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PASTOR GENERAL'S REPORT, APRIL 29, 1983
PAGE 4
Fair booth placed in front of the Student Exhibition
Hall in Paris . . . • • . . . . . . . . . . • . . . . . . 19.6%
Insert or blow-in cards in La PURE VERITE . . . . . • • • • 17.6%
Referrals of a general nature from, in order of
importance: Geneva, Paris, USA, Germany and others • . . . 14.5%
Space ads in Dutch, English and Swiss magazines
9.3%
PV newsstands . • . . • . . . . . . • • .
Card holder program . . . . . • • • • •
Miscellaneous .
7.9%
6.3%
4.7%
Currently 71% of all PV subscribers, excluding Canada, live in areas where
they have access to an ordained francophone minister to answer questions or
counsel and, if invited, they could attend Church services within reason
able travel distance on the Sabbath.
Mr. Herbert Armstrong has given the green light for placing display adver
tising in the French versions of the READER'S DIGEST, "Selection." For
several years the management of READER'S DIGEST wouldn't accept our adver
tising, but a "Strong Hand" has helped them change their minds. The first
of the two-page ads will appear in June in the separate editions for France,
Switzerland, Belgium, Canada and the French West Indies. If our past ex
perience is any indicator of the size of response we can expect, we should
have 6,000 to 10,000 new subscribers during June, July and August.
Australian News Incoming mail for March showed an encouraging 25.1% in
crease over the same month last year. A total of 21,148 letters were re
ceived and over 26,000 envelopes containing booklets and articles were
mailed to interested readers. so far this year we have received a 20.5%
increase in mail, compared to the first three months of 1982.
We registered only a small increase in income for the month--2.6% over
March, 1982. This was due first of all to the downturn in the national
economy, and secondly to a strong national appeal for contributions from
the general public for the victims of the recent forest fires. Many of our
regular contributors were among those who responded to the national appeal
rather than giving to God's Work.
For the first three months of 1983, positive and encouraging growth oc
curred in vital areas of God's Work in Australia. For the first quarter of
this year, over 1,000 new students were added to the BIBLE CORRESPONDENCE
COURSE list, a 358% increase over the same period last year.
There has been a marked increase in interest in the GOOD NEWS magazine. For
the first quarter of 1983, over 1,800 new subscribers were added to the
mailing list, bringing our total GN list for April to 6,100.
The number of new people responding to God's calling during the first
quarter of 1983 is also most encouraging. Christ added 80 new prospective
members--a 233% increase over the same period in 1982. Baptisms for the
first quarter numbered 42, a 91% increase over the first three months of
last year.