By Dennis Fischer

HOME / STUDIES / REVIEWING THE TROOPS

The Seventh-day Adventist publishing team is considered a family within a family. Historically, various elements of the Publishing Department existed even before the Seventh-day Adventist Church was officially organized in 1863. Indeed, this enterprise was a major catalyst in the development of the church. This candid and factual exposition focuses primarily upon their “shock troops”—the literature evangelists (colporteurs) and their leaders. The in-house, self-described title of “shock troops” is meant to bolster their mission and morale. This is where the rubber hits the road. Please sit back, relax, and join me as we review the troops.

The Seventh-day Adventist Publishing Department produces two types of literature: subscription and trade publications. Trade literature is designed primarily for the Adventist consumer, and subscription literature is largely designated to be sold to the public by literature evangelists. Subscription literature is usually more illustrated to give added visual appeal to the public (for example, the colorful, ten-volume Bible Story set , Uncle Arthur’s Bedtime Stories, My Bible Friends, The Triumph of God’s Love, Bible Readings for the Home, and others). Some of their so-called “full message” books are often designed to match children’s books in a set to make an attractive unit of sale. These units of sale currently sell for several hundred dollars each. Sadly, high pressure, untruthful, unsavory, unethical, and deceptive methods are frequently employed by literature evangelists in selling these books and magazines. After all, selling Adventist literature is not the easiest thing in the world to do. There are many consumer objections to overcome. The intent is to sell these books without the consumer knowing that these are Adventist books.

Most large sales are made on credit contracts through the Home Health Education Service, a front organization without a listed phone number or website. The consumer merely has the address of the HHES for making payments by mail. The literature evangelist (colporteur) cannot be directly contacted after the sale (many maintain unlisted phone numbers to avoid any possible contact). He or she receives an advance commission based on the premise that nothing is sold until it is paid for. If the customer fails to make the payments, simply decides to return the books, or allows them to be repossessed, the literature evangelist must try to resell the books without any commission. Often these books are heavily soiled and damaged structurally. The literature evangelist must resell these dirty and torn books for whatever price he can get. This often means forfeiting a good sale in order to get rid of a resale. Resales must be made by a certain date in order for the literature evangelist not to lose his car insurance, medical coverage, credentialed status, tuition assistance for his children, and so forth. The resales are the most discouraging aspect in the literature ministry. Selling dirty (soiled) books is not easy. To my knowledge, no other Adventist employees have to be constantly worried about forfeiting these monetary benefits.

The literature ministry is considered to be equal in importance with the pastoral ministry according to Ellen White. However, literature evangelists have no tax shelters as pastors do. Adding misery to misery, Ellen White stated that colporteurs should not be subsidized with tithe funds in any measure. Adventist administrators continue to follow meticulously her policy guidelines in this matter. One would think she would have provided more generously for those who are trying to make a living by selling her books. The only exception is that publishing leaders are usually tithe-supported in varying degrees. Their slogan is that “sales mean souls.” Adding additional leaders to the payroll continues to be based solely upon field sales. Amazingly, Ellen White singled out the colporteur to be without any tithe subsidy. On the other hand, her royalties were largely increased by colporteur sales.

Oftentimes leaders are asked to call upon delinquent accounts of quit colporteurs and student colporteurs who have left the field. As a publishing leader, I sometimes helped my regular, full-time colporteurs by reselling some of their repossessed units. Believe me, selling dirty books for the Adventist Church wasn’t fun. In some Conferences, due to high delinquency rates, they employ full-time bill collectors known as “field adjusters” or other disguised titles. Repeatedly, various Union Conferences have been required to bail out the insolvency of their local Home Health Education Service (HHES). Obviously, by extending credit to virtually anyone on the street, this poses a serious financial risk that often becomes unmanageable by even the best accountants. To help alleviate these potential loses, “magabook” student programs in some academies and colleges have been organized. This student plan allows only cash sales from small units of sale—sometimes only one book—in door-to-door canvassing. Several students are taken, typically by a van, to various city locations to canvass after their daily classes.

 In many areas, due to the continued existence of Regional Conferences (African-American), Caucasian literature evangelists are discouraged from selling books to African-Americans and other minority groups (especially on credit). The rationale for this is that lower-income families are less likely to pay by mail. However, what about all the low-income white families that buy Adventist books on credit? Clearly, these are discriminatory practices based on racial profiling. HHES contracts used to have (maybe still have) an in-house code number to circle for identifying the race of the customer. Therefore, this assisted the HHES personnel in identifying literature evangelists who are not in full compliance with their policies.

Years ago, due to many financial problems from credit sales, publishing leaders decided to experiment with honoring a bank credit card. The credit card company soon discontinued them as a merchant due to their excessive consumer complaints. Some literature evangelists still work on the old COD plan for single book sales. I well remember accompanying one zealous colporteur as he made his deliveries on the COD plan. He tried to deliver quickly as many books as possible on a given day to avoid possible cancellations from neighborhood communication of his presence. As the COD customer would open the door, he would very quickly rip off the cellophane book wrapper. The customer would immediately attempt to explain that she had tried to call him without success that she wanted to cancel her order. At that point, the colporteur quickly interrupted and said, “Mrs. Jones, I am very rushed on this delivery day. Let’s have a word of prayer” (while holding open the screen door). He would boldly ask God’s blessing upon the new book to be placed their home. After that overpowering prayer tactic, the lady would possibly raid the piggy bank of her children to pay for the book. It was a sad scene of misusing prayer over and over all day long.

Most full-time, credentialed literature evangelists work largely on a lead card system. These lead cards are obtained from display copies of The Bible Story set placed in doctor’s offices across the land. The physician and his staff are completely unaware that they are a vital part of an Adventist evangelistic team. The routine replenishing of the lead cards at doctor’s offices is commonly referred to as “programming” instead of the commercial-sounding word “advertising.” Literature evangelists often obtain clergy endorsements for their books in the communities in which they are working. These letters of recommendation are a part of their arsenal in deceiving the public. Unfortunately, in this slick maneuver, the ministers and priests are deceived as well. For example, as a literature evangelist, I sometimes visited non-Adventist churches on Sunday morning. During the following week, I would encounter some of the parishioners who would delight in the fact that they had seen me in their church last Sunday.

Sometimes people would ask me, “What church do you attend?” My evasive response was typically, “I never tell people what church I go to because that would limit the amount of good I can do. I am sure you understand.” Even more subtly deceptive, I would usually try to answer an objection before it was even stated, “By the way, Mrs. Jones, these books are for both Protestants and Catholics. Sometimes people wonder about that. It’s nice to know that they are for all Christians.” Typically, after that statement, the prospective customer would add, “Thank you. I was wondering about that.” Occasionally, people would ask me, particularly in the Bible belt, “Are you saved? I prefer not to buy books from an unsaved person.” My response to that was again very carefully phrased, “Yes, of course. I have accepted Christ as well.” Also, in the Southern Bible belt, prospective customers were often addressed as “Brother” or “Sister” for sales purposes.

Deceptively, I wanted them to consider me as a fellow Evangelical. Even my general conversation was decidedly on their side. For example, believing otherwise, I would point out how terrible it was that our children can no longer pray and/or read the Bible in our schools (of course, I actually believed in the separation of Church and State). Also, I would state how abortion was wrong and how godless our country has become. As an Adventist, I fervently believed differently from what I was hoping they thought I believed. Literature evangelists, upon receiving a lead card, will even evaluate the handwriting. We became fairly accurate in our handwriting analysis, being able to determine things such as age, gender, and so forth. Secondly, we would go the post office to find rural directions to their home. Of course, we would never call them for this information. They would simply have told us to forget it all if we did.

Upon full payment or down payment, if paid by check, we would immediately run to their bank to cash it before they might change their minds. If the customer check was simply deposited, it would allow time for them to stop payment. Interestingly, the HHES would not accept customer checks at the end of our work week. They would only accept checks from the literature evangelist’s personal checking account. Therefore, we had to be certain that all checks were cashed or cleared before writing a personal check to them. After remitting the necessary funds weekly, we would receive an advance commission. Cash sales had a more generous percentage of profit per sale.

All in all, literature evangelism is incredibly difficult. It’s a hard and cruel way to make a living. I started canvassing while still a teenager. Later, as a publishing leader, I recruited and trained many people. Regrettably, I taught them all the tricks of the trade. I preached perfectionist and promotional sermons weekly (as many as three sermons in one day). The Lord has graciously forgiven me. In spite of frequent weekend rallies and potluck dinners to encourage their ministry, the turnover rate among literature evangelists is very high. New converts to Adventism are prime recruiting targets by publishing leaders. New converts, entering literature evangelism, initially feel as if they have been promoted beyond their wildest dreams. However, this love affair is soon diminished in varying degrees. It often becomes their first negative experience in their newly-found religion.

The preceding overview reflects policies that were effect during the 1970s. Obviously, a number of things would change during this time span. Therefore, in my endeavor to present the latest, up-to-date information on the status of literature evangelists, I have recently communicated by phone with two publishing houses, one Union Conference, one local Conference, one overseas Division office, and the General Conference headquarters. What I discovered in this latest probe was even worse than I had expected. For example, I was truly shocked to learn that the literature evangelists in the North American Division are no longer eligible for auto, educational, medical, and retirement benefits. They are now considered merely as “independent distributors” by the Review and Herald and Pacific Press publishing houses that now largely manage the consolidated LE program. 

Most local conferences no longer even have a publishing department. These two American publishing houses merely sell books to literature evangelists at a wholesale price. If the literature evangelist directly buys enough books to meet a certain quota in a given time period, the publishing house will send them a small bonus check as an ongoing incentive plan. Due to high gasoline prices in recent times, devout literature evangelists have been forced to utilize telemarketing methods to set up appointments with potential clients. We can be very certain that they are not telling people by phone that they are selling Adventist books. One large local Conference I contacted only had five full-time literature evangelists. A large Union Conference that once had several hundred literature evangelists now has only 70 left in their field. In most areas of the North American Division, the literature evangelists are now entirely on their own for advertising, billing, collecting, and selling. 

Also, many literature evangelists no longer receive complimentary display copies of Volume One of The Bible Story set. They have to buy their own copies, in some Conferences, to leave in medical offices to acquire leads. Interestingly, I discovered that one retired publishing leader’s wife owns a collection agency specifically geared to collect delinquent customer accounts on a Union-wide basis. The Southern Union Conference is the only area where billing is still done through their Home Health Education Service for literature evangelists. After a four-month delinquency, the HHES accounts are then turned over to her business for professional collection. In summary, it is evident that the full-time literature evangelist program is nearly at a standstill in the North American Division.  While no longer considered as full-fledged denominational workers, it is no surprise that the troops are going AWOL in record numbers. 

Thank you for reviewing the SDA “shock troops” with me. †

 

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Copyright 2007 Life Assurance Ministries, Inc., Glendale, Arizona, USA. All rights reserved. Revised August 6, 2007. Contact email: proclamation@gmail.com