The Barre daily times. (Barre, Vt.) 1897-1959, 1914-06-08
URGED SENIORS
TO ACTIVE WORK
Continued from first page.

pipe and the paint brush in his field, so
society has awakened and, please God,
ere long the parasite of incompetence
will have vanished. The whole social
service movement is determined fight
against the parasites of society. Society
needs all its strength, that is, the
strength of every individual to do its
work and carry its burden. On every
side there are parasites that must be
combatted. Along with the drurkard,
who is q parasite that society must
carry along, is the man who cheats on
the declaration of his taxes. There are
numerous types and they must be de-
stroyed that society may work out it's
perfect destiny.
IF there happens to be in this audi
ence one of those unpleasant persons
who insist so unwarrantably that a min
lister shall stick to his text, he is prob
ably having a perfect frenzy of criticism
by this time. And yet, possibly / am
not so far away from my text as it may
seem. Let's get back to the story of
Jacob for our larger understanding. You
can see that in his youth Jacob became
a parasite, content to live upon his
rights and give but little in return. BY
prostituting his mothers love, you re-
member he passed from class of ecto-
parasites to that of an endoparasite,
| that which feeds on the very vitals.
| Then later he became a parasite on God,
which to my mind is the most detestab BILE
of all human creatures. Let this stand
then as reason for my statement in
the beginning that this chapter of the
old testament is repulsive, not alone be-
cause it pictures a beaten and defeated
God, but because it draws an unpleasant,
but truthful, portrait of a religious par
asite.
"The story of Jacob is a perfect illus
| tration of conditions which have always
existed and which do still exist, the par
asitism pictured in this story is so per-
| feet an illustration of a parasitism which
exists to-day as it has ever existed, that
| |, dealing with modern problems, the
| problems which you young people are
about to face, feel perfectly justified in
using it. The religious or spiritual par
asite is not only still fact, but more's
the pity, fact which is too often com
mended. To illustrate by some common
! illustrations 1t has ever been considered
the part of the faithful TO cry i cast
my burden on the Lord and then to rest
| in perfect content and perfect faith that
| the burden will be carried somehow,
about it we need have no more concern.
] 1t will be carried but by other hands,
although the only excuse for being or
for creation is to carry burden. BY
| your negligence you cannot defeat the
| purpose of the universe, but in shifting
the burden YOU become a parasite
Again, many a prodigal son has be-
come weary of wandering; the welcome
| is always there. but in actuality he has
no right to the fatted calf, and the ia
theirs welcome must be tinged with re-
! greet, regret that welcome back is nee
essary. But the sinner must none the
less be parasite, living at least for
awhile on that which he has not earned.
| Salvation, If you desire to call it so,
perfect manhood, as | like better to call
! it, is, beyond all doubt. the destiny OF
the human race / believe that every
human soul shall be brought at last to
this desired end. ] believe that If re-
| fuse to-day to seek my salvation that
stronger arguments shall be presented
tomorrow 10 induce me to do so and
every morrow until the end is reached.
But the argument that God is present
! ing to-day is all sufficient ii is only OBJ
stinacv that is holding me back after
all. Still that my petty obstinacy may
1 be gratifed ! am demanding that to-
morrow and many morrows, while in
truth / ought to be working with the
forces of the universe to accomplish the
destined end, | have become a parasite,
holding back the fruition of the eter-
nal purpose.
"And so in many ways the undue and
] g1OrinhtanyG dannUdaUaa (.pd M nj
tests itself, He who has too much faith
when work is better. he who is too in
tent upon his own petty schemes when
he ought to be coming the eternal laws
he who demands that the whole uni.
verse shall cease its work TO listen to his
petty woes or to wipe away the tears
he who stops playing when the fancied
reward done up in particular package
is not the apparent payment for the
game, he who loses his locomotor organs
in the desire to be carried by divine
strength, he who loses his sense of en-
yironment by living in too narrow a
world. he whose spiritually digestive or
gans lose their power because their own
or insists upon explanation and author
itv. rather than personal research and
self minded knowledge these phe-
| noHiend appear III lne Splltudl "Oiiu as
they do in the natural world"
To the Class.
Addressing himself in particular TO the
students the speaker said: Members Of
the class of 1914 of Goddard seminary:
What is the lesson of it all; what is the
thought that / would have you take
with you from this last religious service
of your present educational course! In