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State Library The Christian Sun IN ESSENTIALS—UNITY, IN NON-ESSENTIALS—LIBERTY, IN ALL THINGS—CHARITY. ESTABLISHED 1844. ELON COLLEGE, N. C., WEDNESDAY, NOVEMBER 28, 1906. VOLUME LVIII. NUMBER 46. EDITORIAL COMMENT. OUR PRESIDENT AND A PRECEDENT. President Roosevelt, as noted heretofore, is the first of all our presidents to set foot on soil of another country during his term of of fice. He wanted to see Panama at ditch making and he went. So far we have not seen harm to come of it, and it is not ours to discern the future. There were pleasant and agreeable features of the President’s prece dent making trip and among the most noted was that of his being welcomed at Colon by President Amador. And the address of wel come by another President to our own was so pertinent, lucid and charming that we must report a portion of it. (Please note the ele gant and charming English employed by President Amodor): IJ The visit of your honor to Panama would make the haughtiest nation proud. It is ev idence of the cordial interest inspired in you. We appreciate this to its full extent, and we thank you from our hearts, constituting as your visit does an additional cause for us to admire, love "and respect you. Our republic has allied itself with yours in the construction of the canal. To harmon ize the different elements, to overcome obsta cles and to organize the work a superior man was necessary. You were that man. When passing through the canal zone this morning you heard frequent thundering detonations. They were not the murderous blows of can non. They were the explosive blows of science demanding a free pass for the commerce of the world. You noticed a movement of trains similar to those of war time, which carry destructive elements to promote their cursed end. This does not happen here. On the contrary, the object of these trains tends to benefit man kind and to form a link in the betrothal of the Atlantic and Pacific. ' We abound in enthusiasm. We purpose to facilitate you in the canal work, whether it be our written duty or not. Permit me to acclaim you as the chief commander of the allied Panama and American forces in the battle of progress and civilization. We are a grateful people. The remembrance that in you we had a gen erous defender remains indelibly impressed in our hearts. The qualities chiefly exal ting your character are courage and justice. You display both in our favor. Panama knows you because you said that so long as we march on the road of honor and duty we will not lack your support. THE GREATEST NEED. President Roosevelt, among the other occu pations of his strenuous life, turns aside now and then to preach to men on such subjects as A Square Deal, the Muck-Rakers, Clean Men ets. In a recent issue of the Delinea tor a writer interprets the President’s mind on our greatest need in this fine fashion: If one were to go to the President of the United States and ask him to name the coun try’s greatest need he would reply in his quick, conclusive way, “Clean men. He knowTs. Smart men there are by the thou sands; rich men abound more than in any other age of the world; able men are found in every State and township, but even from a population of eighty millions the chief ex ecutive has difficulty in finding the man of ex ceptional character for a post which requires a square and flawless morality. It is to his credit that he misses no opportunity to preach clean manhood. But neither Presidents nor preachers nor teachers can do the work of fathers except in their own families. We do not mean to underestimate the marvelous in fluence of the mother. In most lands men who reach success give their mothers the cred it. “All that I am I owe to my mother,” said Lincoln. “It was you who taught me to write so. You really did, dear mother,” said the crabbed Carlyle. We get our moral qual ities from our mothers, our mental from our fathers, say the psychologists, and as we look back we find this maternal affection the love, liest thing on earth. But isn’t there a eon viction down deep in our souls that we should have done much better if our fathers had taken time and trouble to share our confi dence in the years that counted most? “THE SABBATH WAS MADE FOR MAN.” (Mark 2:27.) Ralph Waldo Emerson said: “Christian ity has given us the Sabbath, the jubilee of the whole world, whose light dawns welcome alike into the closet of the philosopher, into the garret of toil, and into prison cells, and everywhere, suggests even to the vile, the dignj{y\f spiritual being.” It is manifest to the careful observers that the Sabbath Question is to be, in the near future, one of the decisive battle fields be tween the friends and enemies of evangeli cal Christianity. It is to-day even a graver question than any that excite the theological world: for its relations are world-wide; and i.t interests and moves the masses, especially the working class and the pleasure seekers, as no other question does. Already the con flict has begun. Agencies, forces, influences of all kinds are combining and drilling for a grand assault, all along the line on the Chris tian Sabbath. Let us notice briefly what is doing for the overthrow of the Sabbath. 1. The greatest danger of all is the laxity which prevails in the family. The change which fifty years have wrought even in so called religious homes is a sad and startling one. The swing from what was-thought to be over-rigid discipline has been way over to extreme laxity or liberalism, in its observ ance. You see it in the custom of going to church but once on the Sabbath, in calling, visiting and traveling on the Sabbath, and in many. other ways, even by members of the church. Here in the home the work of re form must) begin. 2. The inroad of foreigners in such vast numbers is a standing menace to us. They bring the old world Sunday with them (a day of pleasure), and everywhere, in city and in country, they cast their influence against the Christian Sabbath. 3. Adverse legislature, and the pernicious example of those in authority in truckling to a false public sentiment. Every year legis lation is sought tending to destroy the sanei tity of the Christian Sabbath and make it a day of mere pleasure and vicious indulgence, and the clamor of politicians, and the foreign element, and the saloon interest, and the in fidel intolerance, waxes louder and louder as the years go by. Hence the desperate efforts to get rid of our laws restraining Sunday traflic especially liquor selling and the run ning of Sunday trains, etc. Hence also the opening of museums and libraries, and ('con verting our public parks into palces of Sun day entertainment. 4. And, back of all this and many other active hostile agencies, the Great Liquor Power of the country, with its money and political influence is the deadly evening of the Sabbath. It would fain blot out the day. The Sabbath interferes with its accursed trade and profits. The liquor power would have all restrictions removed, and free and full scope given to beastly indulgence. And the fact is notorious that its money is freely given, its greatest efforts put forth, to de feat all legislation and all other attempts on the part of its friends to improve the observ ance of this sacred day of rest. Rum and all other enemies of the Sabbath are leagued together for its overthrow. In view of such a condition of things it is imperative that all who reverence the Sab bath and desire to preserve it must sound the alarm and sally to the support of all wise measures to defeat the designs of its enemies and seek to create a right public sentiment. The true law of the Sabbath must be restored in the family. The Sunday-school power must be enlisted in the cause. The pulpit of^ the land must be stirred up to give both a mighty blast. The religious press must give out no uncertain sound. As far as possible the better class of our secular newspapers must be persuaded to lend a helping hand where our dearest interests as a nation are imperiled. Our legislatures must be jealous ly watched, to prevent assault from such a source, and wherever practicable, its action sought in defence of this great, bulwark of Christianity. In every town ancfmH^Cit^ izens’ Leagues shouh^be formed to see to it that our Sabbath laws respecting the sale of liquor, beer, etc. and gambling and the like, are rigidly enforced. And all possible aid should be given to those who are seeking to enlighten the public mind and keep the sacred day from profanation. The Sabbath was to the.Jew the token of the covenant between Jehovah and His peo ple, and it was a badge of loyalty toward Je hovah. That thought the Christian Sunday has inherited. It is(l£he Lord’s day, the to ken of the new covenant betwixt our Lord and those who rejoice to call him Lord. Yea, it is not too much to say that it is the badge of loyalty of Christians toward their Lord. That is its meaning, that is its purpose, that is the WTOught-out effect, in soul and life, of its right keeping. True loyalty to Christ will keep it, will honor it, will call it sacred, and as it keeps it, that loyalty will grow warmer and deeper and fuller, till its highest joy is lo serve, and at last to see, the King in his aeaury. Isaiah 58:13, 14, ‘ ‘ If thou turn away thy feet from the Sabbath, from doing thy pleas ure on my holy day, and call the Sabbath a delight,-the holy of the Lord, honorable: and shall honor him, not doing thine own ways uor finding thine own pleasure, nor speaking chine own words; then shall thou delight thy self in the Lord, and I will cause thee to ride upon the high places of the earth and feed thee with the heritage of Jacob thy father, for the mouth of the Lord hath spoken it. ’ ’ “The Sabbath,” says Longfellow, “is the golden $dasp that binds together the volume of the'Wec.” W. S. Long. THE WORD IN THE HEART. “Thy -word have I hid in my heart,” said David. As of priceless value he laid it in the inner chamber of his soul where no one might enter to take it from him. He did this that his life might be upright and pure before God. The Word of God in the heart, loved and precious, is the great power for uprightness and integrity of life, “Wherewithal shall a young man choose his way 9 ’ ’ The answer, is simple and direct, “By taking heed there to according to thy word. ’ ’ Truthfulness and right are not worked into and made part of the life without thought and care. Indiffer ence is never productive of good; it is an open door with an invitation to the tempter to en ter in. In regard to others under our care, in regard to ourselves, we are never to as sume that under general good surroundings and influences, all will come out right without effort on our part; for character is personal, and is built up from within. So many and so strong are the forces of^vil, and so insidi ous in their working that only by constant supervision and effort can one attain unto the fullness of the Christian life and maintain it in its strength. This is possible only by the Word in the heart. “That I offend not thee,” said David; there is vital power in the Word of God ; it is spirit and life. It awakens thought, it stimulates and strengthens conscience, it gives true ideals, it furnishes motives to right ac tion, it gives power to the will, and lifts the whole life to the plane of God’s will. “The Word of God is quick and power ful;” it gives power to discern between good and evil; it becomes to us a revealer of the true character of our purpose and doings and of that which is presented for our choice. It is so for it is the revelation of God to the soul, and in that light we see clearly. The Word hidden in the heart is very sweet and precious. It is like a spring of pure wa ter at which we slake "our thirst; it is a voice that speaks comfort in time of sorrow, and gives a purer tone to every song of joy. When we are in the rush of busy life, the hidden Word gives a balance to our activi ties; when we are alone it is like a compan ion by our side, speaking of all good and beautiful things; -when our eyes are held waking in the night it is a song such as Jes us sang. How may this be? By storing the mind with the Holy Word while the mind is yet unfilled with the many things of life, and by maintaining the habit of hiding texts in the heart day by day. With all the increase of Bible study, we think much less attention than formerly is given to committing the Scriptures to memory. There is much teach ing, much study about the Bible, we may say there is much study of the Bible in its his tory, its truths and its lessons, but the words, the exact words, spoken by the Spirit are not treasured in the heart as they should be. We desire to emphasize the importance, the very great importance, of memorizing as much as possible of the Bible especially when young. It may be said that children cannot understand the Scriptures and their minds should not be burdened with that which is above their age. To this it is enough to say that at no age is the mind more receptive of the truth than in childhood, at no subsequent time can the Scrintures be so imbedded in the memory. Holy texts are then laid as the very foundation stones of life. Treasured texts are like pure-toned chords which vibrate in later years at the touch of the varied ex periences of life. How the old proof texts we committed with the catechism remain as fixed convictions, and come to the thought at the most opportune moment! As the years advance how like deep etchings on the mind are the words of the Scripture graven in our earlier days when we had not the experience to see their full beauty and meaning! “Thy word I have hidden in my heart.” The treas ure becomes more precious with the years.— Uirited'Preshyteriau. “GIPSY SMITH.’’ The man in America now attracting more interest than any other in the evangelistic field is ‘ ‘ Gipsy ’ ’ Smith. He comes from London and is to go soon to Australia. His sermons have attracted great attention and large audiences in the best churches in New York and all the reports we have seen of him in the press are favorable indeed. Mr. Smith is a real “Gipsy” from a tent a: i sinee his conversion has won thousands of men to Christ. Yfe find this note of his vir:t» U the home of Ira D. Sankey which helps . > explain much: “Mr. Ira D. Shankey and Gipsy Smi: t met on October 10th at the former's hor v in Brooklyn. An American paper says: ‘1 Shankey is ill. Mr. Smith knelt beside t! > bed of the singer who placed his han^n on the Gipsy’s head and blessed his work/ .‘Twenty-five years ago, when Moody and Shankey were holding revi val meetings in London, they drove into the country and stopped to look at a gipsy camp. Mr. Sankey, standing in his carriage, sang to them. One of those most interested was a boy, who climed upon the carriage wheeL The boy begged that he sing again. Touched by the boy’s sincerity, Mr. Sankey placed his hands on the boy’s head and said, “God make a preacher of this boy.” It was be cause of that inspiration that the boy, now”* known throughout the world as “Gipsy” Smith, ran away from the gipsy band and be came a student.’ ” Rev. W* G. Clements calls attention to an error we made in stating recently that there were about a dozen churches in the Eastern N. C. Conference without pastors. This num ber of churches were reported to Conference without pastors and while we were in attend ance, but the Home Mission Committee which reported on the last day of the session when we were not present provided in large meas ure, if not wholly, to supply the vacancies. Our thanks to Bro. C. for the correction which we are indeed glad to make. A pas torless cfhurch is indeed in an unenviable con dition and we wish there were none in all our Zion.
The Christian Sun (Elon College, N.C.)
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Nov. 28, 1906, edition 1
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