Newspapers / The Christian Sun (Elon … / June 26, 1907, edition 1 / Page 1
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« - a] AHL1SHED 1844. IN ESSENTIALS—UNITY, IN NON-ESSENTIALS—LIBERTY, IN ALL THINGS—CHARITY. GREENSBORO, N. 0., WEDNESDAY, JUNE 26, 1907. VOLUME L1X, A UMBER 25. All communications, whether for publica tion or pertaining to matters of business, should be sent to the Editor, J. 0. Atkinson, Elon College, N. C. EDITORIAL COMMENT. Christians and Temperance.—The Philip pine Commission has just enacted a law pro hibiting the sale or gift of intoxicating liq uors—other than native wines and liquors— to any member of a non-Christian tribe. There are certain liquors which non-Christ ian tribes of the Philippines have been used to and which they have used without great .abuse. This law prevents tte sale among them of liquors they are not used to. In other words the appetites and passions of non-Christian tribes are so violent and un ruly that they cannot be left to purchase the strong and violent liquor produced by Christ ian nations. That is a strange, but true, situation: that Christianity must first tem per a nation’s appetite and passion before that nation can use with any degree of safe ty the strongest and most violent liquors. American liquor, for instance, among a na tion of savages would run them wild. This is a high compliment to the principles of Christianity, but a sad comment upon a peo ple who call themselves Christian, that they will concoct a beverage which their tempered and modified passion alone can tolerate. Need of Men.—The Superintendent of Public Schools for North Carolina expresses concern about getting enough teachers for the schools in the State. This concern is well founded. A few years ago the college grad uate became anxious, as the day of his grad uation drew nigh, about what he should do and where he could get a job to begin with. We judge that this anxiety has in a large measure disappeared, for now the demand for college graduates is greater than the supply. Not long ago the school teacher was solicitous, and was often kept on the anxious seat a long time. This is no longer true. The school now that does not supply itself with teachers early in the season has to take such as it can get later. College graduates are snapped up for lucrative posi tions almost by the time their diplomas are presented. All of which indicates not only material prosperity, but that which is better, educational prosperity and the greater dif fusion of intelligence. A Suitable Memorial.—The movement started by the authorities of Washington and Lee University, Lexington, Va:, to cele brate the centennial of Gen. R. E. Lee’s birthday, is a most suitable and fitting one. The purpose is to raise $1,000,000 by popular subscription as a memorial to General Lee to be used as an endowment fund in the in stitution which Washington in his day en dowed, and over which Lee presided during the last five years of his life. This will give the country opportunity of expressing, in permanent fashion, the high esteem in which this great man was held, and at the same time ^contribute to a-good cause, that of edu cation to which Gem Lee gave some of the very ablest efforts and best service of his splendid life. If he had not been famous as a military character, he would have become eminent as an educator and executive officer. Governor Heywood, of South Carolina, an alumnus of Washington and Lee, is at the head of the centennial memorial movement, and the services of other able executives and leaders are expected to make the move ment a success. Robert E. Lee’s great name commanding a million dollars for the cause of education in this century will be but a continuation of the power of the great soul that commanded the brave and heroic army of Northern Virginia in the last century. All success to the cause. Mayor McClellan of New York vetoed the bill passed by the Legislature allowing “Am ateur” baseball on Sundays. Therein the Mayor showed a sense of morality, as well as good judgment. THE ENLIGHTENMENT OF THE SPIRIT. After all natural a^td known causes have been eliminated, and due allowance made therefor, it must be admitted, in many in stances, that the Spirit does a work in the mind of men in a way and manner not to be accounted for, other than on marvelous, not to say miraculous, grohnds. Here is a case in point. During the preaching of “Gypsy” Smith in Brooklyn recently, thirteen sermons were delivered. A stenographer, who was also something of a scholar and grammarian, testifies that not an erroneous sentence or word, not even a mispronounced word, es caped his lips during all his public utter ances there. Admitting that the Gypsy has a precocious mind, works very hard, and studies closely, the handling of his mother tongue in such perfection borders on the wonderful, the miraculous; especially when it is taken into consideration that he was never taught, nor learned, even in the acad emic schools, much less in college or univers ity. This man teaches the most learned, though himself an unlearned man, from the academic point of view. The enlightening power of the Spirit must be reckoned with. We hear it often repeated in our day that St. John, the writer of the Fourth Gospel, was a learned man, skilled in letters, ac quainted with literature. All of which may be so. But the writer of the Acts says, “Now when they saw the boldness of Peter and John, and perceived that they were unlearned ana ignorant men, tney marvenea. qi\.cis 4:13.) It was enough to make them—the rulers, elders, scribes, priests, learned men— marvel to hear men speak with such fervid and convincing eloquence. The remainder of Acts 4:13 explains the mystery of their pow er: “And they took knowledge of them, that they had been with Jesus.” Yes, John, the writer of the Fourth Gospel, was a; learned man. He had leaned on Jesus’ bosom and had learned there the deep secret, the mar velous mystery, of Christ’s wonderful love. He was enlightened even in things that pertain to learning and language and life. The Spirit had given him knowledge. Rev. Carlyle Summerbell, D. D., in a recent article in The Herald of Gospdl Liberty, paid this beautiful, and very discriminating, tribute to the Apostle Paul: What a man was the Apostle Paul! Born a Jew, he inherited that Semitic fervency for religion that made him love God with all his heart and count all things dross compared with spiritual blessing: a Roman with the executive ability of the empire builders, their diplomacy, their directness and power to do. A Pharisee persecuting the new sect of Christians; a Christian preaching the new gospel of Christ. A man whose figures of speech were the Roman games, running, boxing, fighting, he yet was the supreme ex ample after Christ, of the doctrine of non resistance. Polished with Greek literature, intoxicated with Jewish religion, enthused wim nornan universal imperialism, ne iias dominated thb creeds of the churches for sixteen hundred years. He caught a glimpse of the Christ, and ever afterward followed him through dangers of sea and land, of mobs and religionists, of prison to, the death, if need be. So he wrote to his beloved child Timothy. “For I am already being offered and the time of my departure is at hand. I have fought the good fight, I have finished the course, I have kept the faith: henceforth there is laid up for me the crown of right eousness'1, which the Lord, the righteous judge, shall give to me at that day, and not to me only, but also to all them that have loved his appearing.” , That is certainly a beautiful ’ word of a most noble character. That which arises in the mind is, could Paul with all his learning, logic and versatility, all his matchless mental gifts, have been a man of so many parts, a character of such marvelous achievements, had he no t“ caught a glimpse of the Christ, and ever afterwards followed him through dangers of sea and land?” Here is what this line would teach: That it helps a man’s intellect, his mind and ; though in all that goes for learning and life to catch a glimpse of Christ and be will ing to follow Him ever afterwards. The Spirit illuminates, enlightens, gives knowl edge, reveals mysteries. TEXTS THAT HAVE HELPED AND COMFORTED ME. By Rev. Theodore L. Cuyler, D. D. Coleridge’s remark that “The Bible is the only book that always finds me” has been abundantly verified in the experience of myriads of Christians. Other cisterns of thought run dry; this divine fountain of truth is inexhaustible. For every mood of mind, for every perplexity, every emergen cy, and every trial there is a precious mes sage for us. The Bible of many a veteran Christian has its margins lined with pencil marks against favorite and well-tested texts. There is one text that has helped me won derfully; it is that not unfamiliar one in the fifty-ninth Psalm: “Cast thy burden upon the Lord.’’ The Hebrew word translated ‘ ‘ burden ’ ’ signifies that which is given to us to bear. The Psalmist means to say that whatever Providence appoints to us, we must lay it upon the Lord; He has cast thy lot for thee; then cast thy lot upon him. It may seem at first sight as if there was a contradiction between this text and that other one, “Every man shall bear his own burden.’’ But there is no contradiction at all. We have our duties to perform, some times very difficult duties; God does not re lease us from them, but he sustains us in the doing them. The load laid upon us does not crush us, for he gives us strength equal to the day; we lay the load upon the strength which our loving Father imparts to us. God’s wonderfully gracious offer to us in this text is to lighten our burdens by putting himself, as it were, into our souls, and underneath the burdens. This is a su pernatural process; and the whole -walk of faith through life is the simple, but sublime reliance upon the Almighty arm that is never seen but often felt. This is a world of worries, and all around us are overloaded people; each one thinks his or her burden is the biggest. In the meantime our merciful Father keeps saying to every one of them, “Cast thy burden up on the Lord and he will sustain thee.” As if this one offer were not enough, it is re peated again in the New Testament; “cast all your anxieties upon him for he careth for you.” This is the more accurate ren dering in the Revised Version; for the word translated “care” in our Common Version does not signify wise forethought but that wretched thing worry. This text has been delightfully helpful to me because I have a natural tendency to anxieties, and the rea son given for rolling them over upon God is very tender and very touching. ‘ ‘ He careth for you. ’ ’ He takes the deepest in terest in you. He is the One who says to me, “My child, do not break yourself down wifh that burden.” The infinite Ruler of the universe who is wise in counsel and won derful in working—the God who guarded the infant Moses in his cradle of rushes; who sent the messenger birds to Elijah bj the brook Cherith; who quieted Daniel among the ■ ravenous lions, and calmed Paul in the raging tempest—he it is who says to us, Roll your anxieties over on me, for I have you on my loving heart! What fools we often are when we trudge along with ben ded backs and careworn hearts; and all the while God’s omnipotent armies stretched out to relieve us! These twin-texts I have just quoted have more than once exorcised athat demon of “worry,” and made me move nimbly over the path of duty. Sometimes in a season of great perplexity a passage of Scripture has suddenly darted its light upon me, and made the pathway very clear to my eyes. A re markable illustration of this occurred to me during my ministry in New York. My down town field of labor was a very difficult one; and a very attractive call was pressed upon me from a prominent, wealthy and prosper ous church in a Western city. For weeks I was perplexed and sought guidance. One day I opened that richly suggestive old book, “Cecil’s Remains,’’ and my eye rested on a passage in which Richard Cecil remarks that changes in life are often dangerous, espec ially if an appeal is made to selfish ambition. Then followed this text from the prophet Jeremiah, “Why gaddest thou about to change thy way?’’ That decided me in an instant. Never have I ceased to thank God for that little text; but for it I might have missed a distinct call from God—soon af terwards—to this city of Brooklyn in which I have been permitted to do the most "im portant work of my life. We ministers are constantly required to administer consolation to afflicted souls, and we are often in sore need of heaven-sent comfort ourselves. Once when God had tak en from the home—of which she was an or nament and delight—a beautiful and beloved daughter, the following text came to me like a dove of peace flying into my window: “And now men see not the bright light whieh is in the clouds; but the wind passeth and cleanseth (or cleareth) them.’’ An exceed ingly dark and mysterious cloud of bereave ment was overhanging. I needed some re vealing wind to clear away the dark and dreadful mystery of that affliction, and to let some rays of light into the hearts of two grief-stricken parents. One of the truths that beamed in upon us was that there is a great want in all ministers and teacheis who have had no personal education in the bearing of sharp trials. We need lessons that only can be learned through tears, just as Paul needed a thorn in the flesh, and Joseph needed to be shut up in a prison in order that he might reach a palace and a premiership in the kingdom of Egypt. Fel low Christians! do we not all need to be taught that dark clouds often rain down precious blessings—that Christ’s people are never more exalted than when laid low, never so enriched as when they are emptied, never so advanced as when they are set back by faith-trying adversities? God is a marvel ous organist, and knows just what heart chords to strike when he would evoke the melodies he loveth to hear. If affliction drives us from him it becomes a curse; if it sends us closer to him it yields certain otherwise unobtainable blessings. Through the parted clouds of sorrow, good angels of mercy descend upon us. One of them says, “Whom he loveth he chasteneth.” Another angel says, “All things work to gether for good to them that love God.” Still another sings in our ears, “Let not your heart be troubled; believe also in me.” And so as our vision gets cleansed with tears, we begin to see bright light breaking through the clouds. No cloud ever can be big enough or black enough to shut out heaven if we keep the eye of faith fixed steadily on the everlasting Throne. 1 might quote many other passages that have rendered infinite help and consolation; but I close with an incident that happened in my oivn family not long ago. A beloved member of my family was compelled to un dergo a very severe and critical surgical operation. On the morning of the day on which the eminent surgeon was to operate, she opened her little book of Daily Light; and the text for that day at the top of the page was this—“Thou shalt be steadfast, and shalt not fear; because thou shalt forget thy misery, and remember it only as waters that pass away.” Those words came like a voice from above; they were as cheering at the time as they have since proved to be prophetic. Truly God’s Book Is a wonder ful treasure-house of truth for every step in our pathway of life, and for every emer gency that we encounter. Happy are they who make it a lamp unto their feet, and their song in the house of their pilgrimage! —Christian Work and Evangelist. Newport News Shipbuilding Co., Newport News Va., has been awarded by contest from the Government the building of one of the new 20,000 ton battleships for our Navy. The price is $3,087,000. Fore Riv er Co. or Quincey Mass., is awarded anoth er at$4,377,000.
The Christian Sun (Elon College, N.C.)
Standardized title groups preceding, succeeding, and alternate titles together.
June 26, 1907, edition 1
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