Convention. Each of these plans were and are well
within the original'concept of the Convention when it launched the Board. Each
of these newer plans may properly be said to stem from the (Old) Annuity
Plan, which had the full approval of the Convention in 1919, and its pledge of
ample financing in 1920. Even more emphatically, perhaps, these later plans
have stemmed from the Service Annuity Plan, which had full Convention ap^
proval in May, 1930.
It is significant that the Southern Baptist Convention, on the advice of the
Executive Committee, considered that its eleemosynary and educational work
were not clearly authorized under the charter granted by the State of Georgia
in December, 1845, hence in 1943 there was secured, through special legislative
enactment, an enabling act which became in reality a pant of the Convention's
original charter for eleemosynary and religious corporations, which act clearly
authorized the Convention to carry on its eleemosynary and educational activities.
The enabling act, as it affects the Relief and Annuity Board, reads as
follows: "To conduct and carry into effect any plan for the care, maintenance
and support of its workers and employees who may have become disabled, been
retired, or otherwise made eligible for the benefits of said plan, and in connection
therewith to conduct a plan for the establishment and payment of
annuities in connection therewith." The Convention, by the specifications written
into its own charter, again put its seal of approval upon the varied activities
of its Relief and Annuity Board in all the departments of its work.
The charter of the Relief and Annuity Board did not and does not require
revision. This was fully proved by our Attorney, Mr. Knox W. Sherrill, to the
complete satisfaction of a special committee of the Convention's Executive
Committee whose members came to Dallas several years ago for purpose of
inquiry regarding the scope of work authorized by the Board's charter.
II. STRENGTHENING OUR STAKES
But back to our text in Isaiah 54:2, "Strengthen thy stakes." Here is indicated
a sound economic method of executing the work of the Kingdom of God.
It also suggests a sound economy for the Relief and Annuity Board.
Since we have attained, for these times at least, amplitude in the development
of plans suited to all groups and individuals among Southern Baptist
employees, and, more particularly, since we have attained this quality to the
large degree in the memberships which has been indicated in this discussion, it
inevitably follows as a sine qua non that we speedily attain the same quality
in large our group financial of status. recipients The necessitates payment of proportionate annuities over financial the life-time strength. of a very Our