Evening star. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1854-1972, 1963-04-07
SPIRES OF THE SPIRIT Z
A Spire Above an Inn
By DIR. FREDERICK BROWN HARRIS
CHAPLAIN Of the United States Senate


A spire usually marks q
place dedicated to worship Of
God and service to man. 1t
is a symbol of reverence and
Of spiritual verities which
point skyward from the dust
Of earth. The spires Of oxford
suggest that schools where
truth Is sought and taught
can also be fittingly so
adorned.
Now, ordinarily one does
not picture a spire rising
above an inn. But recently at
q gathering of servants Of
suffering humanity at the In
ternational Inn in the Ma
tons Capital, for those with
eyes to see there arose a
spire as high as the Washing
ton Monument. That invisi-
BILE spire is the emblem Of
the best in the life Of our
America. In these hectic days
we have come to an almost
pathological emphasis on the
worst that can be catalogued
In the Nations record. With
our own acknowledgment Of
the sorry story Of rising
crime and delinquency, of
business chicanery,. hypoc-
risy, and deceptive manip-
ulation for selfish ends in
all walks Of life, many are
tempted to put on Sackcloth
and ashes and label our So
called civilization as hope
lessly corrupt. But based on
the dirty linen on the ma
tional clothesline such a
verdict loses sight Of the pre-
ponderant proportion Of
goodness in the Republic
that leavens the blasphem-
ing wickedness. 1t closes its
eyes to the examples Of self
less service to human need
everywhere that make Amer
lea the most inspiring res
ervoir Of sacrificial goodwill
in all the earth. When we
sense the beneficent impact
of the United States on the
rest of the world, what we
see calls not for jeers but
for cheersl
The meeting place for an
organization Of modified
compassion, which adds
tremendously to that impact,
was appropriately Interna-
tional Inn. There 1t was that
those who came from far and
near heard with joyful graft
tude almost unbelievable re-
ports packed with notable
exploits of MEDICO-CA
which is but another name
for Americas outreach for
the alienation Of misery any
where in the world which is
one.
1t was in 1858 that MED
ICO had breathed upon it
the breath of life by DR..
Peter D. Comanduras who
was present and presiding at
this gathering and by the
late heroic DR.. Thomas A.
Dooley Of Laos hospital
fame. It's scope is measured
by the appellation "nonsec-
tartan" - its uncalculating
self-denial by the term mon
profit" AS across the years
MEDICO has gone forth with
doctors, nurses and hoSpi-
tails performing miracles Of
healing, teaching and train
ing, CARE-like q modern
good Samaritan-during the
same period was distributing
almost half a billion dollars
worth Of food, tools, and
medicine to more than so
countries in Europe. Asia,
Africa, Latin America, and
the Middle East.
Then in 1862, MEDICO and
CARE merged forces. BY this
wise union the cost Of OPP
Grating these vast enter
prises was reduced, duplica-
ton Of facilities eliminated,
and the efforts and talents
Of the physicians and nurses
Of MEDICO can now be
directed solely toward provid-
ing the medical service for
which they are trained, while
CARE covers effectively the
task Of administration.
When we realize that in
one year MEDICO treated an
estimated half million i'll