The citizen. [volume] (Berea, Ky.) 1899-1958, 1921-11-24

ly in other connections. In your age
the Gospel will reach every part Of
the globe. Selfishness itself will
speed on this contamination. Com
merce will pave the way. II we can
only find men and women as mes
sengers before the last students Of
this generation pass out Of this life,
the Gospel will be translated into
every language, and preached to
every nations.
One more vision.
What is the greatest thing that
might happen in the coming age, or
in any age? II Is coming sometime
the full practice Of religion in the
world.
What h Religion!
What is religioni Not a thing Of
cathedrals and organ music, not a
thing Of philosophy and decorous Gus
tom, not a thing Of eugenics ard re-
vised statutes. Religion Is the hu.
man soul swung into its natural or
bit Every soul was made to live
and have its being in the love Of
God, and expand in the doing Of His
work in the world. This is Some
thing which a child may have and a
philosopher may miss. But nature
is baked, the souls being unfulflled
until il swings into this orbit and has
this settled understanding with God
II is the biggest fact in history, SCI
ence, literature. that this thing can
be.
Now why has this wonderful thing
been in the world so long and not
amounted to more! Why has IL not
reached more people, and done them
the good which God intends! There
are three diseases of Christianity.
like blight on fruit, like murrain on
cattle, which have prevented its
spread and proper Towering. When.
ever these diseases have been dimin.
ished or swept aside, Christianity has
shot forward in a way to show that
It is indeed a divine contagion. II
these diseases can be overcome in
your time, il will make the coming
age glorious indeed.
Trials are Not Crosses
The first perversion or disease Of
Christianity is losing the difference
between trials and crosses. Have
you been taught this first lesson in
religion? A trial is something we
cannot escape; God sends it and we
must bear It. You are born with a
deformity, you lose a friend, you are
disappointed in some great desire.
These are trials, tests, and you must
bear them with grit or with grace
or with disgrace. But a cross Is
something at first repellant which a
man takes up Of his own free will
for God or his neighbor. II = a
cross to leave the freside for a visi.
to the Jail or the poorhouse or the
caucus. It is a cross to take the un-
popular side in an election. 1t is a
cross to choose the field of greatest
usefulness instead of the field where
honor and rewards are quick and
sure. Now Christianity is often Sc
preached that many people suppose
they are fulfilling all Christ's VII by
simply standing the trials tina. are
sen: them. Religion is presented as
sedative. Too many ministers
shrink from calling for self-denial
Too many hymns dwell only on the
sweetness, softness, solace of rclig-
ion. Now we may be sure that re-
ligion without heroism, Christianity
without crossbearing, will never ex.
pand a soul or conquer the world.
Religious Graft
| A second disease Of the Christian
church is religious graft-the all but
irresistible tendency TO use the
church not as an engine of religious
propaganda, but as an establishment
which has Offices TO fill and sweet