The Richmond Virginian. (Richmond, Va.) 1910-1920, 1917-06-11
GRADUATES Of CITY
NORMAL HEAR SERMON
Baccalaureate Is Preached In Broad
Street Methodist Church by
Rev. Fred Chcnault.
ESSENTIALS POINTED OUT

F0Seor says we MuSt NOW NOhAoA
and Deny Ourselves in Order to
Climb High Up the Ladder of
Success.
A notable baccalaureate sermon was
delivered the graduates Of the CITY
Normal school last night by Rev FRED
r. Chenault, the brilliant young pas.
tor OF the Broad-Street Methodist
church Mr.. ChenauN took as his
text Matt ia: rs: whatsoever would
sAve his life shall lose 1t: and who
soever shall lose his life for my sake
shall md It," His subject was Three
Essentials OF IAfe"--to know thyseit,
to control myself and to deny thysei.
Tho pastor impressed upon his
hearers the pre-emAnent Importance
Of Earnings to discriminate between
the true value Of things and persons
and the value the world may have
placed upon them. In order to encom-
pass the first essential. KNOW thy
self" and not to consider accnnula-
ton a. all-important, but to flnd their
raracular niche In the worlds work
most harmonious with the soul. On
the second essential, Mr.. Chenault said
he who controlled himself accom-
plished far moro than Alexander the
Great. who conquered the world. MT.
Chenault said the third essential.
Deny myself" meant not to scourse
the body when no good WIS accom- :
piished, but TO welcome sacrifice that
others might be benefited. The ser
mon in part follows:
Three Great Sayings.
Three great men gave utterance 10
three sayings. Socrates said. Know
thyselr'; Marcus Aurelius said. Con
troll myself" and Jesus said, Deny
thyself."
We have learned our lessons. we
must now live them. No lesson is
learned until II 80 lived. No lesson is
taught until II has It's Interpretation
through q person. The abstract may
te beautiful to the mind. but can never
charm the soul until translated
through life. To work merely may
Be destructive, but to have pas
sionaks ideal fdR the work is pre-emi-
nently constructive. The work that
harmonixes with ourselves brings US
10 hix4,er ground. Every work must
be radiant with an ideal In order to
radiate power.
A few days ago someone told me
OF young lady who for years had
been engaged in certain kind of
work. but who felt that her work
was not satisfying a deeper hunger.
Finally there came to her new open.
ing. 1t seemed that Providence ewung
wide the door and she entered. She
saii "Heretofore l have felt as IL l
weN a round peg In a square hole.
but now feel as II am a round peg
in . round hole" At last the work
and the soul harmonixed. There has
recently come under my observation
case of very splendid lady who
accepted q position that paid her less
than half As mitch as another position
she might have had. Can this be ex-
planned except on the basis that she
was seeking to And and to express her
real ssff through her work.
Selection 10 more important than
accumulation. We ind ourselves best
as we make right choices. We some
times accept things as they seem valu-
able to US. but IL takes keen spiritual
discrimination to be able to choose
right values He only dtscerns HIM
self who learns the value of things
and persons and sets them In their
right relationship. We must learn no.
2 IL iacoNrs. zssfS7sss tAetrs nosttaen <psss.es
them or as society values them. but
Mt their actual worth. An OK is larger
than q diamond. but the diamond has
the greater value. An Indian would
trade thousands OF acres of land for
q few Elittering beads and think he
had made good bargain. Every day
about US men and women are choos-
ing material values because they do
not sec the real value OF the spiritual
Must Know Ourselves.
To know ourselves Ia not merely
releasing power but refining released
power by the right motive He who
acts from tho right motive need NOT
fear the consequences. However may
seem tho immediate conditions, II ID
certain that right cannot produce
wrong In elementary stages OF moral
development right IL sometimes repul-
sive, At least unattractive and unin-
vting But by keeping the motive
pure right Itself becomes beautiful.
There Are three Kinds OF reason. The
flrst u the logical. by which we are
able to dctermine that two and two
make four, etc. The esthetio which
enables US to distinguish between
what IL beautiful and what Is ugly,
what IL attractive and what is unat-
traetive. And third, the ethical rea-
son. by which we are able to deter
mine what 10 right and what is wrong,
~ when We say It Is right to tell the
truth. Il II wrong to tell falsehood.
Great philosophers. statesmen, all lead
US to this conclusion; that the right
motive. which IL the motive Of pure
love. should 70 inspire every act un-
til the ethical becomes the esthetic,
or until the right becomes beautiful.
That 10 to say. the time can come in
the development of character when
the true self 10 revealed. What we are
IL what We want, and what we want
IL what We are. He who loves the
good supremeiy must hate the evil
also. "Everywoman" despised truth
in the beginning of her life. II was
repulsive to her, but when all she
sought proved fallacious and futile,
when she finally saw herself "a she
was and life as It was, she at last
saw that nothing in the world was
half 20 attractive or half so beautiful
N truth. The soul can express itself
only In love and real love never has
q selfsh motive Your best self will
md expression only as the best motive
inspires your action. To know ones
self 10 to find ones self In the light OF
truth. and to give ones self to the
quest of truth.
III. Control myself"
The only enemy that can ever harm
us 10 ourselves. Defeat Is never from