Omaha daily bee. (Omaha [Neb.]) 187?-1922, 1909-06-07
INDIFFERENCE TO GoD.o CRIME
Employed Officers Form Great Male
Choir for Remarkable Meeting.
APPEAL FOR HELP ENIIsTs MEN
Hundreds Arise and Pledge Assist
ance, Asking Worlds Prayers.
PROSPERITY CAUSES NEGLECT
FrivoIity Goes with it to Undermine
Religion rs in Days of Moses when
lie Appealed TO Men Not to
Forget God.

fOrGet Nous
Five thousand men heard Fred p. Smith
of New York City at the Omaha Audi
torium Sunday afternoon speak on Amer
icas Greatest sin"
Mr. Smith is field secretary Of religious
work Of the International committee,
Young Mems Christian association; a west
ern man who formerly made his home in
a small South Dakota town and has be-
come one Of the most powerful workers
among men in the whole civilized world,
Heat was not stumbling stone 10
young men Of Omaha, and the visiting
employed officers Of the association who
have been attending the conference in
Omaha. Many Of the visitors occupied
seats on the great stage and formed a
mammoth male chorus, which led the sing
ing
Amid this inspiring scene Mr.. Smith de-
livered one OF his characteristic addresses,
closing with personal appeal to men to
help put down the wrong doing which he
termed Americas Greatest sim" and
hundreds arose and pledged their help
and asked for the prayers Of Christian
people everywhere.
This IN the sin of Today.
Americas greatest sin is Indifference
to God" declared Mr.. Smith From away
back in the days Of Moses comes the far
cry: Young man. beware lest you forget
God The whole book OF Deuteronomy is
a history Of three sermons preached by
Moses on one day and the burden of all
these sermons was: Beware beware, be-
ware, lest you forget God
THAT was centuries upon centuries ago,
the United States, in Nebraska right here
In Omaha, as great as when Moses ut
tered those words OF warning.
II have a fear that some day some man
will write a history and say in that his
tory that at the close Of the nineteenth
century. and at the dawn of the twentieth
century, the fire of commerciallsm, fun
and indifference burned so hot thet many
men forgot God. Are we IN danger7 "
we are, I must have some arguments 20
back me up. I will give you three things:
"Frlvolty, funosity, prosperity.
These are the three things we are
most in danger Of the three things which
are undermining religious life in our coun-
try.
Religion has been a common story, a
common and incidental thing. People are
too apt to flirt with 1t, to be frivolous,
and this looking upon religion as something
as a matter OF course is the first peril
THE second peril is what call funzone
or funosity. ! never saw a country on
the face of the globe which was so salts
fled with cheap amusement as this coun-
try Of ours. Pleasure is a good thing, but
when the time comes that the dominant
note in your life is that OF fun, when the
cry of fun has so taken you by the throat
Il hat ~ a..
day and keep II holy, God is not in your
life and you are in peril
Cheap Theaters Are Curse.
Il do not go after the theaters, whole
sale, with axe, for believe that such
men as Joe jefferson taught some good
lessons, but the five and ten-cent theaters
are bane and an evil.
Prosperity is the third peril. There is
too much certainty in our material life
to pay much attention to our spiritual
life. You men are not praying church
going, God-fearing men because you are
satisfied and feel sure in your material
prosperity. With the average man re-
ligion decreases as wealth increases. IL
takes big man to remain true In face
Of great prosperity. The better the Job
a man gets or the bigger the salary, the
harder 1t is for him 70 get down on his
knees in prayer to God.
The paramount issue today is not pros
perity, is not money, is not automobiles:
but the great issue today is the redemp-
ton Of this old world in the name OF
Jesus Christ. The man who leaves re-
ligion out Of his life loses his life. Re-
iision is that thing which makes men
truly great We have more honest men
than dishonest, but more young men will
rob banks, forge checks and pilfer life
insurance companiss--and these young
men will come from that class which
leaves religion out
BE brave. Forget frivolity. funositv
and prosperity. Get down on your knees
before God and confess Him before all
men You can become q servant Of Christ
In five minutes If you have the nerve 10
do It, and men Of nerve are the men the
Savior wants in His service"
quartet composed OF Paul Gilbert n,
New York +. w. Peck OF Minnea polls
Arthur Manuel OF Des Moines and Fred
L. Willis OF Worcester, Mass, sang sew.
eral songs and couple OF solos were
given by Mr.. Gilbert, Mr. WINS, formerly
secretary OF the Omaha Young Mems
Christian association. directed the choru,
SINGING which was participated IA by the
- / ouffpe audgapca