The Mankato free press. [volume] (Mankato, Blue Earth County, Minn.) 1879-1924, 1895-05-31
MANKATo FREE Press
TRUE HEROlSM.'
This is the Theme of Rev. J. r
Stout's Sermon to the Normal
Graduating Class.
A Timely and Able Sermon, Listened
to by an Audience Number
ing Fully Nine Hundred


Normal graduating class Sunday
forenoon at Normal hall was very
largely attended, the large hall being
filled to the doors by an audience
numbering fully 900 people. The day
was pleasant, and many of the
churches had no services. The grad
uating class marched in in double file,
lust before the services began, and
took their seats Immediately in front
of the stage. The faculty also had re-
served seats.
The hymn, Safely Through An
other Week." was sung by the double
quartet composed of Miss Lizzie Spar
row, Miss Esther Ellis, Miss May
Usher Griffin, Mrs. H. l. Parry, 6. D..
Brett, Alvin Davies, j. r. Thomas,
Evan Hughes.
Rev. f. NJ. Washburn read from the
Scripture, Eph. VI, 1924.
After the singing of the TIE Deum,
Rev. Washburn offered prayer. The
choir made the response, "Hear Our
Prayer"
"The Lord is My Shepard" was then
sung. The music was unusually good
throughout the forenoon.
The following is a sketch of the SER
mon. The topic was, 'True Heriosm."
The text was "With Freedom Did
Christ Set Us Free. Stand Fast
therefore" (Rev:Ver.) Gal. 5:1st.
He said: Hero worship has been a
habit of the centuries. There seems
to be basis in human nature on
which high appreciation of mighty
deeds builds up structure in the
human heart, which without any rec
Ognized plan becomes at last tenn
pie, and before its altar is offered
worship. What is there in the his
tory of any nation to waken patriot
ism. if the heroes of the nation with
the record of their deeds be blotted
out? What would the history OF
Israel be without Abraham, Moses,
Joshua, Daylu, Paul and Jesus of
Nazareth? what would the history
of Greece be without Agamemnon
Achilles, Aristidesocles, Themistocles
and MarcoBozaris? What would Great
Britain's record be, bereft of the
stories of Richarl the Lion Hearted,
Oliver Cromwell, Wellington, Nelson
and Gladstone? And what would be
the story of America without the
lives of Washington, Putnam, Lin
coin and host of others? These all
with their splendid deeds give not
only romantic interest to historic
events, but set truths on fire, and
make the hearts of men to thrill
with the deepest patriotic devotion.
The recognition of the hero inspires
heroism, and that is a necessity to
any successful life.
The text calls our attention first
of all to the fact that Christ has given
US liberty and that liberty is seen
most clearly when studied in contrast
with the limitations of the past. To
US this liberty means opportunity I'M
trammelled and free, in which we
should revel, and second, that in that
liberty we should stand with cour-
ageous persistence which is in itself
the essence of heroism.
This will introduce the subject of
the hour, and having outlined the
meaning of the text we inquire into
the factors of heroism. What are
the necessities that will make it the
natural thing for, the individual to
obey the exhortation of the text? In
our thought there are three factors
without which such an obedience is
impossible. They are:
1. A developed manhood.
II. A worthy cause.
III. An espousal by the man, of the
cause.
The first essential tn en- is man, or
manhood. The Latin as you know
has two words for man, homo a
human, and viz hero. The word for
courage, necessity of heroism, is
Virtus, MANHOOD i. e. manhood is
courage, or heroism must have as it's
revelator man. This necessary ele-
ment must be developed along triple
lines; there must be growth of the
body, the mind and the higher moral
nature. Develop the first alone and
you have Sullivan or Corbett, whose
only glory is brute strength; the Sec
ond alone. and you still have mons
frosty, an Aaron Burr, where bril-
liancy only makes his crimes more ter
rible, the third alone, and you still
have monstrosity who may be a |
mere bigot, or dreaming monk in
cloiSter. The man must be
completely developed so that the
greatest thing in all his surroundings
will be himself. He must be, not
merely, an animated dummy for the
display of fashion, a pattern of a gen.
tleman in finish, manipulation of af-
fairs, a tag to money bag, an example
of unexampled wit, dispenser of |
fiery elOQuence, or a dreamer of nOetic