The Washington herald., 1916-10-01
Cultivate Broadmmdedness.
BY oRIsoN SWEET MARDEN,


Dwight L. Moody, the great evangelist, used
to say that there was no use trying to work for
humanity in general that this whole world is a
wrecked ship and bound to sink, and the most
that any of US can do is to try to get after as
many of the crew and passengers we can and
let her go.
Mr.. Moody good man, remarkable
man, but we who keep our eyes steadily on the
forward movement do not think that he got quite
the right idea of the world. In spite of war and
crime and many social and economic evils, we
do not believe that it is wreck that it is
going to sink On the contrary, we believe that
the world is constantly growing better, that life
today means infinitely more than-it used to mean.
Tolstoi said that from the beginning of time
to the present the world in all its departments
had been going wrong. But we do not believe
that the world whole has in the long run
ever taken a backward step. This is not Gods
way of working. Even out of the evils and hor-
rors OF the raging the forward progress
sve movement will be given such an impetus
as it never before received.
Evolution is working out its divine plan in
every atom of the universe. No atom is retro
grading. Everything is pushing toward
a grander, sublimer end. We do not believe that
the Creator has been foiled in his plan of the
universe.
The trouble with most of Us Is we do not
understand the Creators plan. We do not COM
prehend our relation to the whole or the mag
nihcent part which every human being in
tended to play in that benehcent universal plan.
We in a current running Godward; there is
no current running in the opposite direction.
Though clouds may often obscure the light, the
light is always there and everything is fulfilling
the master plan of the Master Builder.
Very often it is not the light but our own
vision that is obscured l sometimes see a
man who has such large cataracts both eyes
that they nearly closed There are only
little Sits open to the light and these will soon
be closed, entirely shrouding him in night unless
the cataracts are removed Multitudes of human
beings afflicted with mental cataracts which
completely shut out the truth, or allow only a
glimmering of it to get through.
Think of the wonderful and beautiful truths
that shut out of so many peoples minds by
the superstition cataracts! Think of the mental
darkness of those who suffer from the bigotry
cataract, who have no charity for people in
religious denominations sects outside their
own! These people can't see how a Mohamme-
dan, Confucan, a Buddhist can possibly
be saved. l have known some, of them who
CoulQ not Imagine SuCn thlng as SalVauon for
a Roman Catholic or a Universalist. l have
heard others say that Methodist a Congre-
gationalist might possibly be saved, but that
Gods grace would hardly include Unitarian,
and certainly could never extend to a Roman
Catholic.
Multitudes of men are so blinded by political
eataracts that they can see no good in any
parties outside of the one with which they are
affiliated We find these hdebound partisans
in the ranks of Republicans Democrats, So
calists, Progressves-in every political party, old
and new
No man can progress while he suffers from
mental cataract, whether it be religious, political
social or economic. He must have an open
mind or he cannot see clearly.
You not openminded unless you can
project yourself into another personality sufh-
GENTLY to see his viewpoint No person is broad
minded who cannot put himself in the place
Of those who disagree with him and see things
from their outlook No person is broadminded
who is prejudiced that he cannot see the
motives of those who oppose him. No person
is broadminded who is intolerant, uncharitable,
who is hidebound in creed, politics. social or
economic questions
Mankind is still in the making We are not
nearly at the end of our growth Only the man
with a closed mind has ceased to grow.