Norfolk High School - Milestone Yearbook (Norfolk, NE)

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24. were found insufficient, they turned to the most wonderful and glorious works of Nature, the sun, moon and stars, and worshiped them. Even this was inadequate, and, in their longing for something on which to bestow their adoration and devotion, they erected an altar to “An Unknown God.” The Christian world is not so unfortunate as to be ignorant of the one God, and His divine will Many hundred years ago God gave his people, through Moses, a creed, Ten Commandments. l'or simplicity, terseness and beauty, these have never been surpassed by any writer. In the tirst, part of this wonderful law, it is said, “Thou shult have no other God before me. Thou shalt not bow down thyself, to them, etc.” Thus, first of all, God sets up his own superiority. We seem to have forgotten that this may apply to us: but when we think of it, many of us worship brazen, golden and other images. “We figure to ourselves The thing we like, and then we build it up, As chance will have it, on the rock or sand.” We have different idols that we worship, beauty, wealth, fashion, ancestry Tis true our idols often fall short of what we expect. Beauty, fashion and wealth have a strange and easy way of slipping from our grasp before we are aware of its intended departure; and what, but his own actions, makes one man better or more noble than another?” “For all the sons of man are sons of God; Nor limps a beggar but is nobly born, Nor wears a slave a yoke, or Czar a crown, That makes him more or less than just a man.” “Tho.u shaft not take the name of the Lord thy God in vain, for the Lord will not hold him guiltless that taketh his name in vain.” Doubtless you have all heard the “small boy” spoken of as a necessary evil, something to be endured rather than enjoyed. Indeed, there is one stage in his existence when this is true. It is when he reaches that point where he thinks it manly to swear. He does not think how very disgusting it is, besides being directly contrary to the command of God. He does it because he hears men do it, for of course they would not do anything that was not manly or noble. How many of us “Remember the Sabbath day to keep it holy?” We go to church in the morning, and try to think we have done our duty. The remainder of the day is spent driving around, do-

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Q orA. Once, in the city of Boston, there lived a lady who kept in her library all the magazines and fashion plates she could get, so that she might be able to notice the change in fashions from time to time. After a while she observed that the newest fashions were but old ones brought hack again. Tis not only so with fashions, for we are all well aware of the fact that history repeats itself. The world is like a pendulum. In our age it swings far out, only to gradually return. We ever act upon impulse, and usually from one extreme to the other. Even Nature does her work over and over again. Plants, growing, absorb and decompose the carbonic acid in the air, and thereby store up energy derived from the heat and light of the sun. They decay, are buried, or eaten by animals, and exactly the same amount of energy is liberated or changed from potential to kinetic; and the same amount of carbon dioxide is restored to the air. Animals, in feeding on plants, transform the energy of sunlight into the energy of vitality. 'l'hus the seer, With vision clear, Sees forms appear and disappear, In the perpetual round of strange, Mysterious change. From birth to death, from death to birth, From earth to heaven, from heaven to earth, Till glimpses more sublime Of things, unseen before, Unto his wondering eyes reveal The universe an unmeasurable wheel Turning forever more In the rapid and rushing river of Time.” So let it be with our religion. This is an age when the pendulum has swung far out. Let it return. What we want is the old brought back with its original purity and goodness Tis natural for people to worship. The ancients knew not God. so they set up hideous blocks of wood and stone. When these

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iny; the work that w: i s I oft undone the day before, and a mutiny: ourselves 1» playing cards, base ball, or boat riding, forgetting to think any more about the Sabbath day, and of keeping it Imlv. We almost ignore the cnmmnndim'nt, ‘‘Honor thy father and thy mother.” W hen it was first given, it seemed a very reasonable commandment, but now 'tis the duty of parents to honor and obey their children. The better part of our parents' lives is spent in efforts to make our lives pleasant and useful, and have they not a right to expect wonderful things of us? How may we reach that high standard except by being pure and noble? W e may in no way do this better than by adhering to the religion given to Hod’s people so long ago. ’Tis only by His help and our efforts that we may be able to overcome the errors into which we have fallen. “Dear God and Father of us all, Forgive our faith in cruel lies,— Forgive the blindness that denies! Forgive Thy creature when he takes, For the all perfect love Thou art, Some grim creation of his heart Cast down our idols, overturn Our bloody altars; Let us see Thyself in thy humanity. —ivriiKL Reit .