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The Commoner
vol, ie; NO. 3
18
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Mr. Bryan in the Bible Class
fBy Grapho, in tho Congrogation
allst and Christian World, Fob. 3.
It saw Mr. Brynn produco such a
commotion in a presidential conven
tion as novcr beforo or since lias boon
witnessed in tho political gatherings
of tho country. Horo in Miami I
hnvo soon him arouso such enthusi
asm in a Blblo class as I novor havo
soon anywhero else, do groat was
tho interest that tho class threatened
to overrun tho wholo auditorium of
the Prosbytorian church, and it was
announced that tho next mooting
would bo hold in tho grandstand of
tho ball park near tho church. When
( Mr. Bryan mado a tomporanco ad
rtrcHM in tho samo park tho mooting
filled all outdoors, and tho election
wont dry two to onp. Whether talk
ing politics, tomporanco or roligion,
Mr, Bryan is a remarkable man.
Tho class which tho famous ora
tor addroBsos when at his Miami
hon)o is called tho tourist class. It
was organized by Mr. Goorgo Cooloy,
a Oongregationalist with a Chicago
training, and tho pastor of the
church, Dr. W. W. Faris, also is a
man with a Chicago training. Four
of tho good doctor's children wont to
China as missionaries, and tho doc
tor himself camo down horo as a mis
sionary. Miami is now callod tho
Magic City, but it was then very
much in tho raw. Dr. Faris began in
a tent with nine persons. Now ho has
n congregation which includes more
visiting ministers and traveling pil
lars of northern churches than any
other pastor in tho city. It is called
tho Tourist church.
It nover is possible to put on papor
tho oxact quality and glow of, an ad
dress which makes tho hearers lean
forward with eager faces and breath
loss interest. It has rod blood which
refuses to bo turned into black ink.
But I think many roads of Tho Con
grogationalist will bo interested in
tho substanco of what Mr. Bryan had
to say to tho Bible class, and I ought
to remark that whilo tho effect is un
usual, tho manner is quito calm and
tlio method simple.
Discusses rotor's Method of Appeal
Tho lesson was part of Peter's ser
mon on tho Day of Pentecost, begin
ning with tho verso in which tho
apostlo calls tho attention of his
hearers to tho wonders, signs and
miracles "which God did by him in
tho midst of you, as yo yourselves
,,w;, Poter bQ6an his argument,
said Mr. Bryan in substanco, by re
ferring to facts which his hearers
know. Theso things had been done
in tho midst of them; they had first
hand knowledgo of them "as yo
yourselves also know." And this is
the way to begin with men who are
in 'doubt. If a man doubts about a
matter or belief you can not convlnno
him by referring to or arguing from
something olso which ho doubts. You
must, if possible, begin on somo
. ground of accepted facts, with some
thjngs, which ho knows. Now, wo
can not begin at tho present day just
whero Peter did, because his hear
ers had Jmraediato knowledge of these
things, but our hearers do not. We
should begin with tho things which
men knqw now, with tho great things
which Christianity has wr.ought in
tho world. Thoro aro conversions of
men which aro as wonderful in their
way as the wonders to which Poter
appealed. Degraded men have been
lifted out of tho gutter, their char
acters transformed, their Uvea trans
figured by tho power of Jesus Christ
Peoples havo been changed, commun
ities havo been turned from super
stition and cruelty and cannibalism
i to a life of civilization and progress
by tho gospel. Theso aro facts, and
(wo can uso theso things with the
doubter, and for tho confirmation of
our own faith.
At tho samo time thero is a sense
in which belief in tho miracles is the
test of faith. For it usually is true
that if a man does not believe in the
deity of Christ ho also denies the
historicity of the miracles, and vice
versa, ir ho does not accept tho mi
racles ho usually rejects belief fn tho
deity of Christ. Thero seqmff.to be
an insoparablo connection between
tho two. ,, .
Tho Cull for Action
Whon Poter had mado his argu
ment from facts and tho Convincing
power of his sermon was evident, lie
appealed for action "repent and be
baptized." This Is tho purpose and
end of preaching, to make men act.
They aro not simply to believe or ad
mire, but to do something. And Peter
told them that when they acted they
would recoivo tho promises, namely,
tho remission of sins and the baptism
of the Holy Ghost. There can be no
improvement on that, either in
preaching or hearing. It is as up to
date as anything can be; it never can
bo oift of date. Thero is nothing
which tho world so much needs to
day as tho baptism of the Holy Spirit,
a great revival wave of spiritual re
ligion. (When men and women hear
this said in deepest earnestness by
the man who compelled tho nomina
tion of Mr. Wilson at the Baltimore
convention, when they are looking
into the glowing face which on that
momentous occasion was turned like
steel against Tammany and "Tigers"
and plutocratic bosses and "ma
chines," it surely does produce an
impression.)
Tho gospel means action it is to
bo applied, continued Mr. Bryan.
That is what it is hero for. When it
is applied promises come as they did
on Peter's day. Men say that you
can not apply the principles of the
gospel in matt6rs of war and peace,
that they are not practical, that you
must wait until the world is on a
higher moral level, more Christian
ized. But how aro you going to get
tho world more Christianized unless
you apply tho principles of Christian
ity? How are you going to get it up
to that higher moral standard set by
Jesus Christ if you refuse to apply
his teachings on the ground that they
are impracticable? If the doctrines
of the Prince of Peace aro ever to
savo the world from tho horrors and
savagery of such strife as we now see
wo must not sot them aside or post-
(Here tho class broke into applause
which nearly upset the Sunday school,
and it became evident that about the
only safe place to have Mr. Bryan
speak is out of doors where his hear
ers can let loose their feelings.)
Tho Doctrine That Might Makes
Right
In a talk on a review lesson Mr.
Bryan briefly discussed the evolution
theory, and among other things re
ferred to an incident related by an
ofT rnnfmITnISt?r Wh0 is now Ptor
of a great London church. Aftor
this minister had preached a sermon
in which he severely criticised the
teachings of such German thinkers as
Nietzsche, that might makes right
and that the world belongs to the
strong, a German hearer came to him
and said "You were pretty ha?d on
us today." "Yes, I was," replied the
minister, "and you deserve it " "But
wait a minute," said tho German "do
you know where the German philos
ophers got that doctrine to which you
so stoutly object?" j can no y
win1 n' Pe?!S? . the minister
Well, they got it from that great
Englishman, Charles Darwin, and his
doctrine of the survival of the fittest.
They aro applying that doctrine to
the human affairs of today. They
have made it their philosophy of life
and government. The weak are to
go down, the strong aro to go up.
Might is right. It is the only prac
tical kind of right there is. You do
not believe in it, and I do not believe
in it," added the German, "but I am
telling you where it came from."
"We must be careful how we ap
ply this doctrine of the strongest,"
said Mr. Bryan, "for I have found
since I began delivering addresses on
religious subjects that the evolution
theory often has been consciously or
unconsciously absorbed in a way
which has a tendency to paralyze the
conscience. Whether men know it
or not, they have permitted it to be
come antagonistic to those principles
of Christianity which make the
strongest the servants of humanity,
not its oppressors. The effect of the
doctrine is to make them think that
tho world belongs to the Caesars.
But Christianity says that the world
belongs to the people in it. Chris
tianity is for the people, for the weak
as well as the strong. It commands
us to help the helpless to lift up the
fallen, to break no bruised reed, t
crush no man or people because they
are weak. Christ came to. save, not
to destroy, to give life and to give it
more abundantly What the world
needs today is the saving, renewing
power of Christ's gospel, not the rule
of tho Caesars.
His Way of Defending the Faith
Mr. Bryan's method of defending
religipus faith against the attacks of
its opponents is to admit that we
must begin somewhere with an as
sumption, but that the unbeliever is
no more free from this necessity than
the believer. The world is here, the
universe is here', Ve are here, when
wo undertake to account for the ori
gin of all this a point will be en
countered beyond which we can not
pass without an assumption. I rtsk
the man who attacks religious faith
where he begins. He may reply that
he begins with matter or with energy
Then, I say to him, I bpgin with God
In the beginning God"- and my
assumption is just as scientific and
rational as his assumption, tn fact
it has fewor difficulties than his,, be
cause it assumes a cause equal to the
effects. While his nKnnmnt?K ic
stantly beset by the difficulty of prov"
"s uuw lower cause cart produce a
higher effect.
In handling this subject-Mr. Bryan
shows that he has igone thoroughly
into the whole matter and is familiar
with what is called the controversv
between science and religion, and
that he knows the arguments and the
philosophy of the opponents of Chris
tianity. He also, shows much fa
m iarity with the Bible, and his
lalth in its teachings as the best
Philosophy of life for individuals and
for nations is profound. He is the
preacher's . friend,, the believer's
OSTRTOH-PREPAREDNESS
From Tho Literary Digest.
However the reader may take his
stand on tho preparedness question,
let him assumo for a moment abso
lute neutrality and attend to the in
structive and amusing Fable of the
Unprepared Ostrich as recited by EI
mer T. Peterson. A fable is not an
argument, but at times it is an effeo
lluft:, Mr. Peterson's fable
is not at all tho answer to all anti
preparedness but it is a blow difficult
to parry. Wo do not remember see
ing a fablo presenting the
other side of the question
quite so succintly and pointedly 5
appears in tho Topeka Capital "tho
immortal newspaner," the Chicago
Post reminds us "that suggested that
tho German submarlno attacks
ceased because of tho terror inspired
in tho central European chancelleries
by the news of the Plattsburg en
campment." Tho Capital, which has
printed not a little against militarism,
includes this within its columns with
perfect good humor:
"Tho Ostrich, with flumes of
Great Value, roamed Peacefully about
his accustomed liaunts, when he
heard the sound of Guns in tho Dis
tance. "PIo realized that this means
Danger and that some Avaricious
Hunter might take a notion to Shoot
him. But ho Philosophized with the
following Arguments:
"I do. not know who this Possible
Enemy is, therefore I am Safe.
"I do not know, but Think that
Somo One will Defend me in caso
Danger should come. I am not sure,
but Think that those Defenders are
Well Enough Armed. Jingoes say
they are Not, but Jingoes take the
word of those who make a Business
of Fighting, who, of course, "know
Nothing about it.
"The Enemy is so Exhausted from
Shooting that he will be Unable to
Shoot Me.
"If some one should Attack me, I
could Instantly Change myself into a
Lion and Repel the Attack with Ease.
Anyhow, it is Wrong to Fight 'under
Any Circumstances whatever.
"I will not tako refuge behind a
Fence or Building, because the
chances are Somebody got a. Graft
out of building them.
"There are Two or Three places on
the boundaries of my domain' where
it is impossible to break through.
Therefore, I am Safe.' -; :'
"Altho I have my Faults -I Feel
that I should Pose as a Model of Vir
tue, an Example to the Whole World.
Therefore, I will not 'f esort to Resist
ance. I beliqve iri taking: things" as
they Ought to' be instead o'FWtliey
Are. '" ' .- '
' "I do not believe in being. Pre
pared. I will Stick my Head -in the
Sand and Forget that titers is wauch a
thing as Trouble. '
"Moral Ostrich Plumes for Sale."
ORGANIZED LABOR'S PROGRAM
OUTLINED BY JOHN MITCHELL
A New York dispatch, dated Feb.
13, says: John Mitchell, chairman
of the state industrial commission,
in an address here today outlined the
program of organized labor. He de
clared it is confined to these six aims:
A minimum wage that shall en
able women and ,men to - live in a
manner conformable to American
standards, to educate thelrchildren
and to make provision against bid
ago and sickness. ' ! ;':
The eight-hour day which gives
opportunity for the cultivation of
home life, the enjoyment of hooks,
music and wisely employed leisure.
Legislation making it unlawful for
children of tender years and frail
Physique to be employed in danger
ous pursuits. .
Laws providing for the safeguard
ing of the lives and limbs of work
ers engaged in dangerous occupations
?? compensation for injuries
sustained in the course of employ
ment. .
The progressive improvement of
the sanitary working" and housing
conditions of the wage earners.
The preservation of the constitu
tional guarantee of trial by jury,
free speech and a free press.
lit oaa dnl ? th0 trade union,"
5??d1? d' !5 t0 comle one or
ganization all the men employed at
a given trade and to demand and se
cure for each and all of them a defin
hm,11!!?1?1? standar of wages,
worl l J M?r ,and conditions of
wa 37 lis1ls,not meant that the
wages of all shall be the same, but
merely that equal pay shall .be given
for equal work," . . falvcu
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