TEMPERANCE!—This is our golden hour to press the temperance issue. The need is tremendous. Mankind is disillusioned, fearful, heartsick. It has been bruised through sorrow, harrowed by pain, and is concerned over the future. It has turned away from the solace of God and the true comfort and hope of the gospel. It is futilely seeking to drown its sorrows with the bottle. It wants relief. It wishes to forget for the moment. It wants the artificial stimulus of false optimism and synthetic happiness. As I traveled to England recently drink was flowing on the great ocean liner en route. Old and young, men and women, were seen everywhere with a bottle or a glass. The liquor quest is rampant itt London. On short walks I passed dozens of "pubs." All other places were closed and dark. These alone were open wide and bright with lights. The stench was sickening, and the sight of so many women and girls among the men drinking deeply hurt and stunned me. This is the time to lecture on temperance—in churches, clubs, civic organizations, high schools, everywhere. Develop some supertalks with different approaches, and give them wherever you can. Make them sound, scientific, convincing, appealing. Bring temperance into every evangelistic series. Circulate Listen, our new temperance quarterly. Get signers to the pledge. And above all, lead men to the Saviour, away from sorrow, disillusionment, and drink. Let's do strong preventive work, and rescue work as well. The American Temperance Society will help you.
UNPROFITABLE!—There is no more incontrovertible fact in history than that the crushing domination of paganism under the Roman Government was superseded by the Roman Papacy, which was its religious counterpart. Every informed Adventist knows and teaches this unquestioned truth. There is likewise unassailable proof that the Papacy has substituted an earthy sacrifice, and earthly priesthood, and a fictitious sanctuary for the one true and only sacrifice of Christ and His heavenly priesthood in the heavenly sanctuary above. This is the essence of the supreme ecclesiastical perversion of the ages—the blighting mystery of iniquity. On this also all who believe the former truth are likewise united. The one point of difficulty and difference, with some, is whether it is the former or latter truth that is taught in the particular terms of Daniel 8. And the vast majority of workers see no need for fruitless controversy over the textual interpretation of this scripture. Let us heed the admonition of the Spirit of prophecy not to make this point a test of one another's orthodoxy and of loyalty to God and His message.
PLAGIARISM!—Common honesty demands that credit be given when quoting another's words, or even when closely paralleling his thoughts. The apostolic situation of having "all things in common," does not extend to the appropriating of another man's literary production. We, as Christian workers, who honor and preach the binding obligation of the Ten Commandments—including the eighth, "Thou shalt not steal"—should be above reproach in personal honesty in the field of recognized literary ethics. The great majority of our men are careful and conscientious about credit to whom credit is due. But an occasional offender brings reproach upon the rest of the ministerial and journalistic fraternity, who are innocent. This is not a matter of individual judgment but of definite moral principle, recognized by all high-minded men, whether religious or irreligious. It is so clearly recognized as to be wrought into copyright laws whose infractions are punishable by civil penalties. Christian motives are, of course, higher than the deterrent of civil law.
SIDE LINES!—The call to the ministry is a summons to give oneself exclusively to the preaching and teaching of the Word and the work of the church. The response to that call involves acceptance of the clear principles and involvements implicit in such a call. It is a pledge to abide by the regulations governing singleness of conduct and right relationship to the church. A call to the ministry is not only a call to the renunciation of moneymaking as a business but is also a summons to refrain from dabbling in side lines to supplement one's income by selling automobiles, dispensing vitamins, dabbling in real estate, receiving commissions on sales, and the like. It is bad enough when our people sense that a minister is transgressing in these matters. But when it gets into the public press, and such proclivities are aired in the newspapers, it becomes more than ever a personal disgrace, an affront to the brotherhood of ministers, and a reproach upon the fair name of the church. Each of us is under solemn bond to the good name of the church.
L. E. F.
