The Indianapolis journal. [volume] (Indianapolis [Ind.]) 1867-1904, 1902-06-08
THE VOICE OF THE PULPIT
LOVES SEEING POWER: HERoIsM
AND BEAUTY OF ACTS OF WOMEN.
By Dean Richmond Babbitt, ID. D.,
Rector Church of the Epiphany,
(EpiscopaD, Brooklyn, y. Y.

''She hath done what she could; she is
come beforehand to anoint my body TO the
burying. Mark xiv, S.
The most beautiful things ever done have
been those done by women. Men have done
heroic acts, so have women. But in the
heroism of women there has often been
sweet and enhancing beauty that has COW
cred the hard, rigorous severe lines of
naked heroism. Tenderness and love have
been the setting of their heroic deeds, and
the rugged, heroic act which would in man
stand forth in a cold isolation is entwined
by woman with sweet attractiveness that
warns while it inspires. Their love wraps
round some stern act of self-denial or self
sacrifice as the softness Of the velvety moss
covers the gnarled and rugged oak. The
words I have quoted in the text refer to
such an act of woman, one doubtless Of
large self-denial. but.so pervaded by self
forgetful love. so lost in a passion of self
abandonment, that one in gazing the
moving picture is swayed by the beauty.
love and gracious kindIiness of the act.
rather than impressed by its heroism.
But. Furthermore, the heroic act to which
I refer reads US another lesson than that of
beauty. 1t teaches profoundly the seeing
power of love. Look at the picture as St.
Mark, the gospel Inner, paints it, and see
this lesson. The Savior is dining with Simon
in Bethany. A proud company is doubtless
present. He is receiving at meat after the
manner of the Orientals and a simple
hearted, loving being, not learned in con-
troversies about duty or wise in theoretic
ethics, or exercised in subtle questions of
conduct, comes into the room with a box of
precious ointment of spikenard. She is only
a woman who was devoted TO Christ. She
loved the great spiritual Being before her,
and she wanted to express her love in some
way that might be somewhat adequate. All
love wants to express itself 1t is of the
very nature Of love to express itself. And
this adOring woman, full of this deep, pure
spiritual love of the Savior, must tell il out
in some way that would measure to some
degree her feelings, though whatever means
she used she knew she could not tell it all.
A LOVING ACT
There she stands with her simple, loving
heart, about to do heroic act which will
make her, nameless as she is in the gospel
story, yet famous for all time; and so she
bends over the Lord and with one swift
gesture of love breaks the alabaster box
and pours the precious ointment on His
head, raining down tears on His feet in the
swelling torrent Of her love, and then using
her long hair towel, wipes His feet,
kisses them, and anoints them with the
ointment. The rapture, the humility. the
beauty, the innate heroism Of that act will
ever lie safely preserved in the amber of
mans memory, for the human heart will
not let ii die.
gins its work in the minds of the unheroiC
company about 1T was a foolish act,
says the wise economists among Simon S
guests But the woman was no political
economist; she only loved. why was not
this ointment sold for so much and given
to the poor? Is not Our dear Lord always
considering the poor? Why is this ONT
ment thrown away, just for nothing?'
Beauty? Many do not understand the
word. Heroism? Many don't know it when
they see ii. Many do not estimate at its
value the divineness of loves passion and
loves beauty because they have it not
They cannot see these values because love
does not give them the seeing power. Thrift
economy, saving, yes, all that is good. but
not good when at the expense of things
better.
All! the Master valued the beautiful, gen
erous act of the SHINING yet loving woman
/ at its true worth, for Christ himself had
beyond all human measurement the pre-
vening insight of love. He commended her
act, lifted it up for universal admiration
| for an eternal fame. Her spirit, with al
it's past sin, was kindred to His. The oracle
/ in her heart was better in the eyes OF
Christ than the oracle in their prudent
| heads. And She too, with the same pierre
| ing gaze of love, had ever grown prophetic
! In her beautiful act and had seen deeply
/ into her Lords future as killed by His enc
mics. 1t sees fore and aft and is alive tC
| the present The power of love is Away:
! that of the seer. And Christ recognized
/ that great gift in the loving woman, tina
| gift of wonderful insight through love, de-
Tended her and said: she hath done wha
she could; she hath anointed me to my
/ burying."
CHARACTER OF LOVE.
But now wing your thought wider and
| speed from this heroic act of beauty and Of
grace. TO Gods nature and character Of
love. Did you ever ask why God loves man
God loves man because it is Gods natur,
! to be full Of love, and Gods love is bu
Gods insight into mans value. Do not tel
men that man is worthless in the sight Of
God. How could God be love, as we know
He is, and yet not have the piercing gaze
that. sees His own image, even if obscured
in man? We do not love men, because the
weedy growth of our selfshness chokes of
! our love But not so with God for He love!
| all men. That truth is radiant in the Ole
and New TeStaments. and flashes out anC
| CLEANS in glowing colors all through God:
| revelation of Himself. No one is excepted
| from Gods love.
We look out on the world and see mel
in the densest ignorance, swayed by dis
| tinctive passions. drowned by the cance
| of selfishness, utterly ENJOYABLE. But hav
| ing no love. we do not see deer enough
| Loves insight wanting, we have no meas
! ure of moral or spiritual values We mis-
| the divine in man. which Gods love discov
| ers, and which His grace gradually bring
| even to blunt human gaze. When we lool
| into our own hearts and analytic our owl
| consciences, If we are truly humble we ar
/ inclined TO wonder how anybody can low
| us. Yet Gods swift and perceiving gaze o
| love sees, so 10 say, a reflection of Chris
! now in us, some spark of the divine. som
/ CLINT of goodness, something so valuable
so worthy in His eyes that he sent His owl
Son 10 redeem us and bring out the beaut,
and glory of Gods nature, and awake L
vision the love in our own hearts so tina
we may see somewhat as he sees when H
looks men.
A Christian without love is a contradic
ton in terms, and wherever you find higl
professions of gospel character, doctrina
distinctions drawn TO the ninth of hair
unctuOus repetition of the creed, ethca
hair splitting and no love with il all. cal
il by it's right name, Religious rattle
Love is the underlying force of Christian