Catoctin clarion., 1907-01-24

! Az. And He taught them many
things by parallels" He said:
The parallels Of Jesus are as Won
derful to-day as they were in Jeru-
salem. Time has not spoiled their
temper nor dulled their edge. Spok.
en- to the citizens of Palestine nearly
two thousand years ago, their truth
strikes deep and convictingly into
| every heart now and here. Fraught
with eternal verities they still ring
fresh upon the ears of men. Laden
with the ripest and finest fruit of
| human experience and of divine reVe-
| lation they can never fail to COM
mand and secure the attention of
humanity. Be they illustrative, COM
parative or similative, as the com.
mentators have it. they are to us the
means and the medium to convey
truth to our minds. comfort to our
hearts, power to our souls. Little
| care we that the parallels of the
| sower and the mustard seed may be
| parallel in the philosophy of Bud
| dha. The mind and the voice OF
| Christ have consecrated them in a
| peculiar and impressive manner to
| His church.
The source of the worldwide ap-
peal of Christianity lies. in large
| measure, in it's adaptability to the
needs of all men and in the fact that
| in it all the most exalted truths of
ancient and modern PHILOSOPHERS are
crystalized and eliminated. And no.
where is this more markedly demon
strated than in the parallels. No
man can light candle but the words
! Of Jesus blaze up in the flame Think
for moment how out of place and
incongruous new patches are on old
garments. The parable of the good
Samaritan has led us often con-
sciously, more often unconsciously,
to lend the weak and the fallen the
helping hand,
The parallels reach all men be-
cause they depict and portray and
depend for force upon the world.
it's activities and its people. They
are the product not of speculation
but of vital objective and subjective
human experience. They are the
epitome of all that we see and hear
and feel within us
Add to this that the parallels are
pungent, cogent, profound, positive
and pointed; and you have the keys
to their influence.
The parallels of Christ are pun.
gent. That is to say they cut deep.
When Jesus started to fay sin or to
declare truth He went beneath the
surface of things apparent. The
parable pricks the surface and draws
blood. The steel of Toledo or Shelf
field or Damascus never made
deeper or cleaner cut than the
stinging language and the caustic
truths of the parallels made. and yet
do make, into the vitals of sin. Let
the self-righteous man testify to the
writings of his soul under the lash
of the scorn of Christ. Let him who
is wasting his talents tell of the
piercing words of Christ 10 him.
Truth cuts. The parallels of Christ
declare the truth and thus our sins
are slashed.
The parallels of Christ are cogent
and for two reasons. Words. l care
not what may be their language
or their grammar, are potent Just in
the proportion that they bear a
freight of truth, mirror for us in
language the many facts of life, and
compellngly. No man is there so
Sin shrinks from the light and sin
ners see in sinlessness their hearts
best desires. The touch of truth
transforms illiteracy and lends 1t
charm and cogency. Language is
never so magnificent, so moving, so
inspiring as when mediating truth
to men. What to us is the hating,
ungrammatical, mishandled English
| if, so be, the light of truth irradiates
| the speech! And, on the other hand.
what to us is the smooth melli-
| fuous language; what to us are arts
| of polished rhetoric and of the self
| poised, gifted orator; what to us are
| the graceful gesture and the win
| someness of voice, if the speech
lend aid to evil and the speakers
heart be black? Truth cuts and it
also counts. Pretense shears Ian
guage of power. immortality of life
or opinion damages effect All the
gifts and graces in the world cannot
avail to make the wrong acceptable
TO the pure and true in heart. The
parallels are cogent Their truth
| forever sways the human mind.
Philosophy has never yet surpassed
them for they are the crown and the
consummation of immortal truths.
| The child can read and understand
and find therein a scheme for life.
| And how true to life the parallels
are. Portrayal is powerful unto in
fiuence. The touch of experience
makes the whole world kin. That
word picture holds most which re-
veals most The kindergarten of
language is full of verbal photo
graphs. What pictures are to the
babe the parallels are to us. The
charm of the printed picture of the
horse depends upon the vision of the
uuadruped that the child has en-
| joyed. The power of the parable lies
in its reproduction of the facts OF
life around us. No man knows 50
we'll the value of sure foundation
as he who has built upon cheap
and fimsy footing course. That
friend of yours who is wasting God
| given opportunities has keen ap-
probation of a wastefulness that
Christ both portrayed and con-
| demned. Put your candle beneath
basket some night and then tell
me how much light you receive from
it. My brother, that was pretty poor
fodder even fI' swine which we en-
deavored t. s&hsist upon before we
rushed back E2le to God. wasn't it?
The parallels are photographs; true,
faithful, convincing reproductions of
our own experiences and Of human
ity's. Therefore they are cogent and
powerful.
The profoundest thoughts are the
most potent for In luence upon the
lives OF men. The deepest truth,
for which we have to dig, attracts
us most. The parallels are profound
They present field not for the grub
| axe but for the pick The search
| for truth leads n man, aye compels
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