Ipswich High School - Tiger Yearbook (Ipswich, MA)

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the unmaterial, divine spark in a man, will be dealt with in accord- ance to what it has to offer. This must be in spiritual terms, not ma- terial; in thoughts, not deeds; and in intentions, not actions. At the beginning of life we all have an equal chance spiritually, although never materially. It is what we make of this chance that counts. There is an opinion that only a few great events in a per- son’s life really count, that all else is negligible. The beauty and per- fection of detail that God strews about us in Nature is sufficient ref- utation of this stand. Rather it seems to me that at death the soul is judged by its life as a whole, an artistic whole, for it is the soul that directs the body. The whole is greater than the part; therefore, every little incident, every minor thought, helps to build up or break down the structure of the soul. The painter tries to achieve beau- ty by a reproduction of a very small part of life. The sculptor also. No book nor music can portray more than an artistic reproduction of life, and a very limited part. Yet when successful, the artist in any field of beauty is praised and honored. Not every one can be an artist with words or images, but every person has an infinitely greater opportunity in his own self and life. Everyone has himself to work with. Every- one has the opportunity to dip his mental fingers into a living, sentient bit of the changeless and immortal and to mold it into a greater artistic completeness than any earthly en- deavor. This must be done not merely by conformation to contemporary mor- als and laws but by appreciation of the beauties and wonders of Nature and the evidence of God in our- selves. Material acts do not count in comparison with spiritual emo- tions. It is better to feel the strong heart-tug of sympathy than to give millions in charity merely to be called a philanthropist. We should be judged by quality and not quan- tity. God created all spiritual parts of us. What we call good or evil in ourselves must come from God and it is undoubted that only good and beauty can come from Him. Let us then, freely exercise all emotions and desires of the spirit, for in that way lie beauty and God, and criti- cize only the grosser influences of the world. — Ralph Ladd. V.)

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as well make the best he can of it, not troubling himself much about where and what life came from and to where and to what it will go. For this point of view he has as evi- dence his senses, seeing, hearing, etc., and his logical, reasoning- brain. As to the other point of view, the religious, poetic attitude, one may believe that this material world and life are merely secondary, that the human spirit comes from and re- turns to an infinitely greater and better place than this, that in each heart there is something of the God- like and changeless, and that man has unlimited power over himself. For this side he has as evidence im- agination and a certain part of our being, an elusive, misunderstood quality called a soul. In other words, man may sensibly accept his inevitable limitations or stupendously play the fool and de- clare that he is at will omnipotent in life. To support the first alter- native he has a finite organism which has often been proved er- roneous; for the other an infinite, immaterial quality which has never been proved to exist at all. One places his trust in what he thinks he sees ; the other in what he knows he doesn’t see. Of course, these ob- servations apply only to those who do cut away from convention and think for themselves. Accepting the first premise, the present becomes of superlative im- portance, the main object of life be- ing to enjoy it at the moment. Most people accept the pursuit of happi- ness as the ultimate occupation, though probably they wouldn’t if someone hadn’t told them to. It is a selfish theory that one should have as good a time as possible in life , but though sometimes discred- itable, selfishness is a necessary ele- ment in the world. The mass of people, although professing to be religious, unconsciously follow this doctrine. Proceeding on the second basis of thought, one enters the realm of faith. Admitting the existence of superhuman worlds before and af- ter death, one has before him the relation of life to these. Is it great- est or least? The poet utterly re- fuses to accept anything less attrac- tive than this world and so makes our life a mere interlude, a strange interlude, between unlimit- edly higher existences where all mysteries are made clear. With this admission comes the idea of divid- ing after-existence. Heaven and hell were probably first invented by priests for their own ends. Yet be- cause of the superstition of human nature and because it worked, this idea has become deeply rooted in the world. Because this existence is full of trials, it is logical to sup- pose that this whole life is a trial, a preparation for something else. But how can we know what consti- tutes success in this trial ? Material advantages vanish at the grave. Morals and customs varv in differ- ent times and places. These facts lead one to think that man invents his God rather than that God in- vents mankind. Yet the very being and existence of man seems to in- dicate something greater than him- self. some first great uncaused prin- ciple which for lack of a better name we call God. It is an observed fact that the world gives to mankind in propor- tion to what it receives. Man gets what he deserves in the long run. Tt is logical to reason that at death the human soul, spirit, identity, or whatever one may choose to call 18

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Graduation Essays IN DEFENSE OF PURITANISM Ralph Ladd Now that the Tercentenial cele- bration of the founding of Massa- chusetts is over, many people know less about the Puritans than they did before. They have learned much about the chairs and fire- places that the Puritans used but little of the Puritans themselves. Some people consider the Puritans as men who were so persecuted by the English royalty and the aristoc- racy that life in England became unbearable to them, and so they came to Massachusetts to establish an ideal community of religious freedom and democracy. Others consider the Puritans as gloomy, iron-sou led hypocrites who were constitutionally unable to enjoy life themselves and were therefore de- termined that nobody else should. It is the fashion to cast the blame of anvthing in modern life that is repressive, narrow, or provincial on the blighting influence of the Puri- tans. It is also a popular delusion that the only Puritans in the world were the ones who came to the shores of New England. To discuss any historical move- ment we must first find out just what principles it declares and what its sources are. Careful study convinces one that the essence of Puritanism is an earnest effort to live a life nearer to God. It was with this aim that a group of sin- cere, strongly religious men gave up the land of their birth and sought to build a city of God in the wilder- ness of America. They were the first to call themselves Puritans, but their spirit had existed since the dawn of civilization. Ever since men have been aware of a greater thing in the world than immediate necessities, a few idealists have at- tempted to find truth and moral perfection by harmonious union of faith and austere self-controlled study. These men were Puritans. St. Paul was the greatest Puritan. He attempted to elevate the moral level of humanity by an earnest ap- plication of the teachings of Christ and he set up Christian churches everywhere. The group of English Puritans of the 17th Century at- tempted to build an ideal commun- ity founded on the Bible and they established a system of schools and a college to spread this ideal. Paul lost his head to Nero, and the Puri- tans are now ridiculed and misrep- resented ; but Paul lives a larger life in the teachings of the Christian re- ligion, and the Puritan spirit is the most commendable spirit in this teeming country today. Some of the principles of Puri- tanism were absolute reliance on the Bible as the foundation of re- ligion: simplicity and sincerity in worship ; deep intolerance of heresy and false doctrines; abiding respect for law as a principle, but ceaseless opposition to laws as made by kings and bishops; strengthening of the character by self-discipline ; and firm belief in themselves as God’s elect. With these ideals in mind the Pur- itans had colonized Massachusetts. These men were emphatically not oppressed peasants nor stern fanat- ics — thev were the best of the Eng- lish student and upper middle class- es. Their strongest contingency 20