I knew a student paying his way through college who was so poor that the wealthier students made fun of him. They were always guying him about his short trousers, seedy clothes, and general out-at-elbow condition. He was so stung by their jibes that he made a vow not only to redeem himself from ridicule, but to make himself a power in the world.This young man has had most remarkable success, and he says that the rebuffs he met with and the ridicule that was heaped upon him in his student days have been a perpetual stimulus to his ambition to get on in the world.A successful business man tells me that every victory he has gained in a long career has been the result of hard fighting, so that now he is actually afraid of an easily won success. He feels that there must be something wrong when anything worth while can be obtained without a struggle. Fighting his way to triumph, overcoming obstacles, gives this man pleasure. Difficulties are a tonic to him. He likes to do hard things because it tests his strength, his overcoming ability, his power. He does not like to do easy things because it does not give one the exhilaration, the joy that is felt after a victorious struggle.—Success.
I knew a student paying his way through college who was so poor that the wealthier students made fun of him. They were always guying him about his short trousers, seedy clothes, and general out-at-elbow condition. He was so stung by their jibes that he made a vow not only to redeem himself from ridicule, but to make himself a power in the world.
This young man has had most remarkable success, and he says that the rebuffs he met with and the ridicule that was heaped upon him in his student days have been a perpetual stimulus to his ambition to get on in the world.
A successful business man tells me that every victory he has gained in a long career has been the result of hard fighting, so that now he is actually afraid of an easily won success. He feels that there must be something wrong when anything worth while can be obtained without a struggle. Fighting his way to triumph, overcoming obstacles, gives this man pleasure. Difficulties are a tonic to him. He likes to do hard things because it tests his strength, his overcoming ability, his power. He does not like to do easy things because it does not give one the exhilaration, the joy that is felt after a victorious struggle.—Success.
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Rebuke, Appropriate—SeeSelfishness Rebuked.
Rebuke, Results of—SeeTestimony, Fruit of.
RECALL, THE POWER OF
Many persons are under the impression that a letter once mailed is no longer the property of the sender, but belongs to the person to whom it is addrest. This is an error. Under the postal regulations of the United States and the rulings of the highest courts in the land, a letter does not belong to the addressee until it is delivered to him.The writer has a right to reclaim and regain possession of it provided he can prove to the satisfaction of the postmaster at the office from which it was sent that he was the writer of it.Even after the letter has arrived in the office which is its destination and before it has been delivered to the addrest it may be recalled by the writer by telegraph through the mailing office.
Many persons are under the impression that a letter once mailed is no longer the property of the sender, but belongs to the person to whom it is addrest. This is an error. Under the postal regulations of the United States and the rulings of the highest courts in the land, a letter does not belong to the addressee until it is delivered to him.
The writer has a right to reclaim and regain possession of it provided he can prove to the satisfaction of the postmaster at the office from which it was sent that he was the writer of it.
Even after the letter has arrived in the office which is its destination and before it has been delivered to the addrest it may be recalled by the writer by telegraph through the mailing office.
It would be a great boon to all of us who speak in haste and repent at leisure if we could as easily recall our spoken messages.
(2625)
RECEPTIVENESS
TheBritish Weeklygives a good rule in rime to those who need more openness to good influences and blessings:
Open the door, let in the air;The winds are sweet and the flowers are fair.Joy is abroad in the world to-day;If our door is wide, it may come this way.Open the door!Open the door, let in the sun;He hath a smile for every one;He hath made of the rain-drops gold and gems;He may change our tears to diademsOpen the door!Open the door of the soul; let inStrong, pure thoughts which shall banish sin.They will grow and bloom with a grace divine,And their fruit shall be sweeter than that of the vine.Open the door!Open the door to the heart; let inSympathy sweet for stranger and kin;It will make the halls of the heart so fairThat angels may enter unaware.Open the door!
Open the door, let in the air;The winds are sweet and the flowers are fair.Joy is abroad in the world to-day;If our door is wide, it may come this way.Open the door!Open the door, let in the sun;He hath a smile for every one;He hath made of the rain-drops gold and gems;He may change our tears to diademsOpen the door!Open the door of the soul; let inStrong, pure thoughts which shall banish sin.They will grow and bloom with a grace divine,And their fruit shall be sweeter than that of the vine.Open the door!Open the door to the heart; let inSympathy sweet for stranger and kin;It will make the halls of the heart so fairThat angels may enter unaware.Open the door!
Open the door, let in the air;The winds are sweet and the flowers are fair.Joy is abroad in the world to-day;If our door is wide, it may come this way.Open the door!
Open the door, let in the air;
The winds are sweet and the flowers are fair.
Joy is abroad in the world to-day;
If our door is wide, it may come this way.
Open the door!
Open the door, let in the sun;He hath a smile for every one;He hath made of the rain-drops gold and gems;He may change our tears to diademsOpen the door!
Open the door, let in the sun;
He hath a smile for every one;
He hath made of the rain-drops gold and gems;
He may change our tears to diadems
Open the door!
Open the door of the soul; let inStrong, pure thoughts which shall banish sin.They will grow and bloom with a grace divine,And their fruit shall be sweeter than that of the vine.Open the door!
Open the door of the soul; let in
Strong, pure thoughts which shall banish sin.
They will grow and bloom with a grace divine,
And their fruit shall be sweeter than that of the vine.
Open the door!
Open the door to the heart; let inSympathy sweet for stranger and kin;It will make the halls of the heart so fairThat angels may enter unaware.Open the door!
Open the door to the heart; let in
Sympathy sweet for stranger and kin;
It will make the halls of the heart so fair
That angels may enter unaware.
Open the door!
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Art thou a beggar at God’s door? Be sure thou gettest a great bowl, for as thy bowl is, so will be thy mess. “According to thy faith,” saith He, “be it unto thee.”—Unidentified.
Art thou a beggar at God’s door? Be sure thou gettest a great bowl, for as thy bowl is, so will be thy mess. “According to thy faith,” saith He, “be it unto thee.”—Unidentified.
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RECLAMATION
“There are no useless American acres,” Secretary Wilson is reported to have said. “The Government is seeking in all parts of the world for crops that have become acclimated to dry conditions, and it has been so successful that many places that were once accounted desert land are to-day supporting productive farms.” Says Guy Elliott Mitchell, secretary of the National Irrigation Association, in an article on “Resources of the American Desert,” contributed toThe Technical World(Chicago):
“It has been estimated that in the neighborhood of 100,000,000 acres of the American desert can be reclaimed to most intensive agriculture through irrigation; yet Frederick V. Coville, the chief botanist of the Department of Agriculture, does not hesitate to say that in the strictly arid region are many millions of acres, now considered worthless for agriculture, which are as certain to be settled in small farms as were the lands of Illinois; and this without irrigation. This applies particularly to the great plateaus in the northern Rocky Mountain region. ‘I would confidently predict,’ said Mr. Coville, ‘that the transformation of these barren-looking lands into farms, through the introduction of desert plants, will be as extensive a work as the enormous reclamation through irrigation.’”
“It has been estimated that in the neighborhood of 100,000,000 acres of the American desert can be reclaimed to most intensive agriculture through irrigation; yet Frederick V. Coville, the chief botanist of the Department of Agriculture, does not hesitate to say that in the strictly arid region are many millions of acres, now considered worthless for agriculture, which are as certain to be settled in small farms as were the lands of Illinois; and this without irrigation. This applies particularly to the great plateaus in the northern Rocky Mountain region. ‘I would confidently predict,’ said Mr. Coville, ‘that the transformation of these barren-looking lands into farms, through the introduction of desert plants, will be as extensive a work as the enormous reclamation through irrigation.’”
Moral wastes should be and can be reclaimed, as surely as the American deserts. There is no such thing as a wholly useless life. (Text.)
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SeeIrrigation.
Doctor John Clifford, of London, tells this story about Gladstone. It relates to two young men who had got into drinking habits:
Gladstone knew of them, heard of the downward road they were traveling, and felt necessity laid upon him to try and reclaim them. He invited them to Hawarden, impressively appealed to them to mend their ways, and then knelt and fervently asked God to sustain and strengthen them in their resolve to abstain from that which had done them so much harm. “Never,” says one of the men in question, “can I forget the scene, and as long as I have memory the incidents of the meeting will be indelibly imprest upon my mind. The Grand Old Man was profoundly moved by the intensity of his solicitation. Neither of us from that day to this has touched a drop of intoxicating drink, nor are we ever likely to violate an undertaking so impressively ratified in Mr. Gladstone’s library.” (Text.)
Gladstone knew of them, heard of the downward road they were traveling, and felt necessity laid upon him to try and reclaim them. He invited them to Hawarden, impressively appealed to them to mend their ways, and then knelt and fervently asked God to sustain and strengthen them in their resolve to abstain from that which had done them so much harm. “Never,” says one of the men in question, “can I forget the scene, and as long as I have memory the incidents of the meeting will be indelibly imprest upon my mind. The Grand Old Man was profoundly moved by the intensity of his solicitation. Neither of us from that day to this has touched a drop of intoxicating drink, nor are we ever likely to violate an undertaking so impressively ratified in Mr. Gladstone’s library.” (Text.)
(2629)
Recluse Ignorance—SeeMoney, Ignorance of.
RECOGNITION BY ONE’S WORK
Sir Antony Vandyck, the artist, once visited the studio of Frans Hals, a fellow craftsman, disguised as a stranger, and sat for his portrait. Professing surprize at the work, he said: “Painting is doubtless an easier thing than I thought. Let us change places and see what I can do.” When his work was finished, so skilful was it that Hals rushed at his guest, and clasped him round the neck in a fraternal hug. “The man who can do that,” he cried, “must be either Vandyck or the devil.” (Text.)
Sir Antony Vandyck, the artist, once visited the studio of Frans Hals, a fellow craftsman, disguised as a stranger, and sat for his portrait. Professing surprize at the work, he said: “Painting is doubtless an easier thing than I thought. Let us change places and see what I can do.” When his work was finished, so skilful was it that Hals rushed at his guest, and clasped him round the neck in a fraternal hug. “The man who can do that,” he cried, “must be either Vandyck or the devil.” (Text.)
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RECOMPENSE
Lizzie L. Baker, inThe Watchman, voices a common hope that the life to come will make the suffering of this life seem of no moment to us:
As they who cross with only sailsThe wave-lashed ocean wide and deep;Slow journey, baffled by the winds,At last strike sail, safe harbor reached,Forget the hardships of the way.So when we reach yon heavenly shore,The toil and suffering undergoneWill not find place in memory’s crypt,So fair the port for which we sailed.
As they who cross with only sailsThe wave-lashed ocean wide and deep;Slow journey, baffled by the winds,At last strike sail, safe harbor reached,Forget the hardships of the way.So when we reach yon heavenly shore,The toil and suffering undergoneWill not find place in memory’s crypt,So fair the port for which we sailed.
As they who cross with only sailsThe wave-lashed ocean wide and deep;Slow journey, baffled by the winds,At last strike sail, safe harbor reached,Forget the hardships of the way.
As they who cross with only sails
The wave-lashed ocean wide and deep;
Slow journey, baffled by the winds,
At last strike sail, safe harbor reached,
Forget the hardships of the way.
So when we reach yon heavenly shore,The toil and suffering undergoneWill not find place in memory’s crypt,So fair the port for which we sailed.
So when we reach yon heavenly shore,
The toil and suffering undergone
Will not find place in memory’s crypt,
So fair the port for which we sailed.
(2631)
RECOMPENSE FOR KINDNESS
Ariosto tells us of a gentle fairy, who, by a mysterious law of her nature, was at certain periods compelled to assume the form of a serpent and to crawl upon the ground. Those who in the days of her disguise spurned her and trod upon her were forever debarred from a participation in those gifts that it was her privilege to bestow, but to those who, despite her unsightly aspect, comfortedher and encouraged her and aided her, she appeared in the beautiful and celestial form of her true nature, followed them ever after with outstretched arms, lavished upon them her gifts, and filled their homes with happiness and wealth.—Horace Porter.
Ariosto tells us of a gentle fairy, who, by a mysterious law of her nature, was at certain periods compelled to assume the form of a serpent and to crawl upon the ground. Those who in the days of her disguise spurned her and trod upon her were forever debarred from a participation in those gifts that it was her privilege to bestow, but to those who, despite her unsightly aspect, comfortedher and encouraged her and aided her, she appeared in the beautiful and celestial form of her true nature, followed them ever after with outstretched arms, lavished upon them her gifts, and filled their homes with happiness and wealth.—Horace Porter.
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RECORD, KEEPING THE
In “Famous Stories of Sam P. Jones,” appears the following:
Start an engine from New York to San Francisco, and there is attached to its side a little piece of mechanism which indicates the number of miles it has traveled, the stoppages it has made, and how long it stopt at each station; and if you want to know the record of the journey you need not ask the engineer a word. The little piece of mechanism on the side of the engine tells you its record.
Start an engine from New York to San Francisco, and there is attached to its side a little piece of mechanism which indicates the number of miles it has traveled, the stoppages it has made, and how long it stopt at each station; and if you want to know the record of the journey you need not ask the engineer a word. The little piece of mechanism on the side of the engine tells you its record.
In the same way the thoughts, deeds, and progress of a soul are self-registering. (Text.)
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RECORD, LIVING
The tympanum of the ear will vibrate no longer when the music or the clamor that arrested and aroused it has subsided into silence. But that invisible yet living spirit, which watches through the eye, and harkens through the ear, and which takes instant note of whatever surrounds it, has caught the sight and the sound now vanished, and it will keep them forever. It writes its records, not as the Roman laws were written, first on wood, then on brass, and afterward on ivory; but at once on a tablet more impressible than wood, more vivid than brass, more precious than ivory, and more imperishable than either.—Richard S. Storrs.
The tympanum of the ear will vibrate no longer when the music or the clamor that arrested and aroused it has subsided into silence. But that invisible yet living spirit, which watches through the eye, and harkens through the ear, and which takes instant note of whatever surrounds it, has caught the sight and the sound now vanished, and it will keep them forever. It writes its records, not as the Roman laws were written, first on wood, then on brass, and afterward on ivory; but at once on a tablet more impressible than wood, more vivid than brass, more precious than ivory, and more imperishable than either.—Richard S. Storrs.
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We are all writing our lives’ histories here, as if with one of these “manifold writers,” a black blank page beneath the flimsy sheet on which we write; but presently the black page will be taken away, and the writing will stand out plain on the page behind that we did not see. Life is the filmy unsubstantial page on which our pen rests; the black page is death; and the page beneath is that indelible transcript of our earthly actions, which we shall find waiting for us to read, with shame and confusion of face, or with humble joy, in another world—Alexander McLaren.
We are all writing our lives’ histories here, as if with one of these “manifold writers,” a black blank page beneath the flimsy sheet on which we write; but presently the black page will be taken away, and the writing will stand out plain on the page behind that we did not see. Life is the filmy unsubstantial page on which our pen rests; the black page is death; and the page beneath is that indelible transcript of our earthly actions, which we shall find waiting for us to read, with shame and confusion of face, or with humble joy, in another world—Alexander McLaren.
(2635)
Recovery, Difficulty of—SeeMaturity, Sins of.
Recovery, Instant—SeeDiabolical Possession.
Recuperation—SeeNature’s Recuperative Powers.
Redeemed by Song—SeeWanderer’s Return.
REDEMPTION FROM EVIL
Our forefathers sat in despair before yellow fevers, black deaths, sweating-sicknesses, cholera, and similar pestilences, but science is now gradually feeling its way to the minute and obscure causes of epidemic diseases, and year by year we draw closer to the time when it may probably put into our hands the means not only of arresting these epidemics, but of stamping them out altogether. The physician has become familiar with the bacteria; and with ceaseless patience he tracks down the mischief to its origin and birth. The scientist anticipates the time when the whole range of zymotic disease will be conquered. Will any call this foolish dreaming, and argue that because these sad scourges have always been they always will be? Such a pessimist is unworthy of the privilege of living in this glorious age. It is a delightful and legitimate hope that the race may yet master all its physical foes.But if these physical evils are to be subdued, is not that moral evil, which is the root of all other evils, to be subdued also? Christ came to assure us of this, and the absolute casting out of the demon is the sign of the glorious truth.—W. L. Watkinson, “The Transfigured Sackcloth.”
Our forefathers sat in despair before yellow fevers, black deaths, sweating-sicknesses, cholera, and similar pestilences, but science is now gradually feeling its way to the minute and obscure causes of epidemic diseases, and year by year we draw closer to the time when it may probably put into our hands the means not only of arresting these epidemics, but of stamping them out altogether. The physician has become familiar with the bacteria; and with ceaseless patience he tracks down the mischief to its origin and birth. The scientist anticipates the time when the whole range of zymotic disease will be conquered. Will any call this foolish dreaming, and argue that because these sad scourges have always been they always will be? Such a pessimist is unworthy of the privilege of living in this glorious age. It is a delightful and legitimate hope that the race may yet master all its physical foes.
But if these physical evils are to be subdued, is not that moral evil, which is the root of all other evils, to be subdued also? Christ came to assure us of this, and the absolute casting out of the demon is the sign of the glorious truth.—W. L. Watkinson, “The Transfigured Sackcloth.”
(2636)
Reductio ad Absurdum—SeeArt Unappreciated.
REENFORCEMENT FROM WITHOUT
Many a man who, standing alone, fails in fruitfulness, might reenforce his powers by availing himself of the help of others, much as this pear-tree was reenforced:
An ingenious plan to save a dying pear-tree was adopted in the gardens of L. M. Chase, of Boston. The mice had girded the tree so that it seemed bound to die. Mr. Chase planted four small trees around it, and close to it, cut off the tops, pointed the ends, and, making incisions in the bark of the pear, bent the small trees, and graftedthem upon the dying trunk. They all lived, and that tree draws its nourishment from the small ones. A bushel of handsome pears were taken from it.—Public Opinion.
An ingenious plan to save a dying pear-tree was adopted in the gardens of L. M. Chase, of Boston. The mice had girded the tree so that it seemed bound to die. Mr. Chase planted four small trees around it, and close to it, cut off the tops, pointed the ends, and, making incisions in the bark of the pear, bent the small trees, and graftedthem upon the dying trunk. They all lived, and that tree draws its nourishment from the small ones. A bushel of handsome pears were taken from it.—Public Opinion.
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REFLECTION, DISTURBED
If the sea does not throw up in beautiful reflection the hills and foliage that are along its shore, it is not because they are not mirrored there, it is not because there are not there still reflective depths, but because the tremulousness of its furrowed surface has shattered the reflection and made it indiscernible and unintelligible, and those quiet depths are only waiting for the opportunity.That is the only reason why the beauty that is in the world does not stir in us our sense of beauty and make us beautiful; why the grandeur of God’s created universe does not move in us mightily and broaden our thoughts to something of the scope of the universe; why the mystery of things does not quicken us into impassioned inquiry and send our thoughts ranging fascinatedly along the aisles of the unknown.—Charles H. Parkhurst.
If the sea does not throw up in beautiful reflection the hills and foliage that are along its shore, it is not because they are not mirrored there, it is not because there are not there still reflective depths, but because the tremulousness of its furrowed surface has shattered the reflection and made it indiscernible and unintelligible, and those quiet depths are only waiting for the opportunity.
That is the only reason why the beauty that is in the world does not stir in us our sense of beauty and make us beautiful; why the grandeur of God’s created universe does not move in us mightily and broaden our thoughts to something of the scope of the universe; why the mystery of things does not quicken us into impassioned inquiry and send our thoughts ranging fascinatedly along the aisles of the unknown.—Charles H. Parkhurst.
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REFLECTION, IMPERFECT
Rector W. B. Salmon gave an apt tho homely illustration of the harm done by the low level on which some Christians live, by saying: “I was traveling by night in a London train, trying to read some small books, and a man opposite leaned across to me. It is not good for the eyes,’ he said, ‘to read by such a bad light,’ and to that I assented. But when I looked up the light was not a bad one at all. There was a good lamp, well trimmed, giving a good light, only the reflector was wrong—broken and dull. We were blaming the light when the fault lay with the reflector.” (Text.)
Rector W. B. Salmon gave an apt tho homely illustration of the harm done by the low level on which some Christians live, by saying: “I was traveling by night in a London train, trying to read some small books, and a man opposite leaned across to me. It is not good for the eyes,’ he said, ‘to read by such a bad light,’ and to that I assented. But when I looked up the light was not a bad one at all. There was a good lamp, well trimmed, giving a good light, only the reflector was wrong—broken and dull. We were blaming the light when the fault lay with the reflector.” (Text.)
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REFLECTION OF GOD
The beauty of character is to reflect God; and just so far as we color this reflection of God with anything of self, so far do we fail of that clarification of inward thought and outward life which makes us like Him. The diamond is the perfect type of character. Every other precious stone reflects the light colored by its own texture. Only the diamond reflects light in its essential purity. This is the secret of its superiority among gems. Other gems may be beautiful, but the diamond is transcendently beautiful.—Zion’s Herald.
The beauty of character is to reflect God; and just so far as we color this reflection of God with anything of self, so far do we fail of that clarification of inward thought and outward life which makes us like Him. The diamond is the perfect type of character. Every other precious stone reflects the light colored by its own texture. Only the diamond reflects light in its essential purity. This is the secret of its superiority among gems. Other gems may be beautiful, but the diamond is transcendently beautiful.—Zion’s Herald.
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Reflex Values—SeePrayers.
REFORMATION
John E. Gunckel, a very desirable citizen of Toledo, has accomplished a good work through the Newsboys’ Association of Toledo, which he organized. At present (1909) he has 6,267 members on the roll. “Just as you are” is the appeal made to the boy of the street.Five years ago a prominent business man called Mr. Gunckel on the telephone and inquired what he could say for W—— K——, a young man who had applied for a position. Mr. Gunckel consulted the book of errors and said, “He stole a package of papers thrown from a train, and sold them. Stole twenty-five cents that a man gave him in payment for a paper—”“That’s enough; this is a position of trust. We must have an honest young man.”“Hold on, hold on,” said Gunckel, “that record is ten years old; let me give you something up-to-date. Last Christmas eve, just as I was retiring, I was called to the door and there was W—— K—— with a horse and pung. He had twenty-one baskets of turkeys, vegetables, fruit, and all conceivable goodies that he was taking to as many families in the slums of his district. He had raised the money himself, had investigated each case, and was distributing the baskets. He has been an officer for about nine years. Hasn’t stolen, lied, or gambled, used liquor or tobacco for more than nine years. Has brought in scores of valuable articles found that he might have stolen—”“There, hold up, that’ll do; he is just the fellow I want.” He has made good. (Text.)—The World To-day.
John E. Gunckel, a very desirable citizen of Toledo, has accomplished a good work through the Newsboys’ Association of Toledo, which he organized. At present (1909) he has 6,267 members on the roll. “Just as you are” is the appeal made to the boy of the street.
Five years ago a prominent business man called Mr. Gunckel on the telephone and inquired what he could say for W—— K——, a young man who had applied for a position. Mr. Gunckel consulted the book of errors and said, “He stole a package of papers thrown from a train, and sold them. Stole twenty-five cents that a man gave him in payment for a paper—”
“That’s enough; this is a position of trust. We must have an honest young man.”
“Hold on, hold on,” said Gunckel, “that record is ten years old; let me give you something up-to-date. Last Christmas eve, just as I was retiring, I was called to the door and there was W—— K—— with a horse and pung. He had twenty-one baskets of turkeys, vegetables, fruit, and all conceivable goodies that he was taking to as many families in the slums of his district. He had raised the money himself, had investigated each case, and was distributing the baskets. He has been an officer for about nine years. Hasn’t stolen, lied, or gambled, used liquor or tobacco for more than nine years. Has brought in scores of valuable articles found that he might have stolen—”
“There, hold up, that’ll do; he is just the fellow I want.” He has made good. (Text.)—The World To-day.
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With Bunyan’s marriage to a good woman the real reformation in his life began. While still in his teens he married a girl as poor as himself. “We came together,” he says, “as poor as might be, having not so much household stuff as a dish or spoon between us both.” The only dowry which the girl brought to her new home was two old, threadbare books, “The Plain Man’s Pathway to Heaven,” and “The Practise of Piety.” Bunyan read these books, which instantly gave fire to his imagination. He saw new visions and dreamed terrible new dreams of lost souls; his attendance at church grew exemplary; he began slowly and painfully to read the Bible for himself, but because of his own ignorance and the contradictory interpretations of Scripture whichhe heard on every side, he was tossed about like a feather by all the winds of doctrine.—William J. Long, “English Literature.”
With Bunyan’s marriage to a good woman the real reformation in his life began. While still in his teens he married a girl as poor as himself. “We came together,” he says, “as poor as might be, having not so much household stuff as a dish or spoon between us both.” The only dowry which the girl brought to her new home was two old, threadbare books, “The Plain Man’s Pathway to Heaven,” and “The Practise of Piety.” Bunyan read these books, which instantly gave fire to his imagination. He saw new visions and dreamed terrible new dreams of lost souls; his attendance at church grew exemplary; he began slowly and painfully to read the Bible for himself, but because of his own ignorance and the contradictory interpretations of Scripture whichhe heard on every side, he was tossed about like a feather by all the winds of doctrine.—William J. Long, “English Literature.”
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REFORMERS, ERRATIC
On the farm there grows a weed called the tumble-weed. When October comes, the wind breaks the stalk. As round as a dandelion puff-ball, the tumble-weed is as large as a bushel basket. When the wind blows from the north the tumble-weeds start across the field, toward the fence-corners. That evening, when the wind changes, the tumble-weed starts rolling across the meadow toward the same fence from which it started in the morning. With the new day, the tumble-weed takes up fresh journeys. At night the wind rises, and tho the farmer and his flocks sleep, not the tumble-weeds. They are still traveling. We all are familiar, alas, with the career of Mr. Tumble Weed, the false radical, tumbling into every public meeting, Sunday-afternoon-gathering reform club. The moment the meeting opens he unrolls his fad and reform, and away he goes—now toward this extreme, now toward that, driven every whither by the new wind, issuing from the puffed-out cheek of any new faddist in reform. (Text.)—N. D. Hillis.
On the farm there grows a weed called the tumble-weed. When October comes, the wind breaks the stalk. As round as a dandelion puff-ball, the tumble-weed is as large as a bushel basket. When the wind blows from the north the tumble-weeds start across the field, toward the fence-corners. That evening, when the wind changes, the tumble-weed starts rolling across the meadow toward the same fence from which it started in the morning. With the new day, the tumble-weed takes up fresh journeys. At night the wind rises, and tho the farmer and his flocks sleep, not the tumble-weeds. They are still traveling. We all are familiar, alas, with the career of Mr. Tumble Weed, the false radical, tumbling into every public meeting, Sunday-afternoon-gathering reform club. The moment the meeting opens he unrolls his fad and reform, and away he goes—now toward this extreme, now toward that, driven every whither by the new wind, issuing from the puffed-out cheek of any new faddist in reform. (Text.)—N. D. Hillis.
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Reforms not Sudden—SeeImpatience of Reformers.
REFRESHING SPRINGS
Prof. C. D. Hitchcock writes interestingly about fresh-water springs that rise under the sea, and near the sea-shore in Hawaii:
Powerful streams discharge millions of gallons of water through the artificial openings very near the sea-shore. If not intercepted, they must continue a considerable distance out to sea, and hence must well up to the surface amid saline billows.Inquiry about these springs during the past summer in the territory of Hawaii has resulted in the discovery of several upon Oahu; there is one off Diamond Head, a second off Waialae. At the east of Maui, in Hana, there was a fortress named Kaimuke, occupied by soldiers in the ancient times. As it was almost an island, communication with the mainland was not feasible in the time of a siege, and for the lack of water it could not have been held except for the presence of submarine springs. The natives would dive down to collect water in their calabashes, which supplied all the wants of the garrison. (Text.)—The Popular Science Monthly.
Powerful streams discharge millions of gallons of water through the artificial openings very near the sea-shore. If not intercepted, they must continue a considerable distance out to sea, and hence must well up to the surface amid saline billows.
Inquiry about these springs during the past summer in the territory of Hawaii has resulted in the discovery of several upon Oahu; there is one off Diamond Head, a second off Waialae. At the east of Maui, in Hana, there was a fortress named Kaimuke, occupied by soldiers in the ancient times. As it was almost an island, communication with the mainland was not feasible in the time of a siege, and for the lack of water it could not have been held except for the presence of submarine springs. The natives would dive down to collect water in their calabashes, which supplied all the wants of the garrison. (Text.)—The Popular Science Monthly.
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Refreshment—SeeOases.
REFUGE
The old sanctuary of the abbey and palace of Holyrood House was an interesting institution. The debtor was free from arrest during the week. On entering the sanctuary he enrolled himself in a formal manner and obtained a room—that is, if he could pay for it. There was a public house within the boundaries, and it was not uncommon to see the debtor in the inn playing dominoes and his creditors standing looking in at the window with wistful eyes. The debtor was safe, and he knew it, and the face of the creditor told the same tale. Sunday being adies non, the debtor could leave his sanctuary and visit his family, but he had to be careful to get back to Holyrood on Sunday night. Sometimes a debtor had the temerity to leave on a week day, but he did so at his peril.
The old sanctuary of the abbey and palace of Holyrood House was an interesting institution. The debtor was free from arrest during the week. On entering the sanctuary he enrolled himself in a formal manner and obtained a room—that is, if he could pay for it. There was a public house within the boundaries, and it was not uncommon to see the debtor in the inn playing dominoes and his creditors standing looking in at the window with wistful eyes. The debtor was safe, and he knew it, and the face of the creditor told the same tale. Sunday being adies non, the debtor could leave his sanctuary and visit his family, but he had to be careful to get back to Holyrood on Sunday night. Sometimes a debtor had the temerity to leave on a week day, but he did so at his peril.
Once in the ark, God himself having shut in the occupant, the latter could not be safer. A city of refuge, indeed!
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REFUGES OF SIN
Caves are found along the sides of the banks of the Jordan that are at first one story high, then two stories and, as the river increases in depth, three-story caves are found.At certain periods of the year the river overflows its banks. The wild animals native to that country seek a refuge in the one-story caves for a time. As the river swells and grows more turbid, the wild creatures seek shelter in the two-story caves. When the river attains to high-water mark, the animals run for their life to the third-story caves. When these overflow, then these beasts at bay are caught and killed.
Caves are found along the sides of the banks of the Jordan that are at first one story high, then two stories and, as the river increases in depth, three-story caves are found.
At certain periods of the year the river overflows its banks. The wild animals native to that country seek a refuge in the one-story caves for a time. As the river swells and grows more turbid, the wild creatures seek shelter in the two-story caves. When the river attains to high-water mark, the animals run for their life to the third-story caves. When these overflow, then these beasts at bay are caught and killed.
How many men are hiding away from God in the caves and strongholds of their transgressions. But when the high tides of misfortune come, their sin will find them out.
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Refused in Need—SeeNeed, Refused in the Hour of.
REGENERATION
When the first experiments upon the tulips and wild asters were undertaken, some said that it was a sin, because if God had wanted tulips to be double and have different colors, God would have made them that way. But scientists in Holland, and Burbank in California, and a thousand others, are standing over the grains and whispering, “Ye must be born again.” The scientist has touched the wild aster, and it has become the chrysanthemum. He has touched the black tulip, and it has become a flower of many hues and quadruple size. He has whispered to the little field-daisy, and it has become the Shasta daisy, that waves in the fields like a bunch of women’s hats. He has touched the wild sloe, and it has become a luscious plum. He has touched a bitter orange, and, lo! it has lost its seed, doubled its sweetness and quadrupled its size. And to-day the whole world is on tiptoe of expectancy.There is no new fruit or flower that is not possible, for the horizons have been pulled down. A great, wide vista of possibility opens up. The berries, the vegetables, the fruits, the grains, must all be born again. Now all this is only a revelation of what is possible for the soul.—N. D. Hillis.
When the first experiments upon the tulips and wild asters were undertaken, some said that it was a sin, because if God had wanted tulips to be double and have different colors, God would have made them that way. But scientists in Holland, and Burbank in California, and a thousand others, are standing over the grains and whispering, “Ye must be born again.” The scientist has touched the wild aster, and it has become the chrysanthemum. He has touched the black tulip, and it has become a flower of many hues and quadruple size. He has whispered to the little field-daisy, and it has become the Shasta daisy, that waves in the fields like a bunch of women’s hats. He has touched the wild sloe, and it has become a luscious plum. He has touched a bitter orange, and, lo! it has lost its seed, doubled its sweetness and quadrupled its size. And to-day the whole world is on tiptoe of expectancy.
There is no new fruit or flower that is not possible, for the horizons have been pulled down. A great, wide vista of possibility opens up. The berries, the vegetables, the fruits, the grains, must all be born again. Now all this is only a revelation of what is possible for the soul.—N. D. Hillis.
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REGISTER OF LIFE
“An apparatus called a ‘pulse register’ has been devised by a Viennese physician, Dr. Gartner. It is intended,” saysThe Medical Times, “to watch and register the action of the heart and pulse while the patient is under the influence of chloroform, ether, or cocain. The apparatus consists of a watch-like box, to be attached to the patient’s forearm. The box has a graduated dial and hands, working according to pulse and blood-pressure vibrations, which are registered by an elastic spring in the most precise manner imaginable. The physician in attendance, or operator, is all the time kept informed of the exact degree of the unconscious person’s pulse and heart action. The controller, furthermore, shows the action of pulses which the physician’s fingers can not feel nor find.”
“An apparatus called a ‘pulse register’ has been devised by a Viennese physician, Dr. Gartner. It is intended,” saysThe Medical Times, “to watch and register the action of the heart and pulse while the patient is under the influence of chloroform, ether, or cocain. The apparatus consists of a watch-like box, to be attached to the patient’s forearm. The box has a graduated dial and hands, working according to pulse and blood-pressure vibrations, which are registered by an elastic spring in the most precise manner imaginable. The physician in attendance, or operator, is all the time kept informed of the exact degree of the unconscious person’s pulse and heart action. The controller, furthermore, shows the action of pulses which the physician’s fingers can not feel nor find.”
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REGRET
Mrs. Marion M. Hutson writes a lesson as to appreciating the troubles of friends while they live:
Somewhere in the future, soon or late,My weary feet will reach the outer gate,Where rest begins, and earth’s long highway ends,And then, perhaps, through misty eyes my friendsWill see how rough the path has been, and say,“Would we had tried to smooth the rugged way.”Oh, friends and loved ones! do not wait, but giveA little help and comfort while I live.
Somewhere in the future, soon or late,My weary feet will reach the outer gate,Where rest begins, and earth’s long highway ends,And then, perhaps, through misty eyes my friendsWill see how rough the path has been, and say,“Would we had tried to smooth the rugged way.”Oh, friends and loved ones! do not wait, but giveA little help and comfort while I live.
Somewhere in the future, soon or late,My weary feet will reach the outer gate,Where rest begins, and earth’s long highway ends,And then, perhaps, through misty eyes my friendsWill see how rough the path has been, and say,“Would we had tried to smooth the rugged way.”Oh, friends and loved ones! do not wait, but giveA little help and comfort while I live.
Somewhere in the future, soon or late,
My weary feet will reach the outer gate,
Where rest begins, and earth’s long highway ends,
And then, perhaps, through misty eyes my friends
Will see how rough the path has been, and say,
“Would we had tried to smooth the rugged way.”
Oh, friends and loved ones! do not wait, but give
A little help and comfort while I live.
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SeeLost Chords.
Regular Inspection—SeeCleanliness.
REGULARITY, ECCLESIASTICAL
Butler, the famous author of Butler’s “Analogy,” himself, with all his high gifts, supplies, in his own person, an expressive proof of the spiritual blindness and death which lay on the churches of Wesley’s day. He forbade Whitefield and the Wesleys to preach in his diocese, tho all around his cathedral city lay the most degraded and hopeless class in England—the coal-miners of Kingswood, as untouched by any of the forces of Christianity as if they had been savages in Central Africa. That the best, the wisest, the most powerful, the most earnestly convinced of the bishops of that day should take this attitude toward Wesley and his work shows what was the general temper of the clergy of that time. Butler’s conscience was not disquieted by the lapse into mere heathenism of a whole class within sound of the bells of his cathedral; but he grows piously indignant at the spectacle of an ecclesiastical irregularity.—W. H. Fitchett, “Wesley and His Century.”
Butler, the famous author of Butler’s “Analogy,” himself, with all his high gifts, supplies, in his own person, an expressive proof of the spiritual blindness and death which lay on the churches of Wesley’s day. He forbade Whitefield and the Wesleys to preach in his diocese, tho all around his cathedral city lay the most degraded and hopeless class in England—the coal-miners of Kingswood, as untouched by any of the forces of Christianity as if they had been savages in Central Africa. That the best, the wisest, the most powerful, the most earnestly convinced of the bishops of that day should take this attitude toward Wesley and his work shows what was the general temper of the clergy of that time. Butler’s conscience was not disquieted by the lapse into mere heathenism of a whole class within sound of the bells of his cathedral; but he grows piously indignant at the spectacle of an ecclesiastical irregularity.—W. H. Fitchett, “Wesley and His Century.”
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Regulation, Timepiece—SeeSynchronism.
REJECTION OF CHRIST
George Frederick Watts, the great symbolical artist of “Love and Death,” “Hope,” “Time, Death, and Judgment,” and other famous pictures, painted “The Ruler.” Speaking of the picture afterward he said, “Now I am doing a man’s back—little else but his back, to explain ‘he went away sorrowful, for he had great possessions.’ Fancy a man turning his back on Christ rather than give away his goods! They say his back looks sorry; I don’t know. It is what I meant his back to express.” (Text.)
George Frederick Watts, the great symbolical artist of “Love and Death,” “Hope,” “Time, Death, and Judgment,” and other famous pictures, painted “The Ruler.” Speaking of the picture afterward he said, “Now I am doing a man’s back—little else but his back, to explain ‘he went away sorrowful, for he had great possessions.’ Fancy a man turning his back on Christ rather than give away his goods! They say his back looks sorry; I don’t know. It is what I meant his back to express.” (Text.)
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RELATIVITY
If we were to note that, suddenly and in the same proportions, the distance between two points on this earth had increased, that all the planets had moved farther from each other, that all objects around us had become larger, that we ourselves had become taller, and that the distance traveled by light in the duration of a vibration had become greater, we should not hesitate to think ourselves the victims of an illusion, that in reality all these distances had remained fixt, and that all these appearances were due to a shortening of the rule which we had used as the standard for measuring the lengths.—Lucian Poincare, “The New Physics and Its Evolution.”
If we were to note that, suddenly and in the same proportions, the distance between two points on this earth had increased, that all the planets had moved farther from each other, that all objects around us had become larger, that we ourselves had become taller, and that the distance traveled by light in the duration of a vibration had become greater, we should not hesitate to think ourselves the victims of an illusion, that in reality all these distances had remained fixt, and that all these appearances were due to a shortening of the rule which we had used as the standard for measuring the lengths.—Lucian Poincare, “The New Physics and Its Evolution.”
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Releasing the Word of Life—SeeWord of God Freed.
RELIC VALUED
Byron’s remains rest in an old leaden coffin, side by side with those of his mother, and close by lies his daughter, Ada, Countess of Lovelace, who died in 1852. When the vault was opened to permit of the interment of Lady Lovelace many persons visited the church in order to catch a glimpse of the coffin. Upon one occasion a little girl was prevailed upon to descend by the stone staircase into the vault and she returned carrying a narrow strip of faded velvet in her hand, torn from the poet’s coffin. Among the group around the mouth of the graves was a tall, dark foreigner, who eagerly questioned the child as to her possession, and finally, in exchange for a piece of gold, received the strip of cloth. That man was Kossuth.—Frank Leslie’s.
Byron’s remains rest in an old leaden coffin, side by side with those of his mother, and close by lies his daughter, Ada, Countess of Lovelace, who died in 1852. When the vault was opened to permit of the interment of Lady Lovelace many persons visited the church in order to catch a glimpse of the coffin. Upon one occasion a little girl was prevailed upon to descend by the stone staircase into the vault and she returned carrying a narrow strip of faded velvet in her hand, torn from the poet’s coffin. Among the group around the mouth of the graves was a tall, dark foreigner, who eagerly questioned the child as to her possession, and finally, in exchange for a piece of gold, received the strip of cloth. That man was Kossuth.—Frank Leslie’s.
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Relief by Crying—SeeCrying Beneficial.
Religion—SeeAltar, The;Character.
RELIGION A GROWTH
Time goes to the making of the oak, and the man and the Christian. Moral development is slow. We must not be surprized nor disappointed to find it so. As one says:
The sunrise is gradual, as we have seen—there are many tremulous gleams before the wheels of his chariot are moving over the sea. And so we should beware in a measure of momentary impulsive religion: the idea that we can pass in a moment from deadness, darkness, worldliness, to the full assurance of the favor of God. There are such cases, but they are rare, and the religion of sudden emotion is apt with many to prove not lasting.
The sunrise is gradual, as we have seen—there are many tremulous gleams before the wheels of his chariot are moving over the sea. And so we should beware in a measure of momentary impulsive religion: the idea that we can pass in a moment from deadness, darkness, worldliness, to the full assurance of the favor of God. There are such cases, but they are rare, and the religion of sudden emotion is apt with many to prove not lasting.
If religion is a growth, let us be patient in the process.
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RELIGION, A TEST OF
Addressing a big Methodist camp-meeting, Bishop Quayle informed his audience how to discern a Christian by street-car manners. “If you are hanging on a strap in a crowded street-car, and the conductor calls out ‘Step forward, please,’ and there is no place in front where you can step forward, the way you act will be a test of your religion. If you are a woman, and a man gives you his seat, and you act as if you thought it was your right and not his kindness that gave you the seat, the way you act will test you more than answering questions in theology. It is not how you treat some big body, but how you treat a little urchin, dirty in tears, that tests your religion. What you do when you are off duty—that’s what counts. What if the people who see us at church and at weddings should see us in the betweens? What we Christians do ofttimes kills faith in the Church. Anybody can see a rose-garden in the daytime, but we can also smell it in the dark. What we do when nobody sees us ought to be as beautiful as what we do in the open.”
Addressing a big Methodist camp-meeting, Bishop Quayle informed his audience how to discern a Christian by street-car manners. “If you are hanging on a strap in a crowded street-car, and the conductor calls out ‘Step forward, please,’ and there is no place in front where you can step forward, the way you act will be a test of your religion. If you are a woman, and a man gives you his seat, and you act as if you thought it was your right and not his kindness that gave you the seat, the way you act will test you more than answering questions in theology. It is not how you treat some big body, but how you treat a little urchin, dirty in tears, that tests your religion. What you do when you are off duty—that’s what counts. What if the people who see us at church and at weddings should see us in the betweens? What we Christians do ofttimes kills faith in the Church. Anybody can see a rose-garden in the daytime, but we can also smell it in the dark. What we do when nobody sees us ought to be as beautiful as what we do in the open.”
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RELIGION ALLAYING FEAR
Athens had two cities—down in the plain was the city of work, with shops, ox carts, plows and hoes, on the hillside were the shops where men bought and sold. But the crags above were crowned with temples, where beauty and worship had their home. Oft in the hours of tumult and strife, when the workers feared the coming of enemies, they turned their thoughts upward toward the Parthenon, and drank in the beauty of Athena’s face, and her calm, white hand seemed to fall upon the brow, to allay the fear, and breathe peace to the frightened working men. Greek culture and character represented the interplay of the upper and the lower city. So it is that man’s life of work, and his invisible life of faith and worship are knitted together. The inventor, thestatesman, not less than the saint and the martyr, endure, as seeing God. (Text.)—N. D. Hillis.
Athens had two cities—down in the plain was the city of work, with shops, ox carts, plows and hoes, on the hillside were the shops where men bought and sold. But the crags above were crowned with temples, where beauty and worship had their home. Oft in the hours of tumult and strife, when the workers feared the coming of enemies, they turned their thoughts upward toward the Parthenon, and drank in the beauty of Athena’s face, and her calm, white hand seemed to fall upon the brow, to allay the fear, and breathe peace to the frightened working men. Greek culture and character represented the interplay of the upper and the lower city. So it is that man’s life of work, and his invisible life of faith and worship are knitted together. The inventor, thestatesman, not less than the saint and the martyr, endure, as seeing God. (Text.)—N. D. Hillis.
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Religion Among Immigrants—SeeImmigration.
Religion and Dying—SeeDeath, The Christian’s.
Religion and Parents—SeeParents as Teachers of Religion.
RELIGION AND POETRY
When will the true prophet, priest, poet, preacher come to us? For we are continually reminded that it is by the voice of the poet only that a nation is permitted to survive. Jerusalem has been permitted to come down to us forever glorified; she cherished the poets; but where is Babylon, who cast the prophets in the lion’s den? Nineveh was a city of three days’ journey; Nineveh would not hear; and where is Nineveh now? But, Jerusalem, city of poetry and song! A little place; you can cover it with a pin’s head on the maps of the world; and yet she covers more space in history, sacred and profane, than all the other cities of the world together. And this is simply because she had faith and hope; and so had her poets, and did not despise them, and her poets made her immortal. The cloven foot of the golden calf is stamping out every page of this great, neglected book. So great is the wealth of the leading families of our cities that almost every hearthstone might be paved with gold. Yet Socrates died for want of money enough to pay a fine. True or false, the Greeks had gods, even the unknown God of which Paul spoke, and they believed. They had faith and hope. And so their poets sang, sang in marble. Song is music, song is the eternal melody of beauty, and their country lives.—Joaquin Miller,Belford’s Magazine.
When will the true prophet, priest, poet, preacher come to us? For we are continually reminded that it is by the voice of the poet only that a nation is permitted to survive. Jerusalem has been permitted to come down to us forever glorified; she cherished the poets; but where is Babylon, who cast the prophets in the lion’s den? Nineveh was a city of three days’ journey; Nineveh would not hear; and where is Nineveh now? But, Jerusalem, city of poetry and song! A little place; you can cover it with a pin’s head on the maps of the world; and yet she covers more space in history, sacred and profane, than all the other cities of the world together. And this is simply because she had faith and hope; and so had her poets, and did not despise them, and her poets made her immortal. The cloven foot of the golden calf is stamping out every page of this great, neglected book. So great is the wealth of the leading families of our cities that almost every hearthstone might be paved with gold. Yet Socrates died for want of money enough to pay a fine. True or false, the Greeks had gods, even the unknown God of which Paul spoke, and they believed. They had faith and hope. And so their poets sang, sang in marble. Song is music, song is the eternal melody of beauty, and their country lives.—Joaquin Miller,Belford’s Magazine.
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Religion Demanded—SeeInfluence, Personal.
RELIGION DIFFUSED
Three hundred years ago there was but one Bible in a parish in England, and that was chained to a column in the church; and there was but one man to read it—the priest. And the people did not understand it then, and it was a part of official duty to go from house to house on the theory that the average parent did not know enough to teach the children the first principles of morality and of religion. Go to-day over the same community, and on the Sabbath morning you shall see the girls and the young men with Bibles under their arms, themselves teachers, going down to mission-schools, going down to instruct their inferiors. The profession has distributed its functions among the common people. Has it destroyed the profession? It never was stronger, never was as strong as it is to-day.—Henry Ward Beecher.
Three hundred years ago there was but one Bible in a parish in England, and that was chained to a column in the church; and there was but one man to read it—the priest. And the people did not understand it then, and it was a part of official duty to go from house to house on the theory that the average parent did not know enough to teach the children the first principles of morality and of religion. Go to-day over the same community, and on the Sabbath morning you shall see the girls and the young men with Bibles under their arms, themselves teachers, going down to mission-schools, going down to instruct their inferiors. The profession has distributed its functions among the common people. Has it destroyed the profession? It never was stronger, never was as strong as it is to-day.—Henry Ward Beecher.
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RELIGION, EARLY
The following letter was written by the late Prof. Borden P. Bowne, of Boston University, when he was a boy in Pennington Seminary. It foreshadows his long life of Christian service:
Pennington, October 10.Dear ——:His name is still Jesus, for He saves His people from their sins. By His grace I have kept the faith, and have not denied His name. On Sunday night we had service in the chapel of the institution. I told of the power of Jesus’ blood to cleanse from all sin. There seemed to be none that believed my report; at least none gave in such a testimony. I felt rather deprest in spirit; but after service was over, as I was talking to some other brother, I heard a noise in one of the rooms; proceeding thither, we found that a young man had just been blest. We rejoiced with him and we held an impromptu prayer-meeting, and then God was pleased to make Himself known in power to four or five more; and together we glorified the God of Israel. Glory to Jesus! I was comforted and blest. The tempter whispered to me sweetly that I had best not mention the matter of sanctification any more. But by God’s grace I shall hold up the standard of holiness to the Lord. There are one or two who profess it here, but they don’t seem to say much about it. ——, it is my ambition to be one of the best of men. I want to be able to look at the promise alone; and because God has said it I believe it. I have instituted family worship with my room-mate; morning and evening I endeavor to call upon God with him. He is not religious; he is a young boy fifteen or sixteen years old, a very nice young fellow. May the Lord lead him to Himself. Amen and amen.
Pennington, October 10.
Dear ——:
His name is still Jesus, for He saves His people from their sins. By His grace I have kept the faith, and have not denied His name. On Sunday night we had service in the chapel of the institution. I told of the power of Jesus’ blood to cleanse from all sin. There seemed to be none that believed my report; at least none gave in such a testimony. I felt rather deprest in spirit; but after service was over, as I was talking to some other brother, I heard a noise in one of the rooms; proceeding thither, we found that a young man had just been blest. We rejoiced with him and we held an impromptu prayer-meeting, and then God was pleased to make Himself known in power to four or five more; and together we glorified the God of Israel. Glory to Jesus! I was comforted and blest. The tempter whispered to me sweetly that I had best not mention the matter of sanctification any more. But by God’s grace I shall hold up the standard of holiness to the Lord. There are one or two who profess it here, but they don’t seem to say much about it. ——, it is my ambition to be one of the best of men. I want to be able to look at the promise alone; and because God has said it I believe it. I have instituted family worship with my room-mate; morning and evening I endeavor to call upon God with him. He is not religious; he is a young boy fifteen or sixteen years old, a very nice young fellow. May the Lord lead him to Himself. Amen and amen.
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RELIGION, FAMILY
In a sermon on “The Debt Parents Owe to their Children,” Newell Dwight Hillis, D.D., of Plymouth Church, Brooklyn, told of a parent who had said to him: “For twenty years neither myself nor my family have paid attention to Christianity. And now I have learned to my sorrow that the Christian Church is the only place in which to bring up a family. If I had ten sons I would compel them to marry wives reared in the Christian Church and the Christian home, who have the Christian method and Christian spirit of rearing children. (Text.)
In a sermon on “The Debt Parents Owe to their Children,” Newell Dwight Hillis, D.D., of Plymouth Church, Brooklyn, told of a parent who had said to him: “For twenty years neither myself nor my family have paid attention to Christianity. And now I have learned to my sorrow that the Christian Church is the only place in which to bring up a family. If I had ten sons I would compel them to marry wives reared in the Christian Church and the Christian home, who have the Christian method and Christian spirit of rearing children. (Text.)
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RELIGION, IMPORTANCE OF
Lecky says that the humble meeting in Aldersgate Street where John Wesley was converted forms an epoch in English history; and he adds that the religious revolution begun in England by the preaching of the Wesleys is of greater historic importance than all the splendid victories by land and sea won under Pitt.—W. H. Fitchett, “Wesley and His Century.”
Lecky says that the humble meeting in Aldersgate Street where John Wesley was converted forms an epoch in English history; and he adds that the religious revolution begun in England by the preaching of the Wesleys is of greater historic importance than all the splendid victories by land and sea won under Pitt.—W. H. Fitchett, “Wesley and His Century.”
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Religion in Work—SeeWork Proving Religion.
Religion of Great Men—SeePrayer by Great Leaders.
Religion, Practical—SeeWitness of Service.
RELIGION, SHADES OF
It has been well said that as the prism exhibits the various colors contained in light, so mankind displays the various forms and shades of religion.
It has been well said that as the prism exhibits the various colors contained in light, so mankind displays the various forms and shades of religion.
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RELIGION, SHALLOW
Religion has not done much for a man if it has not moderated the savage passions of his nature. Prof. Fred. M. Davenport says:
I once spent an evening listening, with a couple of friends, to an old darky’s account of his conversion. He had reached the climax of the recital, was in a considerable state of ecstasy, and was very anxiously seeking to impress us all with his spiritual experience, when suddenly his dog began barking furiously just behind him and utterly broke the continuity of his thought and of his speech. I think no one of us will ever forget the dash of savagery that came into his face as he turned with flashing eye and foaming lip upon that canine intruder. It was a startling transition, revealing the crater of primitive passion just underneath the crust of religious culture and nurture.—The Contemporary Review.
I once spent an evening listening, with a couple of friends, to an old darky’s account of his conversion. He had reached the climax of the recital, was in a considerable state of ecstasy, and was very anxiously seeking to impress us all with his spiritual experience, when suddenly his dog began barking furiously just behind him and utterly broke the continuity of his thought and of his speech. I think no one of us will ever forget the dash of savagery that came into his face as he turned with flashing eye and foaming lip upon that canine intruder. It was a startling transition, revealing the crater of primitive passion just underneath the crust of religious culture and nurture.—The Contemporary Review.
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RELIGION THAT WEARS