Wauwatosa news. [volume] (Wauwatosa, Wis.) 1900-1948, 1910-04-29
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THE FIGHTING CHRISTIAN.


Fight the good fight of faith" -
I. Tim, vi, IL.
OF course 1t is easy to criticise and
exceedingly hard to amend, easy to
paint the ideal and difficult to take
one step toward the real But there
is not only no good, there Is much
harm to us in the habit Of harshly
condemning the wrong and facilely
painting perfection while we ourselves
make no endeavors toward meeting
the present need.
OF what value is all our cOndemna-
ton of sin If we do nothing to stop
its ravages? The fashion too often
seems to be that of regarding the
| work OF the church as accomplished
whenever she has invented some new
phrases with which to describe iniqui-
ty, to deplore It's existence, and to
warn of It's results, but never to take
it by tho throat and seek to throttle
the beast.
OF what value are all our pictures
OF a beautiful land beyond, OF a fair
and glorious city over there, if we
must stand idly by waiting for that
city and leaving our own, the one in
which we and our brothers live, to be
foul and dark, snare to the young
ana tool for the depraved? Is our
piety able only to picture better things
and never to bring them into being?
If we really desire that men shall
be holy, that the soul shall grow in
beauty, that our brothers shall come
to that moral and spiritual beauty
which for us is the glory of our great
Fathers face, we shall not forget that
the features of eternity are nodded in
time that the soil in which the soul
grows is this present environment.
A deadly apathy has crept over any
man who can see Ubiquitous condi-
lions about him, who can see the de-
PRAYED and the vicious working the
machinery of lust and shame, who
can see the ways of life full of men
ace to the young and weak and still
feel no great tide of moral passion
or holy hatred stir within him.
The trouble is that a good deal of
our ardor for righteousness is either
a zeal for proselytes, anxiety to make
sure that all men think only as we
think and that no man dares venture
beyond our limited capacities, or 1t is
a desire for responsibility and COM
fort; we would clean up the resorts
of vice because. really, you know. they
are not nice to look at and, besides,
they give us a bad name
1t is better to tilt at windmills
than to remain impressive before great
wrongs. 1t is better to be jeered at
as a fool of a reformer than to win
admiration for calmness when passion
should be aroused to hatred and swift
retribution. 1t were better to suffer
from the mania of fighting the devil
than to believe that this world will
become really fit to live in without
any effort on our part.
We can always manage to work up
tremendous tides of feeling at the
least hint that some invader should
tread on our soil or stain our nation
al honor; yet we remain blind to the
fact that traitors in our midst, for
greed of gain, step on and trample
under foot the hearts and souls of
men. despoil all that really consti-
tutes the wealth and glory of a ma
ton, the characters Of her people
Is there not grave danger that the
church may miss her great chance.
the chance to waken and fan in men
q hnIy Havntpy noociop for raoI oo+,,
al, concrete rightness? What can re-
ligion be for in this world if 1t be not
for this-to inspire and lead men to
the fullness of their living. to the
best in character, and to aid to this
by furnishing the best possible con-
ditiOns for the growth of character?
The function of the church is neith-
er Legislative nor executive; it is in
spirational. But of what value is all
the inspiration If 1t leads to no activ-
ity, to no endeavor for the realiza-
ton of those ideals which the church
paints? We have been singing great
songs Of spiritual patriotism and then
stunning the battle until the emo
tons are at high tide while the moral
passion is paralyzed
1t is time for all who have any re-
ligious faith to realize that moral and
social facts are our concern. that, II
we believe in the eternal goodness
we must actually fight the present
evil. that II we really love our fel
lows we must make the upward way
possible for them, we must fight tht
foes Of the weak and make straight
paths for their feet; if we want mer
to win TO a better world there we
must make as good a world as it car
be here.