Brookings weekly register. (Brookings, Brookings County, S.D.) 1898-1903, 1900-04-12

| VFYFVFYNNEYWV
| with his views. Short extracts from
his talk will show the drift of his en-
tire belief on this subject:
"'Every dollar that man has should
be spent to the glory of God.
1.-THE teaching Of Christianity about
| wealth is the same as about anything
else. 1t all belongs to God and should
| be used by the man as God would use
1t in the mans place.
1.-The accumulation of vast sums of
money by individuals or classes Of men
has always been a bad thing for so.
ciety. A few very rich men and a
| great number Of very poor men are
7 what gave the world the French revo-
| luton and the guillotine.
"'There are certain conditions true
| Of society at certain times when 1t is
the Christian duty Of the rich to use
every cent they possess to relieve the
need Of society. Such condition faces
us today.
1.-the foolish and unnecessary ex-
penditures of society on its trivial
| pleasures at time when men and
women are out Of work and children
are crying for food Is cruel and un-
| Christian waste Of opportunity.
"If Christ were here today. be-
lieve he would tell the rich men of Mil.
ton that every cent they have belongs
to Almighty God, and they are only
trustees Of his property.
1.-The church that thinks more of
! fine architecture and paid choirs than
Of opening its doors to the people that
| they may hear the gospel is a church
that Is mortgaged for all it is worth
| to the devil, who will foreclose at the
| first opportunity.
"'The first duty OF every man who
has money is to ask himself What
would Christ have me do with 1t? The
| second duty is to go and do 1t after
hearing the answer.
"Tf the money owned by church
members were all spent to the glory
Of God, there would be fewer hun
dred thousand dollar churches bull,
and more model tenements.
"If Christ had been a millionaire
he would have used his money to build
up character in other people rather
| than build magnificent brownstone
| palace for himself. But we cannot
imagine Christ as millionaire.
1t is as true now as when Paul said
1t nearly 20 centuries ago. "The love of
money is a root of all kinds Of evil"
1t is the curse of our civilization, the
| greatest god Of the human race today.
"'Our civilization is only partly
| Christian. for Christian civilization
means more comforts; ours means
more wants.
"If mans pocketbook is not con
verted with his soul, the man will not
| get into heaven with it.
"There are certain things that mon
| ey alone can secure, but among those
| things it cannot buy is character.
"'All wealth from the Christian
standpoint Is in the nature Of trust
funds. to be so used as the admins
traitor, God. shall direct. No man owns
the money for himself. The gold Is
| Gods; the silver is Gods. That is the
plain and repeated teaching Of the Bi-
| BILE.
1T is not wrong for man to make
money. 1t is wrong for him to use II
selfishly or foolishly.
"'The consetrated wealth of the
men Of Milton could provide work for
every idle man in town. The Christian
| use Of the wealth of the world would
make impossible the cry for bread.
| ~ ha ilc 80
condition flow out Of the love Of mon
ey. The almighty dollar Is the god of
Protestant America.
"If men loved men as eagerly as
they love money the millennium would
be just around the corner.
".Wealth is curse unless the owner
Of 1t blesses the world with it.
"'"If any man hath the worlds
goods and seetb his brother have need
and shutteth up his compassion from
him, how dwelleth the love of God In
himT'
"'Christian socialism teaches a man
| to bear other peoples burdens. The
very first principle of Christian social
Ism is unselfisbness fkas-S
we sudil never see UetteT cOuui-
uon Of affairs In this country until the
men of wealth realize their responsi-
bility and privilege.
Christ never seld anything against
the poor. He did speak some tremen-
dous warnings in the face of the selfish
rich.
"The only safe thing for man of
! wealth to do Is TO ask himself. What
would Christ do with my money IL he
had itr
Tt would be impossible TO describe
the effect Of the Rev. Mr.. Strong's talk
upon the audience. Once the applause
was so long continued that II was
full minute before he could go on.
When he finally closed with a tremen-
dous appeal to the wealth of Milton to