La Junta tribune. (La Junta, Bent County, Colo.) 1881-1939, 1916-05-20
BACCALAUREATE SERMON.
"NNhat Is Your Life" Was the Sub
ject of Rev. r.. \. Crooks Adj
dress to the Graduates.

The annual baccalareate sermon
was delivered in Rourke Theater last
Sunday night to well filled house,
by Rev Il. A. Crooks of the Reform
ed Presbyterian church. The title of
his address was what Is Your
Life?" The meeting was opened by
singing the hymn. "How Firm a
Foundation" and the invocation was
made by Rev, j. +. Findley. The
High School Chorus sang the an
them, Lift Thine Eyes" Rev. L.
A. Allen read the scripture lesson
and the prayer was made by Rev. A.
l.. T. Ewert of the Methodist church.
The chorus sang another anthem.
How Lovely Are Thy Messengers.
The audience sang America In con-
clusion and Rev. Payne delivered the
benediction.
The opportunities for profitably
investing life were never greater
than they are today" said Rev r. A.
Crooks in his address. THE world
has large budget of unsolved prob
lens. They are special challenge
to you who stand with eager feet on
life's starting line. There is still the
unsolved problem of the relation be-
tween capital and labor. Capital
would treat labor as a commodity to
be purchased at the lowest market
figure. The laborer demands his
rights as man. There is the sigh
OF the child of the sweat shop and
the factories. robbed of the bliss of
childhood at the behest OF greedy
commerce. Capital must be human
ized and humanity capitalized.
There are the slums of our cities,
the cesspools OF civilization, to be
cleaned. Just now. the world runs
red with the blood of savage strife.
Something must be done to stop this
suicide OF civilization. To sum II all
/ up, there is the crying need Of the
world for the fuller blessings OF the
! Christianity that alone saved II from
complete wreck. In view of such a
I gram there is no need that any young
man or young woman should sit
down and weep. Alexander like. be-
cause there are no more worlds to
conquer"
Rev. Crooks pressed the conviction
home to the members OF the gradu-
ating class that they owe a debt Of
/ responsibility to those who have
made 1t possible for them to be high
school graduates, when he said:
Your life is from God and OF God.
I This gift has reached you through
the channels OF human parentnge,
| Your father and mother hold for you
an exclusive place. Their self sac
rificing love has made possible the
attainments In school of you young
men and young women In whose hon
| or We meet tonight. Your life Is
| their gift To you and the gift OF
those who on back through the gen
/ erations stand In the line of your sue
ession.
"The attainments of your life are
the gifts OF the community to you.
By "A self imposed tax they have pro
yided the facilities for your educa-
tion. They have furnished the build
ings where you have met for study.
the equipment with which you have
worked. and employed the teachers
who have directed you In your ef-
forts The culture OF the communl-
ty IL the background Of your attain
menis. You could not have been
what you are tonight In less cul-
,ured community The churches OF
that they represent, have supplied
the moral ballast and the spiritual
stimulus for your character building
The country In which you live and
the age to which you belong. furnish
the still larger setting. Had you
been born IN Europe n thousand
years ago. or In China or Africa to
day. your life would not have beer
what II is All back through the gen
erations. men and women have lived
and iaborcd and suffered and diet
that they might give to you, theil
distant sons and daughters. the If
you have,
Think OF ~ Out Of the galleries
OF the past they look down on yot
tonight. the million times mIllioni
who have lived and toiled that the,
might beducath TO you n fuller life
Can you not see them. their face
marked with suffering and toii7 Can
not you hear their groans Of suffer
ing and their shouts Of victory nj
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