The Republican. [volume] (Oakland, Md.) 1877-current, 1930-03-06
A MINISTER SPEAKS OUT

In a recent sermon, DIR. H. Perry
Silver, rector of the Protestant Epis-
copal Church Of the Incarnation, in
New York City, declared that one of
the dangers to America now is the
threatened destruction of the ideals
and institutions of the makers of the
country and lack of reverence and
patriotism which are stealing the sense
of glory from the American nation.
DR.. Silver declared that eve have
patriots who are patriots only on holi-
days. And there are some who are not
even patriots then," and he added that
Christian ideals are being undermined
by colleges originally formed to devel-
OPP Christian ministry, but now hous-
ing "half- baked professors with athe-
istic ideas" who "hack away at the
home-bred ideals of young students"
Continuing, he declared that eve
have men without character writing
biographies of men of great charlie
ter, little men trying to belittle the
great of the nation. Some of these
authors should be writing the life of
Jesse James rather than that Of
George Washington"
All of which contains a great deal
of truth and is worth thinking over.
America has changed just as the en-
tire world has changed during the past
generation, perhaps not so much as
some of the other nations, but great
ly at any rate. Some of this change
has of course been for the better but
there is some which should cause US to
think gravely concerning the future.
With the period following the World
War we have been flooded with prop
uganda. Much of this has tended to
destroy our institutions, to set up
new ideals, to break down the old
system of constitutional government,
to destroy the old faiths of every
kind, and even undermine the social
fabric. Some of it, too, has tended
to internationalize the American mind,
to preach anti-patriotism, to convince
us that we should place International
ism above Americanism, and forget
the advice and caution of the founders
of the republic. This has come to US
through certain sections of the press,
and too often through the college and
the so-called "liberal minister of the
Gospel" Scores of high-powered or
CARNATIONS, with apparently unlimited
resources are flooding mails with this
alien propaganda in vast quantities.
Economic conditions have changed,
too. We have become more prosper
GUS. Our people no longer remain
rooted to one community. They trav-
ell about, form new associations. This
has not been without it's beneficent
influence. It has tended to wipe out
sectionalism, to make us American
minded. But all of this benefit will be
dissipated if we forget the old ideals,
the old fundamentals of our national
faith, and can be propagandized into
believing that Americanism is archaic,
that we can get something better by
adopting "new" doctrines from across
the sea, doctrines that had been dis
credited before our forefathers wrote
Torc%i+Y,fion
This is busy age, but we shall lose
all the progress we have made in a
material way if we, become too busy
to hold on to and appreciate the ideals
of the past and the lessons which have
been handed down to US through tradi-
ton and history America has been
made great through it's faith in the
precepts of Christianity and its be-
lief in the theory of representative
government, the sanctity of the home,
the freedom of the individual. New
"liberal". cults which would substitute
materialism for religion, mob autoc-
racy for representative government
and state control for family life, seek
to destroy our progress and to sink
all of our achievements into the level
of mediocrity and failure. Interna-
tional propaganda which would teach
us that we ought to forsake American
tradition and launch our ship in I'M
tried and stormy waters, has at heart
not the interests of the American peo-
pie but of those who would exploit us
for their own selfish ends.
It is high time to take reckoning,
and to note the direction in which we
are drifting, rather than to throw
away the chart and compass and be
driven on the rocks by the wild winds
of foreign influence. Beware" as
Washington said, "the insidious wiles
Of foreign intrigues"