Fulton County tribune. (Wauseon, Ohio) 1883-1925, 1919-05-09
THEORY VS.
PRACTICE
F. S. Ham Working For the Victory
Lean in Pennsylvania Runs Into
Some Modern Pharisees Who OBJ
ject to "The Price of Peace on
Sunday

We are in receipt of letter from
Hon. F. S. Ham who has been on i
Victory Loan in Western Pennspl-
vania. MIR. Ham writes that roads
i n that section are just about impass
able and that they have been under
the necessity of shipping the tank
of their outfit from point to point
in order to keep up with their sched
ule. He finds the National Spirit
ioUrishing in the section he has been
Victory Loan in Western Pennsyl-
vania where the ministers seem &c
feel that patriotism is a secondary
matter as compared with their owl
peculiar religious views. Mr.. Ham
sends US a marked copy of the ''War-
ren Morning Chronicle" of Monday
April 28th in which appears an ac-
count of a minister of one of the
churches who on the preceding
Sunday urged his congregation tc
stay away from the showing of the
price of Peace" the government
film used in connection with the Vic.
tory Loan Campaign because it was
shown in that city on Sunday. We
gather from Mr.. Hams letter that
Hi4C H-Iu was SHOWu III GllS d1GSIAOOL
and again at 9 p. m. in order to
avoid any conflict with church ser.
vices. The minister in question is
luoted as saying to his congregation
in part:
"The Victory Liberty Loan is
in very precarious way if it
must resort to Sunday perform
,ances to be put over. It is an
nounced that at each perform
ance a genuine German helmet
will be disposed of to the high
est bond buyer A fine induce
ment indeed for action con-
trary to the proper observance
of the Sabbath Day! The lagg-
ing of the sale of the bonds has
been a matter of grave concern
on the part of government Of
ficials. The situation will not be
helped by ignoring the Chris
tian sentiment and the religious
conviction of the country. 10y
atty to our country does not call
for disloyalty to God and His
Commandments to remember
the Sabbath Day and keep it holy
I believe in the Victory Liberty
l. Ivan clIlo GIL q SOPPO1GCI VI 1ts
But | must raise my voice in
1 protest against the violation of
Sabbath observance such as is
proposed. It is not necessary to
reject the commandment of God
in order to keep our national
traditions.
In spite of the Reverend gentle
la9's protest, we note by the sam
/ 'aper, there was no lack of audience
1 o see the government film on tn
sunday in question and those VIII
saw were stimulated to subscrih
for $4,000 of the Victory notes
order to help pay the balance thu
still remains unpaid of the "Price {
Peace" which has cost humanity $
: much.
The American idea gives to ever
nan the right to follow his own cor
victions Of right and wrong and t
express his own religious sentimen
Even the Conscientious Objectol
have been protected in this right
! but there is no law governing whs
5he estimate of such individuals j
the minds of real Americans sha
be. There is no doubt in our mino
about "lagging of the sale of bonds
IN a locality in which ministers e,
press such views as those quote
above. We are reminded of an inc
dent Of which we have read, whic
occurred in Palestine some centurie
ago when the disciples of Jesus
Nazareth walked through the grai
fields on the Sabbath day and plucl
I'd heads of the grain which the
2 rubbed out in their hands as the
e walked along and ate thereof becaul
5hey were hungry. There we
8 pharisees in those days who demur
: ed because the Disciples of Jesl
: violated the Sabbath Day" and
was to these pharisees that tt
? founder of Christianity made tt
e statement "The Sabbath was MAJ
+. for man and not man for the Sa
@ bath"
E To do those things which will he
|, to bring back those men who aft
] giving themselves to save Christi;
; civilization nre longing for the hom
7 and dear ones they have served
). bravely and well; and to pay t
i price of the saving of thosands
ives, seems to US to be as Chri!
ike a Way of keeping Sunday
sitting around in idleness. And t
5 Christian sentiment" that reeds
h be encouraged is the impulse to prs
S 'iual Christian deeds rather than t
J. expounding of theoretical dogmas.