Below is the OCR text representation for this newspapers page.

The Presbyte Vol. 97. No. 51. South RICHMOND, VA. DECEMBER 20, 1922 CHRISTMAS ought to be the glad time of all the year. It should always be re membered that it is the Christ festival. It commemorates the coming of the Christ into the world. This is the reason that all people should be glad on that day. The thought of His coming should occupy the first place in our hearts, for He brought to us the greatest gift ever bestowed upon mankind, the salvation from sin. It seems strange that the thoughts of most people and the terms used should be derived from a heathen character, no matter how good he may have been supposed to be, instead of being connected with Him whose birth is celebrated. Of all the heathen deities Santa Claus is the most attractive, as he is the embodiment of good will to others. No harm is done by the Santa Claus story, except that it deprives woung and old of the higher joy of the thoughts that should be centered on the Babe of Bethlehem. This feature of Christmas can easily be emphasized even with very young children, and it should be the oustand ing idea in all church and Sunday School en tertainments. In fact, we doubt very seriously whether the Santa Claus idea should ever be allowed to slip into a religious service. Such a service should be set around the thought of the Christ Child and His coming to earth to bring to man the peace and good will of God. JOHN WANAMAKER, the merchant prince and the prince of God, has finished his work on earth. Last week he ended an earthly ca reer that had extended over eighty-four years. Few men ever put as much even into a long life as he did. He had little to start on save a good character, energy, perseverance, faith and a determination to serve God and do good to his fellowmen. He started in business in a very small way. His business grew steadily and rapidly, until he became one of the largest business men in this country. In the develop ment of his mercantile enterprises he intro duced many new ideas, which were practically unknown before, but which are now commonly used by all first-class merchants. He gave very close attention to his business, but he always had time to attend to the Lord's business as well, and he did it faithfully. When he first opened his little store, which was the seed from which great trees have grown, he at once be gan to work for God by establishing a mission Sunday School. As his own business grew the Sunday School grew, until it became one of the largest in the country, and out of that grew a church, which has been noted not only for its size, but also for its efficiency in build ing up the kingdom of God. Mr. Wannamaker gave the church and Sunday School the same pains-taking care and laborious service, which he gave to his secular enterprises. "When he undertook to serve his country as postmaster general for four years, and had to spend most of his time in Washington, he never neglected his work for God. Every Saturday he re turned to Philadelphia in order to superintend his big Sunday School and teach his big Bible class. His interests were never confined to his own affairs. He gave liberally of his time, his labor, his means, his love, wherever they were needed. This country, the world, is better be cause he lived in it and served God faithfully. LYNCHING is absolutely inexcusable in a civilized country and lynchers are mur derers. There may have been a time on the sparsely settled frontiers of our country a gen eration or two ago, when it was necessary for the people to a very limited extent to take the law into their own hands, when there were no properly organized courts. But even then it would not have been right for a mob to take the life of a fellowman. In this day there is absolutely no excuse for it. When some fiend has committed a heinous crime, naturally the people of the community are very much wrought up and excited. That, however, does not justify murder, and it is time that the peo ple of this country should realize that the tak A CHRISTMAS PUDDING. Take some human nature, as you find it. The commonest variety will do. Put a little graciousness behind it. Add a lump of charity, or two ? Squeeze in just a drop of moderation. Half as much frugality, or less, Add some very fine consideration. Strain off all of povorty's distress. Pour some milk of human kindness in it. Put in all the happiness you can, Stir it up with laughter every minute, Season with good will toward every man. Set it on the fire of heart's afTection, Leave It (ill the jolly bubbles rise, Sprinkle it with kisses, for confection. Sweeten with a look from loving eyes. Flavor it with children's merry chatter, ?Frost it with the snow of wintry dells, Place it on a holly-garnished platter. And serve it with the song of Xmas bolls. ? Author Unknown. ing of life in such a case is murder. No man or set of men have a right to set themselves up as judge and jury to try a criminal and 011 their own verdict condemn him to death and execute him, no matter what his crime is. When a crime has been committed it is the erly established court alone has a right to pass law in apprehending the criminal and in se curing the evidence of his guilt, but the prop erly estabilshed court alone has a right to pass upon the evidence, and the criminal must be given a fair opportunity to prove his innocence or to show mitigating circumstances. If the mob has evidence enough to prove his guilt it will not be hard to convince the court, and if it has not sufficient evidence to convince the court of his guilt, they certainly have notsuffi cient evidence to justify them in pronouncing the death penalty upon him. Public sentiment should demand that courts should give quick and fair trials to criminals and it should also demand that those who violate the law by en gaging in a lynching shall be held accountable and punished as murderers. The stopping of lynching devolves upon the courts and the officers of the law. If a few of the lynchers should be executed and it was understood that lynchers would always be treated as murder ers, lynching would soon be stopped. Accord ing to recent reports two negroes committed murder in one of the Southern States. They were arrested by the officers and were being taken to jail, when a mob was formed which took one of the prisoners from the officers and burned him at the stake. A day or two later the same mob or another, took the other pris oner from the officers and burned him. In the sight of God every man in those mobs was guilty of murder and should be pnnished for murder. It is not a question as to who the criminal was nor what was his crime. Oklahoma Presbyterians are tak ing an advance step. The Synod has un dertaken to publish a newspaper, the first is sue of which has just reached us. It is called The Oklahoma Presbyterian Messenger, ana is a well edited sheet of four small pages and gives the news in regard to the work in. the Synod. One reason for publishing this monthly is said to be the fact that so few of the mem bers of the churches take the large weekly Church papers. The best thing that can be done in advancing the work of the Church would be to see that every family has one of the Church papers, which give the news each week and much inspirational matter. ATTENTION has been called to the action of Philadelphia Presbytery in adopting an o\erture to its General Assembly in regard to the employment by the Session of the PirRt Church, New York, of Dr. Harry Emerson Fos dick as stated supply for that church. This ac tion was taken because of the heretical teach ings of Dr. Fosdick in the sermons he has preached, some of which have been broadcasted over the land. This overture has awakened a lively interest in the North, and we find that it is supported very strongly by nearly all of the Presbyterian Church papers of that section of the country. We know of only one of these papers that in any way supports Dr. Fosdick. It is said that many other Presbyteries will take similar action. It is to be hoped that this will be done, and that when the next As sembly meets, there shall have been awakened in the Church a sentiment so strong that it will be obliged to take some definite action in the matter. New York Presbytery ought to aci and call the Session to account, but it seems that that Presbytery is largely composed of men who are as liberal in their views as is Dr. Fosdick. If the fundamenetal doctrines of the Church are to be discredited and denied, there is little hope for the Church. FRUITS OF PROHIBITION are seen in the West, where, it may be, they would not have been looked for. Every summer there arc large numbers of laborers who go into the great harvest fields of that section of the country. As the harvest season Advances up country, these laborers go from farm to farm. They are generally a rather rough class of men, living in verv uncomfortable conditions. One who has been studying the situation says that there has been a wonderful improvement among them aa- has been shown on the trains on which they have gone west and returned. He says that during the past summer this was a per fectly orderly movement, while formerly these trains were like moving lunatic asylums. The difference, he says, is due to prohibition.