The independent. [volume] (Elizabeth City, N.C.) 1908-1936, 1927-02-04
Observation-Disclosures
HALF BAKED PREACHERS
Editor of The Independent Attacked By Radio
From A Norfolk Pulpit Makes Good
Natured Reply
BY W. o. SAUNDERS

And now 1t seems tHat
have gone and stirred up a row
in Norfolk. I made a talk to
the Junior Chamber of Com
merce Of Norfalk and Ports
mouth on the night of Jan.
18th. My remarks were quot
ed at some length in the Nor
folk newspapers. The Rev.
Floyd r. Holland, friend of the
ku klux Klan and pastor of
Park Ave. Baptist Church pick
cd UP some of my remarks
and went on the air with a
radio sermon the following
Sunday night.
His radio audience understood
him to refer TO NE rs "a half boil.
ed potato from Elizabeth City" The
Junior Chamber of Commerce re.
sentcd his attacks upon me and
much has been said to the effect
that the government should revoke
the license of radio station WPAB
since such abuse Of the radio is un.
permissible.
Pressed by the Junior Chamber
of Commerce for an apology, the
Rev: Holland denies that he called
me IA half boiled potato" The fol-
lowing conversation occurred be.
tween Pastor Holland and Il report.
or for the Ledger Dispatch
did you call Mr.. Saunders any
sort of p0tatO:' he was asked.
Il didn't call him anything; it's
all Il mistake"
81 did not hear Mr.. Saunders
speak and what ! know Of his ad.
dress before the Junior Chamber
| learned from the newspapers. 1
understand lie referred in his adj
dress TO This chap Jesus l re-
GREETED that sort Of reference to the
Saviour"
Il challenged the good taste of
those words of Mr.. Saunders and I
challenged the accuracy Of his In.
depreciation Of what Jesus. said ,
when,Hp0n..t the gross.
"But there was something about
a potato?' he was asked.
Yes said DR.. Holland. THAT
was concerning the This Chap
Jesus reference. | said | would
resent references of that sort from
Mr.. Saunders or even from a half
baked potato. You underestimate
From Il man '6f Mr.. Saunders
standing or from Il man having the
standing, of a half-baked potato
That was tie fholght," ;;,i H..
What ] Really Said
The Baptist preachers attack
'lNii "hp lOIs
There was no irreycrent or Nippant
reference to Jesus in my talk TO
the Junior Chamber of Commerce.
| was talking TO IL representative
group of the younger business men
of Norfolk and Portsmouth. 1t was
an unusually Intelligent and atten-
tive group and l must confess that
at times ! talked over the heads
of mere theOlogians. l sketched for
my audience n picture of the rise of
human society from its former
primitive state TO its present high
ly civilized and complex organiza-
tiOn.
| tried to show them that the
general dissemination of much
knowledge by reason of the perfec.
ton Of the art of paper making and
printing had within Il single cen.
tury given mankind better grasp
of his environment and his oppor.
tunitieS than he had had in thou
sands Of years before and that he
had made marvellous use of his
access to knowledge in conquering
the material universe.
But. on the other hand, much
knowledge was confOunding and
confusing and | doubted that man
had made any great spiritual or
moral progress in 1000 years. I
said that there never was q time
when men so much needed simple
and practical plan of life. 1t was
then that | spoke of Jesus.
"This Chap Jesus"
said that nearly 1000 years ago
there arose a chap by the name of :
Jesus who out of the chaos Of the
conflicting theologies and phiIoso-
phies Of his age formulated q plan
Of life that had not been bettered
in 1000 years. Jesus put his idea
of mans spiritual and social obli-
cations into two simple command
ments: O Love God with all thy
heart. with all thy soul and with all
thy mind. (2) Thou shalt love thy
neighbour as thyself.
And here l made the point that
Continued on page Five)