Evening star. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1854-1972, 1908-10-11
CLEAN HEARTS ONLY EFFECTIVE RULERS, SAYS PASTOR

Of focus: that worldly ambition had
dimmed the sense of values, and that en-
nifty, envy. strife, the love of controversy
that these things had clouded his brain
and brought him not up. but down.
mo. it is true that the process of re-
lgion is from within. and 1t may not
be otherwise. Our chief business Is, then
to have clean hearts.
This Is an old story, one knows, but
would like to consider with you why ii
is necessary that we take this view OF
religion rather than the contrary-why II
is so necessary that we should take the
Christian point of view rather than the
Pharisee's point of view.
First Of all. then. let us remind our
selves that we are dealing not with
things of time, but with things of eternity
We are to live with the spirits that we
have. or in the spirit which We are. a
long, long time. How many men and
women forget that! How many men and
women still believe that by some change
of climate in the next life they are to
have a different personality! No. there
is no different personality coming. We
are to be ourselves for a long. long time
That is the beauty of tit is to be the
pain Of it. The man who does not live
| on good terms with himself, whose mind
is not clean within, has very little to
hope for In the way of moral and spiritual
oleanneSs
This is the first thing that the percep-
ton Of religion as an inner reality does
for us. 1t guarantees our tranquility. our
sereneness. our undisturbable calmness.
here and hereafter 1t introduces US to
our own selves. and says to man. woman
and child, Here you will find God OF
nowhere. Make clean first the inside OF
the cup and the outside shall become
clean to you. Ethics, pure social life. must
flow from the heart that is fed with d.
vine love-
"Or. observe, again. that this Is the
only effective method of personal reform
| while. They bring results which prom
Use much. They are results which at once
flash. as 1t were. before people and show
as If they were the permanent things
Of life. But people forget that whatever
prominence there was in such reform was
due to the suggestion which came through
the outward form. 1t is in vain then
that for people who work with their
hands we shall build clean tenements un-
less the clean tenements react on them
Whatever permanent felicity and efficacy
there were have come from awakening In
the heart the love OF purity. the desire for
cleanliness. the passion for health
strength and social service. We have
not reformed the man when simply we
have converted him to the idea that to
indulge his abnormal appetites is un-
social. That may restrain him. Better
| that he be restrained that way than to
| indulge himself in license. to be sure.
but the man is effectively reformed only
when we can instiI in his heart the love
of self-control. the sense of power that
comes to the man when he knows that
his passions are not his masters, but his
servants.
And what is here true is true in every
department of life. One has in mind no
mere abstruse intellectual propaganda as
If a man were converted to the realities of
religion when he can repeat your creed
or my creed, or when he gives ntellec-
tual assent to a proposition. The iron
must first be molten before 1t can be
nodded. but after 1t is molten it is
molten in vain unless 1t is put into the
right mold. The human heart must be
warmed with the arts. 1t must be in
formed with the sciences. it must be
nodded to the IDEAL but no ideal can
touch it until first the heart is made