Catoctin clarion. [volume] (Mechanicstown, Md.) 1871-1940, 1905-09-07
OBSERVATION-DISCLOSURES
:; SUNDAY SERMON :
p
a Scholarly Discourse By e
Rev. Albert Jones Lord. q

OBSERVATION-DISCLOSURES
Brooklyn, N Y.-The Rev. Albert
Jones .-ord, pastor of the First Congre-
gational Church. Meriden, Conn,
| preached in Plymouth Church Sunday
morning in exchange with the assistant
pastor, the Rev. Willard P. Harmon.
| Mr.. Lord had a good audience, ana
| preached an excellent sermon. His
| subject was THE Sacrament of Ser.
| vice" The text was from Isaiah xll:6:
"They helped every one his neighbor
| and every one said to his brother. BE
| of good courage" Mr.. Lord said:
We have been passing rapidly In the
last half century from an individual.
| istic to a social type Of civilization.
Paul's words were never more true
! than to-day, when he said, None OF lis
liveth to himself. and no man dieth to
himself" All the forces and factors
pertaining to human llfe-mechan,ral,
| social and religiOus-have been moving
to such degree toward each other
that the twentieth century can say that
the one word which will serve her best
for n watchword Is Together; toseth-
err"
In the industrial world the concen-
| tratiOn Of forces Is most manifest Dr.
| Josiah Strong calls to mind how that
| fifty years ago it was the age of home
spun. Families could meet all the
needs of their households. spinning,
| weaving and the making Of garments.
| The fields about the home supplied the
| inmates with the necessities OF life.
! Then it was that the main force was
| the brawny arm. But to-day manufnc-
| ture has forsaken the home for the
mill and the factory, and steam and
electricity are the regEant forces. d.
vision of labor has taken the place Of
| the single hand. Then one man made
many things: now many men make one
thing
But as industrially, so socially are
we becoming more intimately related.
| A half century ago there were com
munities. many but small in number
and limited in advantages, yet complete
| in themselves. Citizens seldom went
beyond the borders of their respective
towns. But gradually those communi-
| ties have been grouped into towns. and
| the towns developed into cities and the
cities into greater cities. Whereas our
| fathers were independent of all the
world we are more or less dependent
| on the whole world. This made Robert
! Louis Stevenson eXclaim, at is really
| disheartening how we depend on other
people in this life"
This complex life has given rise to
great many social and fraternal Or
PLANTATIONS. Men have banded them
selves together for mutual helpfulness.
| Fathers, working by the week ana
for small wages, having little cnes de-
| pending upon them, have serious
thoughts when they realize that sick
| ness may be lying in wait for them
| and short hours may be their lot.
| When the head Of the family Is sick
| and unable to work, the income ceases,
| but expenses increase. To meet all
these possibilities the various benevo-
| lent societies and fraternal orsaEiza-
| tons have come into existence.
1t is every mans duty to consider not
only the present demands OF the fam
| lily, but its future welfare. 1t Is
| crime for a father to spend his money
| freehanded at Tic bar, or in hospitality
| at the club, or squander 1t i'll sports,
| when he has not, either in the savings
| bank or in insurance, made secure the
| future welfare of his family. 1t is
every mans duty to endow the future
| with as good livelihood for his fam
| lily as lies in his power.
We heartily sympathize with frater-
| mites and societies in their sick bene-
| its and care of widows and fatheress
| children. They have a mission in sOci-
| ETY.. But. however commendable they
may be, they must not take the place
| OF the two divine institutiOns-th
| home and the church. There Is but one
| place where God has set up the altar
| of domestic affection, where cOnjugal
! rela tons are sanctitied by the presence
| Of children. and that is the home; and
| there is but one institution which the
| Son of God ordained while upon earth,
| and that Is the Christian church. Fra
| ternal organizations should be supple
| mentS, but never attempt to be SubSti-
| tuteS for the home or the church.
But we cannot say that because life
is becoming more highly organized it
| can be lived more easily. On the o&her
hand. we are inclined to say that the
| closer mems relations are the greater
| the friction and the more difficult to
have every event work good to every
person. This kind of life, l repeat is
| far better but more difficult TO live in
| all Its relations. The tone of three
| or five bank organ is much better,
richer. more sympathetic and harm0ni-
Gus than the tone Of Il cabinet organ
| In the one there are few combinations,
! while III the other there are hundreds
! All amateur can play the one, but only
the master organiSt can play the other
| satisfactorily. SO in these times Of
highly developed social and religious
| life it Is difficult to live 4 full, rounded
Christian life. A company of people
! spread over large area can get along
comfortably well. but crowded into a
small Enclosure they will suffer en-
barrassment They all have elbows,
and where it is ideal to march through
life. touching elbow to elbow, it is not
so comfortable when men are cramped
and their elbows touch one another
under the arms. Our whole social life
Is, therefore, question Of elbows.
This leads us naturally to the ques-
ton, How can life be lived so as to full
fill all these manifold relations The
answer is found in the words of the
text, They helped every one his neigh
| Dor and every one said to his brother
BE Of good courage" l wish these
words might be placed over the doors
Of every church, inscribed upon the
walls Of every place of worship and
! selected as Il watchword for every
| charitable organization. What \
changd world this would be IL the SEN
timent of this text should go into effect
! tomorrow morning. The words sug-
| gcst to us two ways by which we may
administer the sacrament of service.
Humanity is in constant need of help.
| The circle of suffering and misfortune