The Pacific commercial advertiser., 1900-12-29
A CENTURY
OF FREEDOM
Sermon to Young Men
and Women.
WATCHWORD OF 100 YEARS
interesting Address by Rev. Arthur
Maxson Smith at Central
Union.

During the annual Week of Prayer
for Young Men and Women of the
World. Rev. Arthur Maxson Smith, PHI
D., president of Oahu College, delivered
sermon at Central Union church or
Twentieth Century Opportunity,
which attracted attention. In respons,
to requests the Advertiser publishes il
in full: q,
Master. we toiled all night, and tool
nothing; but at thy word will let dowr
the nets. And when they had this done
! they enclosed a great multitude o.
fishes; and their nets were breaking."-
Luke We.
The watchword of the past century
has been Freedom Were the keen.
est philosophic discernment brought t,
bear on the entire life of the nineteenth
century. the results of the analysis
might be expressed in one word-"Free.
dom" Freedom in Government, il
public law. in education. in church;
freedom of thought, speech. action; IL
short, freedom of the soul is the sun
total OF the good which the nineteenth
century passes on to the twentieth.
DO not mean to suggest that the free
dom which is the burden of the legacy
OF the dying century is altogether per-
feet and ideal. But the type of free
portunity which the modern spirit OF
freedom offers 10 young people. are SO
unique as compared with the bondage
ana narrow limits of other days that
to be young today Is indeed the most
glorious thing in the world When
youth went forth into the world in the
thirteenth or fourteenth century. he
was conscious that he was the abiect
siaVe or the church on one hand of the
state on the other. and had not the re-
motest idea of a time when all mon
should be free and equal in any sense
FROM the church he received the right
l" lie and the scant immunities of life
ana the assurance of life to come hut
m return he gave up his very soul To
,ne cnurcn. He dared not think for
himself. The church gave him n sys-
tenn of dogmas, backed up by centur-
,es OF tradition and irrefutable. cold
logic. To these dogmas he must assent
~Ithout question or murmur. or tho
church consigned him to the tortures of
sVerlasting perdition. He dared not act
1T hlihsen. lf he ever so much as
.earleu OF life of simple direct faith.
OF undisturbed peace, of freedom that
called for initiative whose fruitape
might be the accomplishment of some
thing personal and individual. he was
ruoely awakened by the arbitrary da-
hlahd or the church for the subseryi-
ehce or all that he was and had and
iopeu TOT TO the ends of the great in
Sulution that claimed him, bodyn-and
spui, Dy virtue of her first mortgage ar.
lie. here and hereafter. If the cbnrch
,.it MIN in momentary peace ana gave
MN chance to think and act for bir,o
sell, the state bound him hand ana
iNot by unbearable taxation that had
30 be borne and by military exploita-
,h'n tba NO personal rights. no voice in
Sosernment, no claim on any per
s"hai thing which the church or STATE
m ght not set aside at will. no voice In
prayer even that must not suffer tho
intervention and prescription OF tho
nurch. The Man With a Hoe" might
= ~ 'aheh as true picture of the aver
age man of the fourteenth century
o.' ul win the coming of the Renais
80 IS anu the reformation. the spirit
~ ~ hDerty was born. Men learned for
ne nrst time that 1t Is right and nos
1,r lie 10 think and act independant =,
~ me dictation of an external autbor,ty
l.edson and faith threw off tho bon5
1se OF church traditions. Science art
itera,ure' law. religien-the whole
..piex LIP. OF life felt the presence and
,,an -, NV principle. the right of a
nan to own himself and tho craa+tn,,a
u MS thought and labor.
iVu are familiar with the 1yars of ~
re 80 three centuries. Almost uitbo,,.
'Neeptlon they have been NO ooa ea'.nl
me iuea OF freedom. Church and ,,o,, ,e
AZ o,,i, IaVe struggled to see which
sEouid declare and maintain tho r,..t. nl.n
ot a people. Mother-colIntrv ana iis,.s lI,
~ nave striven together. the ono 70
.eIuse liberty: the other to wiz o.3
laintain freedom. Our own ra+inr, -.
$500 through a most destrnctiva al
~ war that slaves might no fraa
nate taken up the fight for tho Is,
,n.. INA. they may have freedom I,ho
,een -, ci every civilized nation has
'truggle for freedom is the vav,, IN o.e
;, = me clvilizing process. This nrooa.,
: as clearly traceabIe In evory .,.so
!. = par ar,,hent OF life as in politics 60
mas declared for freedom to CO..
'nu go unmolested. and whera th,e
,nar onn was denied, force was used to
,orIa 10 the markets of tba
.losed ports We're perish;ne ihu
@ .@nu ciothing and the comforts -, u 100
~. because the spirit OF freedo,,,
iares tnat the rights of tho b,,,,n,,
oui 10 Know and to do. to dare nna
"a are above all lines Of raciai
no national demarcation oi faclai
4 ha,n the inspiration of the idaa
he oniy ra and whereas. formerly
iis oniy recognized art was that .'ll.y'
ss,ne9 the noteworthy servants y, ~i.en .s
-, nurcn and commemorated accIao, tne
=, Traditions and eyents oroS'.
- nature was thrown omen &c tu
eld for the artist opeh as the
science learned to 1vor1,
not Tor a taskmaster ~ peioent-
1tn; She dared to overtnr,, LOT
'orles of heaven and earth hn he1ncisnt
-. ,neu ,.a1 for the first time that nas
was good and nature u,aa -. ud
har tb LUIS or nature were greafar
hatsoever. INSTITUTION
., 80 AZURE turned away from the drv
mo antiquated scholasticism an,
hn p.nr,5 10 tacts and conditions to
,or,d oi'u or living men. to nat,ra.1
Isbad ~ IRE and beauty. Anthors
usnea neadlong into an exapperatas
" of hds eisIn after the first taste ~ ~, /,
,rba Ing Ing Tree and natural
,st EDUCATIONAL tendency Of Tho
ant st, centuries has been a con.
.eri,. s.rusgle toward freedom Ea,.-
~ De educated was to have ~
,.s,, stuHed with things hror,rh.
ON the ancient treasures 30 th.
70 leed the mind only on tbose
that had n holy flavor re
ared TO study the earth or a. s,
=, ~ ne probed the vera citv -
as ,hurchs dogmas about the ~
oriu' ne was very promptly consien.
J 10 tnat section Of IL to think or
men made his blood run hot ana ,
'Id. The proper study of mankind Is
an was not announced as the re-