accepted the Government grant. The rest declined.100 When the governmental grant arrived, 412 Pentecostal Churches with 81,437 members accepted it.101 ‛The grant shall be used to improve the conditions of the economically weak Churches, to maintain Churches and offer religious service in the form of divine worship, care of souls and the like.‛102 The committee adhered to the suggestions and recommended them in a letter to the Churches. They remarked however, that in some quarters, Pentecostal members had expressed other views as to the distribution of the means. This point was dealt with in a later letter. Objections had been raised against the recommended principle of distributions in the royal letter.‛How can we define the term economically weak congregations?‛ ‛All Churches can be called economically weak.‛ This evaluation can also refer to ‛the large Churches with their comprehensive pioneering work in new parts of the towns or cities‛.103 The preachers meeting decided that ‛every Church, which accepts the contribution, through the service of the Assistant Fund gets a sum‛ which in size related to its membership. On the other hand a Church, who wishes to abstain from its share to the benefit of another purpose within the Swedish Pentecostal Movement, may do so.104 On the board for this fund there is no woman represented. The average age of the members is 68.7 years. Six of those are Pastors and one a factory owner.
6.5 Lewi Pethrus’ Foundation for Philanthropic Work Already as a Pastor in the Baptist Church at Lidköping during the years 1906–10, Lewi Pethrus was engaged in philanthropic work. The following year when he was appointed as Pastor of the Philadelphia Church in Stockholm, different forms of social activities developed. 105
_________________ 100 Evangelii Härold nr 2 1972, Arne Eklund, ‛Eko från predikantdagarna‛. 101 Interviews, Daniel Ribba 3.5.73. 102 Public acts, ’Kungl. Maj:ts regleringsbrev’, Dnr 2134/71, 4.6.71. 103 Letters, Samuel Edestav … 21.9.71 and 22.10.71. 104 Evangelii Härold nr 2 1972, Arne Eklund, ‛Eko från predikantdagarna‛. – Compare
with the letter of 21.9.71, mentioned above. 105 Pethrus 1953b, p. 217. – Sundstedt 1972, p. 77, 124 ff. – Sundstedt 1971b, p. 44, 45,
51-54.
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