THE FUTURE
J. P. JOHNSON
MISS EMMA P. JOHNSON.
L. A. WISE
OUTLOOK
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Commecement
Exercises
This next week-end, high schools and colleges will be
celebrating their commencement exercises, whereby, par
ents and friends of the graduating classes will be coming
from far and near for these occasions.
It would be wise that the home residents who have no
relatives or close friends to graduate, or relatives or chil
dren in extra-curricular activities such as glee club, band
or ushers to give up their seats especially if the exercise
is scheduled at 11 :00 A.M., instead, attend your church
and remain a good member of your respective churches
instead of crowding out the high school and college visit
ors, relatives and parents.
In past years when baccalaureate and commencement
services of the various schools were held many parents of
the graduating classes complained that they knew parents
were there with small children under junior high school
age occupying seats and parents of the graduating class
were unable to be seated due to the fact that these parents
were first, therefore after sitting still for approximately
one hour before the exercise began, many of the smaller
children began fretting as any small child would do.
One shouldn't carry a baby to commencement exercise
when they aren't accustomed to a large congregational
gathering, because three out of four babies becomes irri
table and cries, making everyone around them uneasy. In
stead of upsetting everyone, why not find a baby-sitter
for one or two hours in order for parents to attend these
exercises in which some member of their family will be
participating.
Visitors and relatives traveling near and far should
also stop at a restroom and rest area before without stop
ping to catch their breath and re-grooming themselves
entering the commencement exercises. It is a very dis
turbing and provoking thing to happen when a large group
of people are disturbed from the main event of the
speaker in order to go to restrooms, also to ask parents
whose sole reason for being there is to hear the speakers
address the graduates and be disturbed to show someone
the way to the restroom, then have to move to let them
out and re-move to let them back in.
Another distraction is a group of teenagers iii cars
outside the building making noise with the car wheels
and mufflers, for the reason of showing off.
Then to, visitors and relatives traveling, should have
a first-aid kit handy in case someone becomes car-sick,
dizzy or nauseated. It's much better to stop every now and
then to stretch your arms and legs while on a long trip,
then by the time you reach the destination you're ready to
sit and listen and be comfortable.
Please, let's be more considerate of others, after all
this isn't lik? going on a picnic, a commencement exercise
is a very serious occasion following many years of study
and hard work, so show the college graduates that we too
are very proud of them by being well mannered and quiet
when their day is here.
This Weed's Sunday School Lesson
JOB UNDER FIRE
What Is Our Concern?
How does one handle disaster?
In our modern American soci
ety a high premium is placed
upon success; consequently, when
one fails ? even after his best
efforts ? he often feels "guilty."
Furthermore, he is often scorned
by his friends and acquaintan
ces. On the other hand, the per
son who succeeds financially ?
even though he may have "cut
corners',' or even stolen out
right ? is often applauded by
the public. In this kind of so
ciety, youth and young adults
are seldom adequately prepared
to deal constructively with fail
ure. Yet failure is the lot of al
most everyone at one time or
another.
The experience of Job is
shared by millions of persons
today. Life caves in unexpect
edly. And the worst part is that
troubles, like grapes, come in
bunches. Illness is added to fi
nancial reverses, and family
troubles may be heaped on the
pile. Perhaps the universality of
this experience accounts for the
popularity of Archibald Mac
Leish's play, J. B. Here Job's
sufferings are given modern
equivalents: death of children
by war, traffic accidents, mur
der, explosion, and the like. The
contemporrary comforters are a
psysician, a clergyman, and a
professor.
Our faith offers no easy an
swers to hard questions. It is still
very hard to understand how a
good God can allow the terrible
suffering that afflicts so many
people around the world.
Before Yon Read the Scripture
Ernest Renan once wrote, "It
is in the Book of Job that the
force, the beauty, the depth of
the Hebrew genius are seen at
their best." And Thomas Car
lyle, also an admirer of this
book, wrote, "There is nothing
written, I think, in the Bible or
out of it, of equal literary mer
it." What is this book that wins
such high praise?
First, we should note that the
Book of Job ? like the Book of
Ecclesiastes, which we studied
last week ? has two or more
authors. It consists of an ancient
story in which is nested a great
religious poem. It may be di
vided into a prologue (Chapters
1 and 2; written about 1000-800
B. C.), the poem (Chapters 3:1
through 42:6; written in the
sixth or fifth century B. C.),
and an epilogue (Chapter 42:
7-17): from the same period as
the Prologue). Chapter 28, on
wisdom, and Chapters 32
through 37, the speeches of El
ihu, are held by most scholars
to be later additions to the
book.
Chapters 3 through 27 are
made up of three cycles of
speeches in which Job's friends
speak and he replies to each in
turn. However, Job seems not
so much to be trying to answer
his friends as to think aloud
about his situation and its im
plications. The functions of fie
prodding and goading of .Tnb's
friends seems to be to force Job
to think through his theology.
He cannot accept their shallow
or traditional explanations of
his dilemma, so he is forced up
ward toward an inner peace
based on a new vision of God.
Job holds onto two certainties.
He cannot deny the reality of
God, a reality he has experi
enced in personal communion;
and he i? r nvinced of his own
integrity and refuses to accept
a guilt he does not feel. In his
heart Job knows that God is
good; therein lies the basis for
his protest against the common
ly held notion of why persons
suffer.
What the Scripture Says
The Scripture for today is Job
1 and 2; 29; 32:1-5; 42. Selected
verses are printed below. See
Home Bible Study suggestions
in the back of the quarterly.
Job 2:1-10
1 Again there was a day when
the sons of God came to present
themselves before the Lord, and
Satan also came among them
to present himself before the
Lord. 2 And the Lord said to
Satan. "W hence have you
come?" Satan answered the
Lord, "From going to and fro
on the earth, and from walking
up and down on it." 3 And the
Lord said to Satan, "Have you
considered my servant Job, that
there is none like him on the
earth, a blameless and upright
man. who fears God and turns
away from evil? He still holds
j fast his integrity, although you
I moved me aeainst him, to de
stroy him without cause." 4 Then
i Satan answered the Lord. "Skin
for skin! All that a man has he
will give for his life. 5 But put
forth thy hand now, and touch
his bone and his flesh, and he
will curse thee to thy face." 6
And the Lord said to Satan, "Be
hold, he is in your power; only
spare his life."
7 So Satan went forth from
the presence of the Lord, and
afflicted Job with loathsome
sores from the sole of his foot
to the crown of his head. 8 And
he took a potsherd with which
tq scrape himself, and sat
among the ashes.
9 Then his wife said to him,
"Do you still hold fast your in
tegrity? Curse God, and die."
10 But he said to her, "You
speak as one of the foolish
women would speak. Shall we
receive good at the hand of God,
and shall we not receive evil?"
In all this Job did not sin with
his lips.
Memory Selection: For the mo
ment all discipline seems pain
ful rather than pleasant; later
it yields the peaceful fruit of
righteoUsnesskwkwkw
righteousness to those who have
been trained by it.
? Hebrews 12:11
How We Understand
The Scripture
Chapters 1 and 2 provide a
prose prologue to the drama of
Job. In the prose sections (the
Prologue and the Epilogue, 42:
7-17) Job is shown as meek and
submissive; but in the poeti<;
section he is portrayed as any
thing but submissive. The prose
story of Job was several hun
dred years old when the un
known poet adapted it to his
purposes. In European literary
history we find numerous exam
ples of this kind of adaptation ?
notably. William Shakespeare,
who frequently took ancient
stories and converted them into
great dramas.
In the Prologue the matter at
issue between Satan and God is
Job's integrity. Satan contends
(1:9-11) that Job respects God
because he has been blessed
materially but that he would
curse God if those material
blessings were taken away.
When this charge proves false,
he contends again (2:4-5) that
if Job experiences physical suf
fering, he will curse God. Job
proves Satan wrong once again
by stating: "Shall we receive
?ood at the hand of God, and
;hall we not receive evil?"
At this point (2:11) Job's
three friends ? Eliphaz, Bildad,
and Zophar ? come to comfort
him. "Seven" is the Hebrew for
completeness or perfection; so
the statement that they "sat
with him on the ground seven
days and seven nights" means
that they were in earnest.
At this point the prose section
ends; and, with Chapter 3, the
poetic section begins.
Chapter 29 is a monologue by
Job, following the debate with
his three friends. This chapter
is a nostalgic reminiscence of
his previous blessed state when
everyone respected him and
when he was able to benefit the
downtrodden and oppressed ?
the poor, the fatherless, the
widow, the blind, the lame.
Chapter 32:1-5 is a prose in
troduction to the speeches of
Elihu, which appear in Job 32
through 37. Elihu is not men
tioned in the rest of the book;
Job does not reply to him; the
other three friends do not speak
or reply to him. Consequently,
scholars believe that this section
was a later addition to the book
by another writer.
The five verses of this chap
ter listed for this lesson indicate
only that Elihu was angry both
with Job and with his three
friends.
Chapter 42 contains two dis
tinct parts: a final reaction of
Job to the vision of God (verses
1-6); and the Epilogue to the
ancient story of Job (verses 7
17).
In verses 1-6 Job affirms his
faith in God's omnipotence and
providence (verse 2); then he
moves on to the resolution of
his doubts in a new vision of
God, which produces real hu
mility in him (verses 5-6). Job
still does not understand the
reason for his suffering, but now
he is willing to trust God.
The Epilogue (verses 7-17) is
a comedown after the lofty con
tent of the poem. The old doc
trine of reward for goodness
seems to be reaffirmed. How
ever, this ending may mean
merely that the author of the
major part of the book allowed
the original ending of the story
to stand. After all, the reader
is not likely to forget the earn
est grappling with the problem
of evil and suffering that con
stitutes the major part of the
work.
What the Scripture Says to Us
Remember. if you will, your
experience in Sunday school as
a child. Try to remember a spe
cific session ? its sights, sounds,
and odors: Sunday clothes, cray
on drawings, songs, scissors,
paste, and pressed flowers. Now
ask yourself, What was It all
about?
Remember also worship ser
vices from your youth. Try to
remember some sermon. How
would you define preaching?
One class of junior highs spoke
of preaching as "telling people
(Continued on Pmf? 3)