Norwich bulletin., 1916-12-26

birth.
 The Christmas festival commemor- ates the great miracle of love by which the Son of God assumed mans nature and offered His sufferings in propitiation to God of Justice of tended by the sins of man. Gratitude Christians to follow in His footsteps an dto seek to obey at all times His precepts, so that by living in His friendship here they may merit eter- nal union with Him hereafter.
 the e Blessed Sacrament ~ was given by Father Cuny, assisted by Father Brod- erick.
 The sanctuary decorations were tall palms and crotons, the main altar be- ing adorned with poinsettias and white cyclamen, against a background of glossy vines. As usual, the effective decorations were arranged by the Sis ters of Mercy from the parish con- vert. I All the masses were largely attended and many received Holy Communion, especially at the service at 5:S0.
 Trinity Episcopal Church. Services were held in Trinity Epis- copal church Monday morning in ob- servance of Christmas day. The church was decorated with evergreens and laurel. The Christmas sermon 1 was delivered by Rev. J. Eldred | 4. Rev. MT. Brown said in part:
 ] In large part the trials, dificul- | ties and miseries of life are due to the | lack of light or darkness. There is | the darkness of ignorance. Very early | in life we fall into perilouS if not fatal straits and rapids, simply because we do not realize or foresee the outcome | of our actions. Even the best of us at times are beset not only by the | darkness of ignorance but by the l darkenss of doubt and despair.
 i There is the moral darkness. We l have our conscience, which is em- phatic and indeed imperative. But we have also the weakness of the will and
 the deceitfulness of temptation and 1 sin. There is light within us. Rea- son and conscience unite in upholding the law of righteousness. But, alas, the light that is in us may become darkness. Evil tendencies and habits | may SC entwine themselves around our
 affections that we become blind to ev- erything else, every higher call. Or, groanin~ under the burden and slavery of our sin, and seeing no way out we may give ourselves over to com plete moral darkness and walk men that have no light.
 Finally, there is spiritual darkness, that ignorance of the essential su- premacy of the spirit that immersion in the lusts of the world, the flesh and the devil, that utter ignoring of the
 higher life which speedily grips all
 who walk with no conscious sense of
 the need of the favor of God.
 Divine Light.
 Now the life which is in Jesus throws its own divine light on all
 these problems and it fitted to dispel all the darkness. Jesus gave men the light of reason and conscience. They are found in man wherever man is found without exception. What the
 apostle would say is that when Christ | gave His own life to men in creation
 He gave them reason and conscience. So that while light is necessary to life and leads to life, life procedes and
 conditions light, or, perhaps, more correctly speaking, life is the science
 of light. And the truth of the text is
 thus apparent when it says that in
 Him was life; and the life was the
 light of men. But if the Son of God l was the light of men by reason of His
 creation of men, how much more is He the light of men by reason of His
 spotless life in our own flesh and un-
 der our own conditions. Thereby He
 proved not only that He was a per
 feet example to us but that He was
 the source and medium of spiritual ! knowledge. of spiritual holiness, of purity and mans sanctifcation.
 In a word, life is light. It is true
 in sence light is life, we send our
 children to school that they may learn
 certain knowledge necessary to an in-
 intellect is there before the knowledge
 and the life that is in the intellect
 must show itself and work or 1t will
 get no light, however many instructors
 or books may be brought before it. | He is Able to Develop the Light. Christ assures us that He is able to
 develop this light within us if only i've will follow His directions. "He
 that fo1loweth Me shall not walk in
 life" We need light but the light we ] need is the perfect light of Christ, and l that we can only get as we vigorously appropriate Christ's offer of life. For ] what is life ill any sphere, intellectual
 moral or spiritual. In all cases life
 abounding life consists of a vigorous ] appreciation of all that would stif1e } or kill it. This then is a great lesson
 Of Christmas. Tn Him was and is
 life; and the life was and is the light
 Christ's light we must be vigorous in
 our appreciation of His life, His faith His purity, His righteousness and love and unselfish activity in thinking and ) doing for others.
 Central Baptist.
 At the Sunday morning service at
 the Central Baptist church Rev. Joel B SlOcum gave very impressive Sef- mon on The Day Star in the Heart. ], In part he spoke as follows:
 The day star is the morning star How luminous and how near the morn , ing star seems to be. It almost star 7 tied me a few mornings ago. The sky
 was wonderfully clear and somewhat cold and many of the stars were
 growing dim; but the morning stal } was fairly blazing in it's splendor and 3 it seemed to be towering low over oul
 city.
 In His disclosure of Himself and His revelation of His purpose to Jonr on Patmos Jesus said: T Jesus have P sent mine angel to testify unto yol these things for the churches. I an ? the root and the offspring of David | the bright, the morning star.'
 The morning star that Peter makes 2, reference to in the text is Jesus. In thinking about the scriptures al = a whole or as a collection of books,
 sometimes see in my minds eye tn 0 authors rather than the books, and r imagine that they are tolding to Go; n and with each other across the cen a turies.
 6 First hear Gods own voice crash
 lino tbrough the chaos of that Drirneva