The Richmond Virginian. (Richmond, Va.) 1910-1920, 1915-08-09
Yesterday in the Churches
CITIZENS SHOULD
AWAKE FROM SLEEP
Anti-Saloon League Kept People Of
State Awake After September,
Says Mr.. Cooper.

In the course OF his sermon last
night at Central Methodist Church,
Rev. w. A. Cooper called upon the
citizens of Richmond to be alert to
the demands of the hour and the needs
of the city and State. Good govern
ment demands that all men who are
followers Of Jesus shall awake out of
their sleep and stay awake. Eternal
vigilance Is the price OF liberty" and
progress today as 1t was in the days
of our fathers.
Mr.. Cooper was expounding the
teachings of Jesus from the parable
of the kingdom. The phrase king
dom of heaven" he said. had been
variously interpreted through the CEN
turtles. 1t had been made to mean
1.-The church" "a religious experience"
the millennium" and even heaven
itself, but he denied that Ii meant any
of these things. He defined the phrase
as "a rightly organized socity found
ed on the Fatherhood of God and the
brotherhood of man, in which the
rule Of right and not the rule of might
governs the conduct of men" 1t is
"the actual reign of God over living
men. in which all the anticipations of
EoCu arc IchiiZCU anu q ItCW SAdLC Va
virtue and happiness is established in
the earth. This was declared to be the
ultimate object of the ministry of John
and Jesus. They came. not to save
few people out OF the world to form
a nucleus of a new commonwealth In
another world. but to redeem this
world from its sin, its selfishness and
its sordidness; to create a civilization
or social order founded on love to
God and men, and that would grant to
every man equal opportunity for de-
lvelopment and equal rights In person
and in property.
should Arouse Themselves.
1t was In Mr.. Cooper's exposition Of
| the parable of the tares that he called
| upon the Christian men of the COM
munity to arouse themselves from this
sleep and to do their duty. 1t Is
while men sleep that other men SOW
tares in the wheatfields of the world 8
progress. The forces of evil are al
ways alert and SOW the tares of dis
cord and deceit and seek to divide the
forces OF Righteousness. The resort
to all kinds of subterfuge to blind
and to deceive the people. They are
the servants of special interests which
seek to enrich themselves at the cost
| of the mass. They now seek under
the guise of preparedness" to create
a militarism In this country that will
rival the militarism of Germany and
ultimately plunge this country into
war with other nations. These inter-
ests now seek the control of the gov
eminent and to dominate the Congress
of the nation. Let the people now
awake out Of their sleep lest these
interests SOW tares OF military aris-
tocracy in the wheatfield Of the coun-
try's democracy.
League Remained Awake.
/ rejoice. declared the preacher,
that the good people of the State.
under the leadership of the Anti
Saloon League. did not go back to
sleep, as is too often the case, after
the great battle last September. but
remained awake and elected friends OF
the Enabling Act to enact the legis-
iation that would make Virginia dry"
| II was while the temperance forces
slept that men sowed tares In the
temperance legislation of some other
States which have brought trouble and
confusion, but we shall not sleep in
Virginia, but now that the harvest
/ Ia come, we shall gather our wheat
and separate II from the tares OF the
wine and beer amendments put in the
Ena bling Act by the enemies OF tenn
perance and make our State dry
Ithroughout its borders
We must be awake to all the pro-
posed changes of our city govern
ment. and demand that all changes
shall make for simplicity and eff
cheney. In the city we are one family.
and every citizen, whether he be rich
or poor, a capitalist or laborer. has
an equal responsibility in the man
agement of the affairs OF the city.
The Kingdom of God. or Christian
civilization. is a treasure in field. or
as a pearl OF great price. n must
be labored for. struggled for and sac
rificed for; but 1t Is vorth all the
service and sacrifice that we can
render: therefore, let evvry man do his
Christian duty to promote the welfare
of the city, the STATE and the nation,
and thus promote the work of Christ
in establishing the kingdom of God
on earth.