Newspapers / Africo-American Presbyterian (Wilmington, N.C.) / Nov. 29, 1934, edition 1 / Page 1
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CHARLOTTE, N, C., X NOVEMBER 29, 1934. By Rev. E. Wi Carpenter, A. M. “Behold, 1 ormg you good tidings of great joy, which shall be to all people. “For unto you is born this day in the city of David a Sav iour, which is Christ the Lord." —Luke 2: 10-11. Christmas Is a season of fes tivity and joy. Wo should con sider why the proclamation; and commemoration of Christ's] birth should be ah occasion of joy. In our consideration we ; find the reasons: 1. Because Christ came to{ make atonement for the world’s j guilt and sin. The greatest; plague that a man can have is j the plague of a guilty con science. Most other miseries may, by skill and in time, be re moved, and all come to an end in the grave. But a guityy con science is something no man can remove, either from him self or from others. This forms its peculiar sting — that after death it pursues to the judg ment seat, and will torment us in the abodes of despair. Many driven well nigh to frenzy by; this dreadful scourge, have, in the hope of securing relief from its torments, been willing to; surrender the dearest object; of their affections. With the light of the gospel ■ shining in our midst, we see ; much less of the extremities to which an uneasy conscience' leads mankind than was to be I witnessed before the good tid- i ings were:,brought to the an gels. This is a matter for; thankfulness and joy. We can hot have too. strong. ^cmavictions of dhe^h<di«>us^essI r the bitterness of despair is not necessary for deepness of con-; viction. The remedy has been provided for the guilty con science. To be alarmied, there fore, may be proof as much of ignorance of or want of faith in the atonement of Jesus Christ, as of deep conviction of sin. When that loathsome dis ease, the small pox, now enters a neighborhood, it does not awaken the same consterna tion as in former times it did. This is owing, not to our being; less sensible now of the disfig uring and fatal effects of the disease, but because we are in possession of a remedy, an an tidote which, although imper-; feet, is yet a powerful check against its progress. And so the fact that in Jesus Christ, His incarnation and death, we have an antidote for the uneas iness of a guilty conscience ought to lessen, yea, to allay altogether, the disquiet of the guilty soul that has received the good tidings of great joy. Much injury is done to individ uals, and loss occasioned to the Church of Christ, by parents and teachers overlooking this joyous truth, and leading those who in youth have been made wise unto salvation to doubt their union with Christ, be cause they have not passed through the violence of heath en despair. 2. Christ’s birth is good tid ings of great joy because it is the coming to us of a loving and joy-giving Friend. The joy of deliverance from evil, to be complete, must be associated with the love of a personal friend. And in the goodness and wisdom of God in saving us from our wretchedness He has given us the love and joy of a heav enly Friend. It is quite possible for one to be a real friend, and yet the announcement of his coming to be other than good tidings of great joy; although friendly, he may be stern and morose. At the moment of such a friend entering upon the' scene of our joy, we may be conscious of omething liae a | chill creeping tvcr oui spirits* Christ’s "i m*ng to us should never have this effect; He is ai Friend "in whose presence is; fulness of joy.” Although our Lord was a “man of sorrow,” He neyer made others sorrow ful by a desponding tone or* gloomy views of men and j things, On the contrary, He Himself not only graced with His presence the joyous festive ceremony of the m*»riage feast, but compared his coniih uance on earth among His dis ciples to the /oy-giving pres ence of the bridegroom (Mat 9:I5X, while those He rebuked on earth most severely were the men who made a sorrowful! countenance the mark of devo-' tion, It is,the coming together of friends at Christmas that! helps to glVe that season its; festivity and joy. But your Christmas home and Christmas joy can not be complete unless; the Lord who loved you and gave himself for you has come to you, “that His joy might: remain in you, and that yourj joy might be full.” 3. Christ’s birth should be to! us “good tidings of great joy,” bcause He has come to secure! us a home above. At the ! Christmas season we have all1 soon to say “good bye” to our! friends; the grief of parting follows on the heels of the joy! of meeting. But it is not so with j the friendship and joy of Christ; who came .as. the Friend of mankind more than eighteen; centuries ago. He abides with! us always; His ; presence and! ioy remain with us to the cnd| not leave us, for His guiding, supporting and joy-giving presence accompanies us when we enter upon that dark valley which separates the tabernacle on earth from the. everlasting home in heaven. His joyous presence will be the light and the glory of that home. Can we say that these three' Considerations enter into and! increase our joy at Christmas tide? Has His atoning love' given us true peace with God?1 Have His presence, His sym-. pathy, His words, given joy and gladness to our life? And have His promises filled us with the expectation of the ful ness of joy? New York City. NEW WORKER IN HAMP TON RELIGIOUS DE PARTMENT Hampton Institute, Va., No-! vember.—Rev. Herbert King, of Detroit, Michigan, has been sailed into the Religious De partment as assistant to the Chaplain, Rev. S. Arthur De van. He came on a visit to the Institute. last week, and tilled the pulpit in the college church. His sermon, dealing with ju venile Christians and Christi anity, created a profound im pression, and was highly en joyed by. students and faculty alike. At the joint meeting of the' Youjig Men’s Christian As sociation and Young Women's Christian Association on Sun day evening, he spoke again to a large group that had been at tracted there by reason of his able sermon preached in the morning. This new worker is a gradu ate of Morehouse College, and has done work at the Oberlin School of Religion. At present he Holds a pastorate in Detroit. Phis he will continue to hold until the middle of January when he comes to Hampton to begin his work. He was shown a number pf courtesies here snd was invited to be a guest observer at / sessions of the; Sale party of graduate stu dents under Dr. Loram. THE RISE OF THE K6RO DEMOCRATS When I was a boy in Sou Carolina, in the heyday of £ construction days, a Neg Democrat was regarded as i abomination to God and man, traitor to his race, and cised as a social outcast whom decent folk have not! to do. When we consider t contrasted attitudes of the political parties at that ti such rebuke is at least und standable. No Negro Democ: of prominence rose to the s face until the administration Grover Cleveland, in 1 Frederick Douglass, a Repub can hold over, became'eui tic of this liberal Democrat, heard his eulogistic address, which he said, speaking of position as Recorder of “I am ready to go, and wi to stay.” In my list of political celebri ties, in last week's release* jl failed to mention the names Of any distinguished (Democrats., These were so few by compark son that the omission was ap oversight. President Cleveland appoint ed James C. Matthews, of Al bany, N. Y., to succeed Fre4 * crick Douglass as Recorder Deeds. Mr. Matthews’ appoi: ment failed of confirmatioa j the Senate. Thereupon At Cleveland appointed to that p|-i sition Mr. Trotter, of Bostoii, father of William Monroe Trot ter, who also failed of confirm!*-; tion but served until the expi ration of Congress. Southeih Democratic Senators at that time could not entertain t ideaee# r cm^lmfiag^ man to high office even though he professed to be of the same household of political! faith. Rev. Moses Hopkins, of New York, was appointed Min ister to Liberia. Thereupon he died and was succeeded by C. H. Taylor, of Kansas City,* Mo. Dr. John W. Thompson was sent as Minister to Hayti. These Negro Democrats were confirmed for these purely Ne gro governments. During Cleve land’s second term Mr. Taylor was appointed and confirmed as Recorder of Deeds of the Dis trict of Columbia. I believe this was the first Senatorial confir mation of a Niegro Democrat for federal office in the home land, under a Democratic ad ministration. It is the only one of record uiitil the appoint ment and confirmation of Dr. Thompkins as Recorder of Deeds by Roosevelt who was unanimously confirmed by an overwhefatfngly Democratic* Senate. Both Presidents Cleve land and Wilson appointed sev eral colored men as ministers to Liberia. President Wilson appointed Adam Patterson as Register of the Treasury, but at his own request the nomina tion was withdrawn to save the iface of his political sponsor. Judge Robert H. Terrell, though a Republican, was reappointed and confirmed as Municipal Judge by Woodrow Wilson. When erstwhile Republican* Negroes found that Grover Cleveland was generously disj posed towards the race, they fell over each other seeking ap pointive favors ait his hands. President Cleveland’s first ad ministration threatened to di vide the leadership of the race between the two parties. But his second administration was much more reactionary which drove them back into the Re publican fold, only to be sorely disappointed under McKinley and the long line of Republican successors, Theodore Roosevelt furnishing a notable exception. Since then the Negro race has been gradually sinking in the estimation of the G. O. P. Under Woodrow Wilson’s ad ministration, Bishop Alexander Wafiai* assumed the role of Negro leadership. Candidate Wilson made glowing promises Of what he intended to do i«r the race which he found it dif ficult or impossible to lultul.j His good intentions were attest ed by the appointment of Pat erson as Register of the Treas-1 ury which he was fenced to withdraw. He found himself so: dependent upon Southern Dem ocratic support that he darki not offend them for fear of jeopardizing his principal! measures. A distinguished!! Democrat, high in the councils ! of the party, told me that Presdent Wilson, as soon as he: got his chief measures out of! the way, was going to give the] race more important and signif icant appointments than any President had ever done. Just then the clouds began to thick en. The World War loomed above the horizon. All else was! swallowed up in this holocaust.; There were, however, more Ne groes in the civil service than at any time before or since.! Many were given officers' ’ rank. President Wilson inau-t gurated the policy of appoint ing Negroes to important non-: confirmatory positions in the j various departments of the gov ernment. Dr. Emmett J. Scott was assigned as Special Assist ant to the Secretary of War and Prof. George E. Haynes to a similar position in the Labor 'Department. This policy has been followed by succeeding ad ministrations, Republican and Democratic. , /■' 4i This brings us aown To the year of our Lord, 1932, and the years of President Franklin D. Roosevelt one and two. President Roosevelt has chos en two distinguished Negro Democrats to high official posi sitions, Dr. Thompkins as Re corder of Deeds, and Robert L. Vann, Editor of the Pittsburgh Courier as Special Assistant to the Attorney General. But as Captain Henry would say, “This was only the beginning.’’ The assignment of qualified colored ip,en to important posts in the several departments is most encouraging. Never be fore in the history of the gov ernment has such a group of colored men with technical and special fitness and preparation for their tasks recruited the ranks of the federal service. The day of the Negro Dem ocrat has arrived. He measures up fully in character, caliber and quality with his Republi can counterparts and the stig ma of reproach has been rolled away from his name. Roscoe Simmons, of irrespon sible rhetoric, during the last presidential campaign, said that any Negro who voted the Democratic ticket should be sent to hell. Judging by the re cent election I fear tha: the pyrotechnic orator would rele gate the better portion of his race to the hotter place. Ex jCofogressman De Priest, by slip of tongue, said in New Jersey that any N^i who voted the Democratic ticket was a skunk. My distinguished friend is not the only cmh.ert politician who suffered severely from a lapsus linguae. Both the Afro-American and Pittsburgh Courier attributed the political death of our Republican champion to the bite of the “skunk.” America is being exhorted by moralists, scolded by reform ers and cursed by agitators. Each has his panacea for the i troubles that assail us. But the j man of the hour is he who can i give its people bread.-—Dr. Charles Stelzle. m WEST OF THE FATHER OF WATERS '.*• t By Bet. T. B. Hargrave •j* | 3X1 Friends of Canadian Synod, good news again! The benevo lence for the quarter ending in October shows that Canadian in up 86.8 per cent and has a gain over last year's record at this time of 49 per cent. From the reports that are coming to this office on the Fall drive it looks as though we will be up; 100 per cent by the first of the year. This is our goal and when the workers in Canadian sly they are filing to do a thing they work as a unit and they; never fail. I was in Cotton Plant this week and witnessed a wonder ful sight. . The first drive; for the Board headed hy Rev.; L. W. Davig and hs co-workers ended in victory. The captains reported and placed on the ta ble |166. You just can’t belt that Cotton Plant .group. ;f f! J Westminster Jqjiuteh, " o^f which Dr. Hyder Stinson is pas tor, lined up all forces for an-; other drive for benevolence to end the third Sunday in this month. They say they will not come short of $100. Watch them raise every cent. They just do things down there. Some p< j pie have an idea that there is: plenty of money in the West: and that the people are more able. Let me tell you pf the con ditions in this county. '• Th the! county where Cotton Plant is located there is only one saw mill that has a pay roll and it operates on part time. The city public schools have not been able to open their doors this year. The drought killed all the crops and there^Jis^a^hortage State of Arkansas was hit harder by the depression than; any other State. Most of the streams dried up and even the mosquitoes died. The work of the church is of God and these people have the spirit. Word comes from Rev. H. C. Cousins that Shaw’s Chapel at Lima, Okla.. is nearing the end of a successful benevolence drive. The records show that most of the churches are at work on the quota for Rendall Presbytery and there has been a gain of 30 per cent over last year this time. Kiamichi Presbytery has a gain of 30 per cent over her last year’s record by this time, The death of our beloved friend and brother, Rev. Morrow, was a hard blow. He meant much to the community and to the church. We could depend on him at all times to work with us. Rev. J. T. Douglass and his workers are doing things in Springfield, Mo. Gibson chapel needed much repair work and many improvements in < all de partments. Rev. Douglass was the man of the hour and we are proud to point to Springfield as one of the lights of our dear Synod. Our church at Brinkley is be ing completely remodeled by the Rev. Bynum. This church has been growing in membership ever si^ce Rev. and Mrs. By num have been there. Rev. T. C. Boyd is generally the first man to report his full benevolence paid. There are other churches working for this coveted hon or this year. Our work at Hot Springs has suffered for quite a long time, due to the fact that we have not had a pastor. The members are hungry for a real church home and have ex pressed a willingness to work The Ladies’ Missionary Society has been reorganized and is functioning beautifully. Plans are being drawn up for the building of a new church. A1 present nearly 50 per cent of the benevolence quota has beer raised and we are going to sec to it that all is raised by Christ mas. A kindergarten has been organized by Mrs. Hargrave and it is growing daily. Rev. G. E. Caesar, the busy Stated Clerk of White River Presbytery, reports gains in his chuieh at Little Rock. This church has one of the largest quota* of the Presbytery and it never fails. As we go to press we have just received word that Rev. Boyd and his good people at Pme Bluff went over the top and have raised $12.00 over their quota. Congratulations, •Rev. Boyd! You are hard to beat. We hope to have 4 paid up Synod 100 per cent by Christmas and the way the churches are -rallying it is bound to go over. Dr. W. E. Houston, our energetic Field Activities Secretary, is in ac tion, and is all smiles because •>f the results. Wed, itho would not at such results? I think that the men of the Canadian Synod get more thrill out 'rt their work than any other group of men fn the whole church. When reiyirts arc read at the PresbytoiW the men are all keyed up . as if they were watching Dizzy Dean in a world series game. I think Rev. C. W. Francis, of Aider son, S. C, has some idea as to how it feels. We have gained in confes sions and accessions to our churches in even a greater way. There will be ho cutting o£ the rolls to keep from paying for them this year. This is suicide and the men of Canadian have declared war against such dis bon«?t *ppaftieee;^beok-fot fur ther reports from the land West of the Father of Waters! BOOK CHAT NEGRO AMERICANS, WHAT NOW? By James Wel don Johnson. Published by Viking Press,' 18 East 48th Street, New York City. Price $1.26. This volume of one hundred pages contains more careful thinking than one usually finds in a thousand pages. The style is clear, measured. The ques I tion, “What Now,” covers many phases of the Negro situation: jThe Negro’s Choices, his Forc 1 es and Resources, his Technique land Policies. His choices are ! Exodus, Physical Force, The ! Revolution, Integration or Iso lation. Only fifteen pages are ; given to these four headings ' hut those pages contain an ex i position of each subject and a | clearly thought-out opinion, j Next the Resources, the Church, the press and various I Organizations. Technique and Policies include a discussion of the labor situation. And the | conclusion ends with a call jupon the Negro to continually jguard his spiritual integrity, ! not to permit any attempt of jthe white man to destroy his {inner respect; | Whether one agrees or disa grees With it, this is a provoca tive book. No one can read it carefully and not be forced to think, to question not only the writer’s opinion but his own. The discussion of race rela tions, of segregation and inte gration (Dr. DuBois took issue with this in his review in the Herald-Tribune) may hope too much of Matthew Arnold’s “sweet reasonableness,” but it certainly has dignity and com monsense. In urging the culti vation of friendly interracial relations where they are pos sible without loss of self-re Wt, Mjff Johnson says: “Here we are, caught in a trap of cir cumstances. a minority in the midst of a majority numbering (Continued no page 4)
Africo-American Presbyterian (Wilmington, N.C.)
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Nov. 29, 1934, edition 1
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