Chicago Christian High School - Violet and Maize Yearbook (Palos Heights, IL)

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AN ATTITUDE TOWARD LIFE With the climax of our high school career we have reached one of the out standing peaks in our small lives We pause momentarily, and turn to look back upon those happy hours which we spent together, we think of the struggles we had in common, and how together we reached the goal of our striving While we stand at the summit a thrill of Joy, keen and rejuvenating, runs through our beings In all, it presents to our minds the picture of a pleasant dream, but which IS only transient There are bigger issues demanding our attention, and we must accommodate them For with the finish of our intellectual training, a bigger world places itself before us, a broader life opens to our view and we must assume an attitude towards both Of course, we were not without an attitude before this If we have lived to any extent we must have assumed an attitude But the school career is primarily one of trammg, and our lives have been to a large extent passive Rather than being active participants in the great battle of life, we were being trained to face it, and now that the time has come, we must assume a wholesome controlling attitude which shall be our guide through all the avenues of the life which awaits us The great question which now seeks an answer is, What attitude shall we assume as we enter a world which certainly IS not guided by the highest standards of ethics and religious faith? In determining the answer to this question, the nature of our training will naturally play a large part The impressions received and the influences which have exerted their power are potent factors in developing a state of mind If they are good and true they define right courses of action, move the will to strive for the higher and loftier levels of life, and cultivate in the soul ideals which shall point out to us what must be the ultimate goal of all our endeavors Education is essentially the preparation for the duties and responsibilities of life, but our attitude determines our conception of these duties and responsibilities. It cannot be denied that education is a mighty factor in interpreting life. It may impart a perverted notion of the calling of life, or it may reveal life as it actually is in all its beauty as well as its hideousness, with a true conception of its ulti- mate purpose. We may thank Cvod that our preparation has been a singularly Christian one, and that our minds have been developed by instruction pervaded with Chris- tian principles and ideals. There is only one possible way of finding a solution to the problems of life, and only one means of determining the standards which must regulate our conduct, and that is by ,access to the Word of God. Certainly, then, an education which has been presented from this point of view must possess a value which by far transcends the virtues of any other system of instruction. It rests upon us to make an appropriation of the teachings we have received, and now that we have the opportunity to face life, to bear out characteristically the Christian nature of our training, and to develop for ourselves, our fellow men, and for God ideals which lead to Christian living and service. If a correct interpretation has been made of the instruction received, we must become aware of one supreme principle which has been touched upon daily either implicitly or explicitly, an all-important factor which must play the leading role in determining our attitude toward life. It is this: that God is the center of all things, that he is the sovereign in all spheres of life, that our view of life must How forth from the all-inclusive principle that God is supreme, and that all our actions must be gauged by the standards which God has made, and not by standards set up by men. It is by this great principle that our life must be guided and our conduct regulated. This truth, believed in as such, must constitute our attitude toward all things, if we are to be consistent with the train- 20 ob xt s-4' -1X'!5fi3!Z1llllllllllllIlIllIIIIIlIllIElEFbl-iii f V I 0 L E T A N D M A I Z E g ?Ii-59.PEI9.IIlllllIlIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIUHASTEL'Z' 'Tw 1 to If W 'U W , - . . . H . . . . . ,, C 1 !.':e lSt'i15lI II IliIllIIllIIIIIIIIIIIlllllIIllIIIIIIIIlllllllIllllllllllllllllllllllllllIlllllllllllIIIlIIlllllllllllllllllllllllllIllllllllIllIllllllIllllIlllllllllllllIIIIEIIIIEIIIIIU ?1ffl'-1 .f V 3 F . .r. L.Hl .JN

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S Xx K-T' 'N'JETifllllllllllllllllllllllllllllllfll.F311-4:5 V I O L E T A N D M A I Z E ggaggagglymlImumglllpglllpglgfggggjgyx-- W. , e CLASS PRESIDENT'S ADDNRESS Dear Parents, Teachers, Relatives and Friends: The game is over. Another game is about to begin. Our proficiency in the first game will determine our success in the next. You have spent money and worry for us, and now you want to see results. You are not particular about our station in life-you do not ask, What salary will you get? You ask, How will you live? ' ' ' Young man, how will you live? is the question the Christian High attempts to answer. For this reason in relative values, the spirit, disposition, and inter- pretation have been the greatest educating factors of the school. Knowledge has increased, not only for the fact that we have mastered rules, laws, and principles, but because we have learned to measure ourselves. Our wisdom has broadened not only due to the facts that we have learned in our studies, but because the spirit of Christianity has been instilled into our lives,-that spirit which has nurtured our forefathers. This spirit of Christian living has been enjoyed by all. And this function is rated in terms of the spirit shared by the students and the faculty. As we graduates have completed this four year course pervaded by the spirit of Christianity which you have tried to implant, we can better see your profound interests and the magnificent goal for which you are striving. We proposed not to specialize, but do develop all phases of life. This quest of completeness, however, is an uphill battle. The development of the all-roundness pf mind and completeness of character very largely determines the success of ivmg. We have enjoyed ourselves immensely at the Chicago Christian High School, and we have experienced the aid of many working in our interests. We owe a debt of gratitude to the faculty who have faithfully instructed and guided us with their pains-taking cares, and to the board for their skillful management, always ready to encourage and build up. We owe a debt to our parents for their moral and financial support, and for sharing many disadvantages that their aim might not be frustrated, and to the many friends who have taken a deep interest in the welfare of the school. We have known your labors, and, I confess, we only partially understand your labors and your prayers. Dear fellow graduates,-our next move is about to be made, but whatever step we shall take, may our motto, Let us illumine the earth, lead us' to loftier aims and higher ideals. May we ever be faithful to our God, who reigns supreme in directing our course and prescribing our destination. - JACK ZANDSTRA. 19 Gd ?l':r'19i:i?lllllliililillllllllllllIlIIIIIIIIIIIIlllllllIlllllllllllllllllllllIIlllllIllllllllllllllllllIlllllllllIllllIIIIllllllIllllllllllllllllllllllllllllllIllllllllllllllllillllillllllif.'6l'n .f- bb

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Szxglv l-ei' A'X'lifirflllllllllllllllllllllllllllllaIF.932-GZQQ V I 0 L E T A N D M A I Z E wif?Pflillll'll''Ill'Illlllllllllllfifiiffvf' 'fri Just 0 Va : E E E : .- : : .. .1 E E 2 f Y .xi qv F4 Q ing we have received in home and church, as well as in the Chicago Christian High School. An outstanding characteristic of this view is that the whole of life is embraced by one principle. An interpretation of life, which makes God supreme is rich, full, broad, all-comprehensive, and comiszent. Consistency is one of the mainstays of life, it is one of the essential character- istics of God's being, it is a rare gem which every one should value highly, it is devoted to truth and remote from hypocrisy, it represents a stable life. Inconsistency is one of the marked weaknesses of mang and especially so in the realm of conduct. While God has revealed through His Word the standards with which our conduct must be in accordance, and which is sufficient for all of life, man sets up different standards for different spheres. Human life seems to be utterly dualistic-leading to more than one interpretationof life. But life is unitary because God is in the center of all things, to Him we are accountable for all our actions, and to Him must be ascribed all glory, honor and majesty. Our attitude, therefore, should be one which includes all of life under this one principle. Matters of religion should not be relegated to one sphere, and matters which are purely secular to another sphere, and a different code of laws set up for each circle. As soon as we do that we are led to a dualistic interpretation of life, and we become inconsistent. The law of God covers all of life, and if a different code is set up for any certain sphere, we act contrary to God's law by conducting ourselves in conformity with the man-made code. A life which would take God into consideration at all times and in all spheres is, indeed, not an easy matter. It requires the expenditure of all courage and for- titude and energy to live the true Christian life. Many have already despaired of ever being able to do so. Others have tried to sweep away such a view and in- terpret life as consisting of two co-ordinate spheres, one in which we regulate our conduct by secular, the other by religious standards. But the whole of life is religious because God is the origin and center of life. We are called upon to reckon with God all of the time, to do all things in conformity with his will,and to His Name's glory. Whether ye eat, or whether ye drink,-in whatever ye do, do it all to the glory of God. This is the view of life which is consistent, one which recognizes only one source of moral law, one which is determined by only one code, and which embraces all of life. This is the attitude which we must assume,-one which is distinctive in its nature, and which will meet with much opposition in this world of many codes. The price is many struggles, but it is just those struggles for the right which dis- tinguish us as the children of God. And as such we must be the light of the world, not only distinctive, but possessing illuminative qualities which spread their rays among our fellow men to enlighten darkened minds. To have as an ideal the diffusing of true light among men is certainly a lofty one, and one which is worthy of commendation. But it may be and remain a mere desire. Let it not be that only, but an impelling ideal which we conscientiously strive to attain. And may the command of Christ to let our light shine before men give added impulse to the hopes we cherish in that direction. We are indebted to the Chicago Christian High School for the emphasis placed upon these truths, to our parents for the sacrifices they have made, and above all to God for the benefits of a Christian training. It is our sincere wish and our prayer that our lives may manifest a devotion to the ideals which have been built up within us, and that our all may be consecrated to God, who is the sovereign of the universe, and the ruler of our lives. GEORGE Sron. 21 0 -VGJVSQ7-f'lf. :f 19'.'inllllllillliflllllllmummmullIlnlmulnulnllllnlIllmlllllllllmlllllmlliluulllllllnllllllmlllulHnlulnllilllilmll'nm'mlllmlnmlillllillm' 51123-:'.f Ii'32'- 'D