One great error committed by many of us in the past is that of regarding work and things as arbitrarily high or low. But the author does not see why plowing corn may not be made just as sacred and just as divine a calling as preaching the gospel, provided the former be regarded in the light of service of some high spiritual purpose; as indeed it may be. So, here is a distinctive part of the function of the rural church; namely, to spiritualize work as well as workers--to urge upon the attention of the rural inhabitants the thought that their work must all be regarded as a means to the transformation of the community life and of each individual life into a thing of transcendent worth and beauty. A SUMMARY Now, here is the proposed plan in a nutshell. The country community is the best place in the world for bringing up a sturdy race of men and women and the country church is or can be made one of the greatest agencies in the achievement of this work. But such achievement can best be brought about only when the country church goes to work to save the whole boy and the whole girl. And that means that the church must understand better how human life grows up--that it must meet these growing boys and girls on their own level of everyday interest and socialize and spiritualize these interests through close contact with them. Then, make the rural church a social center for the young, including exercises in work and play and recreation, as well as a place for religious instruction. The child is a creature of activity and not of passivity. You cannot preach him into the kingdom in a lifetime; but you can get down with him and work with him and play with him and guide and direct him through his self-chosen, everyday interests, to the end that he may afterwards enter the ranks of the Lord's anointed. Again, it is urged, make your country church a center for the entire life of the community. Not only have the adults bring their practical affairs to this center for consideration, but have the boys and girls come with their implements of work and play, with their specimens of farm and home produce and handiwork, with their miniature menageries and workshops--all this with joy and reverence before and after the religious services. REFERENCES Efficient Democracy. W. H. Allen. Chapter X. "Efficiency in Religious Work." Dodd, Mead & Co. Rural Christendom. Charles Roads. Prize Essay. American Sunday-School Union, Philadelphia. Report of the Commission on Country Life, pp. 137-144, Sturgis-Walton Co. The Country Church and the Library. John Cotton Dana. _Outlook_, May 6, 1911. The Country Church and the Rural Problem. Kenyon L. Butterfield. University of Chicago Press. A strong presentation of the entire situation.