The news scimitar. (Memphis, Tenn.) 1907-1926, 1919-12-25
DYNAMIC
CHRISTMAS THEME
OF BISHOP GAILOR
CONTINUED From First Page1

VI UIUlIUI unlEUn
Continued From First Page.)
Themlstooles or 1eonidas. or Regulus.
Think Of the sacrifice OF Socrates-the
lofty virtue o. Brutus!
Ideals in East.
The East also had it's ideals Long
before Jesus was born there was a great
religious reformation in India known
as Buddhism, II scOrned mateTialism
and prea shed TO men with power to lift
themselves from the passions and slav-
cry Of mortality. It was kind and gem
tie and pitiful to man and beast 1t
demanded from the mightlest and
proudest the confession OF that common
lot Of sin and error and weakness, which
they shared with the humblest
These were the greatest ideals OF
the GENTLE world and they all had the
same defects; they left out God. They
communion with God. The Roman
moral ideal stood on its own foundation
and did not aspire TO God. The East
ern ideal regarded the world as evil
and empty Of God; dts highest minds
inspired not for Immortality but for
Ntrvana, which virtually meant annihi-
lation.
In one family of mankind was pre-
served the great faith that man was in
deed the object of Gods care and love
and the passionate yearning for an
assured communion with Him. MY soul
Psalmlst, when shall ! come to appear
before the presence Of God?" And then
God came. The Word was made flesh,
and men "beheld His glory the glory
as OF the only begotten of the Father.
full of grace and truth
Vitalizes Goodness.
Tho real change was this Christian
ty is not a theory or a doctrine, nor
system, but a dynamic. Christianity is
to religion what steam is to mechanics.
1t did not create goodness--it vitalized
goodness. 1t was already life before
1t was committed to writing,
Jesus made a claim that separates
Him from every other teacher that the
world has known. Buddha and Zoroas-
ter and MOhammed declared themselves
TO be searchers after truth and sinners
like ourselves, but Jesus said: Who
convinceth Me of sim He that, hath
seen Me hath seen Nthe Father the
words that ! speak they are spirit
and they are life;' come unto Me all We
that travail and are heavy laden and
! will refresh you we believe in God,
believe also in Ne
Now what humanity needs Is not
system of morals but a motive for life,
Men do not approve wrong; they sim
ply do wrong. They do not oppose
goodness; they simply neglect 1t, And
Jesus appealed to the strongest motive
In human character, and that is love,
II was love that carried Napoleon 5 SOL
diers to Moscow. It made Davids
mountaineers risk their lives for him.
II dyed the soil Of England with the
blood of men who loved the Stuarts,
1t held the thin gray@line from Peters
burg to Richmond through il weary
months in the face of overwhelming
odds
Religion of a Person,
so Christianity is the religion Of a
person. He loved me and gave Him
self for me. Though He was rich, yet
for our sake He became poor, that we
| through His poverty might be made
rich Men were lit as torches in Me-
ro's garden, and women were flung
into the arena to the lions; and they
faltered not For why? For q system or
theory? Oh, no. For the love Of
Christ, The love Of Christ constrain-
| eth US
Take every page Of Christian history
and this passion for Christ redeems It
--redeems what has often been crude
and superstitious and mistaken; and
| therefore the obligation of the church
| Is to keep clear before our minds and
in our hearts this loyalty--this personal
allegiance, TO our Christ. II is not a
question of doctrines or philosophy but
| do you honor Him? DO you worship
Him? The services and sacraments
mean moro than all the preaching. all
the talk about Him; and when you neg
| lect them you arc disloyai to Him.
| Il am sure that we are all glad this
| Christmas morning that we can call
| Christ our brother--that we are akin to
Him--and, our hearts respond today to
| the appeal of His unique, His wlnsome,
His most majestic personality.
Spirit of Service.
What then, can we do TO show that
we belong TO Him. that we are His fol-
| lowers and servants? Listen to what
He says OF Himself; 'Ye know that the
rulers OF the IDENTITIES lord 1t over them
| and those whom they consider great
| exercise authority upon them. but II
! shall not be so, among you Whoever
wants TO be great Among You let him
be your minister, let him serve; even
as the Son Of Man came not to be
waited on or ministered to, but to min.
lister, to serve, and to give His life a
ransom for many
1--WE all love the Christmas time The
| spirit of II appeals to the best in III
and sets our hearts to singing a higher
music, And why should not the essen,
tial motive and meaning OF 1t permestt
the whole OF life?
THE spirit of Christ Is the spirit O.
service, 1t Is a very practical messag,
and It doesn't mean giving up life anC
the business of life. II is not a ro
mantle dream. 1t Is principle, tina
may affect-that ought to affeet--ever.
department Of human effort and &C
tivty 49,
And this Is one special feature of Il
1t Is an appeal to the rich and strong
It Is u gospel for men and women
force and power There is no exaltatiol
6 the feehler virtues, no attention O
human nature that excludes or tdiscour
ases daring and success, ON the con
, trary, this ideal of service demand
faith, intelligence, resolution, for onl
the best and bravcst men and womet
can render the best service to the king
You and | know that II this spiri
could pervade the business and socla
, and political life of our country for on
year II would work a revolution
Christian Socialism.
Just try II once, my brother and Sc
r | how this spirit Of service win diEnif
and ennoNlc our life our business, gu
/ success. How II will eliminate tn
, | mean and vulgar elements from H.
+, How fine and ctcrnaly happy IL tn
Q | spirit of the man, who does the wor
he has to do az well az he knows how
. not for praise or profit, but because Il
@ his heart he believes In God and Is sat
Z isfied with God approval; the man VIII
Y sells honest goods and gives honest In
4 hor, and who sweareth unto his neigh
, Dor and disappointed him not thoua
q II we're TO hs own hlndrance'
A This II Christian socialism II w
7 please the cultivation Of the spirit d
I mutual service as the law Of Happiness
and OF life. II does not dream FOOLS
lregtpg that tba natives pf b,en'u live