Eastern European Baptist History: New Perspectives, 2007

e on behalf of religious dissenters in Russia.“ Baptist and wider evangelical convergence was evident. The efforts being made in the early 1890s to “stretch out arms” fell into three main categories. First, there was communication, which included encouragement and gathering of information for prayer. The Executive Council of the British Alliance received many reports in this period from those able to travel in parts of Russia. Baedeker’s activity was astonishing. 6! EC, vol. 38 (April 1884), pp. 123-124. ® EC, vol. 39 (March 1885), p. 92. Annual Report to the Evangelical Alliance Council, 1884, p. Ll. * R.S. Latimer, With Christ in Russia, p. 125. * Annual Report to the Evangelical Alliance Executive Council, 1893, pp. 11-13. 29 He became known in many cities in Eastern Europe, and wherever he trav- elled, he gathered information about evangelical life. In Tbilisi, in 1892, for example, he met a man whom he described as “an intelligent Christian” who had lost his job as an engineer because of his faith. “Why don't you emigrate?” asked Baedeker. The reply was that “we love our native country and we know God rules”.® In autumn 1894 Baedeker included in his visits Bucharest, Odessa, Kiev, Tbilisi, Moscow, St Petersburg and the Baltic countries. Another reporter from England was J.D. Kilburn, a regular correspondent for the Alliance who travelled particularly in the Baltics in the early 1890s, describing Baptist growth, the poverty of many Baptists, and pressures from the police. Pastor John Frey [Janis Freijs], he reported, the Baptist pastor in Riga, had been fined for holding a cottage meeting. He was finding it hard to provide for his “over-worked wife and four deli- cate children”.® A.J. Arnold also travelled in Europe, and was able to have a two-day conference with Russian evangelicals. He found conversations with Pashkov in Frankfurt especially helpful.” As well as communication there was channelling of funds. Kilburn asked for financial support from the British Alliance, but it seems that there was some caution about this.® Baedeker, who was much more central to Alli- ance work, often took money with him to distribute. In 1894 the British Alliance said that some supporters wondered why little action was being taken over Russian persecutions, and reported that £900 had been raised. This included gifts from Holland and Switzerland.” There had been efforts to raise money in the USA, but after 1885 the Alliance in the USA gave less attention to international affairs, and no financial assistance materialised.”° In 1894 the British Alliance secured the help of an agent in St Petersburg (referred to, improbably, as Mr Smith) who distributed money to help those suffering.’ Some Alliance funds were also made available to those seeking to emigrate. The Alliance assisted some Baptists to escape to Romania.” ® EC, vol. 46 (June 1892), pp. 173-174. °° Executive Council Minutes, 10 April 1890; EC, v