North Carolina Newspapers

c PAGETWd TH£ CAROLINA TIMES SATURDAY, JULY 25, 1953 THE OtKIFIXION OF DK. CHARLES JONES IS COMPLETE Whether int«itionally or unintentionally, the state ment oi Reverend Charles Jones, in which the distin^ uished, beloved and highly respected minister asked to be divested of his office as a Presbyterian member of the cloth, deals a stafsering blow at the hypocrisy in that branch of the Presbjrterian Church U. S. known as the Orange Presbytery. Not since ^e days of Calvin, Knox, Wesley and Latimer has any part of the Christian Church had to stand up against such a devastating broadside. Long after the names of the little cli(me of bigots known as the Orange Presbytery’s Council are forgotten, the name of Charles Janes will be remembered as that of a man who had the courage to take up arms against one of the most diabolical group of men in modern church history. The crucifixion which they perpetrated against this min ister of the gospel, whose out standing sin appears to be that he has endeavored to practice the teachings of Je sus, will go down in church history as not tuilike that of the Master. The Orange Pr«>a- bytery’s Council ought to get a coat of Rev. Jones and cast lots for it. Negroes who read the statement of Rev. Jones will have a deep sense of under standing when he declares that a full and fair trial in tha Orange Presbytery is unlike ly. So often have members of their group been arrested, tried and sentenced to death in hostile territory without friends that it will not be hard for the most of them to understand the situation in which Dr. Jones finds him self. Seldom has any statement exposed in such a telling manner the vicious trickery and downright hellishness of a church group. Every sense of fairness was abandoned, and one stands in amazement as he realizes the d^Uis to which these men, in the name of a church commission, have descended. iiays the report of the Com mission in part: “In short, the Commission has found that the crux of the matter, theologically speak ing, is not the percentage of the Confession of Faith sub scribed or rejected, but rather a controlling philosophy vari ously expresskl that: BEING A CHRISTIAN IS MORE IMPORTANT THAN BEING A PRESBYTERIAN: OR THAT DOCTRINAL RADI CALISM IS OF LESS IM- PORTANCE THAN WHETHER OR NOT INDI VIDUALS SHALL BE FREE TO WORSHIP GOD AS THEY PLEASE: OR THAT DOCTRINES ARE AFFIR MATIONS THAT GROW OUT OF AN INDIVIDUAL’S OR A NATION’S EXPERI ENCE: OR THAT A MAN’S EXPERIENCE OF GOO IS THE MATERIAL OUT OF WHICH HE FORMULATES HIS DOCTRINE ABOUT GOD." Says Dr. Jones: “A careful analysis of this paragraph uncovers several problems; THE RE LATIONSHIP BETWEEN DENOMINATIONAL- ISM (PRESBYTERIANISM) AND THE CHRISTIAN MOVEMENT AS A WHOLE. “This church believes ... it is more important to be a Christian than to be a Presby terian. (From the Report— Judicial Commission, Orange Presbytery). “This statement imphes that it is more important to be Presbyterian than to be a dhristian. “I believe a Christian’s prime loyalty is to God as we luiow Him through Jesus Christ and not to any institu tion as such.. . “Denominations have risen at various times in the history of the Christian movement when a truth needed a wit ness and a deed needed cour ageous doing... “ . . . denominations have risen in crises of history when a truth of God needed em bodiment. So I do not con ceive of the Presbyterian de nomination as the possessor of more Christian truth than other denominations ...” The Commission’s indirect charge that Dr. Jones’ church “beheves it is more import ant to be Christian than to be Presbyterian” is the center around which this whole con troversy revolves. Indeed, it is much akin to the center a- round which the anti-Negro attitude of the white South revolves, the denominational strife between Baptists and Methodists, especially Negro, and the general denomina tional strife between other denominations of the church. For, in spite of the over^ importance of the Father hood of God and the brother hood of man, there are thos^ in the Baptist and the Meth odist church (and in others, too) whose philosophy is Baptist or Methodist FIRST, then a Christian. Likewise, a poor, ignorant white man in the South will suffer hunger, poor housing and other in justices at the hands of the ruling class so long as he can have the soul-satisfaction of hping plasRpH ^ & whito man His philosophy is: let me be a white man in hell so long as the devil is white and so long as he will put a partition between that part of hell in which I bum and that part in which the Negroes burn. Bet ter to be a white man in a segregated hell than to oc cupy a mansion in an unsegre- gat^ heaven. So, the Orange Presbytery and the Judical Commission which it empowered to in vestigate Dr. Jon^ followed the beaten path of its kind. Certainly, in their estimation being a Presbyterian is more important than being a Chris tian. For under and behind the Southernarian Presby terian cloak it is possible to uphold the doctrine of white supremacy, of segregated workship of God and the oth er ungo^y practices. Chris tianity in all its purity rips the cover from such hypo crisy and thunders in man’s soul the eternal philosophy of “whosoever will let him come.” When Dr. Jones attempted to practice the doctrine ot the Fatherhood of God i and the brotherhood of man in his church at Chapel Hill, he did not transgress the tenets of the Christian religion, but of Southern Presbyterianism, the kind that had the auda city in 1B57 to pull out from the General Presbyterian Church over the question of slavery. It is still out, and we predict it will remain out so long as the General Church demands that it accept all men as brothers. So, at the bottom of this whole controversy is Dr. Jones’ insistence on accepting Negroes in his church to wor ship God on an equal basis with whites, his defiance of the southern customs of seg regation in the House of God, and his general attitude of accepting all men as his bro thers. That is why he was asked to resign, and that is why a majority of white min isters in the South cringe like she-wolves when it comes to the teachings of Jesus on the matter of the Fatherhood of God fuid the brotherhood of man. That is why the south ern white church, generally speaking, is spiritually anemic and utterly powerless in a world seeting with man’s in humanity to man. The blow which Dr. Jones has dealt the Southern Pres byterian Church may be shadows of an approaching storm in all white churches of the South. It is in keeping with the explosion wliich took place in the Raleigh diocese of the Catholic Church. When you see these strange things happening, be not ^sturbed. The church has often played its most important role in the affairs of mankind when it hag hpon in rphoHinn A per secuted preacher for right eousness sake is strong evi dence that God still has some workmen up on the wall who are doing a great work and refuse to come down. They are by far greater than the fat, well groomed, well- kept religious sychophants who have traded their divine calling for a mess of pottage. best commencement addresses I have ever hewd delivered recently at Daniel Payne Col lege. The speaker was Dr. Brake- field, former college professor and now the director of public relations for Liberty National Life Insurance Company. Dr. Brakefleld observed that there are a few things he had found as helpful in attaining well rounded success; No. 1: Work. That God evi dently intended that each of us should work because he placed such things as iron, coal, oil and the elements necessary for food and other things necessary for the sustenance and growth in the bosom of the earth, but wq have to work to get it out for use. As I listened to him on that score, I thought about the reli gious sage who maintained that work performed in. the spirit of service is worship and I recalled that another friend of mine on holds that, “There is no substi tute for work.” No. 2: Play: That we ought to live as we go through life rather than allow ourselves to become so enslaved to our work. We never have time to play and play hard just as we should work hard when we work. Dr. Brakefield remarked that he still likes to go fishing with an old fashioned reed pole with a worm on the hook instead of these newfangled rods and reels baited with live bait. He observed that with the old fashioned reed pole, onq could bait her up, stick the pole in the ground, rear back agbinst a tree and look up into the trees and sky at the beauty of God while waiting for the jumping up of the cork when the fish had bitten on the hook. No. 3: Love. Love in our hearts, he held to be another of the four most essentials to suc cess. He recalled that his father had two water wells. One well was not far from the front porch and here he drew water for hia stock and chickens. The otheij was labout seventy-five yards away and this one was the family drinking and cooking water. On one dark evening his father sent him for a'bucket ot drinking wafer. Becatue he was afraid, he had only a cup of water in the bucket when he got back to the house, for the rest was wasted on the side of hla pants and in his right shoe. His father did not bawl him out— juot calmly drank the cup and said to his son.^ “Let’s j{0 .get a bucket of water.” As they moved DEEP SOUTH SPEAKS BY ROBKRT DURR CFot Calvin Neu)$ Service) WORK, PLAY, LOVE, REUQION ALL SUCCESS KEYS The above words constitute .. . , ^ ^ the title of one of the very few with the bucket in his left hand, he felt JUs little son catch hold of one of his fingers on hla right hand with the feeling that harm could come to him becaiue^ he was holding the hand of one who loved him. No. 4: Religion. He told of coming home one afternoon from a long journey. Hia wife met him at the door and told him that knowing he would be on his way home, she had not sent him a telegram advising that “Jim”, his t>est friend had died suddenly the day before. And how the shocking news rendered him momentarily al most speechless. Finally, he said almost to himself, “Jim’s friend ship had a lot to do with my success, but I never got around to telling him how much I liked him while he was alive.” And then he recalled the day his daughter was seriously ill. The doctor was instructed to bring in another doctor for con sultation if necessary and not to spare expenses to save the life of the sick one. About that time, they looked out and saw the minister com ing down their walk. As he turned into their house, he said, “I heard Mary was sick,and | just dropped in to see if there is anything I can do.” And then he entered the sick room with a prayer on his lips. He concluded by saying that there is a finger on the hand of God ./or every man, woman and child in the world and that when afraid, we can reach up an^ catch the finger of God so as to go forward safely and upwards. The above is merely a sketch of what I regarded as the best commencement address I have heard. And it was so delivered that it would have been appro priate before a white or blacli; graduating class be it In the North, East, West or in the Deep; South, where it was delivered. will hire Negroes be organ ized and granted the right to operate taxis in Charlotte, not merely for the sake of oper ating them but because Ne groes need the employment more than any other group in the city. DEDICATED TO ALL READ ERS OF THE CAROLINA TIMES by Mr. Jatnes L. Smith, patient at the Oteen VA Hospi tal. Psalm 82. God standeth in the congre gation of the mighty; he judgeth among gods. How long will ye judge un justly, and accept the paeson of the wicked? Selah. Defend the poor and the fa therless: do justice to the af flicted and the needy. Deliver the poor and the needy: rid them out of the hand of the wicked. , They itnow not, neither will they understand; they walk on u) thfl fomidfltions of the earth are out of course. I have said. Ye are gods; and all of you are children of the Most High. But ye die like men, and fall like one of the princes. Arise, O God, judge the earth; for thou shalt inherit all na tions. "Will The Primafy School Case Decision, Remove This Ugly Forcer' ,> ' lit k by Alfred Andersen Within and Among m FINANCUl HACKING AND JOBS FOR CHARLOnE NEGROES In Charlotte approximately themselves and call a city- financial stability for the race 45,000 Ne^oes are without a wide meeting and set for the safeguar^g of homes single taxi driver, a Building machinery in motion to bring already erected and the build- and Loan Association or any about the realization of such ing of more and better homes outstanding achievement in an organization in this city, in the future, business that is worthy of the The ministers of the city, the This newspaper would like name. Unlike Negroes in physicians, lawyers and num- to see an immediate attempt Winston-Salem who can boast erous other professional men made by Charlotte’s leading of a bus transportation sys- and women, as well as those business and professional tem, an insurance company in the business field, ought to men to organize such an as- and a Negro branch of the get behind such a movement sociation, and we call upon Wachovia Bank and Trust and never rest until it is ac- them to start now. It is our Company, and those in Dur- complished. candid opinion that the move- ham with their insurance What Charlotte actually ment will have the backing of companies, bank and numer- needs is a Negro bank for a every worthwhile man and ous other business institutions hub around which all other woman in the city and coun- Charlotte Negroes appear to race businesses could revolve, ty. be satisfied to go on their indi- The organizing of a bank. In addition to the organ- yidualistic ways, achieving however, is almost prohibitive izing of a building and loan little and happy in their state in this day and time, but the association, we would like to of lethargy. organization of a building see a concerted effort made to Above everything Char- and loan association is not. have Negroes employed as lotte nee^ a building and Such an institution would at taxi drivers in the city., of loan association. The leader- least form a center around Charlotte. If this is not done, ship of the 45,000 Negroes in which Negro business institu- then we think it is high time Charlotte ought to bestir tions could revolve, furnish that a Negro company that WASHINGTON A N l; Saturday die Cat Cim^0 July 25, 1935 L. E. AUSTIN, Publisher C. M. ROSS, &(anaging Editor M. E. JOHNSON* Business Manager PubU«hMi Every Saturday by tbc UNmCD PIJBLISHERS. Incorporated at SIS X. Petti(rew St. Botcrcd lecond cUm matter at tbe Poet Otdec at jaarham. North CaroUna under tbe Act of Hard) S. irm. Natioaal AdvcrtMof Bepreaantatlva: Intantate t^nitod ICewi|iapera. Member, MMPA. No (uarantee of pubUeatloii of unaoUdted mate rial. Letter* to tbe editor for publication muat be ■Icned and nonflped te 800 worda. Subacrlptlan Bate*: lOe per oopjr; Six matin.. $2.00; One Year, ^.00 (Foreicn Coontrlea, f4.00 per jreer.) iijif f rrrri small business Often those who work tor sal aries or wages, or thoM engaged in agriculture, write this column, asking a question on thama. « • • ‘‘What,’* t^ey aik, “can I a* aa indlvidnal do to half prometo ■mall biuliien and the «a- torpriae system?’* * « e Many inquir ers are in small! communities. They go on to explain that their town is not keeping pace with tiie progress ofj some nearby trading center where many C. W. Hardtr nationally owned concama hava retail outlets. * • • The problem la common to many towns, and. with tha iMed for near scliogi o^MOitjr, aad other improvemantL t» etipe with popnlatlo* rrswth, email olty management la hard preaiad to find ways of raialng money. * * * In meeting their problems, an residenta of these communities can talce one helpful step. * • * That step 1a to patranlae to tbe fullest ezteitf poaalbbi tte local Independent bnalnesamen. TUa should not be ondertaken, either, from tha wpItU ^ ' local boalneaamea oat. • • * Instead, 0m approach should be one ot self-intweat. If ade quate schooling and other facU- itiea are to be maintained with out prohibitive hurdens on the residents ot a community. It Is necessary to have more en^r- prises to share tha tax load, * * • IWdapendatfcnaleaaa eatoblialH menta JutT* Iomt eattled a haavr proporilaoate alwre at aaj e«a- mmltiea revasM naada. B«t Immm* la i| paly peariHa.ai«eal lMaia«M a wnmurn x ai— By C, WILSON HARDER ‘ e^wnaioni ar laoreaae. * • * In addition, there la no substi tute for monagr In ciroulatlon for local community prosperitjr. Some economists claim that a dollar spent locally with a local ly owned ooncens. by the time It comidetea Its cycle, will pro duce ei^t doUara Worth of busi ness. (te the other hand, they feel thy a dollar spent with a non-independent ooncem often results in the production of about two doUara worth of business be fore it leaves the eommunity, WkBe Ala to a tbeery OmI eaa be debated asieaaivaly, tha fact raoialna that Jnat aa the atreagtii at a nation raata on tbe baalo family nnit, ao doea naUonal proaperlty reat on tha w«U being e( tka amaiiec tawna. • • e Many obaervera clahn this. For ganaraUona, cotmtry pei^le were considered Inferior In educa tion and ability becauae und^ a feudal aystam, facilities for the educatlm ot tha children of ttie rural areas was limited. • • * lUa waa ohanged by the devel- epment ef Independent trading oentera threosh the nation which provided eantera of population that oaold anpport aohoola, Ubrar> tea, aad ether advantagea eqoal to that whloh the big matropoU- taa oenteta oaoM oBer. • e * But these observers also ftel that the trend la turning back to the 8ld pattern, because growth of smaller conrnumitiea la not keeping pace, due to profita ot local trading being siphoned to distant ilnanctal centers. • • • Xke onl]r way to reveraa Ihlf tread, they feel, la for the paldle la the local eonimimltlea to aap- port theta- Indepeadant baataaaa eatahlldMnaBto aad thaa la tara, draw BMra boalaeaa ta their oonumudtlea oreattag mere «bv- aaalty. Dear fellow seekers...We have noted that there is a basic dif ference between looking out up on nature and one’s fellow crea tures with a competitive, dis trusting attitude as against a cooperative, benefit of the) doubt, innocent until-proven guilty attitude, seeking oppor tunities for mutual-aid. The me thods of the fomer are appeas- ing, deceiving, fighting; while the methods of the latter are in terest, respect,®appreciation, as sistance, friendship! The essential difference is that the former attitude looks for the worst in order to “fight” it, while the latter attitude looks for the best in order to encour age it and join it'. Both may claim to be on the side of “right eousness.” But the suspicious at titude sees rightousness as “fighting evil”, whereas the friendly attitude sees righteous ness as essentially joining and assisting the good! The aggres- iittitudo ' rcBictopco (which it calls evil) because it rides roughshed over every thing which doesn’t serve its narrow and self-centered pur poses. So it pictures the world as against it and as essentially hostile. Whereas the friendly at titude finds reciprocal friend ship because its main interest is in all manner of goodness and beauty into which it finds it self born and its central pur pose is to acknowledge, appreci ate, and assist its development. TJius we see that the friendly attitude makes for more liesure^ ly development and gentler treatment. It does not claim to know all the answers; to it life is essentially a mystery and a possibility. It would rather dq nothing than destroy something; of attained value; yet It is ready, to assist if it feels that it’s basic sense of right and good so dic tates. I But, just as it will not push around, so it will not be pushed Ground. Whatever it does must be as prompted by its basic sense of right and good, its ethical and moral sense as springing from within its very being. When it meets up with the distrusting aggressive attitude it meets the distrust with the same outgoing interest in lEttent goodness and beauty; it attempts to look right past the distrust to what ever grain of potential friend, ship might exist, and it refuses association except on a friend ship basis. It meets aggressive ness with friendliness and bets its life on its adequacy. By this method tbe Good Life which today is its main ad ministrator. Take the develop ment in this country, for ex ample; it being most familiar to us. First let it be noted that this country was settled by all, manner of people; all the wayj from people seeking the simple^ and friendly life to those who saw in the new world new fields to conquer! As might be expected, those of a conquering, aggressive spirit soon came into conflict with one another in various ways. And they came in conflict with the natives, the American In dian. So while those like Willi am Penn were negotiating in friendship with the Indians, as- sundry others were contlnu-> ously fighting them. And as the fight with the Indians petered out the next logical fight was between the aggressives on this side of the water and those in the Homeland. The simple self- sufficient homesteader an(^ is not a-llght between good and- gnaU cnlnnies like William evil. It is not a fight at all be-, cause it sees ultimate good aa^ the antithesis of fighting and competition. It meets “evil” twp ways: by persisting in seek ing for goodness and beauty in its midst...and by refusing to recognize its authority or to submit to its coercion. The Good and the Beautiful .grows and develops unending, while hostile and suspicious forces fight themselves to exhaustion. We can see that it is necessary that this should be so. Let us see now how the atti tude of suspicion and hostility has fathered the modem state. Penn’s were not in their world and had no interest in the con flict of .the acquisitive-aggres sive groups. But many wer^ lured into a “righteous-war” spirit. The urge for independence was good, but the central motive was independence for a proper tied, aggressive class; the home steader had his natural sweat- earned independence which the “Crown” couldn’t touch. So th^ aggressive fought, with the help of those who were lured by the adventure of It and the partial justification of it. When the (Please turn to Page Seven) Spiritual Insight ‘POWER TO CHANGE A HEART’ By Reverend Harold Roland ' Pastor, Mount Gilead Baptist Church “There shined about him a light from heaven...Lord what will you have me to do...?” The Holy Spirit became i mighty power for good in the unfolding drama of God’s re deeming love in the Church. There is a power to change the sinful heart of man. Here is a| power for the healing of the sick bodies, minds and souls of men. A power of sacrificial llvn ing. A power for the sanctifica tion of the souls of men. The Spirit is a power that changes the fearful, wavering' Into bold and courageous witnesses for God in a world of sin and evil. It is not an earthly power. Earthly power cannot do what I am talking about. This power converts and regenerates the souls of men. I am talldng about the power that brings to pass the mysterious spiritual operation in the souls of men. This magic power changes from nature to grace. The power that purges from sin and un righteousness. The power that works in the sinful nature o man to make it more God-like. The power of the New Birth: THE POWER THAT WORKS IN US WHEN WE ARE BORN OF THE SPIRIT»..“Therefor^ if any man be in Christ Jesug he is a new creature: old things are passed away; behold, all things are become new.” What a blessed privilege we have In a world of sin. We have the good news of the Gospel; Look what God has done for us...“(3od waq in Christ reconciling the world unto hims£lf...” Have you claims ed your spiritual heritage of God as revealed in Christ Jesus?... “He loved us and gave his son| to be a propitiation for our sins.*’ What wonders God can do with one life which has been made over by his redeeming love. This power changed the passionately hateful heart of Paul. It change him from hate to love. It changed him from al violent enemy to a passionate^ friend of the Church. This powi er changes your heart. It tuma you around and sets you in the right relationship with God and man. He has blinding hate and fury in his heart. He is moved by vengeance and bitterness^ He is driven on like a mad man# He saw a Stephen die with the Holy spirit hi his heart and ^ prayer of forgiveness on his lips. Then God met him on the highway one day and the Holy; Spirit changed his hateful heart. There can be no rest for the sinful soul until that soul makes peace with God. Jacob ran for twenty years. He found no peace until the power of God change*^ his heart...“Except a man be l>om of tMfe water and of the spirit he cannot enter into th« Kingdom of God..." This power to change ouv hearts is our one great hope. This is the hope of a sick world. This is the hope of a. confused and warring world. This is thei hope of our restless souls. This power must dwell in our heart* before we can have peace. Thla power means healing and health. “As many are led by the spirit God they are the sons of God..”' It is a gift from God. Then claim your God-promised heritage...” God commendeth hia love to- (Please turn to Page seven)