Brotherhood

Brotherhood* BY JOSEPH QUINNEY, JR. The coming- of Jesus Christ breathed a new life into this vast world. His advent was heralded by a new star and songs of peace by the angels of heaven. It was the fulfiling of a promise that "The Redeemer of the Race" should come. His advent re- vealed a new system of thought and living that did away with and eliminated the old established Mosaic Law — "A tooth for a tooth, and an eye for an eye." The universe has received a new light, a new life and a new way. Thinking, doing, feeling may be termed the fundamentals of that most wonderful life. They may indeed be termed the very qualities whose presence or absence make for a successful or an unsuccessful life, as the case may be, because the predominating power in any line of work is the force which puts into operation thought, action and feeling. Men and women who have attained to heights of achievement in their lives have thought well and clearly, and have then acted out these thoughts with a feeling that has been distinctive, positive, effective and convincing. Conforming to any law requires a degree of human intelli- gence, before the law is comprehended or understood, and in the analysis of the law these three elements are the dominating forces. This fact was well understood by the Master. In social life, then as now, one finds a wonderful field in which to operate, and apply the law that governs right and justice. The class distinction which is usually found in social organizations is often very detri- mental to the progress of the race, and as a consequence there is an inequality among individuals. This inequality is the breeder of strife, discontent and crime. In such organizations, love, brother- hood and fraternity have been replaced by frivolity, light-minded- ness and material pleasures. Those of the supposed superior class subsist and live on the so called inferior class who are constantly contributing to the support and maintenance of the fashionable ones. We must remember that human feeling is the same in all, although in some there is a greater development of this feeling than in others. Those who have thought better, done better, and con- formed their lives more closely to the higher ideal, are better able to dominate the lives of others, whether in high or lowly stations *A Christmas sermon delivered at the Utah Agricultural College, Dec. 15, 1914.

8 IMPROVEMENT ERA of life. With this kind of society the world with its civilizations would grow better and higher, in fact, this is the only kind of society that will bring the race to the standards of the Christ. High and splendid thought comes only through high and splendid morals. In some of the high types of social life in the world today they aim at one thing only, and that one thing is to effect a standard that has in it the Christ-like qualities of love and brotherhood. In this they adopt and aim to carry out rules, and conform to the laws of purity, both phyiscal and moral, and they emphasize the sanitation of the mind fully as much, if not more, than that of the body. This, of course, makes them a power, a force, and a strength in the land. They embody in their code of faith, ethical, and moral principles which have in them the life- saving power of God. They teach, practice and feel the principles of honesty, sincerity, reverence, love, brotherhood, fraternity, loyalty and many other things that have been dedicated to the up- lift of man. These are they who radiate power and a wholesome influence, who think, feel and give. Benjamin Franklin headed an organization called the "Junta Club." The message of this organization was brotherhood, not the brotherhood of selfishness, of greed and seclusion, but the brotherhood that sends a spark of love into our being, inspires our souls, and sends us marching triumphantly on to God. The membership consisted of men who pledged their lives to the betterment of humanity. The splendid, truths lived and taught by this organization stand out as rays of light to all the social world, and act as some of the standards for the great message of Christ the Lord. Some of the truths are as follows: 1. "Have you met with anything in the author you last read remarkable or suitable to be communicated particularly in history, morality, poetry, physics, mechanical arts, or other arts of knowledge?" 2. "Do you know a fellow citizen who has lately done a worthy action, deserving praise and imitation, or has lately committed an error proper for us to be warned against and avoid?" 3. "Do you think of anything at present in which we may be serviceable to mankind, to their country, to their friends, or to them- selves?" 4. "Hath any deserving stranger arrived in town to your knowl- edge? What have you observed or learned of his character or merits?" Others, many others could be cited which have a direct bear- ing on the perfection of life. Those that have been quoted tend to convev the splendid power, force, and strength men and women have who embody them in their lives, and it is here that Christ and his religion as a force must have its beginning. The world todav is offering systems, organizations, creeds denominations and so- cieties all having: in them some element of salvation. Some are

BROTHERHOOD o strong in their advocacy of doctrinal <»r theological thought- many of these are unbalanced. "They have solved," so Henry Ward Beecher says, "the universe. They have not only got it. but they have formulated it." They seem to know God and his ways by the theological route. They fasten themselves to doctrine alone, leaving out some of the life-saving things that arc very essential in making Christ and his religion a force in the world. There are also some who reach, so they think, eternity by singing hallelujahs, songs and hymns, whose emotion is their religion. This is the force that moves them on to God. There are thousands upon thousands who show their devo- tion and worship in just the way indicated, and are accomplishing some good in the world to be sure. True, this kind of religion produces a feeling without much thinking or doing. This kind of worship is not the kind however that makes the Christ the power he should be in the world. There are some societies and churches who concentrate their energies and all upon mere devotional exer- cises and expect from it salvation. They have in their systems of worship formulated prayers, and printed services. They arc, at least some of them, honest and good. "When one looks into the interior life of these churches," so it is said, "he will find their charities, their sense of responsibility to the weak and poor, and to the ignorant, are perpetually acting as an inward fire, and developing intelligences not common to other forms of worship." But to establish the fact that Christ and his religion is the power that controls or should control, and will eventually control the universe, one must think, act upon and feel the force of his teach- ings. To establish a brotherhood that has in it the elements of salvation, both temporal and spiritual, there must be a combination of forces in the social and religious systems of the world that have for their foundation undciiled love. Right here it appears to me that it resolves itself to individual effort which means ultimately, family and community development. In dealing with the indi- vidual as the medium through which religion or brotherhood can have its social and economic value, we of course must find leader- ship, strong feelings of loyalty and faith- — a love for these two essentials, because these two qualities produce confidence in our fellow men. The individual must be disciplined in loyalty and faith before there can grow out of him such strength as will in- fluence the family or the community, and so the social value of religion or brotherhood is brought on by a process of applying such principles as harmonize with moral and ethical laws. It is said, "The world belongs by a law of nature to the disciplined and pro- ductive races, and not to those who devote themselves to graceful consumption, and eminent leisure." In other words, there is but little if any value in the one who consumes, and does not give anything in return. The many inter-

Hi IMPROVEMENT ERA pretations that have been placed upon that scripture which says, "Who is my neighbor?" has brought us to a conclusion that in a perfect brotherhood, all men to whom we can contribute good must of necessity be our neighbor. The value of unity can only he appreciated and understood by a unity of effort. Some sixty years ago Denmark was having a terrific struggle in producing enough breadstuff for her own use. in fact, her wheat crop at that time was hardly marketable, her people numbering 2,775,000, were discouraged, but the individual efforts of one man brought into the lives of these Danes the great principle of co-operation, lie organized societies, and taught them the material principles of brotherhood and unit}'. Through the efforts of this bishop in combining good ethics with his church, there was brought about the phenomenal growth that his country has made during the last half century. Today, Denmark has out of her 2,775,000 people, 918,000 who are engaged in farming and dairying, 16,000 who are gardening, 16,000 who are in the forestry, 34,000 in the fishery business, 675,000 engaged in the industrial pursuits, and 114,000 who are professional men and women, 85% of these people own their own farms, and own more wealth per capita than any other nation in the world. These people furnish England alone with 92,500,000 dollars' worth of butter and eggs and bacon a year. I have given this as an illustration of the direction of splendid ethics into social, and religious life, again demonstrating the fact that to establish a brotherhood among men, there must me think- ing, doing, and feeling in an individual way. The unfolding of God's truth has always been marked by an advance in the progress and civilization of the world. There have been a few always who have launched a new thought that has startled mankind, and in almost every instance where a new thought has been launched upon an unbelieving world, this thought or truth has been rejected, and many new thoughts or truths have been crushed because of so much opposition, and it has required the combined forces of both moral and physical courage to restore these truths so that the human race could be brought closer to- gether in the bonds of brotherhood and love, and to understand more perfectly God's great power and force. There has always been and ever will be an agency through which the Great Master will operate and develop his truth, and these agencies whether they be men or women will have the full approval of all classes of society whose members are susceptible to truth, but they must be susceptible before society can effect a brotherhood that will be influential and strong. "Truth will pre- vail'' is a fact so thoroughly demonstrated that there can be no question about its coming to light sometime, even after it has been partly developed, and seemingly crushed, never again to rise, but after years of seeming oblivion it raises majestically to the pedestal

BROTHERHOOD II where it belongs, and proclaims to the world its light, its power, and its strength. With each truth conies a manifestation of God's splendid power, a new revelation, if yon please, to the civilizations of the world. How good and how splendid it is to be in the presence of great men and women who possess qualities of truth, who are big in spirit, who are sonl-inspiring, and whose very lives are the embodiments of truth. In different periods of the world's history some splendid man or woman has been nsed in different vocations to unfold the revealed wisdom and truth, and it has re- quired at times a force of character, moral and physical courage, and strong convictions to have mankind see and understand this wisdom, and the philosophy of these truths ; each generation of people have had its skeptical, perverse and unbelieving. These have ever been ready to oppose any and everything that has had the stamp of divinity upon it, but thanks to God, on the other hand, there have always been a few possessing the courage to take up the right, and by concerted effort they have been able to bring about reforms that have added blessings to the race. The brother- hood of man in its full sense of meaning would revolutionize the religious, the social, the political, and the business world, because it means the commencement of an individual reform, a family re- form, and a community reformation. Individually it would mean a full control of one's self, harmonizing with all the laws of bet- terment and the development of a perfect love and self-control. When an individual can control and bring himself under a proper condition of mind and soul, he can then handle and control others. We may have good institutions of government in the land, but if the community, the family and the individual, disregard the prin- ciples of that government, its principles serve but little good in the establishment of peace and order. So, in commemorating this festive season, we are brought face to face with this mighty prob- lem of individual service, we are reminded of the star that indicated the pathway of the Three Wise Men, that led them to the place of the Christ Child. We see them wrapped in bonds of love and brotherhood offering splendid and costly gifts as tokens of love and confidence — to Him who had come to bring peace. This realization had been premeditated and thought out, it was the most wonderful thing that had ever come into their lives, they had seen the Christ, they had blessed him with their worship and costly gifts ; they had opened their hearts to an unselfishness that gave them courage, and the assurance of a perfect peace. Here is the suggestion of the divine mission of the Holy One, what it means, and what it is doing. We know that gladness filled the Wise Men's hearts. We know they gave their gifts as tokens of love, but do we know what Christ did for the Wise Men, and the entire human race? Do we know that his advent connected the genera- tions of men since the world began with the Gospel Chain of eter-

U IMPROVEMENT ERA nal life? And do we know that his system provided for a perfect life by means of an individual work? Peace and brotherhood was his message ; and brotherhood is peace, and is the result of indi- vidual service ; and a service that brings into one's soul the feeling of brotherhood is the peace that builds a perfect life, and when a perfect life operates, it infuses the life-giving spark that forces into action every element of the tenderest feeling of love. Again, let us repeat that this great life has supplied the civilizations together with all the Christian churches of the world with truths that have been the basis of social reform, religious movement, and peace standards. A very careful analysis of the condensed state- ment of Jesus Christ, "Love the Lord thy God with all thy soul, mind and strength, and thy neighbor as thyself," is ample for the conclusion that brotherhood is an individual work, and in ar- riving at his standard of peace, it can only be developed through the mind and soul of man. The matter of right and wrong is and always has been un- derstood by the individual. His attitude very often determines his influence in the community. If the spirit of brotherhood is the predominating force, it is because of an inward development of the soul. In other words, it is the perfecting of peace through the application of high thought, and it must be understood that the principles that govern brotherhood are comprehended only as far as the precepts of the principles are exemplified in the life of the individual. Yes, the great message of the Christ was brotherhood, it was a harmonization of the material and the spiritual. It was a reaching out and up for the souls of men, it was a fellowship of God, and indeed a brotherhood of man. Again, I say, what affects the individual, affects also the family, the community and the na- tion. The individual that understands the law is he who has lived the law, and can understand more thoroughly the message of the Christ. We have referred to the pleasure of being in the presence of great men and women. We will find in the majority of cases that they have been influenced in their thoughts and actions by the Great Master. I quote here a thought that came to my notice, and which bears out the fact above stated, "The greatest thought ever spoken by human lips, the brightest gems of tongue or pen can beautify and enrich that garden of your soul, and through you shine in thousands of other lives, and fill the world with joy. The great thing is not how can I get riches, nor how I can get health and happiness or fame or pleasure, nor even character and peace, but how can I give these things ? Give to others health and char- acter and hope and joy? Reflect the highest good to the greatest number, help to redeem the world?" The question was asked a year ago, "What would Christ do if he were to come again?" Conditions in human life are almost the same in different periods of the world's historv. It is not that we have lost the uniform

BROTHERHOOD 13 standard of measurement for- things moral, but it is because we have neglected to apply the law that governs the standard of meas- urement for things moral. It is not that we have lost the con- science of the Nazarene, and the ethics he established, but it is because of neglect in the development of that consciousness which could cause us to apply his ethics. Should he come again he would undoubtedly bring with him the same feelings of brother- hood and peace. He would apply the force of his teachings through his divine presence, and teach that to know brotherhood is an individual practice of the laws that govern it. He would labor to have mankind understand how they could stand the test of the written law by applying the law. He would have us work out more perfectly his condensed words so as to bring into our lives a greater and more splendid truth — the development of which would give us the assurance of eternal life, bring us to a point where the relationship of God and man could and would be under- stood. He would teach us to know God, in whose image we are created. He would impress upon us that this life is one of love inspired by the love of service ; and because of this it would mean the development of the mind and hand and heart. It would be giving to society a full measure of service for value received. This, of course, would mean an organization of our forces so that we could deal successfully with men, and be saviors to some one. Using the words of Mr. Knox, then, "It would mean to be gen erous, to give of our substance and ourselves, to make men better, to reach out and up and all about, towards the development of great souls and the redemption of men." His advent would mean a universal peace, and a perfect brotherhood of man, a system of reform, if you please, that would tend to establish a perfect law. the application of which would bring us back into the presence of God, and crown us with eternal life and immortality. LOGAN, UTAH Poetry for the Way Up "When next you step out of the elevator, see how this fits the trip : "For a moment it has borne Roses, stars, and tin; slime Youth and A.ge, Love and Crime, Of Baseness, all unseen, Hearts "i" bli>s. hearts forlorn: Have packed it to the doors I: lias taken toll of Time \s it streaked past the floor- With each potential i\wi\ With the prince and the pauper, That the Fates have decreed: The shop girl and the queen. "There are five more stanzas as William Rose Henet wrote it in tin' New York Evening Sun, but this one seems to have caught the eternal romance of a transient incident of ever) day. This is what poetry can do for us once in a while." - Colliers.