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Show ' DR. ELMER 1. GOSHEN'S SUNDA Y SERMON I J Reported by The Telegram's Spscial Stenographer. i - TO BE PUBLISHED EVERY MONDAY. Luke xli., 48: And to whomsoever much 1 given, of him much shall be required. re-quired. Responsibility and Privilege. - During- the past four or five Sunday . mornings we have been studying together to-gether some of the great questions that . concern the philosophy of life; and If we have been thinking to any purpose, then there are certain very definite and very practical things that we ought to determine upon, and to demand of ourselves. our-selves. However much religion may be Influenced iby belief. It can never end In mere belief. Religion is life and how we live measures the worth of our religion. Confessing this morning that we are all recipient of countless benefactions; bene-factions; that we enjoy the bleBMngs of liberty 'that the generations have 1 bought; acknowledging that all men live under obligation to God, their Father, let us study this subject of privilege and responsibility as revealed In the affairs af-fairs of our every day life. I This law of responsibility applies to - everyone of us, and try as we may we can not escape it. It is universal In Its application. If you can find a place between be-tween the throne of God and the dust to which, man's ody crumbles, where the focal responsibilities, of this law do not weigh upon him, I will find a vacuum In nature.- They press upon him from God out of eternity, and from the earth out of nature, and from every department depart-ment of life, as constant and all surrounding sur-rounding as1 the pressure of the air. In some way or another we have rare privilege, therefore responsibility Is ours. If you have ability to Interpret musld then make harmonies for others. If God has given you a voice, then make the world richer with your pong. If you have riches or the ability to acquire wealth, then maka It possible for some good work to pursue Its way. If you know how to teach, then open for some - .. mind the gates that lead to knowledge. If you have ability concerning the deli-.cate deli-.cate and difficult, affairs of the house-.hold, house-.hold, then make ' some home beautiful S with your presence. If you have a nature na-ture throbbing with the sympathies of life, thejj help some wrecked and bruised one to creep within the shelter-nr shelter-nr protection of God's love and care. O your own way and in your own place ue the privilege that is yours, remembering remem-bering that to whomsoever much Is given, of him shall much be required. This law that we study today carries with it a lesson of tremendous import; " carries with it a teaching that must make any thoughtful one to be very serious. It is a splendid privilege to enjoy the results of wealth; splendid to have the wealth producing faculty. But what mighty responsibility attaches to aU who have riches. How few, comparatively, com-paratively, who measure up to the opportunity. op-portunity. Wealth will build the school-house school-house and make Ignorance impossible; proclaim the story of a present day worth -consecration. But while all this Is true there Is another an-other story. Increasing leisure brings multiplying problema Womankind today, to-day, because of greater leisures, . has ten-Jold responsibility. No sane mind would wish that leisure be lessened rather that more might have it. But that which may be a source of blessing, turns into a curse when wrongly used. If leasure means four afternoons a week In which to lose one's temper over a scramble for a tawdry prize, then leisure is a curse; If Increasing In-creasing leisure means such loss Of life's enthusiasm as to demand cordials and liquors for its supply, then let womankind woman-kind pray that drudgery be her portion. "To whomsoever much is given, of him shall much be required." And I dare to say Just these things to you women today because to you much has been given. From serfdom and slavery you have been rescued, and given your rightful place at the head of the advancing, ad-vancing, column of civilization. You preside, by right, at that altar where childhood Is taught; you are all pries tr esses in the temple where character Is born; to you society has a right to come for Ideals. Let no frivolous existence ex-istence rob you of your birthright. Wear the "white flower of a blameless life" and by your consecrated worth redeem society. In his annals Pliny somewhere tells of the erection of a great obelisk. The stone was to rtand more than ninety feet in height; 20,000 men were to pull at the ropes that worked the hoisting machinery. The tafk was one of risk and danger. The King resorted to a strange expedient to insure utmost care from the overseer in charge. He ordered the engineer's own son to be bound to the top of the column knowing that the engineer would do his utmost to raise the obelisk safely. Not leys a freightage is attached to the towering shaft that you men and women are called upon to raise. The very life and welfare of your children depends upon the way you live. If you are narrow and petty in your views of life, then will they, influenced by you. be small and Inconsequential. If you are selfish, they will be sordid. If you are uncharitable in your Judgments, they will learn to be hard and bitter In theirs. If you are generous and large-hearted, living and teaching the great lessons of life, then will these who learn from you bring ,to the tasks of life a sweet spirit of consecration that shall make for the enlargement en-largement and beauty of the age. Great the responsibility priceless the privilege privi-lege that is yours. "And to whomsoever whomso-ever much is given, of him Phall much be required." What privilege opens before all you who are young. You find life today to be as attractive as some' splendid banquet board. The skies are raining books to It ceases to be worthy of this sacred trust, It ceases to be worthy of existence. The freedom of-the press is one of the bulwarks of our civilization, but when the press menaces the morals of the community, then it ought to be regulated. Just as is regulated the sale of opium or morphine. Let the press be free and un trammeled; let her be free to rebuke Iniquity and to proclaim virtue; let her meet her magnificent privilege by assuming her mighty responsibilities. re-sponsibilities. And if her editor refuse to speak fearlessly and boldly the truth that shall benefit the community, let him not be surprised If his editorials be Ignored, and if the conviction goes abroad that he has sheathed his sword. Let the press as it wields Its mighty influence in-fluence hear earth's greatest teacher when he says: "To whomsoever much is given, of his shall much ht required." re-quired." If the press is to continue to hold her Influence, she must refuse to add to the gosslp-lovlng element; sha must refuse to tarnish men's reputation; reputa-tion; she must hold as Inviolate the sanctity of the home; she must keep her columns free from all taint of bribery or corruption. She must stand as a sentinel senti-nel upon the ramparts of civilization, pointing the way to a larger liberty, and to a purer citizenship. Many are those who being robbed of health and strength, bemoan their fate; Imagining that no privilege, and therefore there-fore no responsibility is theirs, and make of life a barren wilderness. But the beauty and the strength of life 6hinlng out from afflicted ones, reveals to us the better way. Overwork and arduous study made such inroads upon the strength of the gifted Channing that he was obliged to lay aside the pen and leave the pulpit that he loved. But a great soul was his, and in the hour of his disappointment he spoke a message mes-sage that men love to treasure. Recognizing Recog-nizing the fact that responsibility never rea8ea her demands, he said: "It Is, indeed, in-deed, forbidden men to write or speak, but not to aspire and be. To live content con-tent with small means; to seek elegance rather than luxury, and refinement rather than fashion, to be worthy, not respectable, and wealthy, not rich; to do cheerfully, bear all bravely; to listen to stars and birds, to babes and sages, with open heart; to study hard, think quietly, act frankly, talk gently, await occasion, hurry never in a word, to let the spiritual, unbiddlng and unconscious, uncon-scious, grow up through the common this is to be my symphony." . A little company of men sat chatting one evening after dinner one of their number with keen wit and charming rhetoric ridiculed the Christian faith and hope. And when he had finished one of the company turned to Mr. Beecher and said: "Will you not make tome word of reply?" And Mr. Beecher said, as he faced the former speaker, "Pardon me. but I wa thinking of what wealth WUI DUlia HDraries ami ujaeiiu- nate ctulture; wealth will provide " opportunity for the study of art and music; wealth will build hospitals and lessen suffering; wealth will build gymnasiums and protect the youth against the vices that destroy mind and body; wealth will destroy hunger and relieve distress. What privilege to have the power to carry on any such work. What responsibility is his who refuses to discharge his sacred trust. The man. of wealth who uses selfishly what has come Into his hands needs to hear Lord Shaftesbury as he stands, after a long life of splendid service, addressing for the last time the House of Lords:. "When I feel age creeping upon me I am deeply grieved, for I can not bear to go away and leave the world with so much misery in it." The. man of wealth who refuses to measure responsibility by privilege, needs to look back into another century and see a young man of great riches as he kneels before earth's greatest soul; and as he tarries he says. "Good Master, what must I do to inherit eternal life?" And the Master, seeing that this young man loved his money more than all else, said, "Sell and - give to the poor." And as the shadows gathered the young man went away, j lost to self and to all the highest good. And as the Christ witnessed this great refusal, he said: "How hardly shall they that have riches enter into the King- 1 dom of heaven T' Oh. men of wealth, you who have much and you who have lsj hear - these words today, for to wbflfmsoever much Is given, of him 'sTrail much be required. What supreme responsibility is his ' who has assumed the office of fatherhood. father-hood. Priceless the privilege to stand in such relation to a growing boy or girl or to be the center of trust and love and ideal. Awful the responsibility when you remember that what you are w T.l largely determine the character and the destiny of your child. Let him find in you traits of a noble manhood, evidences evi-dences of a transparent character, and your boy will emulate you and profit by your example. But let him find you to be untrue to 'the great question; let him find you denying in yourjife the Ideals of which he reads and hears, and ' he will conclude that you are right and that they are mere sentiment, and through the subtle power of influence you will have wrecked his life. You fcttin vnur hovs that thev mav instruct you; to neip you to Know tne earth upon which you live; to appreciate its soft embroidered carpet; to understand under-stand the noble architecture of its mountains; to fathom the laws controlling con-trolling its rivers and waterfalls; to find the secret of fauna and flora; to reveal the wealth and the resources of the mines to make you acquainted with all this men are spending their lives. Other men are reaching far out into spece, and by the telescope are bringing to you the screts of other planets, while thousands are bending over microscopes to find for you the intricate lessons of life and being, , And when all these so tail, countless others are unearthing and translating the stories of the past, helping help-ing you if you will, to be a citizen of the universe, equipped with knowledge of the past and the present. In another' age it was a miffortune not to know the great central facts of history; today It is a crime. In a special spe-cial sense this is a day of rich and rare privilege to youth. But If privilege privi-lege stands on one side life's highway extending her " garlands to you, so does responsibility stand Just opposite demanding your contributions. My young frienda, you live In a great age; a demanding age; a needy age; to you much is being given, and of you shall much be required. You have religious privileges today, such as other ages denied. de-nied. The great fundamental truths are today being proclaimed from a thousand places. It Is your privilege to avoid the damaging teaching of bigotry and to find counsel in universal truths. Are you measuring up? Are you laying hold of your priceless privileges and so helping others to find? Are you standing stand-ing for clean bodies and nobie minds? Are you avoiding the filth and finding the virtues of Ufe? Young men stand for omething In this community. Countless problems of civilization cry for solution. .Church and State call for young blood. "To whom much la given,, of him shall much be required." and because be-cause you have come into the legacy sec ured by sacrifice and self abnegation, therefore corneal demand that you discharge dis-charge with all faithfulness the duties you owe to God, to society, to your neighbor and yourself." It is one of the weighty sayings of John Foster that "power to the last atom is responsibility." He was only putting in different phrase the teaching that we study today; and all right thinkine men will agree that the re- I saw in a crowded New York 6treet today. I saw a poor fellow on crutches picking his way across a muddy street. Just when he was at the most dangerous spot a great big fellow rushed out and knocked his crutches from under him." And when he had finished speaking, he who had scoffed at faith and hope denounced de-nounced In fiercest terms the coward who had dared so to do. Then Mr. Beecher turned and said, "You are the man, for you seek to knock the crutches away from needy men, and give them no support In their hour of need." To that orator and rhetorician great privilege privi-lege came, for he was abler far than most, but too often he met responsibility with a Jest, and failed to give to men anything to replace what he helped to destroy. Concerning the religious life, there never was an age of greater privilege than the one in which we live. There never was an age when responsibility was more lnslstant. The old forms and statements of religious truths no longer appeal to humanity; and guided by a truer vision and a larger conception of the truth, the world goes on to repeat its belief and restate Its convictions. And In this period of transition there comes a clarion call for eVery soul to exemplify In word and deed the great living truths concerning God and man. The message of love to God and love to man that Jesus brought will not find universal sway because of finely spun theories, but by embodying itself In forms of life. "Life Is not begotten by theories, but by life," and the call comes to you and me alike, "Go out unto all the world and preach tpe gospel to every creature." Surely rare privilege is ours. We have had One to teach us who taught as never man taught; we have beheld the radiance of his life; we have felt the tender cling and clasp of his friendship, we have been redeemed by his love, and today He stand at the central point of history saying to us and to all humanity: "To whomsoever much Is given, of him shall much be required." re-quired." What privilege Is there so rare as that of Influencing men through the realm of the idea? Where Is there" a place where greater responsibility responsibili-ty attaches? Ferdinand Brunetlere reminds re-minds us of this when he speaks of a company of men who were not always careful to build something better than they destroyed. "At first there are only Jests, keen epigrams, which make grow to be stronger men than you have been able to be; make it possible for them to climb the heights that you have only viewed from afar: give to them the priceless legacy of a splendid example; rejoice In your magnificent privilege, conscious that He was right who said: "To whomsoever much is given, of him shall much be required." Tremendous responsibility attaches to -womanhood Just now. In our country the generations preceding could not accord ac-cord to -woman the privileges that are hers today. Our ancestors were .pioneers, and full oft Mere women obliged to work too long, and to work too hard. She spun the flajc; she made the garments for the household; sne cooked the food: she administered to the rick; she educated her children; she did full share In. subduing a rugged country and In building a mighty civilization. civi-lization. Standing before these genera-' genera-' tions of nbble women let no heart deny its - love end homage. Their brows, though furrowed are more splendid than alabaster: their hands, though peamed with toll, more beautiful than If ornate with Jewels; their lives and deeds exhaling perfume sweeter than the spiced garden renowned In story. They met the need of their day and age, and out of hard conditions and many liml-tatlons, liml-tatlons, left imprint on the generations ' -yet unborn. And many women of this generation are meeting life's duties Suite as bravely and discharging them 'tiite as worthily as any who have gone before. To this attests Clara Barton and her noble compeers of the Red Cross; to this bears testimony Mary Lyon and the thousands who share with her educational educa-tional honors; while Helen Gould and Mary McDjwell and countless others, who are redeeming life from sordidness. 1 A"- ' . ' ' I. ' . i sponsibility attaching to men or to institutions in-stitutions is proportionate to the opportunity oppor-tunity possessed. And yet while recognizing recog-nizing this general law, men must needs be very careful not to Juggle while applying ap-plying it to their own position. I suppose sup-pose that we will all agree that there Is no single agency In the community so fraught with power to bless or to blight as is the public press. It has access to the moat sacred places in all the world the family circle. It accompanies the business man as he goes down town. It lies within the reach of the school boy as he comes from his tasks. It is the common medium for the exchange of-ideas, of-ideas, Its privilege Is splendid, and some times the responsibility Incurred Is faithfully discharged. But too often is the press today derelict In its duty. Too often does it cease to be a medium for the tranmis!on of legitimate news, and descend to the level of a scandal monger. When the newspaper Invades the home and publishes private affairs that the public has no business to know, then it has overstepped its legitimate prerogatives, and ought to receive the disapprobation of every decent-minded citizen. Less than a year ago, when a criminal was executed in our city, the whole story of his life and revolting crime was published. And while great head lines called attention to all this, Other and more Important and legitimate legiti-mate news was given an obscure corner. cor-ner. Shame to us as a people who rush to buy the paper that tells the story of blood and crime, but thrice shame to the paper that gives prominence to this class of news. Nor can the press escape censure by saying that it is a mere colorless reflection of public sentiment. The press is the maker and molder of public sentiment, and when simple .souls doubt the truth of this old belief. The Jokes change to Insults, In-sults, epigrams to scurrilities: after Montesquieu, Voltaire; after Voltaire, Diderot; after Diderot, the Holbachlan corterles, alter V Holbach. M. . Mal-geon. Mal-geon. A gloom seems to gather: a mighty uproar bursts out; a revolution destroys everything to rebuild everything, every-thing, and after twenty years of strife the Idea conceived In Jest emerges the only thing alive, the only thing subsisting sub-sisting above the ruins of the ancient edifice, victorious, triumphant, behold with glory at the summit of the new order." As the sands In the hour glass are running, let us all confess that he only lives who seeks to carry to fulfillment some noble work. He only finds the treasure of life who builds for himself a splendid character. As he lay dying Horace Greeley cried out: "Fame Is a vapor, popularity an accident; riches take wings; those who cheer today will curse tomorrow; only one thing endurescharacter." en-durescharacter." Let us also add that he only finds character who Interprets privilege as another name for responsibility. Seeking Seek-ing to use today's privilege and to dis-char? dis-char? the present responsibility let us Journey on, not into the night, but into the morning; not Into the bleakness of winter, but into the verdure and beauty beau-ty of spring; assured that he are under un-der divine convoy, and that over us Is the protecting love. This Is seeking to follow his teaching who said, "to whomsoever much is given, of him shall much be required;" let us know that one day we shal lalso hear him say: "Come, ye blessed of my father, unto the habitations prepared for you from the foundation of the world." v |
