The Manitowoc pilot. [volume] (Manitowoc, Wis.) 1859-1932, 1904-07-21
THE WORLD WE LIVE IN.
BY Rabbi Alexander I've

God saw everything that he had
Genesis, l., 81
The world we live in is an astonish-
ing device of fertility and utility.
There is no limit to the pvoductiveness
of a single seed There is no existing
thing. dead or alive, that may be said
to he useless. Even the lazy, debased
human being who consciously seeks to
commit himself to Il policy of useless
ness will subserve some use beyond his
ken. Vice often breaches and enforces
virtue better than virtue does. | once
knew an invalid whose helplessness
was absolute. People said: How use
less such a life, What a pity n | in
Justice that God doesn't take her"
And vet saw what others overlooked.
The accomplishing, cheerful self-con-
troll and consideration for others of this
invalid inspired many win grander
aspirations of character than are stir
red by many ministers.
This world is a moral world You
limit of your vision, the impaticnce OF
your expectation, or the falsity of your
moral conception. our world is n
sphere of constant progress to better
things. We have finer fruits, fairer
flowers. and higher level of manhood
ana womanhood generally than could
be said of century ago. our world
is so ingenously devised that the true
ultimately triumphs and the false fails,
character is crowned, and vice van
quished If you do not always see
this it may be that you expect results
too soon. Remember that rs the
psalmist has taught, what you con
slider thousand years is in the Divine
vision only little while. Gods great
est consummations must be awaited.
They can't be hurried, and they are
worth waiting for.
You may not see the moral nature
of this world because YOU are not suf-
ticicntly moral To take the right view.
You look for results In the wrong d.
rcction. Your idea of justice is that
goodness should be fat and tlourlShing,
while wickedness should withcr and
wall. If this world were arranged
with such mechanical precision ANA
the reward Of goodness were always
material, morality would disappear
and men become cold, calculating ma
chimes. AS the world is, you will lind
goodness always rewarded il YOU look
within. Genuine goodness desires nc
higher recognition than the joyous con
seriousness of duty done. Spurious
goodneSS-the goodness which calcu
atcs-will not find this reward and is
entitled to no other. Yes, this is n
moral world. God is in league with
whatever is good
our world has its troubles and tears.
True, but they heighten its beauty and
deepen its blessedneSs. A world with
out opposites were a killing monotony.
If there were no sorrow and suffering
there would be no tenderness, no sym
pathy, and ultimately no love. The
heart of humanity would be turned to
stone. The gloom of this world is the
necessary price placed by Divine Wis
dom upon its gladness.
And yet the world Is not so gloomy
as pessmists hold. II * more sun
shine than shadow, more health than
sickness. II is easier to smile than tC
weep ana happy heart is possible tc
every human being. be he rich or poor
ignorant or informed, suffering OF
sound.
Still do we find the world faulty
And so it is, but 1t is mans and not
Gods world that is Objectionable. We
cause most Of life's sorrows and forget
its smiles. We overlook the rose and
criticise the thorn. We exaggcrate our
personal Importance and expect the
universe to circle about us and dance
attendance upon us. We overlook that
we must lit into the world and can II
we will find joy In furthering the
world even at the cost of the sacrifice
of our pleasures.
Let us not try to do the world, but
to do for the world. Let us stop criti.
cisng Gods creation and riticise our.
selves. Down with selhshness, Let il
be our ambition TO leave life happier
than we found it. II we try TO SEQ
how much we can put into the world
if we strive to still its cares and deep
en- its dimpcs we shall agree with the
ancient conviction of the Almighty
that this world is not only good but
very good.