THE OFFICIAL ORGAN OF THE AFRICAN METHODIST EPISCOPAL'ZION CHURCH
CHARLOTTE, NORTH" CAROLINA, THURSDAY, SEPTEMBER
VOLUME FORTY-EIGHT
NUMBER THIRTY-FIVE
GOD AS ARTIST.
We are familiar with the idea of
God as Creator—we do not so often
think of God as Artist. The NeW
Testament gives us that liberty. St.
Paul in his letter to the Ephesians
writes “we are His workmanship.”
The Apostle is using the terms Of
Greek culture; translated literally
the sentence is, “we are God’s
poem.” The meaning of “poem” is
not restricted to what we Jinow as
“poetry”; a poem may be any work
of art, a picture, a statue, or a tem
ple. The “poet” is the “maker,”
and the fact that the word came to
be used exclusively for an artist,
whose medium of expression was
words reveals in how great honor the
Greekg held their poets. The poet
was the true maker, moulder, fash
ioner.
We fear that in our day the stand
ard of value in this particular has
greatly altered—the true maker in
the eyes of the world, is not the
poet, but the merchant—the man
who can make money. St. Paul, with
his cultured spirit, cannot have been
insensitive to the charm of, Greek
art, and there are evidences in his
writings that the creations of beauty
that have ever been the glory of
that nation made an appeal to his
wealthy nature. His appreciation of
the matchless grandeur of the works
of art at Athens and Corinth was,
however, marred by the fact that
all around he saw moral chaos, moral
ugliness, moral corruption.
The Supreme Work of Art.
For St. Paul the supreme work of
art was not perfectly fashioned
stone but a perfectly fashioned
character. God Himself in the eyes'
of the Apostle was the supreme ar
tist, and His chief work that of
moulding sinful men, so that th&y ex
press something of the beauty and
glory of Jesus Christ.
With the conception of God as
Artist, St. Paul couples that of God
as Creator. “We are His poem, cre
ated in Christ Jesus for good works. “
In the Scripture record pf the be
ginning of things we read that God
made man in His own image. That
was not a work of God completed at
a point of time once for all. It is a
work on which He Is constantly en
gaged, an age-long process. In our
own day, and with us God is contin
uously at work* making man in Hlsr
spiritual image. Thie work of Crea
tion is not yet finished; there is so
much even now in the moral sphere
that i8 without form and void; and.
wonder of wonders, God is seeking
man’s cooperation in bringing the
work of creation to its gloriour ful
fillment.
The conception of God as Artist is
a richer one than that of God as Cre
ator; it includes the ideas of beauty
and joy. A true artist delights in ex
pressing himsglf, whether in picture
or poem or statue. He pours his soul
into his work, and, strives to make
it as noble, as beautiful, as perfect, [
as his mastery^ over hig material®!
allows. I
G°d’s Delight in Creation.
On every hand there are evidences
that God delights in His creation. In
the Book of Job the poet "tells how
when God had finished His work of j
creation sharing the pleasure of the
Creator,
“The morning stars sang together,
And all the sons of God shouted for
joy.”
If the soul of Chistopher Wren was
thrilled with a deep emotion when he
saw his dream expressed in statelv
Pillar, vaulted aisle, \ and massive
dome, imagine the joy in the heart
of God at the wonder and beauty of
this fair creation! Jt Turner tasted
an exquisite pleasure when he recap
tured on canvas some of the glory
of the evening sky, does not God
Himself rejoice when He paints the
leavens with the richest colours?
God’s mastery over His materials
in the realm of inanimate nature la
complete. “He measures the waters
in the- hollow of His hand, metes out
heaven with a span, bringeth out the
hosts of theaters, and calleth them
nil by name.” There is nothing in
r to man, God’s chief work of art, we
are compelled to face an entirely
different situation. There is a great
deal of truth in. the familiar lines:—
“Though every prospect pleases
And only man is vile.”
Contrast the squalor', filth, and ug
liness of a city slum with the beauty
and purity of a windswept Dartmoor
crag. The outward filth, and disorder
of so many of the dwellings of men
is symptomatic of the chaos and
corruption of the squI. The great
and appalling tragedy of our
world is that so many men have
marred the Divine image in which
they were created, ^nd defiled the
temples meant to be, a habitation of
the Holy Spirit. While the stars and
the sea obey the will of the Creator
and declare His glory( man thwarts
the purposes of God sand refuses to
be shaped and fashioned by the Di
vine Artist.
“A Vale of Soul-Making.”
The crown of creation i& man, with
wondrous powers of thought, of emo
tion, of will: from whom God desires
an intelligent^ -a loving and a spon
taneous obedience. The whole mean
ing of the universe is found here: it
is, in the words of Keats, a “Vale of
Soulmaking. ”
Does it fill uij with wonder, love
and praise when we think of God at
work on the souls of men? He la
bors with infinite patience, with
infinite tenderness, and infinite love
in order to fashion souls who may
give Him back the love they owe,
and may commune with him as friend
with fritend. God has such a profound
respect for human personality, for
human liberty, that He never com
pels obedience.
Not by rough handling can this
supreme work of art be achieved,
hut by touch more *entir dun^a
mother’s, by the wooing constraint
of love. That man may respond more
readily and more fully to the Divine
ideal, God sent His Son Jesus Christ
to dwell among us. He was God’s
perfect workmanshipr without spot
or blemish, revealing in his charac
ter the Divine ideal for humanity.
Our Lord was more than God's per
fect work of art; He Himself was a
supreme artist. It is a joy to watch
(Continued ot page 8)
J.J. INGALLS ON THE
GENESIS OF AMERICA.
The genesis of other nations has
been legendary and obscure. They
have had an unrecorded infancy and
childhood of fable and mythology.
Their dawn has emerged from a dim
twilight peopled with vague shad* |
ows and phantoms, gods and giants
and hefoes whose loves and wars J
are written in the Iliad and odes of ,
race. But there is no Romulus and I
Remus business about the United j
States of America; none of its foun-'
ders were suckled by wolves on the ,
banks of the James or the inhospita-1
ble ghoress of Massachusetts bay. i
The 40,000 Englishmen who migrat-1
ed to Virginia and New England in
the first half of the 27th century are
no strangers. We know their names,
where they were bom, why they j
camet the day and hour they landed, i
and what they did when they set foot'
on shore. We know, for they told
us, that Massachusetts was discover
ed by accident and settled by mis*
take.
The Pilgrims did not intend to land
at Plymouth ( and they would not
have remained there could they have
gotten away. Tliey sailed for the
Hudson, and after a tempestuous
voyage or more than two months,
the Mayflower anchored off Cape
Cod.
From November 9 till December
22 they explored the sunless s
then, landing on Plymouth
founded the famous colony without
the knowledge of the corporation
that claimed the territory f and with
out the sanction of the government
by which it was chartered./ They
were neither much better nor much
worse than the average American
Citizen today. No doubt they
EXTRACTS FROM RE
PORT OF BUREAU
OF EDUCATION.
DIVISION OP ISABELA,
MANILA, P. L
By John H. Manning Butler.
V.
Sir:
I have the honor to submit the an
nual report of the Division Superin
tendent of Schools for Isabela for the
year 1923-24, as required by General
Circular No. 33,>. 19*8.
I. The Work of thd Year in Brief.
The schools were touched by lo
custs, floods and famine last year to
such extent that they might well be
pleaded as extenuating circumstanc
es were ond1 chided for fcny shortcom
ing in general progress or a dimin
ution of school spirit, f
During the first semester and
sometime afterwards every day there
was a school somewhere out in the
division fighting lo'custs. The con
BISHOP J. S CALDWELL, D.
D., SENIOR BISHOP OF THE
A. M. E. ZION CHURCH.
duct of the schools in the locust cam*
paign was but a matter of- routine
in accordance with plans of the di
vision office to save growing crops.
However, the most of the nets used
in the ' province for, ca ching flyers
, were made by school children during
| their industrial periods the sug
gestion of the locust board. Har*
I vests in both the southern and north
ern parts of the province owe much
to the activity of the school people
which has meant npt a little in the
food situation. '
It was a November-December flood
which brought the schools into bold
relief for initiative and service.
When others stood palsied our teach
ers and those under them went out
to render aid,, thinking less of per
sonal danger than the need of the
sufferers, caving both life and prop
erty.
The physical manifestation of in
terest hardly symbolized the quali ies
of courage and sympathy which act
uated pupi’.s to attend school on o’ne
meal a day and prompted a sharing
of their food with companions.
Teachers divided food gladly wi h
their children during a time when
none cried out in this world of suf
fering. v
‘‘Far from the maddening crowd’s
ignoble strife,” joined itself to the
task of rebuilding and replanting.
Qne day a* the high school a teach
er wept when recounting to me how
he had been unable to respond to a
request for rice to students, he hav
ing divided hig last with others who
had preceded them. The proviiicial
and district supervisors, by and
large, acted well their parts in the
somewhat tragic drama but for
their Spartanlike spirit and Christian
conduct to which I gladly bear tri
bute. Not only did they go to the
relief of the destitute and suffering
but obtained and assembled data
which were used to secure Bed Cross
assistance, aiding in the distribu
tion of foods and medicine^ and di
in ithe schdols the inaking of
gratifying. This is due largely tc
the spirit of cooperation on the part
of several government agencies and
tiie hunger of the Isabelans for edu*
cation sated as much as possible, by
alert and willing teachers.
The province of Isabela is bound
to lead her sisters in the Cagayan
Valley educationally. Not a school
was closed last year but new classes
were opened, some financed by mon
ey which patrons almost forced upon
us . The province has soil and climate
which combine in producing the best
tobacco and other crops indigenous
to vhis part of Luzon. Her vast
tracts of uncultivated territory are
being occupied by aggressive peoples
from the plains of the Agno, its
tributaries and the Ilocos Coast. The
incomers, as is manifest among set
tlers along the reaches of the Caga
yan river in Jones and the friar
lands and other cultivable and rich
ly producing places on the Magat,
are thrifty, resourceful, progressive
and ambitious. Like the Pilgrims
and Huguenots they are imbued with
the spirit and cherish for their chil
dren the best ideals of the commun
ities whence they came. Hence we
have here an original population,
virile and forward-facing, blended
with new comers of undaunted will
all bent upon schools as the means
of uplifting their children to match
the levels of and even overtop the
hillg and mountains which surround
them.
While teachers, taken as a whole,
do good work, failures are largely
caused by lack of efficient supervis
ion. It may seem strange, but| it is
true, that the supervising teachers,
with one or two exceptions, who are
least literate, made a better show
ing than those from whom because
. of academic attainments, much was
expected
It may be that those who faired to
measure up to requirements have a
laek . of vision or feel that their
present positions and advanced sal
aries al'e so secure that it is unne
cessary for them to be really solic
itous concerning the progress of
every child and every class. If the
service permitted the reduction of
salary for cause or when a super
visor’s work is so poor as to re-,
quire a change of status, I believe
that more effort would be put for
ward not only by supervisors but
teachers
The need of new schools will be
felt mostly in the .southern section
of the province now being settled
fcy immigrants. Experience shows it
well to adhere to the fruitful- policy
ef my predecessor, which is to insist
upon adequate sites on which are
erected good buidings with necessary
equipment before sending teachers
to communities where new schools
are desired.
Academic Instruction.
Special effort to improve the
quality of spoken English took form
at the division normal institute and
continued during the remainder of
the year in all grades and classes.
English pronunciation in the division
has been mainly dependent on the
recollection of how certain American
teachers pronounced words, Ho allow
ance being made for the lapses of
memory and the general mergence
of the English pronunciation into
the pronuncittion of language^ oth
.er than English or dialects spoken by
people in the division.
Two regional institutes were held
in January— one on Echague and the
otter in Cabagan. The instructors in
the institutes were members of the
division office force, the General
Office industrial teacher, the Red
Cross Nurse, and three model teach
ers whom the District Auditor per,
mitted to be used, holding that they
observed the wort df other teachers,
in other places thereby Improving
themselves for work in their home
towns.
Industrial Institute.
As will be seen from 'the division
industrial supervisor's report all
lines of industrial work went on
smoothly. However, the attitude of
pupils was not as encouraging as
FROM MY ANGLE.
By R. E. Clement.
There are no two persons allies.
There never was, nor will there
ever be. Different we are in our he
redity, different in our environment,,
different in our training and conse
quently different in our reactions.
The degree of difference in our re
actions is in direct proportion to the
degree of difference in our heredity;
environment, and training. Our eyes
may see the same thing, our cere
may hear alike, our hands may
touch, and yet'because of individual
differences, though we may have
seen and beard and touched the one
thing, we come to unlike eonehs
sions.
I am beginning today a column, or
a series of articles, or occasional
contributions (I am not so sure yet
what this will turn out to be) tender \
the caption, “FROM MY ANGLE.” It
will always be one man’s opinion
1 do not profess to see things as oth
er men see them—I may, I may not.
My only excuse for burdening yon
with these writings is that in mat
ters concerning race, * nation and \
Church you may get the advantage^
however slight it may be, of seeing
things from another’s viewpoint—a
yotang man’s viewpoint, if you.
please. If my excuse is allowed. Dyy
the editor I shall proceed,,
you,
The Connectional Council at Buf
falo, New York, has convened and
adjourned. By the waters of T.air«>
Erie in that beautiful and sturdy
church* erected through the labors
and prayers of Rev. Durham and tils*
followers we met. And it was a
good meeting! Oh,.I d<? not mean to
sa^fhafc there were no arguments,
no differences in opinion, no heated
debat es for I thank God there were*
wherever thinking, earnest, progres
sive, zealous men get together if they
speak of anything at all there will be
conflicts, there Will be differences.
But ihe differences, the conflicts,
will be tempered by brotherly lore
and Christian, fellowship, illuminated
with reason, /and concluded in peace
and harmony. And this we had!
All the bishops and all the general
officers except a few of the
women were present. Shaw was
there fresh from a great educational
drive in Alabama; there came Jones,
gifted son of an illustrious sire,
shaking the soil of Ihe southernmost
part of Carolina from' his feet; Walla,.
“Little Giant,” came treking in from
the plains of Arkansas; Martin* from
the golden slopes of the golden west,
brought tidings of a work well be
gun and visions of a greater werk to
be; Alleyne was there: have you read
his articles on Africa in The Star o£
Zion? Go bacjt and read them again,
put yoUrself in his place—can’t you *
feel the zeal, the enthusiasm, the
fire for the work consuming yooir '
soul? Alleyne was there!
Davenport made his initial bow,
Younge, Dudley and Carrington came
on and we were all pleased with the
work of Indianapolis .
? £ t
Pour years streteh out before us
’till our next goal line is crossed.
The Quadrennium beckons, today the
goal is >far ahead, tomorrow we shall
be looking back. Will the end of
these four years find ug'sighing over
lost opportunities, or shall we have
won the day. There is great work
ahead for Zion. There are great vic
tories that may be won ftfr God. We
have the men, we have the system.
May our Father grant unto us the
zeal and the soul. Let's bend to the
oars, let's pull together and make
this the greatest Quadrennium in the
history of Zion Methodism. It Is
our privilege, it is our task, it is^wir
duty!
We launch a great “Drive" for
missions, Africa in particular. Oar
work in the foreign field must sac ■
ceed. Ours is the task to build s
and churches and Christian
and Chistian men in A
must do this as we have