Evening times-Republican. [volume] (Marshalltown, Iowa) 1890-1923, 1913-03-29
For Sunday Reading
dill Sorts Of Obinio7r
Are We Losing Touch With God?

dill Soytt Of Obi7io7r
Are We Losing Touch With God?
Many may demu- to the proposition
boldly put by religious editor in chi
cage that this generation has lost the
/ personal sense Of nearness to God en-
joyed by our fathers. The editor Of
The Continent does not specify whe,h-
er he has noticed this loss more par
ticularly in Chicago or whether it
reaches as far as New York. If he
means that there has been a cooling of
that religious ferver OF the old camp
meeting and revival days. most people
| might agree. but he specifically denies
tha: that is what he has in mind. What
he finds is that the church has come
to regard God as being afar off, and
| II ne is right then there has been a
, serious l. .ange in the religious life of
our age. While there II less atheism in
the world now than in many previous
ages. he argues. We seldom hear ex.
/ pressed the sense OF personal relation
ship with the deity. and 10 say that we
do right because God commands IL
would sould today like "pious affec-
tation. Even devout man hesitates
TO speak OF himself as personally di
rected by God. America today Is for
feiting God-sense. God-belief stands:
perhaps is growing. But God-sense Is
fading out" The writer goes on to
discriminate:
This is not referring TO anything in
the nature OF mysticism or spiritual
ecstasies. Raptures lifting the soul to
celestial dreanaIands have never been
the experience of more than few ex-
aited saints. Doubtless they never will
be ordinary to christians.
But what is here meant was once
aimoa universal with religious men
an every day basis of life for the most
prosaic lay-people Of the church. It
was in truth. counted the very essence
of the thing called religion; man was
not supposed to have religion at all
| until he had same realization Of per-
sonal dealings with his maker.
Him with whom he have to do
| in all the stern necessity and newt
ableness Of those majestic monosyl-
lables-was, to men SO living, just as
vivid ana pertinent description OF
God as II was TO the apostle VINO first
penned the words.
God was 10 them the one unescap-
able fact OF the universe.
A Cabinet View Of Business Honesty
1t is surely an optimist that President
| Wilson has chosen to serve in the
T, cabinet as g. cretary of commerce. The
man who may have occasion to know
/ more intimately than any one else what
F! the business honesty Of the country
really is. starts on his career of service
(, with vision of thirty years OF mora!
| progress in the sphere where success
| il supposed by some to be commensurate
only with dishonesty. The pessimist.'
| he admits, can find numerous ex-
amples in our business affairs to sup
port his cynical philosophy. but 1t can
not be doubted By any one who with
sober judgme Mt shall consider the
whole range of political. business, and
| industrial life that moral forces are
| sovereign therein and that they are adj
| vancing in power, to the great social
gain and to the undoing OF those who
! either ignore or resist them. In Inc
| Churchman he begins his survey OF the
present day moral aspects OF business
| life by a story which he thinks would
rarely be duplicated at present. because
Few men in business life would today
venture the transaction because
the average individual world Is more
sensitive than it was"
1--WE shall wholly misunderstood the
drift Of legislation and Of politics In the
last quarter century unless we see ir
1t the development into partial fact o,
| moral ideals. 1t is common knowledge
today that the political leader who does
not tell the truth is lost, and hence II
10 well known how careful polittciani
are about saying definitely what they
will or will not do. The development
Of the civil service idea has ariser
from the public belief that the spoill
system IL wrong - well 81 inefficient
The sentiment embodied In the sher'
man antitrust law 10 one which holds
the pernicious sides OF trust activities
to be morally wrong. The revolt Against
the tarin has not been Tor merely hsca
reasons. but also becauSe the maese'
OF our people have felt there was
large element Of wrong doing In II. Thu
cry against special privilege is the pro
tss: against the wrongs to the public
involved in such privilege. The crit
cism against unfit appointments sprinl