Norwich bulletin. [volume] (Norwich, Conn.) 1895-2011, 1912-03-11
Illness Not Conducive to Spirituality.

Mr. Editor: In a recent Thursday
evening prayer service, a statement
was made by one of our local pastors,
to how often in the past two years,
and especially the past months he had
read from the ecclesiastical papers, and
heard from Christian workers in gem
eral, the call for men with red blood
in their veins. "Abominable CALI he
styles it; and proceeds to explain why
he considers such a call abominable.
Conveying the idea that the red-blood-
ed condition does not tend toward
spirituality, but toward its opposite,
animalism; that red blood produces
bodily strength and bodily instincts, to
the detriment of the spiritual in man;
and cites the prize-fighter as the out
come of red blood; and the poor an
aemic invalid with scarcely enough red
blood to keep the breath Of life, as be-
ing colossal in spiritual strength and
patience.
Now / maintain that red blood does
not create, or in any way tend toward
creating the prize-fighting spirit in
man; for if it did, every man with red
blood, for what is red blood, but good
blood and good blood is health would
one and all aspire to be prize-fight
er. To be sure, red blood is necessary
to the prize fighter; but it does not
follow that red blood is the cause Of
the fighting spirit
Many a little weak-blooded, puny
man watches with intense interest, and
sympathy the prize-fght, while a red
blOOded pure minded brother scorns
the thought of it.
Pure blood, in other words health,
is the normal bodily condition, as the
Christ-life is the normal spiritual con-
ditiOn-bOth God meant
Bad blood is to the body, what sin
| is to the soul-an abnormal condition.
Sin, and broken down body go hand
in hand; if you doubt this, ask the
| physician.
/ wonder if this same pastor would
| have delighted to have seen his little
ones siekly and white blooded, and
know that, that condition would con-
tinue through life? Would he feel
that they were we'll equipped for use
| ful service in the world? Think not.
! Why did the Christ first heal the
body then the mind? because he knew
! than a sickiy body, and with it more
| than likely a self conferred mind, was
| no soil in which his sublime truths
Pcould take root.
| Ask the fnill-owner which is doing
| the most and best work for him, the
machine that is out Of order, all its
parts at variance, or the perfect ma
| chine with all its parts in perfect
working order. Which one is doing the
will of its maker? The imperfect ma
| chine is doing all that it can do; but
its powers are limited, because so to
speak, part Of it's body is diseased.
Why Is this not true of the complex
human machine? If God did not mean
US to have red blood, why has he
given us red-blood making air to
! breathe?
Speaking Of the spiritual invalid
we now and then hear of one 81
| wonderful are they as to be taken note
Of, but how about the millions of sell
fish. lf-centered, gnarling, complain
Ing invalids, unable to do anythina
but think Of themselves? We do not
hear OF them especially. They are toe
many of them.
OFTEN do we see a friend, once a helm.
| er in the world. cheerful and hapnv
see the change into a selfish, fretfi1
person. Remembering the former we
forgive, and lay all at the door of dis.
ease.
| 1 believe the patient invalid wa,
always patient, always would bt
no matter what the affection +hi,
noble spirit of patience would have
continued to grow. If much was ac.
compllshed In invalidiSm, how n1uct
more could have been accomplished
mad there been the addition of goof
red blood to strengthen the body. anC
mus make possible the Carving ont n
the spirits prompting.
ADVOCATE OF RED RTOoO
! Norwich, March s, 1912.