The Pacific commercial advertiser. [volume] (Honolulu, Hawaiian Islands) 1885-1921, 1900-06-26
MUST BE LOYAL
TO CONVICTIONS
Tneasa of the Baccalaureate
Sermon to Oahu
Graduate,

The following is the conclusion Of the
baccalaureate sermon delivered Sunday
night at Central Union Church by Rev
William NJ. Kincaid to the graduating
class of Oahu College, the first part of
which was published yesterday morn
ing:
But the effect does not stop with our
selves. If it did, the matter would be
much less serious. 1t passes on, 10 our
friends and associates. to all who know
US or are Influenced by US, and even to
generations unborn. If we live Loyalty
others viii catch the loyal spirit from
us The noble contagion of our fidelity
will spread on every side. 1t viii con-
tinue after we are dead. Thus by the
moral strength of our lives we shall
strengthen innumerable other lives. But
II we are untrue, then our influence does
not bless others; il curses them. 1t makes
all who know us little less faithful than
they would be; it lowers the moral stand
ard in the community in which we live:
instead of helping on, it does a little to
hinder the moral progress of the world
Who Of us wants to live in way to leave
such sssults as these behind?
1 /onder how many Of us have ever
stepped to think what the progress of
The world really means and how it is eff
fected?
We arc living in a world in which man
is slowly rising from the brute to the hu-
man--frOm barbarism to civilization we
are not yet civilized we are simply NOV
ing slowly and painfully moving. toward
civilization. None of US are yet clear
from the brute; some or US are a great
way from it. Just as you see in this
mans face and Inat the look of a fox. Of
a wolf. Of a hound. Of a bull dog, of a
hog, Of a jackal of an eagle, so in the
souls OF us all there are more or less of
these qualities and characteristics of
these enthusiastically, cunning, greed.
grovelling instincts and propensities We
are only on the way toward the real man
who viii be brave without being brutal,
who viii be strong. pure. generous. ch--v-
alrous, unseltish, self-centered, noble We
are on our way toward better state of
society, where the cruel evils that now
are here-ignorance, bigotry, superstition.
tyranny, unrelieved and hopeless poverty
suffering, crime-wil be in large meas
ure gone. left behind as the hideous
spawn of darker past.
And what are agencies py which all adj
vance is effected? They are two. First,
insight; second, loyalty. First must come
insght-neW views of truth and right
But these of themselves can accomplish
nothing. That son of the race is in
tellectually or spiritually taller than his
fellows, and therefore able to see farther,
avails nothing, unless through him they
too are helped to see. For dweller up
on the mountain top to catch a more
glorious vision of things than those in
the valley enjoy, is not enough; the
jewellers in the valley must also be shown
the vision, that they too may be blessed
The history OF the world has been the
history of the men whose new views of
kHHN y h~ 4 l.
victions-mighty burning faiths-which
they did not hold merely speculatively
with their intellects, but believed with
all their hearts; believed so deeply that
they must and would declare them to
their fellow-men. 1t has been men of this
spirit who have led the worlds intellect
ual and moral advance in the past; and
only such men can lead the advance of
the future.
So, then, II Is easy to see why we ought
all to be loyal to conviction. Not only
is such loyalty of the highest Importance
for our own moral life, but it is indispen-
sable for the worlds advance. The ques-
ton whether we will be loyal to the
truth which we see, is SIMPLY the ques-
ton whether we viii join the nonored
company of those who are rolling the
world from darkness to light
OF course, ! know that the part which
any single individual can play in the
worlds advance is very small-so small
that it seems insignificant and haruIy
worth filing. but we must not allow
ourselves to think thus for a moment
For the fidelity OF our actions, not for
their results. we are responsible. If we
are loyal and true, God Will see to the
rest.
No soldier is required to win the bat
tie; he is only required to do his single
part. No stone in a great building is
much by itself; but its importance as a
part of the whole is immense. 1t is the
stones loyalty that tells. Let II fill its
own place well, and the structure stands
strong. Let it be disIoyal-that is, let il
fail to carry out it's promise by crumblinE
or cracking, and the whole eiifice is
weakened.
He who is disloyal to truth and duty in
society is what a rotten stone is in a
wall.
But l fancy hear some of you saving:
Yes, doubtless you are right We grant
your claim. Duty is indeed the call of
God; we must not disobey Convictions
are sacred. therefore we ought TO be
loyal to them. But, after all, this is
vague, indefinite. VIII you not tell us
how, where, in what directions and WAYS
we can and should be loyal?"
/ have not the time to answer in a
way that covers the whole ground. L
can only say: Duty commands US to be
loyal to our convictions absolutely every
where, and in respect to absolutely every