The Brunswick times. [volume] (Brunswick, Ga.) 188?-1900, 1897-12-19
THE SPIRIT OF cHRIsTMAsTIDE.

man." How beautifully the words
sound sung in the churches, how they
ring out with the glad tidings OF
Christ's mission of peace and love,
which is the very spirit of the Christ
mas festival. In every home some at
tempt is made to vary the monotony
Of the daily routine; feeling of good
fellowship unites the Christian world
on this one day Of all the year, but it
is evanescent and passes away before
the holly and the cedar have withered
in the festal decoration oD the walls.
Why should not this kindly attitude
toward each other stay with US little
longer? Why should we not keep 1t
with us always?
Shakespeare said in his day-to his
generation-"We do pray for mercy
and the same prayer doth teach US to
render mercy" Can we say that we
nineteenth century Christians live up
to that idea? Now that the Christmas
season is with US once more let us,con-
slider the question of mercy, and see if
we render 1t one to another.
1t is a very fearful thing to realize
the utter helplsssness of humanity
considered individually to protect it.
self against the injury done by
thoughtless tongues and by deliberate
SANDER. Probably more real harm is
done by the former than by the latter.
1t requires certain amount Of en-.
| lightenment and education to recog-
! nize the notes of discord, and
how to avoid them. The truly edu-
Gated are always optimists, they ex-
pect and look for the good, while the
narrow and limited are so invariably
psssimists, looking for the evil.
Thoughtlessness, then, has SO much to
do with gossip, that 1t might be = step
towards lessening the evil If we paused
before the coming Of the Christmas
season, and asked the following ques-
tions of our consoiences: Have I an
irresponsible temperament?
Do l see things as they are, or
through mist of my own imagina-
ton ? In repeating anything do not
always give myself the benefit of the
moral situation? Am not always on
the watch for some action or word on
the part of others from which 1 can
deduce something to their dlsadvant-
age? Do always look eagerly to see
If L can find something praise worthy
about them? Do repeat the evil. l
have only heard of Others, for facts, to
be belieYed implicitly, taking pleasure
in repeating the evil and finishing off
with "but l don't believe all this, l
have only heard it from others"?
When we have seriously and con-
scientiously asked ourselves these
questions, we may perhaps be sur
prised to find that unconsciousIy
the spirit of unGharity and gossip has
laid fast hold on us. That while we
were possibly members of churches,
hard working christians to all SEEM
ing, the un- Christlike love of spread
ing unkind and evil reports about our
neighbors had crept into our hearts
and tiourished there. Then we may
rise to the effort to check the ten
dency end drive it away. 1t will take
fasting and prayer to exercise the
demon, but to keep Christmas con-
sistently it must BIS cast out. The
irresponsible temperament, that is
the unduly imaginative, is the most
dangerous, for people cursed with 1T,
form their own opinions about things
of which they can positively know
nothing, and when the mind has a
tendency to evil, and there is not the
higher education and refinement
which refuses to dwell on what is low
and debasing, unconscionable wrong
Is done by the unbridled tongue. The
imam or woman who repeats injurious
reports about another person, unless
they are compelled to do so for some
reason Of the most vital importance,
and they can solemnly assert beyond