Albuquerque morning journal. [volume] (Albuquerque, N.M.) 1903-1926, 1922-05-07


Of the country, but that He Is also
in the life Of the city. purifying II
and enriching it and making it
more worthy.
The Bible begins and ends with
the picture of a city; and these
two cities, 1t seems to me. we may
regard as symbolic. The first was
founded by a murderer. The last
was "the heavenly city, the New
Jerusalem, coming down out of
heaven as a bride adorned for her
husband"
Our cities, with their congested
quarters, with their wretched ten
ements, with their dark and dirty
alleyways, have always been the
breeding places of vice and crime
Dickens description of London
might find a counterpart in the
slum sections of scores of our own
American cities. Who, that has not
seen it, could picture what the life
of the underworld is like? Who,
that is not acquainted with it,
could imagine how the submerged
element ekes out its existence?
But let us not think that our
cities are only evil. If they repre-
sent life at its worst, they rep
resent it also at its best. In the
great cities are the great churches,
with their wonderful programs of
human uplift and social better
ment; the great hospitals. with
their splendid equipment and their
free clinics for those unable to
pay; the great schools, whose in
struetion reaches all classes and
whose training is physical and
moral as well as intellectual; the
great philanthropic enterprises;
the great movements for civic bet
terment and economic Justice and
improving of social conditions; the
great parks and Fairgrounds,
which bring the beauty and inspi-
ration of the out-of -doors within
the reach of all. If our cities are
notorious for their vice and crime,
there is nevertheless a Power oper-
ating within them which is des-
tined to make them "cities Of our
God"
And how does this Power OPP
crate? In the woods in the spring.
time, 1t is irresistible, clothing all
with a beauty and a glory which
no language can describe. In hui
man life it is also at times irresist-
ible. Have we not not all exper-
fenced what it is to be borne on by
great waves of religious enthusi
asm, issuing in ''nobler modes OF
life. with sweeter manners. purer
10, 10 to In,
in what we call nature the resur-
gence of it in human life may he
resisted. We may disregard our
churches, We may commercialiZe-
our hospitals. We may neglect our
schools and libraries. We may be
unresponsive to all appeals fer
civic betterment and human up
lift. We may say, "The city is
nothing to me. How other people
live is nothing to me. All am
interested in is myself" We may
resist God. who, working through
US, would make our city "a city
of God" We may vote, by our
attitude to the finer things in our
civic life. to revert to the status
OF the cities that have been, whose
founders were murderers and
whose spirit was that of Cain. We
may lose the vision Of the new
Jerusalem, the new Albuquerque.
or whatever city we may be living
in, and think only of the further
ing of our own selfish ends.
What can we do to make our
city "a city of God?" There are
two viewpoints, one or the other
of which all churches have. We
may be indifferent to the larger
interests Of the city and be COR
cerned only in building up of our
own organization; or, for the Joy
that Is set before us, the joy of
seeing our city "a city of God"
we may be willing, as the Master
was, to lose our life that we may
find it in larger and better
sense.
What are we doing for our city?
What are we doing to make 1t
more beautiful; to bring the charm
OF foliage and blossoms and spring.
ing grass to those who may be
signing for the scenes from which
they came and to which they may
not return? What are we doing to
engender In our midst spirit of
cordially, Of brotherliness; to
make our city one in which the
stranger may feel that he is well
come, one in which he Is needed
to help to make 1t what. by Gods
help, we mean it to be? What are
we doing to discourage lawlessness,
to raise the moral tone. to breathe
into our social life more whole
some spirit? What are we doing
to save our boys and girls from
oral da1Irsa &c Ii IA isae.sais-.>