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Show GRAVE PERIL IN PESSIMISM By RABBI DR. SAMUEL SCHULMAN, New York. The people of this country are in a better state than are those in Eussia, in spite of the business depression and .other evils here. In our capitalistic country we still have a large measure of liberty of the individual. indi-vidual. We leave to him that most precious possession of the soul. Therefore, There-fore, what we need is hope, which is belief in progress. We need vision, based on confidence and faith. We need not, despite all the shortcomings of our civilization, faint-heartedly apologize for it. The worst enemy of the people is the pessimist, who seeks to undermine under-mine the confidence that still naturally fills the hearts of the masses of life. And it will be found that what we need today, in order to rebuild our national welfare and to rise out of the temporary defeat to more stable victory, are the very qualities which religion at its best is called upon to foster within us. We need faith and love and duty and hope. When we study history we are struck with the fact that particular religions may rise, grow, rule, deteriorate and decay and die, but religion itself is an indestructible possession of the human spirit. |