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CAMPUS MIRROR
Fhe Spirit of Chapel
Saturday morning first hour classes
are the bane of many teachers and of
most of their students. Later classes are
better, but at the first class it seems that
students are just not in the mood to con
centrate. They are half awake, listless,
and in varying states of depression. Such
a contrast it is to the first period in the
other days of the week. Maybe there is
a reason that the day begins so brightly
Monday through Friday. Maybe the rea
son is that on these days school begins
with a chapel service.
To many people whose extensive read
ing has brought to them vicarious experi
ences in ‘'Rugby Chapel" or “the little
chapel on the hill.” and the like, the
term “chapel” has become synonymous
with meditation, reverence, and quiet. In
our own services we feel in addition to
this influence, an intellectual stimulation.
Many factors enter to create an atmos
phere of worship—the dignity and serene
charm of the building, the ritualistic but
flexible order of service, the effect of
the organ prelude. The themes of the
services vary, but they are always an
ticipated in the reading, prayer, and
hymns. Participation in the singing and
reading has a considerable effect upon
the attitude of the worshipper.
The second aspect of the chapel ser
vice is its intellectual or informative con
tribution. Guests on the rostrum repre
sent varied professions and interests.
Members of the faculties are among the
favorite speakers, and occasionally tal
ented students are presented as speakers
or performers. Topics are varied, rang
ing from international conflicts to in
teresting summer experiences. Through
the medium of the chapel services stu
dents may learn from recognized author
ities of the international front, of the
work of missionaries in Africa, of the
youth peace movements, of the best mod
ern writings, and may obtain assistance
in forming a personal philosophy of life.
If one is conscious of the advantages
of the chapel exercises, one will not w r ait
until a month before graduation to take
notes on chapel speeches or to appreciate
the beauty of the organ prelude; one will
enter into the spirit of each service to
derive from it all that it has to offer.
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John Hope Lecture
In honor of the memory of Dr. John
Hope, some friends of his have estab
lished a series of lectures to be given an
nually for a limited number of years. The
first of this series was presented on Fri
day morning. November 18. in Sisters
Chapel for the benefit of the faculties,
students, and communities of the affil
iated institutions of Atlanta University.
The speaker for this first lecture was
Dr. Arthur H. Compton. Professor of
Physics at the University of Chicago, who
is one of the most distinguished living
men of science because of the awards
and honors he has received in the field
of science.
The subject of the lecture was Science,
Religion, and a Stable Society, high points
of which I shall attempt to present here.
Dr. Compton first pointed out how “So
ciety employs the attitudes of Science to
make society stable.” Science, he said,
is rising to leadership in society and is
governing our society because it is a
medium by w'hich new truths can be
found that give new meaning to living,
and above all it helps distinguish man
from the atom, thus making him “man.”
The idea was conveyed that science w f as
interested in mankind from the begin
ning. for the first scientific study was a
study of the laws of nature, and science
has continued this study of the laws of
nature until now. This is evidenced in
the contributions of Physics through the
mediums of heat, light, and electricity in
the last fifty years. Scientists believe
that these contributions are being made
to the noblest order on earth, the order
of society, through the benefits that they
are giving to human welfare. Man, said
Dr. Compton, has stable attributes; for
the changes in man for over twenty thou
sand years have been very slow and grad
ual. Evidences of this are to be seen in
art, music and language; this stability
increases with the developments of
science. The four ages of man support
the fact that the changes in man are grad
ual, for if one studies the works of the
stone age, the bronze age, the iron age,
and the machine age, one sees the slow
ly changing technique of man and. a
gradually developing being. The grad
ual process of change in the language of
man. as given, was very interesting: Man
first spoke, wrote, used the printed word,
used printed pictures, the telegraph, tele
phones, radios, and now the moving pic
tures. Each of these developments has
tended to make him more stable and each
was related to the development of science
and the highest peak is a result of the
spread of thought and techniques of
science.
Dr. Compton stated that science has
caused such a growth in knowledge and
therefore a more stable society that will
make it possible for future generations
The Harvest Festival
What is the annual Harvest Festival
all about? Not another compulsory meet
ing, I hope.
Yes, was the answer—One does not
realize how compulsory it really is until
after he has attended the very first time.
A night of fun with the Y.W.C.A. mem
bers impressed upon the mind is stamped
there for one year, at the end of which
time we enjoy this Festival again.
What did they do?
The hostesses guided the guests on ar
rival into one winding path. Around,
around, and around did it go to finally
terminate at these places I know: the Art
Gallery, Booth A. “Ah!” was the breath
taking exclamation after having seen
these artists’ fine creations.
Next the arrival at a table where there
was a constant ping, pong, ping until the
hall was on the floor again; the minute
up and time to go-—to drop off at the
delightful booth of Long Delay. One was
toned up to order hamburgers, hot dogs,
and cold drinks, all.
Away, again, for the Fortune-Telling
booth. There is a low whispering—then
one is left dazed in a maze with his mind
resting on matters of importance and
love.
Then for a pleasant hump right into
the games of “Bingo” and “Ten-Pins” and
what a grand spot to rest for guests hav
ing bad feet.
And here’s the best, yet to come. The
following individuals aided by many
others entertained with a delightful show:
Mildred Dotson, Corine Swinger, Mary
Gale Brown, Bennie Smith. Now—soft
music, laughter, and so forth. But—the
piece is “Home Sweet Home,” and so
au revoir.
to use experience as a sure guide to better
living; but this does not mean that there
will be no changes for that would be stag
nation and such a society is highly impos
sible.
Science has caused a growth in man’s
moral attitudes. Dr. Compton further
pointed out that through modern inven
tions men have been brought closer to
gether. This bringing together has made
man feel closer to his fellows and has
caused him to give more attention to them.
It has given him a type of cooperation
that is an example of a love for one’s
neighbor which is a principle of Chris
tianity, the agency which has no equal in
teaching religion. It has made the lives
of men more interwoven and has helped
higher standards of morality in society,
although the “Day of Good-Will" is not
with us at present. Scientific ideas, then,
according to Dr. Compton, are not far
from the ideas of the Fatherhood of Cod
and the Brotherhood of man on which
religion or. rather, Christianity works in
stabilizing society.