Review and Herald, Vol. 79, No. 29. (7/22/1902)

Review and Herald

Jul 22, 1902

Seventh-day Adventist Publishing Association · Battle Creek, Mich. · Jul 22, 1902

From "The World's Work." Copyright, 1902, by Doubleday, Page & Co.

OFTEN have I seen

By Dean Stanley

A stripling tree, all foliage and all green; But not a hope of grateful, soothing shade, Its empty strength in fluttering leaves displayed. Give me the solid trunk, the aged stem, That rears its scant but glorious diadem: That through long years of battle or of storm Has striv'n whole forests round it to reform; That plants its roots too deep for men to shake; That lifts its head too high for grief to break; That still, through lightning flash and thunder stroke, Retains its vital sap and heart of oak. Such gallant tree for me shall ever stand, A great rock's shadow in a weary land. — Dean Stanley.

A NEW REVISED BIBLE

The American Standard Edition of the Revised Bible.

Published in August, 1901,

BY THE

AMERICAN BIBLE REVISION COMMITTEE

This new edition of the American Standard Bible embodies a considerable part of the emendations which represent the deliberate preferences of the whole American Committee, which were not put into the old 1885 revision.

In addition to incorporating in the text the readings preferred by the American Committee, but hitherto printed only in the Appendix to the old revision, this new edition contains rectified errors, inconsistencies, oversights, and infelicities which are always incidental to the first edition of a book like this, also important suggestions made by the American revisers in the progress of their work, but waived in drawing up their Appendix to the old revision of 1885; also carefully selected references and topical headings.

Printed in long primer quarto, a very large, plain print, especially desirable for impaired vision or for reading by gaslight. Bound in one size only,—8¾x 6¾ inches,—just the size of the border inclosing this advertisement.

IN THREE SPECIAL BINDINGS.

Cloth boards, red edges $1.50

Egyptian seal, limp, round corners, red under gold edges 2.50

Persian levant, divinity circuit, leather lined to edge, silk sewed, round corners, red under gold edges 4.50

What Others Say of this Translation.

By remarkably unanimous consent, America now possesses the most excellent translation of the Holy Scriptures ever published in the English tongue. There has been neither party nor faction discernible in the welcome paid by public scholarship to the American Revision of the Bible.—The Interior.

The most important volume that American scholarship has ever produced.—Church Economist

The best entire version of the Bible now before the public. Why should it not be generally adopted?—The Examiner.

There can be no doubt that in this version we are nearer the thought, and therefore the spirit, of the Master, than in any other version existing in English.—Northwestern Christian Advocate.

ORDER OF REVIEW AND HERALD PUB. CO.,

BATTLE CREEK, MICHIGAN.

Editorial

By Editor

Sound an Alarm

“BLOW ye the trumpet in Zion, and sound an alarm in my holy mountain: let all the inhabitants of the land tremble: for the day of the Lord cometh, for it is nigh at hand.” “The great day of the Lord is near, it is near, and hasteth greatly, even the voice of the day of the Lord.”

Fruit Bearing

“FRUIT BEARING is the proof of discipleship. “Herein is my Father glorified, that ye bear much fruit; so shall ye be my disciples.” Abiding in the vine is the condition of fruit bearing. “He that abideth in me, and I in him, the same bringeth forth much fruit.” It is expected of every branch that it shall bear fruit. “Every branch in me that beareth not fruit he taketh away: and every branch that beareth fruit, he purgeth it, that it may bring forth more fruit.” The tree is known by its fruit. “Do men gather grapes of thorns, or figs of thistles? Even so every good tree bringeth forth good fruit; but a corrupt tree bringeth forth evil fruit.” Every true believer is to be “filled with the fruits of righteousness, which are by Jesus Christ, unto the glory and praise of God.”

New Territory

“OUR Commander directs that we should occupy new territory. The gospel message should be carried into new fields. The truth should be established in new places. In order to do this work and at the same time to hold the ground already gained, there is need of a constant supply of recruits. And with the men must come the means for their support, until friends of the truth are raised up in these new fields, and then the front the line must be again carried forward. Consecrated workers are needed. Trained workers are needed. A steady inflow of means is needed. But above all and more than all, the Spirit in its fullness is needed, that every effort may be effective in reaching and converting the hearts of men and women. “The harvest truly is great, but the laborers are few: pray ye therefore the Lord of the harvest, that he would send forth laborers into his harvest.”

Practical Religion

“PEOPLE sometimes talk of “practical religion” with emphasis upon “practical,” as though there might be some other kind of religion which is not practical. This shows how the minds of some have become confused as to the real nature of religion. There has been so much controversy about religion that some have come to regard controversy as one form of religion, and by “practical religion” they seem to mean a religious experience which is manifested in an upright life and a ministry of love as opposed to argument and disputes about a creed. It is time to emphasize the fact that there may be much controversy, much argument and dispute, with no religion at all. An infidel can argue. A backslider can lead in a controversy. An apostate can dispute about the creed. Only a Christian can minister the genuine truth of Christianity. The difference between “practical religion” and mere zeal for a creed or a denomination is well shown in the experience of Paul “in the Jews’ religion.” “For ye have heard of my conversation in time past in the Jews’ religion, how that beyond measure I persecuted the church of God, and wasted it: and profited in the Jews’ religion above many my equals in mine own nation, being more exceedingly zealous of the traditions of my fathers.” He has given us another picture of this experience in these words: “As touching the law, a Pharisee; concerning zeal, persecuting the church; touching the righteousness which is in the law, blameless.” A self-righteous Pharisee, a zealous persecutor, and yet profiting in the Jews’ religion! After his conversion on the journey to Damascus, the apostle Paul had an experience in “practical religion.” “We are fools for Christ’s sake. . . . Being reviled, we bless; being persecuted, we suffer it: being defamed, we entreat.” What a change from mere zeal for the prosperity of a sect! We need to see Jesus, as Paul did, that we may have the same experience in “practical religion” as he had.

A Present Danger

“THERE is danger that we should substitute a busy activity in the Lord’s work for a personal communion with the Lord, and that we should have all the forms of the truth while experiencing little of its power. How is it in your church? Is the prayer meeting well attended? and is it a place of power? Is there a good attendance at the missionary meeting? and are the hearts of the members stirred with the genuine missionary spirit? What is the influence of the church in the community? Would it be missed if its membership should be wholly scattered? Are we Christians? or are we mere formalists? “Thou therefore which teachest another, teachest thou not thyself? thou that preachest a man should not steal, dost thou steal? . . . Thou that makest thy boast of the law, through breaking the law dishonorest thou God?” Many are being deceived. They rest quietly because their names are on the church book, while they are not written in heaven. Their lives do not testify that self has been conquered, and that they are seeking first the kingdom of God and his righteousness. Their time and strength are spent in advancing their own interests. And yet they are constantly saying, “The temple of the Lord, The temple of the Lord, The temple of the Lord, are these.” What will arouse every self-deceived one to a sense of the true situation? The crisis is fast hastening on. Soon it will be too late. Awake! Arise! Be filled with the Spirit.

On the Front Line

“WE often think of those who are pushing the battle at the front, and we wish them to know that they have our hearty co-operation in prayer and effort to make their work a success. We had almost said that they have our sympathy, but on second thought we incline to the feeling that we need their sympathy. There is no more inspiring position on the battlefield than in the front line, and this is especially true when victory is assured. As we read the weekly reports of progress, and note the many providential openings and the extension of the work in many countries, we often feel that the greatest blessings are being enjoyed by those at the front. Africa and Australia do not seem so far away as

before we visited those countries. The workers in England and on the Continent seem like near neighbors to us. All the laborers are under the same Captain, and are fighting a common foe. The warning message must be proclaimed in every one of these lands before the Master can come. To every worker nigh and afar off, but especially to those in large degree separated from their fellow workers, we wish to send a powerful message of encouragement. We think of you. We pray for you. We plead for success in your behalf. Our heart’s desire is that you may be greatly blessed and prospered in preparing the way of the Lord in the hearts of the people. “Be strong and of a good courage.” Many who cannot join you at the front are giving the results of their daily toil, consecrating it with prayer, that others younger, stronger, and better fitted for the active campaign may go forward to extend the lines. Your conflicts and victories are often the subject of the conversation in the home, the shop, and the field. “Now the God of hope fill you with all joy and peace in believing, that ye may abound in hope, through the power of the Holy Ghost. . . . And the God of peace shall bruise Satan under your feet shortly. The grace of our Lord Jesus Christ be with you. Amen.”

Always Right to Do Right

“THIS may seem like a self-evident truism. But so long as an opposite course is universally practiced, it may be proper to reaffirm it continually. Men will frequently admit that a certain course of conduct is, in the abstract, correct, yet they will persuade themselves that under their circumstances they cannot help themselves. But no circumstances can make that right which is, in itself, intrinsically wrong; that is, it can never be right to sin. No doubt we may sometimes feel that if we refuse to sin, under a certain degree of pressure, death will be the result; but that will not alter the case at all; for it is better to die than to sin; and if there be no other way out of it, we ought to be willing to yield up our life rather than to consent, knowing our offense, to sin against God.”

“The three Hebrew captives, when brought into a crisis with Nebuchadnezzar, and commanded, under the threat of the fiery furnace, to bow down and worship the image he had set up, did not need to hesitate a moment to decide the question before them. They promptly answered him, ‘O Nebuchadnezzar, we are not careful to answer thee in this matter;’ that is, ‘we have no thought or deliberation to bestow upon this question, or give thee any alternative in this thing. No hesitation or question remains to us. We indulge no evasion or delay. Our decision is made. We will not serve thy gods nor worship the golden image which thou hast set up; for our duty is plain.’ They were led by the Spirit of God, and their decision was unanimous and prompt. They did not need even to confer one with another. If any question had remained to be decided by them, it would have shown that they were not in the right place. They were brought face to face to brave the authority and power of the highest potentate on earth, and the scorn of all the highest dignitaries in the realm, and finally the wrath of devouring fire. ‘If it be so,’ they said, ‘our God whom we serve is able to deliver us.’ This was the first, last, and ruling thought in the minds of these youthful heroes. Scattered all through the Sacred Volume are like examples to indicate to us the path of duty.

The history of the prophet Daniel furnishes us an illustration of the value of the principles of temperance and abstinence. Daniel purposed not to defile himself with the king’s meat nor with his wine. It was frequently the case that the meat used by the kings and princes of heathen nations, who were often the high priests of their religion, was first offered in sacrifice to idols, and the wine they used poured out as a libation before them; and again, some of the meat of which they made use was pronounced unclean by the Mosaic law; and on either of these grounds, Daniel could not, consistently with his religion, partake of these articles. Hence his request, as recorded in Dan. 1:8–16.

“But ‘there are times when for the sake of others, if not for our own, it may be our duty to abstain from things otherwise, or in other circumstances, permissible. The same apostle who counseled Timothy to use a little wine for his stomach’s sake and his frequent infirmities, said also, ‘It is good neither to eat flesh, nor to drink wine, nor anything whereby thy brother stumbleth, or is offended, or is made weak;’ and he declares for himself, ‘If meat make my brother to offend, I will eat no flesh while the world standeth, lest I make my brother to offend.’ Rom. 14:21; 1 Cor. 8:13.

“The character of the wines and other intoxicating drinks used in this country, the prevalence of drinking customs, the continued evidence before our eyes of the terrible effects of the use of these drinks, physically, socially, and morally, slaying, as they do, their tens of thousands, and drawing in their train misery, poverty, disease, and crime,—these facts are believed by many to make it the duty of Christian men and women, in general, in the exercise of that charity that pleaseth not itself and ‘seeketh not her own,’ to abstain entirely from the use of these beverages, for at least the sake of those who must one way or other be affected by their example.

“Grace is needed most in times of difficulty and trial. That grace was then afforded to Daniel and his friends in their perplexity. To Paul’s thrice repeated prayer, that the thorn in the flesh might depart from him, the only answer vouchsafed was, ‘My grace is sufficient for thee: for my strength is made perfect in weakness.’ Believing this, Paul gloried in his infirmities and necessities. ‘Neither tribulation, nor persecution, nor famine, nor nakedness, nor peril, nor sword, are able to separate the genuine believer from the love of God which is in Christ Jesus our Lord.’” — Homiletic Commentary.

“Daniel’s resolution in regard to his diet was the means of strengthening his character, and fitting him for future greatness. Each resolution carried out in spite of difficulty or natural reluctance makes a man stronger. An irresolute man is a weak man. The part of weakness is either to make no resolution or to make it and fail to keep it. Broken resolutions make a man weaker. ‘One resolution kept prepares one for keeping the next. A resolution manfully carried out is often the turning point in a man’s life, and the determination of a man’s character.’” — Id. U. S.

Misconceptions Concerning the Sabbath

By L. A. S.

ONE of the most commonly perverted texts of Scripture, says the New York Observer in speaking of “The Lord’s Day,” “is the declaration of the Master, ‘The Sabbath was made for man, and not man for the Sabbath.’ By an easy and popular method of modern interpretation,” says the Observer, “this is commonly understood to mean that man is practically above the law of the Sabbath, and that the Sabbath was made simply to serve man’s wayward whim or selfish ease. The average man, if forced to formulate his half-formed views on the meaning of this text, would probably say, ‘It means that I can do what I please on the Sabbath.’ If this contention be admitted, the whole fabric of Sabbath institutions and of legal enactments and social usages safeguarding the Sabbath, falls to the ground.”

In combating this perverted idea of the purpose of the Sabbath, the Observer proceeds to say:—

No man is at liberty in any sphere to do as he pleases. Human and divine laws encompass and limit him on every side. There is no such thing as absolute freedom for any individual. One of these constraints of law comes in with respect to the Sabbath. A man has a right to do on the Sabbath that which pleases God—nothing more, nothing less. The Sabbath is primarily not man’s day, but the Lord’s day. “The Son of man is Lord of the Sabbath day.” The Sabbath becomes secondarily man’s day in so far as it is utilized by man for the important purposes—such as physical

and mental resting and spiritual upbuilding—which the Lord of man approves.

We certainly agree with the Observer that the Sabbath was not given to man for him to use as he pleases. The Sabbath was made for man, but it remains the property of the Creator. “The seventh day is the Sabbath of the Lord thy God.” “The earth is the Lord’s, and the fullness thereof,” yet it was made for man. The Sabbath is the Lord’s, but it was made for man’s welfare. And it is for man’s welfare because it is the Lord’s,—because it was prepared by the Omniscient and by him adapted to man’s needs. That which God himself made must be of value, so long as it remains what he made it; and the Sabbath, being made especially for man by him who has infinite wisdom and power, is of inestimable value to man so long as no change is made in it. Finite, fallen man must not tamper with it; it must remain the Sabbath of the Lord. To say, however, that a man “has a right” to do on the Sabbath only “that which pleases God,” is to express a misapprehension of man’s relation to this beneficent institution. It is very true that it is not right to do aught else on the Sabbath than that which pleases God; but to define human rights in the matter of Sabbath observance, and to have “legal enactments and social usages safeguarding the Sabbath,” is to show a misunderstanding of the nature of the Sabbath altogether. No legal enactments or social usages can safeguard the Sabbath; and when people come to trust in such things as a safeguard for this divine institution, it is high time that they should fall to the ground.

What is right for a man to do on the Sabbath day, as regards its proper observance, is a question between him and God alone. As regards rights, which it is the purpose of human laws to define and maintain, a man is at liberty to observe the day in any way that he chooses, and no legal enactments touching its observance can ever be necessary or proper. Remembering that the Sabbath belongs to God, and that he himself has enacted a law for all mankind covering its observance, the impropriety of human legislation to define the proper observance of the day is plainly apparent. Human legislators have no business upon such ground. To God alone is every man accountable in the matter, and to legislate concerning it is the prerogative only of the Deity. It is a false sabbath, having no divine authority, but depending wholly upon human laws and customs for its support, that has given to men the idea of the necessity of legal enactments to safeguard the day. The Sunday institution began its career as a professedly Christian institution under the sanction of human law, and remains to-day dependent upon the same support.

The Observer, however, comes again further to the truth in the following statements, which present the great fact that the experiment of the Messiah was not to destroy or to change the Sabbath, but to present it more clearly to mankind by removing the rubbish of human traditions and enactments with which the Pharisees had covered it:—

Jesus sought to strip off the superfluities of Jewish will worship and of pharisaic formalism, which in the course of the centuries had so encrusted the Sabbath that its original spiritual intent disappeared from view. He never intended to abrogate the Sabbath, or to lessen any of its essential claims to human regard. Rather, Jesus Christ sought to give men more, not less, of the Sabbath, and imprinted upon its observance a holier and a happier sanction. That Jesus meant the Sabbath to be still observed, and how he intended it to be observed, may be gathered from his own personal course while on earth with reference to the seventh day. His use of that day was always for purposes that assisted the development of the higher nature of men, and that contributed to their healing or physical well-being. He was scrupulously careful to attend the synagogue services on the Sabbath, and the day was for him one of happy because holy activity, full of heavenly inspiration and of good deeds performed in behalf of a sin-weary humanity.

The truths here set forth are truths which all men, especially those professing to be followers of Christ, should know and remember. Jesus Christ came not to abrogate any of the claims of the holy day, least of all to institute a change from the day on which God rested after creation, to another day of the week. Had he done this, he would have given occasion for new laws and new customs and features of Sabbath observance on the part of mankind, which were the very things he sought to have removed. The voice and example of Jesus were for a return to the Sabbath observance which God ordained—to that which was of God alone and not of man. And this is the rule to be followed in presenting the subject of Sabbath observance to the world to-day. L. A. S.

Studies in the Gospel Message

THE subject of the Sabbath-school lesson for August 2 is Preserving the Temple from Defilement, and the portion of Scripture upon which it is based is Dan. 1:8-16.

It may be well to recall some things which were stated in our study last week. First, it was suggested that “the temple, or sanctuary, and its significance in the worship of God constitute the real theme which is dealt with” in the book of Daniel. The next conclusion was that “the heart of the sanctuary question is found in the great truth that it is God’s purpose to dwell with flesh, and that this is accomplished through the incarnation of the Son of God.” It was again further stated concerning Daniel and his companions that “the record of their experience in Babylon teaches the same truth to us as was taught in Babylon by the experiences themselves, and this truth is justification by faith.” Deprived of the temple at Jerusalem and its services, Daniel and his companions in Babylon were to reveal the same truth as was taught by the temple and its services,—the coming of the Messiah and the merits of his atoning sacrifice; and that through his taking the flesh, humanity would again become the temple of the living God. Faith in the manifestation of God in the flesh as the only hope of salvation was the gospel to be inculcated in Babylon, and the fact was to appear in their own experiences.

When Isaiah “saw also the Lord sitting upon a throne, high and lifted up,” he heard the voices of the seraphim, “and one cried unto another, and said, Holy, holy, holy, is the Lord of hosts.” The holiness of God is dwelt upon in many places in the Scripture. When Moses and the children of Israel sang their song upon the banks of the Red Sea, they said, “Who is like unto thee, O Lord, among the gods? who is like thee, glorious in holiness?” “The Lord our God is holy,” sings the psalmist. The revelation of the presence of the Lord, who is holy, renders the place holy where he is thus revealed. So it was at the burning bush: “And he said, Draw not nigh hither: put off thy shoes from off thy feet, for the place whereon thou standest is holy.” The same idea was emphasized in the tabernacle and its services. The Lord said, “Let them make me a sanctuary; that I may dwell among them.” The first part of this tabernacle was called the holy place, and the second, or inner, apartment, where the glory of the Lord shone forth from between the cherubim, was called the most holy place. The ark, the altar, the garments of the priests, the anointing oil, and other things associated with the tabernacle were all called holy. Special instruction was given concerning the handling of these holy things when the tabernacle was taken down and removed from place to place. Everything was intended to impress upon the minds of the people that the Lord was holy, and that holiness became his house.

Thus was taught in the object lesson what was afterward expressed in these words: “The temple of God is holy, which temple ye are.” When Jesus “spake of the temple of his body,” he established a principle of interpretation which helps us to make a personal application of the teaching of the temple and its services, and to understand that the scrupulous care which was required in looking after the temple of old, that it might be kept from everything which would pollute it, was a constant lesson in

the attention which should be paid to the “temple which the Lord himself has fitted up for the indwelling of the Holy Spirit.” This was the lesson which Daniel had learned.

“But Daniel purposed in his heart that he would not defile himself with the portion of the king’s meat, nor with the wine which he drank: therefore he requested of the prince of the eunuchs that he might not defile himself.” In the face of the seeming failure of the religion of Jehovah, Daniel and his companions were to reveal the reality of the gospel of salvation from sin through the power of the Lord’s indwelling presence in his own temple. They were to make known in Babylon that the high and lofty One, who inhabits eternity, dwells with those who are of a humble and a contrite heart. Their personal faith in this truth was tested over the question of defiling this dwelling place of the Lord, this temple of the Holy Ghost. It is true that “the king appointed them a daily provision of the king’s meat, and of the wine which he drank;” but to eat this food and drink this wine meant a defilement of the temple which they knew ought to be kept pure; it meant to them a denial of the whole truth taught by the sanctuary and its services; it meant to them a yielding of the whole question of righteousness by faith; to them it was equivalent to saying that man’s way of righteousness was just as good as the Lord’s way; it meant a denial of their faith.

The Babylonians were idolaters. It was the business of Daniel in that idolatrous city to reveal the one true and living God, in opposition to all idolatry. This he did, not by publicly declaiming against idolatry, but by keeping himself from idols. By his refusal to defile the temple of the living God he preached a convincing sermon from the text, “What agreement hath the temple of God with idols? for ye are the temple of the living God; as God hath said, I will dwell in them, and walk in them.”

Thus Daniel and his companions were proclaiming in Babylon that there is but one God, and that “in him we live, and move, and have our being.” And this is the reality of justification by faith, as opposed to a mere theological theory. To be justified by faith is to recognize the Lord’s life, and to receive it by believing. This is what Daniel did.

In the Toils of Rome.

By L. A. S.

NEGOTIATIONS between the government and the Vatican touching the disposition to be made of the Philippine friars, are still in progress, and the question seems no nearer to a settlement than it was a week ago. A speedy settlement of the matter is not the end for which the Vatican is working. The pope aims to prolong the negotiations, since as long as they continue, he is in a position to reap advantages in the shape of concessions from the American government. His position in the matter is well stated in the following press dispatch, which comes from Rome under date of July 12:—

There is apparently a disposition on the part of the Vatican to take advantage of the Philippine question to forward its desire for the establishment of diplomatic relations with the United States. The Vatican authorities hope that the question of the purchase of the friars’ lands and other matters involving the payment of money will render indispensable the continuance of relations initiated by Governor Taft for at least two years, while they are also hopeful of reserving the question of the withdrawal of the friars from the islands so as to prolong these relations even longer.

That there is a disposition on the part of the United States to make concessions to papal principles of government in the Philippines, is plainly indicated by the reports that come daily from the scene of the negotiations. It was a great concession in the first place, to send a representative to treat with the Vatican at all. The pope is not a temporal sovereign, and it was no part of the business of the American republic to adjust any religious questions that might be involved in the transfer from the old to the new system of government. To induce the United States to concern itself with such questions, and to sanction and uphold some part of the papal system in the Philippines, was no doubt the great end which Archbishop Ireland had in view in persuading the administration at Washington to negotiate over the matter with the Vatican. That was a triumph for the papacy, and a false step on the part of the Western republic, which bids fair to lead the latter into a contradictory, inconsistent, and humiliating position, through the wiles of papal diplomacy, in which Rome far outmatches her inexperienced antagonist.

Before these negotiations began, it was considered settled that the obnoxious friars were to leave the islands. Upon that point the government was fully decided. It now finds that the Vatican objects, and having undertaken to negotiate with the Vatican about it, the objections must be listened to, and the United States must not be too hasty, rude, or arbitrary in seeking to enforce its will. The reports now coming state that the United States is “urging” the removal of the friars—a decided modification of its lately expressed determination that the friars must go. No doubt the Vatican will stand a good deal of urging on this point before any definite settlement is reached.

One point the Vatican seems disposed to insist on is the control of the educational system in the islands. To establish religious schools under government control and support would be squarely contrary to the principles of Protestant and republican government, yet Rome goes so far as to hope that this may be accomplished before the negotiations are ended. And this is another point which the Vatican will utilize to prolong the game of diplomacy. A late cablegram from Rome states that “the pope is willing that the school question in the Philippines shall not be insisted upon at the present time,” and he “hopes that his representative at Manila may arrive at an understanding with Governor Taft on this point, which is of capital importance in a country almost exclusively Catholic.”

Meanwhile the forces of Rome are prepared to make a display of their political strength in the United States, which will be calculated to impress the administration with a sense of the importance of cultivating friendly relations with the papal power. We learn from the Catholic Mirror that a national convention of the American Federation of Catholic Societies is to be held August 5 at Chicago, at which “representatives will be present from all the States of the Middle West and from a number of the Eastern States in which there are Catholic societies which have become affiliated with the national body.” It will, says the Mirror, “be the most important gathering of Catholic laymen ever held in this country. More than half a million of Catholic citizens will be represented by delegates on the floor of the convention.” Its actions “are bound to have an effect upon the future associated activity of the American Catholic laity, and as such cannot fail to be of great interest to all Catholics throughout the country.”

That this Catholic federation was organized for the purpose of bringing political pressure to bear upon State and national parties and administrations for the purpose of Romanizing the republic, there can be no doubt. Its promoters have admitted that it was intended to secure political recognition of “Catholic rights,” which means the same thing. And just now Rome is in a position to reap the most from pressure exerted upon the dominant political party through this means. L. A. S.

Life Is True Wealth

THE true assets of an individual are not to be reckoned in the amount of his wealth, but in the amount of his life. The richest man in the world is the man who has the most life. Life is the one chief thing, and all other things are of value only as they are capable of being used to preserve or to increase life. With abundance of life, the lack of other things is of small account; but if a full measure of life is lacking, all other things in the world can do little toward making existence tolerable. Life is the true wealth, and the only source of life is God. He who would obtain this wealth, which alone can make existence truly enjoyable, must seek it by conformity with the laws of the Life-giver; and upon this condition it is within the reach of all. Christianity is simply God's plan for restoring to man the fullness of life which was lost to the human race by the first transgression.

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