The Providence news. (Providence [R.I.]) 1891-1906, 1902-03-10

put innocent amusements, idle hours. pc
Rods or recreation out or our iives ana
every every man has a right TO accept. He is
not half a man who does not take them
and put them TO good use Far am
necessary things out of our lives and thus
rob our lives OF happiness and Joy but
TO so put much out OF our lives that does
in search and TO do Instead those neces-
sary things OF duty which are the foun-
tain sources of the deepest Joy We know.
Of his ahs y wrong oT and fret OK iife concerns cor
itself with hopes that are blasted which
II fulflled would bring us no true salts
peace within in this world until a man
Is conscious that he Is denying hlmseli
sufficiently 10 be In position 10 iake
up just those duties that he knows that
he has been sent into this world 10 90.
only as a man takes up his cross. what
ever IL Is. and bears II does II cease 20
be a reproach, worry and fret 10 MS
life and become blessing.
Sometimes these crosses are OF strange
material. IL comes some times In the
form of disease and how many men there
are who just because they are not In
the prime OF physical condition surrender
the battle and sit through life nursing
the action OF the soldier who In the thick
of the fight lays down his musket because
IL IL heavy. On the other hand IL has
been said that no small amount OF the
work done in this world and some or
the best quality has been done by men
wrecked by i'll health and disease. Ihey
have adjusted themselves TO their llml-
tations and through these limitations nave
become noble, heroic saints. We can
compute with some certainty the, results
OF the battle OF Waterloo. the Declarauon
OF Independence. the fight at Bunker Hill.
but who shall say how much the world Is
indebted 10 ST. Paul's thorn In the nesh'
Who shall measure the deep spiritual in
sight the world has gained through Mil
tons physical blindness? Or who can
estimate how much of the strong beauty
in Heines poems is due TO the mortar
malady of Hcine's body and soul.
To adjust our shoulders TO just those
crosses that God sends, yes; that Is duty
but IL is also peace and health and glory:
God gives us the insight TO see this and
act.
But is this all there is OF life? Is there
cure strength and then assume life's bur-
dens. Deny yourself and take up your
cross. For some people this Is All there
is In life. all there Is I'm religion. This Is
an heroic thing TO do perhaps. but Is IL
too much TO say that the people who do
this and nothing more do more 10 DIS
credit the Christian religion In the eyes
OF the young manhood and womanhood
OF the land than any other class.
This today is the religion OF the lnde.
pendents. headed by Cromwell. without
any battles TO be fought or any Cromwell
20 lead. This is the religion OF our Puri,
tan forefathers. with all It's vices and
few OF its virtues For many of the vir-
tues that belonged to the religion Of those
sturdy men became virtues just because
OF conditions existing then that have long
since passed away. Such a religion Is
ancient Pharisaism, with a dash of sad
duceanism and Essenism thrown In. IL Is
easiest to define "a thing negatively. We
shall say IL is not Christianity. IL is life
under law, not under grace. III IL were
not so said IL would be ridiculous. Some
times II does provoke "A smile IL Is tina.
exquisite over done consciousness that
strains at a gnat and swallows camel.
Everything is done or left undone. usually
the latter because OF some law. some
prejudice, some tradition. some principle
OF right for which no meaning could be
given. Never is a thing done or left un-
done because the doing of it or the re-
ideal Of life which is the best God has
given us Yet that is the standard God
has set before us. That Is the meaning
OF the third and last step of our text.
Follow me. There Is then flashed be;
and prays
Henceforth everything shall be evil
which ones forefathers thought was evil
which society and public opinion now de-
clare TO be evil? Only Just In so far as
these other opinions help you 10 under
stand and interpret whatever will shut
YOU off from the realization of that life.
Just that is evil and nothing else. / will
have no law. but a life to regulate my
actions.
DEFINITION OF CONSCIENCE.
This after ALL is. in some vital sense.
conscience j am not sure that conscience
can be better defined than a mans knowl-
edge OF the best that has been revealed
10 him The Christians conscience. from
the intellectual point OF view. ought to be
Continued on page Four)