New Britain herald. [microfilm reel] (New Britain, Conn.) 1890-1976, 1918-10-12
A Mad World
= christian Science Monitor)

n1ncance 1t would be understood to
be the provoking cause of all evil of
every sort. But even from the ordin-
airy point of view of the world, fear.
when 1t communicates itself to num-
bers, is capable of causing greater
disaster than any other phase of the
human consciousness. The pagan
philosophers realized that there was
such a thing as the fear of fear, in
fear of death was worse than death
itself Centuries later Shakespeare
appropriated the idea, and put pre-
cisely the same sentiment into the
mouth of Isabella, in Measure for
Measure" and indeed, anyone who
know exactly what this means. The
knows how disease was spread upon
the wings of fear in the case of that
awful visitation of the fourteenth
century known as the Black Death,
and again when a pestilence of a sim
liar nature swept London, sin the sew
enteenth century.
Some day the world will come to
see that what it calls conta gion is a
mental contagion. and that what it
calls infection Is the infection of one
mind from another. Orthodox medi-
cal practice today largely recognizes
this, but it draws back from the logi-
cal consequences of it's own admiS-
sion, and endea%ors to shelter itself
in q halfWay-house which is built
partially out Of mind and partially
out of matter. Any person who has
watched the rayages of such a dis
ease as cholera in the east must
know exactly what thi smeans. The
European sahib, going about doing
u
sequences, moves through the chol-
era camps with perfect immunity
from the disease. But the native,
stricken by this disease. lies down al
most where he is overcome by it,
whether in his house or by the road
side, convinced, in the suddenness of
the shock and the confusion of his
fear that the moment has come from
which it is useless for him to attempt
to escape.
In such conditions it is surely obvi-
Gus that the sanest treatment is to
do everything possible to destroy
fear. Fear in a Christian commun-
ity should be self Some
nineteen centuries of reading the 10
hannine epistles should surely have
effected this if Christendom is under
standing what it reads. It is little to
the point to say that fear is uncon-
trollable, for any person who has
ever had anything to do with causes
which produce fear knows that this
is not the case Probably every man
who has made the sea his profession
has been through periods of fear
which he has had to overcome in or
der to gain that sereneness in dan
ger, without which he would be a, Ii
ability instead of an asset on board
his ship. Practically every man who
has ever been into action on land can
tell you something of the sickening
sensations of the first experience OF
battle. But as times goes on the vet
eran rises superior to the fears Of
the recruit, and daily takes his life
in his hands with a calmneSs which
shows that he has learned something
at any rate of the dominion over fear.
It is surely obvious then that in an
hour of great fear, when the prevail
ing tone of the human mind, in the
midst of the conflict of Armageddon,
finds expression in an epidemic, that
a Christian country should rather re-
sort to it's churches to relieve itself
of it's fears than close their doors so
as to sound the top note of human
agony in a belief that Gods hand is
so shortened that it cannot save.
Let any person who has been
brought in contact with the condt-
tons of today ask himself frankly
whether it is not fear which is play
ing such fearful havoc in the world.
Everywhere men and women are
afraid. Afraid in the areas of war
of a storm blast that may at any mo-
ment strike over them; afraid within
the orbit of the air sQuadrons of the
sound of the terrible engines whirring
in the darkness overhead, and of
hearing the bombs explode all round;
boys sleeping fearfully in the trench
es waiting for the summons In the
gray morning to go over the top, and
men and women sleeping in towns
and villa geS. miles and thousands or
miles away, fearful of what in that
very moment may be happening to
those whom they love- men ana
women at sea, waiting as 1t were Tor
the explosion of torpedoes; or even
men and women in immediate physi-
cal safety, wondering what effect the
war Is going to have on their incomes
and their lives A great fear has
stricken the world, and it is little
wonder if out Of this fear there have
emerged pestiIences and diseases
which have mounted on the winds of
fear and scattered their seeds in
every direction.
In such circumstances what would
it be expected that a Christian COM
munity should do? Would it not,
remembering the words of the Bible
that perfect love casteth out fear,
be to ask itself if there were not
something amiss with its understand
ing of love which makes love pow
erless to overcome fear? And should
it rot naturally fling wider open the
doors of it's churches. confident that
in doing right, by worshipping God,
no i'll could touch it? Have Chris
tan countries so completely come to
distrust the doctrines they profess