Evening public ledger. [volume] (Philadelphia [Pa.]) 1914-1942, 1915-02-10
suhJECT aposrT1vE VS.. MEGA.
TIVE RF.I.fnInN- y


TIVE RELIGION"
Want to take two texts. one from
ile hible and one from outside the Bible
One Is the expression OF a human desire,
The other IS the answer to that desire.
Gerald Stanley Lee in recent article
on advertising goodness said this: 7 want
Is be good, but I don't want to so up
into mountain to do Il, or stink OF
and 1.-Two All alone on an island IN the sea-
The other text want to take is from
ons Of the immortal prayers Of the Mas
Ter when He lifted His voice toward the
plars and said. I pray not that thou
shouId'st take them out Of the world but
that thou shouldst keep them from the
evil CIohn 17:i5)'
There have been throughout all the
csnturies, two ideas Of goodness. the posi-
tive and the negative, The negative in
dex has been that in order to be good
man must run away from the world.
That positive idea has been that in order
10 be not only good but good for some-
thIna man must get into the world.
II want 10 raise the question today as
10 which Is the Christian idea of religion.
want to strike the death blow at the
idea that being n Christian takes q man
out OF the busy whlrl OF the worlds hte
and activity and makes him splneless
and effeniinate proposition.
II do not believe that man has TO run
away from the world in order to be re-
liEious. T. too have felt as you have,
with Mr. Lee that did not want to go
up into mountain or slink OF all alone
and live on an island In the sea In order
to be good. and face the job OF being a
Christian with Joy, when | hear Jesus
saving: Il pray not that thou shouldst
take them out of the world for know
that He expects man to be good, not
alone behind stone walls of religious IN
stltutions, but In the rough and tumble
OF every-day life.
II want to write an indictment against
the IDEA of running away from the world
in order to be good In this indictment
there rhnl1 be four counts. Running away
from the world in order to be good makes
religion matter of place and observance.
when man locked himself In mon
astery in an effeort TO achieve goodness
by that act he said 1t was easier to be
religious In a sheltered place than out in
the hard-paved street And that religion
consisted solely in certain observance,
such as prayer, meditation and Bible
reading.
Just so there is in America type
OF man who seems to think that his re-
ligion Is summed UP in the doing of a
lot of special things such as attending
church, singing psalms, saying prayers
etc, and who seems to think that re-
liKion is confined to one day in the week
and that the other six are the legitimate
ield of the secular Phillips Brooks had
at one time in his church such a man.
His religion on Sunday was beyond
criticism, but on every other day in the
week he did not allow his religion to
interfere with any of his plans or places.
And every time Phillips Brooks APP
preached any man in that city on the
subject OF religion this man was con-
stantly brought into the conversation.
Phillips Brooks was one OF those men who
believed that N preacher had any
criticism TO make on a mans conduct
there was just one place to make It,
and that was squarely into the mans |
teeth.
$50 Phillips Brooks said to the man:
Every time 1 approach any man in this |
community on the matter OF religion |
your namc is mentioned. and men say |
that, while you seems to be loyal to |
your religion on Sunday, ON weekdays |
they find you man of-tvery low busl- |
ness ideals and tricky methods. Now,
why should you be different man on |
Monday or Wednesday or Saturday than |
on Sunday? The mans answer Is a |
significant thing. He did not blush. He |
did not stammer but said: Well. you
cannot expect man to be pious all the
time. can you? You cannot expect a
man TO be attending vesper services all
the time? You cannot expect man to
be reading his Bible all the time or
praying all the time. can you? A man
has to earn his bread
just as though earning ones bread
and being religious were utterly incon-
sistent and Incompatible. Just as though
religion consisted solely in attending
church services, reading the Bible sing
ing psalms and praying Just as though
religion consisted in doing lot of spe-
clRl things. AS l have said so many
times before, religion does not consist in
doing lot OF special things even though
tnose special things be good things; but
religion consists In doing all things In a
special way.
Religion Is not matter of time place,
circumstance or observance, and. there
fore. an idea Of religion which either lit
eraily or fguratively causes a man to
run away from the world in order to be
good is a false Idea of religion.
''Running away from the world in or
der 10 be good makes religion selfish
IT man runs away from the world
in order 10 be good. by his very act he
says that religion is simply and only a
private affair with him-a something
labeled for external use and home con-
sumption only.
I'VE have produced in America by that
idea religious type OF men who are re-
ligious In the best sense of the word in
their private lives, but who in their pro-
fessional, commercial, social and Indus
trial relations Where other people are
concerned do not seem to think that their
religion need necessarily enter. In other
words. this idea OF religion has produced
men whose private lives are good, but
whose public lives are very bad. For
instance: We have produced men who.
while they would not shoot a man with
q pistol win sit in New York city or
Philadelphia and by vote In the board
o. directors meeting set in motion forces
which ultimately may take a mans life
cut on the Pacific slope months after i