The herald. [microfilm reel] (Los Angeles [Calif.]) 1893-1900, 1895-06-17
Fourteenth Anniversary of the
Prosperous Order
THE SIR KNIGHTS AT WORSHIP
Benevolence at Its Best the Theme of
the Sermon
A Large Attendance Last Evening at thu
First Congregational Church-An Eloquent
Discourse Beautiful Decorations

Common orative If the fourteenth ami
versary of their order, the Maccabees of
Los Angeles last evening held formal SER
vices at the First Congregational church,
corner of Sixth and Hill streets.
It was shortly after 7:45 that the at
tending Maccabees formed in Central park
close by. marching in a body to the
church. where an especial programme had
been prepared for their theological enter
tainment. The church was handsomely
decorated with a profusion of natural
flowers the several set pieces of which
were EN- biematic of the order. There was
large attendance OF Mace abees and their
families present, and the eloquent SER
mon delivered by DR.. Warren +. Day will
not soon be forgotten by those who were
in the audience while the sentiments ex-
pressed were being delivered. The min
ster's subject was Benevolence at Its
Best, his text being as follows:
AS we have therefore opportunity. let
us do good unto all men, especially unto
those who are of the household OF
the faith. "-Gaatians, vi:10.
Among other things DR.. Day said:
Organism is night with few stars.
Civilization is day which outsbines the
stars. In that brightness, some names
and terms have become luminous-2low-
ing as we'll as rejecting with the
spirit which gave them birth.
Among such terms and names Is that
white. winged, sweet.voiced word. be-
hevolence.' word which. with that for
which it stands, has made possible this
hour; given occasion for this gathering
and impaired Itch significance to the
mission of the order whose representa-
| tives | am addressing.
tbn ,Iast To- 1non
IT'S vital meaning by losing sight of what
has given it power and prominence. A
name term or watchword lives only
by what throbs in It, The word which
| will be at the front this evening is no
exception. But such word as 'benevo-
lence, with that which it signifies and
sends on into operation, must neither
perish nor shrink in Its meaning. In
| that word is an heritage committed to
our trust to be kept in its full beauty and
strength. Our endeavor will be to speak
SO as to quicken nearer and speaker in
holding what the word 'benevolence'
compartments at it's best. This is our
subject: 'Benevolence at Its Best
"From Wilderness to a home-like world
has been the march which man has
made. He was put in here with the i'm
pulses and abilities to make that ad.
vance. With other institutions and UNI
dertakiEgs, there has been vast develop
ment OF the forms and forces OF the BEN
eficent. Christian civilization itself
marks long stride from the dominion Of
cruelty to the kingdom of kindness. The
! one has not vet been escaped nor the
other wholly attained; but there is so
much less OF cruelty and so much more OF
| Kindness.
1.-The darl, places of the earth are still
| full of the habitations of cruelty. The
| bull fight in Spain and Mexico; the
brutal prize fight, the sweat shops, the
tol,o I,,a cd dali TO-
minions of King Alcohol in our own
| land. are crimson tinger-marks of deeply
entrenhed Inhumanities.
'But we place the institutions and
usages oil twenty centuries ago, aslaswhole
by the side of those of today. Charity,
authority, was no virtue of the ancient
world "A man was wolf to man
whom he did not know says Plautus.
Whoever, writes Ulhorn, was not a
citizen of the state, was not human;
he was barbarian, against whom any.
| manity was not unknown, but with few
exceptions, 1t was not practically ex-
pressed in deeds.
"Among the notable exceptions were
the ancient Maccabees and the early
Christian churches, in their care of the
aged. iniirm and destitute. The churches
ceEtering at Antioch, where they were
first called Christians, with an aggre-
gate membership provided for 5000 bene.
iiciaries. The benevolence Of these early
disciples made the deeper impression on
the heather because i'll emergencies they
were included; as at Carthage ana at
Alexandria, VIII ere during a plague the
Christians remained and cared not only
for their own people but for the heather
who, stricken and dying, had been
deserted by their own kindred, and this
after these same Christians had been ter
such has been the growth of the be-
neficent, that the greater part or our or.
carnations and institutions stand for
some beneticent purpose. So generally
rs this the case that bad men. intent on
evil ends find il necessary to masquerade
under some guise of benevolence. John
A. Morris. who for years was the eye and
brain of the infamous Louisiana. lottery,
ever melancholy under tho shadow of his
own work, instinctively sought TO throw
a redeeming light over it by repeated
beneiactions. Naturally philanthropc,
he could not bear the unrelieved brand
OF his own business, and valnly tried by
kindness to few hundreds to atone for
the irIeparable. mischief which his
schemes had wrought in more than mil
lion. While that traffic which is most in
separable from the desolation of home
corruption OF state and the unmanning
OF men. makes much parade in defense Of
itself that it is the champion of personal
rights. On this plea it has defended many
bill for it's deeper intrrenchment. ] am
glad to find that participation in that
traffic either AS principal or agent, is
bar to membership in your order. That
position gives you higher rank among
benevolent societies., II worthier plea for
your charities and stronger reason for
the association with you of these wives
and mothers and daughters.
Here we are on this little globe. sail
ing though space with other planets. yet
cut off from all communication with
them. Can look at then see how big