Peninsula enterprise. [volume] (Accomac, Va.) 1881-1965, 1899-12-16
Forgive Your Enemies.


A boy In Sparta having stolen fox
kept him under his coat, and, though
the fox was gnawing his 'vitals. he sub
mitted to 1t rather than expose his
misdeed. Many a man with smiling
face has under his jacket an animosity
that is gnawing away the strength OF
his body and the integrity Of his soul.
Better get rid OF that hidden fox as
soon as possible There are hundreds
of domestic circles where that which
most Is needed Is the spirit Of forgive
ness. Brothers apart. and sisters apart.
and parents and children apart Solo
mon saws q brother offended Is harder
to be won than strong city. Are
there not enough sacred memories OF
your childhood to bring together!
The rabbins recount how that Neb,
uchadnezzar's son had such spite
against his father that after he was
dead he had his father burned to ashes
and then put the ashes into four SACKS
and tied them to four eagles necks
which few away in opposite directions.
And there are now domestic antipa
thies that seem forever to have scat
tered all parental memories to the four
winds of heaven. How far the eagles
dy with those sacred ashes! The hour
of shutdown makes to that family no
practical suggestion. Thomas Carlyle.
In his biography Of Frederick the
Great, says the old king was told by
the contessor he must be ut peace with
| his enemies If he wanted to enter
| heaven. Then be said to his wife. the
queen, write to your brother after |
am dead that forgive him." Rolof,
the confessor, said, Her majesty had
better write him Immediately" NO"
said the king, after am dead; that
will be safer" So he let the sun Of
his earthly existence so down upon his
wrath.
Again, we ought not to allow the
sun to set before forgiveness takes
place, because we might not live TO see
another day. And what II we should
be ushered into the presence Of our
Maker with a grudge upon our soulf
! The majority of people depart this life
In the night. Between II o'clock p. N.
and 8 o'clock a. N. there is some
thing in the atmosphere which relaxes
the grip which the body has on the
soul, and most people enter the next
world through the shadows of this
world. Perhaps God may have ar
ranged 1t m that way so as to make
the contrast the more glorious. | have
seen sunshiny days In this world that
must have been almost like the radi-
ance of heaven. But as most people
| leave the earth between shutdown and
sunrise they quit this world at Its
darkest, and heaven. always bright.
will be the brighter for that contrast.
Out of darkness Into irradiation.
Burden of old Grudges.
Shall we then leap over the roseate
pank Of sunset into the rayorite hunt
ing ground Of disease and death. car
rylng our animosities with US? Who
would want to confront his God,
against whom we have all done mean
err things than anybody has even done
against us, carrying old grudges? How
can we expect his forgiveness for the
greater when we are not willing to for
give others for the less? Napoleon
was encouraged to undertake the cross
Ing of the Alps because Charlemagne
had previously crossed them. And oil.
this rugged path of forgiveness bears
the bleeding footsteps of him who con-
uuered through suffering. and we
ought to be willing to follow. On the
night of our departure from this life In
to the next our one plea Will have TO
be for mercy. and it will have to be
! offered In the presence of him who has
said, IF you forgive not men their
trespasses, neither will your Heavenly
/ Father forgive your trespasses. What
sorry plight II we stand there hat.
ing this one. and hating that one. and
wishing that one damage. and wish
] Ing some one else calamity. and we