The Birmingham age-herald. [volume] (Birmingham, Ala.) 1902-1950, 1902-11-30

have a family. And II you are willing to
give me this baby and let me adopt her
I will give you a certified check for $780,
coo. and she shall be my daughter and In
herit all that I have" OF course | re-
fused the offer. I told that man there
was not enough money IN all the treasury
of the United States to buy my flesh and
Hood. and. though you may laugh when
[ talk about my $4,000 baby, yet am not
putting any higher valuation upon the
physical lives of any one Of M children
than every father sitting before me today
would upon his. If we parents thus place
so high cur physical valuation OF our
children, shall we not also place just as
high the spiritual valuation? Like the
pilgrim fathers of old, shah we not rejoice
this coming Thanksgiving day because
our children are not only living In Chris
tan homes, but also IN Christian neigh
borhoods and under the shadow Of the
spires of Christian churches? Shall We
not rejoice because on account OF being
born in a Christian land they may the
more easily learn to love Christi Shall
we not rejoice that on account of their
spiritual advantages after their lifes
work Is done they viii associate with US
in the great harvest home, where an
eternal Thanksgiving day shall be spent
in the green pastures and by the still
waters of heaven2
The Hope of Meeting Loved Ones.
The pilgrim fathers rejolcad in the hope
that they would soon be reunited with
their loved ones who were left behind IN
! Leyden. The whole community Of pii-
ggims which In 1910 settled in Leyden did
not cross the Atlantic in is9A as many
people suppose. Ne, Only small part
10 men, women and children-calne first
The vast majority OF that community re-
NAMED behind And SO these American
pilgrims ON Plyuouth's FIRST Thanksgiving
day were living in the hope that John
Robinson and the absent members of his
spiritual flock would soon be by their side
They did not then know that death would
first claim their beloved pastor and that
his bones would be buried in the little
ohurchyard which his preaching has
made world famous and which is today
the Mecca of many a pilgrim. They did
not realize that most Of their earthly
friends would never meet beside the wa
ters OF the new world. But they did
know, and they rejoiced In the knowledge
that, whether at the foot Of Plymouth
rock or at the foot Of the great white
throne of God. they would meet again.
And IL they did not meet again until they
were reunited in that better land, then
they would there meet to part no more.
NY friends, cannot we Rjoice In the
hope that we are some day going to meet
our redeemed loved ones? Can we not
rejoice that when we meet them we shall
part no more? Thanksgiving day without
this blessed belief would be to us a mean-
ingless festival and would be robbed of It's
chiefest joy. They young people may
look forward gladly to the autumnal
queen Of American festivals as a holiday
from school. day for a football match
a day when they can eat big turkey din
ner but most OF us will think of Thanks
giving dinner as a day for vancant chairs
IA day when we would be willing to give
all We owned If we could only bring back
some one who has forever gone from our
side
But, with the comfort of the blessed
gospel how our sorrows can be turned
to joyl Mother, father, brother sister,
husband, wife and child, shall we never,
never meet you again? Yes, yesp' an
swer the pilgrim fathers. by the sacred
book which we read the morning of the
bright autumnal day when we celebrated
Plymouths first Thanksgiving day we
can prove 1t. By the hope with which
we parted from our dear ones as we set
sail from Hollands shores we would tell
thee troubled hearts of 1902, we shall all,
yea all, meet again.
Can we prove that we shall all meet
our loved ones in heaven by a better Way
that the source from which the pilgrim
fathers gathered their hope of final re-
union with their absent kindred? Upon
the bold, bluff heights overlooking Ply
mouth harbor American patriotism has
erected a colossal statue commemorative
| or the heroic deeds of these first great an
cestors. AT the base of the pedestal rest
four figures. These symbolic freedom
and education and law and morality.
But these four figures, though beautiful
IN themselves, are all sitting at the feet
| of a gigantic statue called Faith. There
1 Faith In mi inf
looking the surging. angry waters of the
mighty deep, but also the hallowed
graves OF the mighty men whose princi-
pies laid the foundation of this nation.
There the pilgrims faith stands, with the
opened Bible in one hand and with the
other hand pointing upward to where the
spirits of the mighty and the redeemed
pilgrim fathers have passed to their re-
ward So at the foot of that mighty
statue of Faith with open Bible may we
all rejoice in the confident assurance that
cur Thanksgiving chairs at the family
gathering shall not always remain vacant,
that we shall all be together in the heav-
emily reunion.
Thanksgiving Home Day.
But while studying the history of Ply
mouths first Thanksgiving day we must
remember that it was not only a day for
Thanksgiving to God, but also q day
maze memorable by home enJoyments
The pilgrim fathers opened the day with
prayer. They also felt they did not desc
crate 1t when they gathered about the
festal board and laughed and joked as
well as talked about the great themes
OF the gospel while they sat at dinner.
As far as possible. all our people should
make next Thanksgiving day home as
we'll as church day, and, as the presi-
dent of the United States by his Thanks
giving proclamation has signed the death
warrant for all the biggest and the latest
turkeys the barnyards have been able to
produce in the past summer let grand
father and grandmother and all the
children and grandchildren meet again in
the old homestead. II will not be very
long before such gatherings will be an
impossibility. In few years the chief
magnets that now draw the children to-
gether at Thanksgiving will be gone.
Then, as you meet about the great, big
roasted turkey, which is the symbol of a
Thanksgiving feast, l not only want you
to cut the best and tenderest slices for
your mother and father and for your
wife, but I also want you to be sure not
to forget to cut off a large part of that
turkey for the poor There will be many
people next Thursday morning who will
have nothing to eat except the plainest
kind Of food unless the Christian people.
out of their abundance are ready to help
them.
Then. next Thanksgiving day, after you
have helped everybody all round and