Orange County observer. [volume] (Hillsborough, N.C.) 1880-1918, 1907-10-03
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az THE REV. NXs
}lMMhENDERSoNW
Subject: The Church and Amuse.
mentS.

Brooklyn, N. Y.-Preaching at the
Irving Square Presbyterian Church,
Hamburg avenue and VERIFIED
street, on the above theme, the Rev.
Ira Wemmell Henderson, pastor,
took as his text / John 2:17, "The
world passeth away, and the lust
thereof; but he that doeth the will OF
God abideth forever" He said:
Happiness is a universal human
longing. The search for it is world
wide human characteristic. The
longing of living souls for that which
ministers to the satisfaction of, the
noblest and most lasting of human
needs and desires is natural. God
created us to be happy. We were not
men did we not search for Joy. Je-
hovah meant us to live in the pos
session and exercise OF all that is
peaceful and joyous and lovable. 1t
would be strange II we did not seek
to possess them. We are foolish If
we do not use them.
Not otherwise pleasure, or the sat-
lsfaction OF lesser human desires and
human needs, is universal human
craving. AS we long for those things
that are eternally and finally satis-
tying, so do we long for those things
that are of immediate and of contem-
pOraneous value. And this craving
Is natural. The desire is divinely
granted. It is not strange that we
want pleasure.
But happiness and pleasure are not
necessarily to be found in that (and
we shall deliberately circumscribe
the application of the word) which
we call amusement. Happiness may
be far from the heart that is amused.
Many soul that is scared and heavy
with sorrow has been amused. But
amusement brings such soul no abid-
ing joy and ministers no balm of
solace to heal their wounds. Pleas
| ure is not amusement. For a man
may find much pleasure outside of
that which in the common use and
| acceptation of the term is called
amusement. Happiness is matter,
at the base, of subjective satisfac-
tion. Happiness is centrally con-
| cern OF the soul. Pleasure may con-
| serve happiness. But man may be
well pleased and yet not be happy.
! A man may be amused and find pleas
may be superlat1vely unhappy though
his face may be forced to smiles
through the power of amusement.
! For amusement is diversion, a
dissipation, an indication of inward
| discomfort. Happiness indicates con-
tentment. The desire to be amused
Is very nearly always an indication
OF the incapacity of man to achieve
happiness!
| The church expresses happiness in
the terms of eternity, of divinity, of
conscience. The happiness Of man
is. in the mind Of the Church of
Jesus Christ and in the light of His
truth, dependent upon its perdura-
bility, its divineness, upon the clarity
OF the conscience of the man who
possesses it. In the conception of
the church happiness Is eternal, it ID
the gift Of God and force that
propels man nearer to God: it can
not be enjoyed except the conscience
OF men are void of the consciousness
of their unworthiness before God. A
man Is not really happy unless his
soul is satisfied in an eternal fashion,
unless he has the JOY and peace that
are the gift of God unto those who
love Him and who keep His command
ments as his innermost possession
unless his mind aud heart are certi-
| tAO0 VI AAo QOl SOAd1 dCCOpIoO414Ly ~
fore God.
The church expresses righteous
and worthy pleasure in the terms Of
J the conservation OF that which II
!. eternal, the promotion Of that which
, Is divine, the satisfaction Of duty
Any pleasure that does not augment
happiness is unworthy. That is tt
say, that If our pleasures initiate
against our growth in that which /.
eternal and divine, If they dull oul
] Consciousness Of the imperatiyes Of
the Almighty that are law and life
to the human soul, they are unright
eous.
Now, the Church measures amuse
ments by these same standards. Sht
} asks us what our amusements do tt
afford us larger vision Of the eter