Social and religious ideals

Front matter

IU H H i HU ' 'I gramaa

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Preface

At the present time many thoughtful people are seriously perplexed by questions that seem to throw doubt upon the essentials of the Christian faith. That radical and far-reaching changes are taking place in our theological conceptions cannot be denied. What will be the outcome of these changes? How much is left of the old faith ? Is there growing up a new faith that will meet the religious and social needs of a new age ? The answers of traditional theology to these questions will not, it is becoming clear, satisfy earnest seekers of the truth.

This little volume is sent out in the hope that those who are perplexed may find guidance in its pages. The writer does not assume that he has answered all their questions, but he ventures to hope that he may direct their steps into some new way of inquiry. The essays are written from the point of view of one who frankly accepts the estab-

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PREFACE lished facts of modern science and the new Biblical criticism, of one who is in full sympathy with that movement of religious life which is finding its interpretation in what is known as the New Theology. This theology, approved by the reasoning intellect, has yet to justify itself to the spirit of man. The writer's appeal, therefore, is not primarily to dogma but to life itself.

The significance of the general title will appear from an examination of the Contents. The endeavor has been made to establish a just balance between personal and social values. The writer believes in applying the principles of Jesus' teaching to questions of social, no less than of individual, righteousness. Indeed, the two cannot well be separated. In every department of human activity we are ceasing to regard man as capable of isolation.

It will readily be seen that no formal connection exists among the various essays. Each is the outgrowth of a particular mood ; fragmentary, to be sure, but for that very reason adapted to the need of busy men and women. Though the book is not sent forth in any spirit of over-confidence, yet the writer is encouraged by the thought that as these

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PREFACE reflections have been the outgrowth of his own real need, others may find them of help in their progress toward the ideal.

United Church on the Green, New Haven, Conn., April 26, 1907.

IX

PAGE

LOVE RAISED TO ITS HIGHEST POWER 3

THE BEST THINGS 3

THE PRESENT-DAY PROTEST AGAINST CREEDS ... 3

THE MORNING HOURS OF LIFE 4

THE CHILD AND HIS EDUCATION 4

THE NEW JERUSALEM 5

THE KINGDOM OF HEAVEN 5

THE MINISTRY OF MISFORTUNE 5

THE EAGER QUEST FOR TRUTH 6

THE CURSE OF THE CHURCH . 6

THE ONE SURE ARGUMENT 7

A GREAT LOVE AND MUCH SERVICE 7

RELIGION — ITS LOWER AND HIGHER MEANINGS ... 8

VISION OF POET AND SCIENTIST 8

OUR FATHER 9

YOUTH AND OLD AGE 9

YOUR NEED AND MINE IO

JESUS OF NAZARETH A SOLID HISTORICAL FACT . . . IO

THE WILL TO DO . . . I Z

" GLORIA IN EXCELSIS" 12

THE GOSPEL OF TO-MORROW 12

NEW TRUTH OUT OF THE OLD 1 3

THE PEOPLE MOST ALIVE 13

THE MAKING OF MANHOOD 14

THE SECRET OF SPIRITUAL BLESSING 1 5

SCIENCE AND THE FUTURE LIFE . - . . . . . 15

EVERY MAN HIS OWN MEDIATOR 1 6

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PAGE

"TO THE UNKNOWN god" 17

WHY MEN DENY THE TEACHINGS OF FAITH . . . . 1 7

REPENTANCE CANNOT UNRAVEL THE PAST . . . . 1 8

THE STAR THAT LEADS TO CHRIST 1 8

THE CALL TO AN ADVENTUROUS LIFE 19

HEALTH OF SOUL 20

THE SEASON OF VISIONS 20

LOVE AND SPIRITUAL DARING 21

THE HIDDEN MAN . 22

SOMETHING NOT TO BE DENIED 2 2

HOURS THAT WE REMEMBER 23

THE CHIEF WORK OF THE CHURCH 23

WHAT KEEPS THE WORLD SWEET 24

ALL THE WORLD LOVES A LOVER 25

HEARING AND DOING THE WORD 25

THE WINE OF THE SOUL 26

EMMANUEL GOD WITH US 27

THE TOUCH OF THE HAND 27

INDIVIDUAL IMMORTALITY 28

NECESSITY OF ORGANIZATION 29

THE MISFORTUNE OF BEING FORTUNATE . . . . 29

OUR GROWTH INTO CHILDHOOD 30

THE NATIONAL AWAKENING 3 1

HOW ARTISTS MISINTERPRET THE BIBLE . . . . 3 1

THE TRUE TEST OF DISCIPLESHIP 32

A PARABLE OF THE SEED 33

THE HOUR THAT NOW IS 34

EVERY CITIZEN SHOULD KNOW HIS OWN CITY . . . 34

THE GREAT THOUGHT OF THE NINETEENTH CENTURY . 35

PREACHING THE TERRORS OF THE LORD . . . . 36

THINGS IN CITY LIFE TO WEEP OVER 36

THE NEED OF A GREAT CAUSE 37

ONLY ONE RELIGION 38

TWO KINDS OF MATERIALISM 38

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PAGE

THE GOLDEN DAY AT HAND 39

HOW GOD ANSWERS PRAYER 40

A WORLD-SHAKING ADVENTURE 4 1

WHO ARE THE "GOOD PEOPLE"? 41

THE UNNATURALNESS OF "NATURAL DEPRAVITY " . . 42

THROUGH MAN TO GOD 43

CONCERNING TRIVIAL EXPERIENCES 44

WHAT THIS AGE MOST VALUES 44

OUT OF THE SOUL'S DEPTH 45

ART AND RELIGION 46

THE TRUTH OF ALL TRUTHS 47

THINGS WHICH ABIDE 47

WHAT SHALL WE DO? 48

DIVINE DISCONTENT 49

WHAT SCIENCE HAS DONE AND FAILED TO DO . . 50

RELATIONSHIP AND RESPONSIBILITY 5 1

THE CHRIST CONSCIOUSNESS OF THE FATHER . . . 51

THE CHRISTIAN THEORY OF WEALTH 52

THE ONLY ROAD TO THE IDEAL 53

CHRISTIANITY A RELIGION OF HOPE 54

THE SAVING POWER OF OLD ASSOCIATIONS . . . . 55

A REALITY OF THE CHILD-HEART 55

MEN SENT FROM GOD . 56

THE GREATEST QUESTION IN THE WORLD . . . . 57

RESPONSIBILITY OF THE SCHOLAR 58

THE PERFECTIBILITY OF MAN 59

A QUESTION BENEATH A QUESTION 60

NATURE TO BE INTERPRETED BY THE GOSPEL ... 60

SINS OF THE DISPOSITION 6 1

WHAT CONSTITUTES A GREAT TEACHER? . . . . 62

WHEREIN LIES THE FAILURE? 63

DIVINE LOVE AND HUMAN 64

FREEDOM IN THE MIND ALONE 65

AN ARGUMENT FROM HISTORY 65

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PAGE

FRIENDSHIP AND WORLDLY SUCCESS 66

THE NEW PATRIOTISM 67

THE INDWELLING GOD 68

CONVENTIONAL CHRISTIANITY WORLDLY AND UNSPIRITUAL . 69

A NEW REVERENCE 70

A WHOLESOME SENSE OF DIVINE JUSTICE . . . . 71

THE STAR-ELEMENT IN CHRISTIANITY 72

SORROW WITH THE UPWARD LOOK 73

A SPIRITUAL SPECTROSCOPE 74

THE APPEAL OF THE UNKNOWN 75

DISTINCTION BETWEEN FAITH AND BELIEF . . . . 76

THE MODERN CITY A SAD SIGHT 77

IN THE DAYS THAT WERE 78

AN INEXORABLE LAW 78

THE WORLD A TEMPLE OF WORSHIP 79

KINDNESS 80

THE SPRINGTIDE OF THE SOUL 8 1

REALITIES THAT LIE TOO DEEP FOR WORDS . . . . 82

THE LAND OF WARMTH AND LIGHT 83

INDIGNATION WITHOUT LOVE 84

OUR LOVE FOR THE WORLD 85

HEROES OF YESTERDAY 86

AS TO BELIEF IN DEMONS 86

OVER AGAINST HIS OWN HOUSE 88

THE REVIVAL NEEDED TO-DAY 89

SHALL WE CONTINUE TO USE THE WORD GOD? 90

THE TRUTH ABOUT THE BIBLE 9 1

ETERNAL LIFE A PRESENT REALITY 92

WHY THE PRIESTS HATED JESUS 93

SELF-INTEREST OR BENEVOLENCE? 95

A RETURN TO PURITANISM 96

THE SOUL'S CRUCIBLE 97

A LESSON UNLEARNED 98

WHAT ALL MEN DESIRE 99

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PAGE

BACK TO THE CROSS IOO

A WISE AND AN UNWISE AGNOSTICISM IOI

WE TOO WOULD HAVE LOVED HIM 102

SINGLENESS OF PURPOSE 103

HOW MEN BECAME CHRISTIANS IN JESUS' TIME . . 1 04

AS TO SAVING OUR OWN SOULS 1 05

THE MORAL LIFE FOR ITS OWN SAKE 106

IF JESUS WERE HERE 107

THE SHAME OF THE CHURCH 1 08

BETWEEN EARTH AND SKY 109

LIFE HAS A MEANING IIO

PRIVATE PROPERTY A TEUST Ill

WERE I TO WRITE A CREED 112

THE HIGH USES OF ADVERSITY 113

JESUS AND THE GREEK IDEALS 115

CHRISTIAN SCIENCE AND THE NEW THOUGHT . . . Il6

THE SUFFERING GOD 117

A NEW YEAR CREED Il8

FOUNDATIONS OF BELIEF I IQ

THE STRUGGLE FOR OTHER LIVES 121

RESPONSIBILITY FOR THE WAR OF THE CLASSES . . . 122

THE TRUE CROSS NOT MADE OF WOOD 1 23

IMMUNITY FROM EVIL 125

THE REVIVAL OF THE PAST 1 26

JESUS AS A LAYMAN 127

THE DIVINE FIRE 129

EVERY AGE HAS ITS NEW THEOLOGY 130

THE SECRET OF FAITH I3I

SAVING OR SERVING MEN WHICH? 132

LET US LEARN TO HAVE PITY I34

THE MODERN VIEW OF PUNISHMENT FOR SIN . . . I35

THE VICTORY OF DEFEAT I36

A BOOK FOR TWO WORLDS 1 38

THE FAITH OF THE FUTURE 139

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PAGE OBEDIENCE, THE FIRST STEP IN THE CHRISTIAN LIFE . 141

THE TRUE ATTITUDE TOWARDS PRESENT-DAY REFORM MOVE-

MENTS

ARE OUR SUNDAY LAWS RELIGIOUS OR SECULAR?. . .143

THE REVELATION WITHIN THE MANTLE 1 44

SYLLOGISM AND STAR 145

HEART, HEAD, AND HAND 147

THE UNSEEN BATTLEFIELD 1 48

SPIRITUAL RELIGION 1 49

WE ENTER LIFE THROUGH LIVES 1 50

THE TRUE APOSTOLIC SUCCESSION 152

HOW GOD MAY BE KNOWN 153

HOW MUCH IT COSTS TO LOVE 1 55

MEN WHO BUY AND SELL CHRIST 1 56

THE DESIRE TO LIVE AFTER DEATH 1 58

THE HISTORY OF THE RACE A DRAMA 1 59

A STARTLING AND REVOLUTIONARY MESSAGE . . . 1 63

THE GHOSTS OF PAST SINS 1 64

THE DIVINITY OF MAN 166

XVI

Love Raised to Its Highest Power

Men say that Christianity is love; but love was in the world from the very beginning, from the moment that eyes first looked into eyes. Christianity is something far more; it is love raised to its highest power; it is love as Jesus loved.

The Best Things

There are some things in life better than power or fame, some things better than large wealth; they are such old-fashioned things as heart-loyalties, devotion to a great cause, faithfulness to those with whom we are bound up in all the intricate associations of friendship and love.

The Present-Day Protest Against Creeds

All thoughtful and earnest people deplore the present-day protest against creeds. Clear conceptions of theological truth are hardly less important in the perfecting of character than fine impulses of religious emotion. Both grace and truth came by Jesus Christ.

The Morning Hours of Life

The secret of power is in keeping oneself young. The secret of our influence over others lies in our ability to touch their hearts, to take them out of the dullness and routine of daily toil and away from the weariness that comes from constant strife, to take them back to the morning hours of life, to awaken within them the spirit of childhood, to unfold the beauty in old and simple things.

The Child and His Education

We have still to learn that all civilization exists for the child and that the only really great work in this world is his education, the leading out to full maturity of all his powers. Jesus saw, with a vision encompassing all life, that we are here in the world to be educated, that this earth is God's schoolhouse, and this life a training for some higher life of future usefulness.

SOCIAL AND RELIGIOUS IDEALS The New Jerusalem

Of the Emperor Augustus it was said, He found Rome brick and left it marble. I believe that the spirit of the living Christ is working out in every city a far greater transformation than that. The New Jerusalem which the seer saw in a vision was indeed coming down out of heaven, but it was coming down to earth. We enter into that New Jerusalem by deepening and strengthening and purifying the life of our own city.

The Kingdom of Heaven

Though it may be somewhat difficult to determine how the Jews interpreted the phrase, Kingdom of heaven, the meaning Jesus attached to it is fairly clear. Sometimes it meant to him a power in the soul, sometimes a leaven at work in the w^orld, sometimes a society redeemed and purified; but always to him it was the reign of God — over all, and in all, and through all.

The Ministry of Misfortune

It seems strange that misfortunes, instead of embittering, tend to sweeten the soul and touch the spirit to tenderness. One would think it would be the other way; that he whom Providence prospered would be sympathetic towards those less fortunate than himself. But it is rarely so: it is the tendency of prosperity to breed selfishness, and of misfortune to quicken sympathy. He who experiences in his own soul the tragedy and sorrow of life cannot be unkind.

The Eager Quest for Truth

When I speak of the eager quest for truth, I do not mean the academic ideal, what has been called " the passionless pursuit of passionless intelligence." I mean truth as it opens down into the throbbing breast of life. I mean truth that is all quivering and alive with human interest. I mean what Emerson meant when he said, " Let there be an entrance opened for me into realities; I have worn a fool's cap too long."

The Curse of the Church

The curse of the church to-day is its professionalism. As forms, and pride, and show of wealth come in, the old, warm, tender interests go out.

How much it would mean if in sincerity we could write over the entrance to every church, " I have not called you servants, I have called you friends." For ourselves, though we carve not the inscription over the entrance of the church, we may carve it upon our hearts. Thus shall we realize the true religion, which is the religion of friendship.

The One Sure Argument

We may be as sure of God as w T e are sure of ourselves. The new 1 " science, together with the new theology, may take aw T ay certain primitive conceptions of God, but nothing can take away the sure evidences that spring up within the soul. All the scholastic arguments for God may go — I think indeed most of them have gone, — but the argument that shapes itself out of a man's personal sense of the divine power which orders his life, this argument remains and will remain.

A Great Love and Much Service

If we would attain happiness, we must first attain helpfulness. I have read somewhere this definition of happiness: " Happiness is a great love and much service/ ' Not love alone, for that may be a sentiment as intangible as the mist that fades before the morning breeze. Not service alone, for that may be sheer drudgery. Happiness springs from these two things put together — " a great love and much service/ ' Whoever wrote that sentence, consciously or unconsciously cast into a single utterance the whole gospel of Christ.

Religion — Its Lower and Higher Meanings

Religion is a plant rooted deep in the common soil, but it draws its nourishment from the unseen resources of the atmosphere above. Religion means the use of one's hands in ministries of healing and helpfulness; it also means the lifting up of those hands in prayer. It means that the green earth is firm beneath us ; it means also that somewhere, above us, or around us, or within us, there is another world, and that other world the reality of which all we see here is but the passing shadow.

Vision of Poet and Scientist

It was something more than a poet's fancy that led Tennyson to speak of love as the " root of creation." The vision of the poet is deeper than the sight of the scientist. The latter has observed the cruelty in nature, and overstated it; the poet has met the cruelty, the terribly selfish struggle for life, but he has insight for the great significance of struggle for the lives of others; he believes that God is in it all, and the purpose some far-away, divine purpose of love.

Our Father

If we may trust the holiest life ever lived on earth, if we may believe that Jesus built his teaching and his character on truth and not falsehood, then we may take into our own bosoms this most precious of all doctrines, the eternal Fatherhood of God. If you ask me to prove it, I cannot ; all I can do is to accept it on the authority of my own faith in Christ. My Father and your Father ! because he is " the Father of our Lord Jesus Christ."

Youth and Old Age

Would it not be far better if the men who are growing old would take life more leisurely, and those who are young would take it more strenuously ; it would give the younger men a chance and relieve the older men of their burdens. Youth is the season of growth, and age the season of ripening. There is something tragic in the spectacle of a young man wasting his time in frivolous pleasures, and there is something pathetic in an old man's holding himself with desperate persistence to daily toil. The happy balancing of extremes is in that line of Goldsmith's, " A youth of labor with an age of ease."

Your Need and Mine

The tragedy and pathos of human life lie not in its toil, its suffering, its sorrow, its death, but in the fact that men and women so commonly fail to realize that God is in it all. Your need and mine is not to be relieved from the strain at the oar, but to have awakened in us a deeper faith that there is a divine meaning in the smiting of wind and wave. Take out of human life the confidence that God sees us, even though we fail to see him; that since he is watching over us we need have no fear; take that confidence out of life, and you have taken out of it all strength and all beauty and all hope.

Jesus of Nazareth a Solid Historical Fact

After making all the allowances that a reasonable New Testament criticism would claim, Jesus of Naz-

IO areth stands forth as a solid historical fact. The spiritual ideal of Jesus which men have formulated is not an unsubstantial dream; it is justified by the actual facts of his life as they have shaped themselves to critical scholarship. In the gospels we have Jesus represented as " the image of the invisible God " ; we have the authentic record of an ethical consciousness which far surpasses that of any other man known to history.

The Will to Do

When we see men and women who appear to be suffering defeat in life's battle, let us not be too hasty in calling their lives failures. Perhaps they are achieving an inward and spiritual victory, — attaining unto character, winning the mastery over themselves by means of those very adversities which seem to be their undoing. Why do we go on in life persistently estimating people according to the sum of things they accomplish, and remain stone blind to the ethical fact underlying that oft-quoted line :

: 'Tis not what man does which exalts him, but what man would do."