Rock Island Argus. (Rock Island, Ill.) 1893-1920, 1908-11-26
DAY IS MADE
REAL HOLIDAY
Factory Wheels, Stop, Offices Are
Closed and People Devote Time
to Recreation.
SPECIAL SERVICES ARE HELD
Congregations Unite in Thanksgiving
Programs at Broadway and Edge
wood Baptist Churches.

Thanksgiving proved a real holiday
in Rock Island, and the day was de-
voted to chu oh worship and recrea-
ton. The wheels of industry were
stopped, the stores, Offices, banks and
public buildings were closed, and holi-
day hours prevailed at the postoffice, a
single delivery of mail being made.
Religious services were a feature of
the observation of the day.
'sThankful Worship,
Union Thanksgiving services, in
which the downtown churches parti-
cipated. were held at the Broadway
Presbyterian church at 1920. The ser
was delivered by Rev. J. l.. Vance, pas
tor of the United Presbyterian church
Mr. Vance took as his theme THANK.
ful Worship, and spoke from the text
Offer unto God the sacrifice of
Thanksgiving" Psalm 80, verse IA. He
spoke in part as follows:
THE cycle of the seasons has
brought round again the ingathering
of the year. Our annual appointment
of national festival of gratitude has
been duly made. The set day has
dawned. The hour has struck when
the keynote of our thankfulness is to
be sounded
Besides grave sweet melody, there is
some melancholy music, but songs are
mostly glad; and have chosen my text
today from amongst the publications OF
the Psalter, as one who plucks single
blossom out Of a great profusion.
interpret my text TO be as much an
absorption of praise, as it is an exhor
tation to the same. In it thankful
worship is exemplified as well as in
culcated. The one who proposes a
cheer. himself leads the cheering
Whoever sincerely proclaims a thanks
giving has aheady begun to partici
pate therein.
Should he Pleasure.
This scripture lays upon us q
charge that is at once blessed and
sacred In the nature of the case, to
offer unto God the sacrifice of thanks
giving must be a joyous and holy eXer
else. So every action and thought
contemplated in this hour of worship
song and sermon, offering and prayer
is tuned to the note of praise. An(
surely the peoples worshipful' tribute
today to God for his bounty and mere!
is to be no grudging labor but ;
spontaneous pleasure.
THE praise of our thanks is not al
arbitrary requirement but reasonable
one. Gratitude is due to a worth!
benefactor, and every good and per
our worship praise ought to be promi
nent. Perhaps too little space proper
tionally is given to grateful utterance
both spoken, and sung in private ant
public riligioas exercises.
"And the praise of our thanks is no
merely an occasional but a constan
obligation. Our days of praise shoul
ne'er be past while life and breath an,
being last. The angel of petitions an
the angel of thanksgivings, basket il
hand, have made their daily journey
between earth and heaven through tn
circIing year. If the one has Away
been heavily laden with our request:
let the other have a heaping baske
full of thanksgivings today.
Need Clearer Vision.
"a sacrifice to be offered calls fo
an altar. which stands between th
deity worshipred and the worshIppe
And this worship is a rational tram
action preceded by reasons and TO
lowed by results.
Our deity is God the Father i
heaven. But we need clearer visio
of God as the intended recipient of OF
thankful worship today. Are not H
benefits all too vague a generalit
and is not He himself too much a di
and distant unreality, even now as W