Perrysburg journal. (Perrysburg, Wood Co., O. [Ohio]) 186?-1965, 1916-02-17
For Sunday Feb. 20

For Sunday Feb. 20
Lesson Title: "The Christian Broth
erhood at Jerusalem.
Lesson Text: Acts a: 1926: 16. Mem
orize vss. 81, 35.
Golden Text: Glove one another
from the heart fervently." 1 Peter
/: %.
l. Practicing Brotherhood
More people believe in brother hood
than practice it. Brotherhood is an
achievement, not a gift. 1t is some
thing we must practice daily if we
ever learn to show it. 1t is interest
ing to see how the early christians
tried to practice brotherhood. "Not
one of them said that aught of the
things which he possessed was his
own; but they had all things com
mon." 1t takes real christian spirit
to do that. While this early commun-
ism did not last long time, it had
the right endeavor in it. Every
christian must try to share all the
things which he has, so that others
will be helped, whether it is time,
money, or service.
Modern endeavors to practice
brotherhood are difficult but they are
more and more a part of our econo-
mic and industrial life. Profit shar-
ing is common. Unselfish welfare
work is widespread. Mr.. Henry
Ford's plans are very intelligent. It
is easy to criticise such endeavors but
the question is open whether we would
try to do as much if we had millions
Of money. There are many business
men whose generous sharing of prof
its, and shortening of working hours,
have made it harder for them to car
ry on their business in competition
with others who did less for their
employees.
The brotherhood of man is based on
the fact that all men have the same
Father. The more obedient we are
to him, the better brothers we shall be
toward one another. This principle
of brotherhood is going to work still
greater revolutions in the next gen
GRAFTON. 1t will help to solve racial
difficulties. 1t will determine our in
ternational relations and actions. Slav
and Saxon, Angle and Turk, will no
longer fight. God speed the day,
"When man to man, the world DER,
Shall brithers be, for a. that"
ii. The Saloon and Brotherhood
/ have just received letter from
one of our young men in England.
He says that owing to the restriction
Of the drinking hours there, there has
been great improvement, for they
have less crime and better homes
Late one night recently, on returning
from the union depot, waited on the
corner for a transfer. A stranger
beside me pointed to the nearby sa-
loon and said: "If we could come back
to earth in one hundred years, peo-
\ pie would not believe it when we
told them that such places ever eX-
isted!"
The modern movement against the
saloon has many phases. 1t was born
in the prayers of christian women
forty years ago. 1t was spread by
the pledge-signing campaigns OF
Father Murphy and others. 1t was
soundly based in the scientific tenn.
! perance instruction of the last twenty
years. 1t was augmented by the dis
covery of the amount of crime, pov.
erty, and economic waste, directly
traceable to the saloon. 1t has beer
increased by the power of brother
hood, for the saloon makes it's de-
votee poorer brother to every Other
man in the world.
iii. Imitation Generosity.
Ananias and his wife Sapphire
wanted to get credit for doing what
the other disciples did. But the.
were not willing to pay the price. 81
they made deal with the devil, ant
concealed part of their capital. The!
were like some artful taX-dodger!
today. They wanted the credit fol
giving up everything. 1t makes yol
feel fine to be commended for gener
osity, provided you've really been gen
erous. Lying and stinginess will g
together whenever they can. Stingi
ness always has an excuse for itself
The lure of gold is fearful ard far
reaching in it's effects. If the pres
ent European war, in whole or il
part, is struggle for commercial su
premacy, what else is back of it bu