Pittsburg dispatch. [volume] (Pittsburg [Pa.]) 1880-1923, 1890-11-02

pose that these men enjoy unpopularityI
Do they delight in a life of unrest and un-
appreciated work and persecution? Have
they preference for misses and brickbats?
What is it which stirs these men? All the
way through you will find it is this sense of
personal responsibility.
Now, personal responsibility is fact
Whether we know it or not, whether we
realize it or not, we are responsible for our
neighbor. And you know what that name
OF "neighbor" means in our religion. It
means the man who needs our help. Whether
he lives in our parish or in somebody else's
parish; whether his house is on our street, or
quite around the block from US upon another
street; wherever the man lives who needs
help which we can give, there lives our
neighbor. And for our neighbor we are re-
sponsible. We cannot help 1t.
STORY OF THE CIRCLES.
One day a man came to Christian mis-
sionary in China with bit of paper all
written over with circles. There was one
circle in the middle, and out of this there
we're lines drawn, each one TO another circle,
till the central round was brought into con-
nection with every other, even the most dis
tant Each circle had inscribed within it
the name of town. In the midst was the
town in which the missionary had been
preaching. Out of this town, all these
other towns might be reached and influenced.
That bit of paper, drawn with circles, is a
symbol of our life. We do not stand by
ourselves. There is connection between
us and all people and all things about us.
We do not need to be instructed that if
there are prying, unwholesome and unclean
newspapers we are responsible for them; if
there are unworthy men set in high office, we
are responsible; if there are degrading plays
at the theater, we are responsible; il con-
versation falls into mean channels, we are
responsible; if things go wrong in any one
of hundred ways, some part of the fault is
ours We are intellectually aware of the
fact of social completely. What we need Is
to be awake to that fact morally. There are
people who have ears, but do not hear; and
eyes, but'do not see. Who is there among
us in whom the sense of personal response
bility does not need vigorous quickening?
RESPONSIBILITY IN CHURCH.
A man may persuade himself that Chris
tianity is a narrow and selfish religion, and
that he is sufficiently performing his Chris
tian duty if he goesNto church on Sunday
and tries to live a decent life during the
week. Nevertheless, personal responsibility
is fact. We are every one of us account
able for the advancement OF the kingdom of
dom of the devil.
The most uncomfortable thing about this
responsibility Is that it cannot be evaded; it
cannot be delegated to another. This may
surprise some good people. Because there
are a great many who have an idea that all
this may be put upon the parsons. "Pure
religion and undehled" is this; to let the
minister visit the widows and the fatherless
in their affiiction! But the responsibility,
even a responsibility for your neighbours
soul, is a personal matter. 1t belongs to
you. You can no more delegate it to your
minister than you can delegate to him the
duty of saying your prayers for you or of
keeping the commandments in your stead.
Everybody has a parish. Everybody has
"care OF souls" Everybody is personally
responsible-the Christian religion lends no
countenance to the heresy of Cain.
GEORGE HODGES.