Omaha daily bee. (Omaha [Neb.]) 187?-1922, 1919-07-25
Learned the Golden Rule
croix de Guerre Man in the Christian Herald

croix de Guerre Man in the Christian Herald
A great many people, correspondents, :nves-
tigators and others trained in the observation
of humanity in bulk, have returned from
Europe in the last year with various ideas, many
of them strange and curious, as to just what we
who served on the battle fields Of France goi
out of the war in the way of religion.
Personally don't believe that the Amer.
lean soldier, as unit, got religion as it is gen.
orally construed at all-that is, he did not "hi,
the sawdust trail, nor did he publicly pro-
claim his redemption from the paths of sin in
the good old camp meeting style.
No man, however could possibly have gone
through that seething cauldron "over there
without acquiring something. However, to mt
it seemed that this something was a larger and
broader Christianity-a sort of brotherhood
whose one and perhaps only law was the golden
rule.
Creeds and doctrines were for the most par,
forgotten on the field. Protestant, Jew and
Catholic lived or died side by side with no
thought save of serving each as best he might
not only God and country, but also his fellow
man. Under fire at the front they were united
against one common foe. In the rear when
danger was passed this same unity continued
but against many foes-against selhshness
blasphemy, drunkenness, social evils and the
like.
Men learned that to be soldier in the
truest sense of the word it is was not neces-
sary to be loud swearing licentous braggart
the embodiment of all unchristianlike quail
tiles; and new standard was borne on those
fields of death and suffering. The man who
had seen his companions fall, who had come
near to the supreme sacrifice himself, was i'm
bued with a different sort of spirit than that
which has usually and unfortunately been at
tributed to the soldier.
Orders and regulations for our government
were many, their enforcement was necessarily
strict; and prompt punishment awaited the de-
linauent. No less prompt and infinitely more
sure was the punishment afforded him who vio-
lated the higher order-the greatest command
ever imposed upon man-"Whatsoever We would
that men should do unto you so do ye unto
them"
The army held men Of every nationality
OF all races and tongues; many had probably
never even heard or read this wonderful COM
mand but evidences of its power and influence
were everywhere. The deeds OF personal
heroism which were of daily AMI ofttmes almost
hourly occurrence-things such as the many
rescues of wounded comrades in the face of
deadly machine gun hre-all were but the ex-
proclaiming mans brotherhood to man." and,
being such, were of much greater value to the
illiterate and unread than any printed or spoken
word.
For weeks at time our only opportunity
for open worship was at the burial service Of
some IdlleH COHlTdQe. L he CHdpldlnS COulQ Dut
seldom assemble more than score of men to-
gether for divine services, and, under such con-
dltlons it would seem but natural that when
the scattered units of regiment were assem-
bled the response to Church call" would be
but meager. This was not the case however.
All who were not actually on guard or at work
unfailingly attended service. Those who at
home in their comfortable, we'll heated homes,
with roofs over their heads and four walls to
protect them from the elements, who on a
showery Sabbath felt no desire to attend their
church, now stood reverently in the open she'll
torn fields, more often than not in a never
ceasing, cold drizzling rain, and found no dis
endure, that they might give thanks to Him
who had guided them safely through the wal
ley Of the shadow Of death"
The public assemblage for worship with its
attendant ritual was not so necessary for US:
for each man day by day was living Christian
needless of any danger, Indifferent to any
hardship or risk in the service of his fellow
man. Even as we had unity of command, so
had we a unity of creed and race, each merged
into the one, and that one pledged to God,
country and true Christian brotherhood.
As NOSE famous chaplain once remarked,
There was scarcely any time for praying,
what with lodging shells and reading ones
shirt But such time as there was for prayer
was utilized by far greater number of men
than the casual observer reallzed nor was there
any self-consciousness such as we are all ia
miliar with at home.
Contrary to many Of our popular novests,
men did not drop down on their knees under
fire and in times of great danger and pray to
their Maker for relief and guidance; but vast
majority did sincerely though silently, COM
mune with God each night of their lives, COM
mending themselves to Him and asking pro-
lection and strength.
Somehow the church will reach these men
they have returned as earnest seekers for
truth-they have real need-a real desire to
learn-to know. But they will not accept a
more narrow doctrine-a more conventional
dogmatic religion. than they learned lover
there"-whose creed is the golden rule.