St. Paul daily globe. [volume] (Saint Paul, Minn.) 1884-1896, 1888-04-30
A Dual Relationship Existing
in the Social Makeup Of
This World. s.
FIR. Fitzpatrick Defends Cath
Ollie Alteration Of the c .
81
Virgin, =
Holding Her Up as a Mode
Of Purity and Amia- 81
bility. =

-
the Grand opera house yesterday morn
ing. The announcement that Miss
Juliette Gordon and H. c. Barnabee. of
the Bostonians, would sing solos, posi-
bly drew out some who would not have
been there otherwise for, in spite of the
cold wind and sleet, the auditorium was
packed and the balcony was comfort
ably filled when service opened. MI.
Barnabee sang 1.-The Palms." and just
before the sermon Miss Gordon sang
ssCome Unto Me-" She came upon the
stage wearing modest street dress OF
brown and a neat spring hat to match,
and looked more attractive than in
MANY of the costumes she wears
on the stage. She sang the
sacred solo with a fervor that
might have been expected from song
stress whose life was devoted to singing
church songs. Her voice was lis sweet
as ever, and the congregation listened
as if they thought they heard one OF the
angels breaking through the gray clouds
outdoors. If she had been singing in
an opera Miss Gordon would have been
given double encore. A quartette
composed of Mesdames Fuller and Yale
and Messrs. Swift and Garland was
feature in the musical part OF the
service.
DIR. Smiths text was: "Thou shalt
love thy neighbor as myself" He said:
Christianity manifestS itself and con-
tinues it's life as the church. The social
idea is therefore fundamental. Christ
gave himself for others. He went about
doing good. He introduced into the
world new organism, in which men
and women of all classes maintain
common constitution partaking OF COM
mon duties and privileges. This organ
ism the apostle styles body, and init
mates that each one of us may find
therein our true life and function:
But an idea no less prominent is that
of the individual. Man does not have
his ideal in man, the species. Herein
he differs from every other living thlng.
The ideals OF nature are all abstract.
There is no perfect oak, no perfect
horse. The species does not exist ex-
cept as the union of the common proper
ties of the individuals in class, with
the exclusion of particular defects. But
the ideal man is not found by cOnsult-,
ing the manifestations of many mem In
MANY phases of human history. Man is
concrete in Christ. Our ideal is not abb
stract, but historical. Herein is tre-
mendous emphasis upon the individual.
Then the ideas which are the most,
fruitful are the value of personal char
acter in this world and the PROMISE of
personal immortality in the future. AN
individual salvation is held up as the
chief pursuit of every man: The value
of the soul of every man without regard
at all to his outward surroundings has
great emphasis in the gospel.
Is there any harmony for these two
conceptions-th social idea and the de-
velopment of the individual? In finding
this harmony-if there be one-We find
also the basis and limit of practical
beneficence. What is this law, Thou
shalt love thy neighbor as thyself?''
Has the Christian right to
THE POSSESSION OF MONEY
while others suffer for the neceSsaries
of life? Since there is so much sin III
the world, ought / not to spend all OF
my time in warningmen? Since life is
so solemn, each day so important, death
so certain, and the issues of the future
so tremendous, have | right to waste
any time in recreation? My little boy
would like me to buy him a top or
kite, but with that money l could buy
tracts or a New Testament, and these
might save a soul. Are not tops and
klUcS lIeGelOI0 WlChCu! hOlO 10 AoV q
single moment in which men and
women are not tortured by pain. In
some house at every moment there is
the death groan. The world is in per-
petual funeral. Is not all laughter
therefore, an inspiration OF the devil
who mocks at human woe?
These are great questions, and the
more sensitive the conscience the more
likely are they to bring anxiety OF de-
spair to the heart.
81 affirm that self-interest is a founda
ton principle in the economy OF God.
| Christianity changes the scope of self
interest by insisting that we shall con-
slider eternity as we'll as time. 1t
changes the human ideal by presenting
Jesus Christ as the true pattern of every
man. 1t broadenS out our relations OF
| life by making US brothers of all men.
But the gospel promises to the Chris
| tian the most helpful environment In
this world. It's in this sense that god
illness has the promise of the life which
now is. Godliness does not have the
| promise of warehouses and mines and
| fleets, but it does have the promise of
| everything in nature, everything in
| achievement, and everything in life
| which is needed for the development Of
the perfect man. The gospel sacrifices
everything else to the high end of de-
veloping personal character. We may
find at this point, however, deep and
strange harmony between
THE IDEA OF SOCIETY
and the idea of the individual as pre-
sented by Christianity, for it is precisely
high personal development that enables
the Christian to be the most useful to
others.
We must know in order to teach; we
must have in order to give. Universal
and continuous evangelism would soon
fanaticiSe religion as universal social
ism would pauperiZe business. 1t is not
always those who give themselves the
| most completely to outside Christian ac-
| tivitied who are the most useful. Be-
hind religious endeavOr there needs a.
strong individuality. Strong minds can
only be built UP by communion with
| great thoughts, and strong heart power
requires the simplicity of great and COM
| paratively few motives. NOtWithStand
| ing, therefore, the disordered moral con-
dition of society, the Christian man has
a right to feed his brain upon history,
philosophy and literature, and to nourish,
his heart by the contemplation of great
I may believe that the man whom
meet in the street is on his
road to hell, but it may be very far from
my duty to lay my hand upon his shGul-
der. look him in the eyes, and tell him
so; for, after 1 have picked myself out.
of the neighboring gutter and brushed
the dirt from my soiled garments, may
begin to realize that because of my ac-
ton he is travelingwith sWifter feet than
he was before. Nor need a Christian
man deprive himself and his family of
everything save bare necessities in Or
der to meet the principles of the gospel.
1t may be true that the elegantly bound
art volume on your center table would
buy ahundred Bibles, but it is also true
that if every article of luxury and
beauty were resolved into Bibles the
world would have plenty of them, but