Steinbach Bible Institute - Star Yearbook (Steinbach, Manitoba Canada)

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REV. ARCHIE PENNER THEOLOGY, GREEK, EXEGESIS, CHURCH HISTORY An Unparalleled Present Christian Imperative As never before, we are living in the age of publicity. Mass media of communica¬ tions, many and various, are shaping and molding the peoples of the western culture in ways and to an extent never before dreamed possible. And the end is not yet in sight. There Is, evidently, much more to come. As we realize this we shudder, and rightly so. We are not afraid of the means and techniques which modern science has produced and made available for us to use. The right, the truth, and all which can be placed in this category, can never have too much publicity. For the Church with its God-given mission and task not to use the best and most effective means of com¬ munications in these modern times would, perhaps, be somewhat akin to Paul not using ships in his missionary travels, or, Luther not availing himself of the printing press. No, the Church does not face the problem of use or non-use of modem means of mass communications. Rather, it faces the problem of their use or misuse. The misuse can be found precisely in the fact that a society or culture, which has not subjected itself to obedience to Christ, is, seemingly, in total or almost total posses¬ sion of most of these mass media. Christ’s principle, “. . . out of the abundance of the heart the mouth speaketh,” is as true of the culture as of an individual. Conse¬ quently, it is first the culture which must come to terms with Christ and His Gospel before the Church can expect a pure stream of content through these means of communications. One sample of much which constitutes the contents of our mass communications today can be seen in the following brief description. Of course, it would be totally wrong to criticize and condemn all content on the basis of one example. However, the mood, the tendency and the direction which it sets, plus the fact that it is in inorganic relationship with the overall provides a measure of at least some value. This is a sample. Four Chicago television stations were monitored for one week. Only the children’s programmes were test¬ ed. This was the result: 295 violent crimes were portrayed. There were 93 murders, 78 shootings, 9 kidnappings, 9 robberies, 44 gun fights, 2 knifings, 33 sluggings, 2 whip- lashings, 2 poisonings, and 2 bombings. The number of children shows was 134. A film- televised at 12:30 on Sunday afternoon in Chicago showed two prisoners giving a clear explanation of how to kill with one swipe of the knife. Children watching this programme also saw a girl murdered by being run down by a truck. And so the story goes. This must be modified depend¬ ing on locality, but knowledge of facts re¬ veals at least a resembling pattern wholly at variance with the Gospel standard of morality and necessity. However, it must be granted that far more subtle impositions of a culture outside of the Kingdom of God are at work in influencing the Church. What, then, is the problem? The problem is nothing short of the colossal. It is a threefold problem. There is first the task of regenerating the culture. Here the Bible is clear. Sinful society and its culture will remain till the end. The Church has made and will make its impact upon society, but this only in part. Then there is the nega¬ tive approach. But this is offensive only. It is withdrawal. The purpose is that at least the Church will not be leavened by the culture which is disobedient to Christ. While there is no doubt, virtue and value in this approach, it will not be either the whole or the most effective answer. There is a third answer at which the Church is obliged to take a most serious look. And this constitutes the unparalleled present Christian imperative. The Church must consciously, and in all determination, in¬ vade the whole area of mass media and bring them into obedience to Christ. Too long have these been left to the “world”. In the absence of a firm grip on these me¬ dia, the Church has too long been swayed and molded by these worldly cultures. The time has come where the Church must sway and mold for Christ. The pen is still mightier than the sword. A. F. Penner 11

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MR. EDWARD REIMER DEAN The Art of ' True Friendship “Friendship is unselfish love between two hearts. It is the highest born, and longest lasting, and finest woven of any tie that binds human hearts together.” Gushing forth from the eternal fountain of God’s own love, true friendship can never be broken, but will continue to flow in an ever deepening and widening stream throughout eternity. Thousands of people go through life never knowing the joy that affectionate friendships can bring, w hile thousands of others are starving for their friendship. There are in every community enough friendless people to surround with affec¬ tion every individual in need of friends. If you are in need of friends do not wait for others to seek your friendship, but offer yours to those who need it. Many a lasting friendship has been built upon a warm handshake or a sympathetic smile in time of trouble or bereavement. How blessed the Christian community would be if less people would search in vain for lasting friend¬ ship among the popular or befriended, and more would prepare feasts for “the poor, the maimed, the lame, the blind,” Luke 14:13. Friendship is not much dependent upon similar interests and personalities; it fol¬ lows those who are genuinely kind, and sincerely interested in the well-being and happiness of others. One who tries to de¬ termine the interests of the other person; who listens with enthusiasm to that which enthuses a friend; who listens with sympa¬ thy to the thing that troubles another; who ENGLISH GR. X, NOVEL AND COMPOSITION GR. XII, CHEMISTRY GR. XI, PHYSICS GR. XI makes the next one feel that his enthusiasm is warranted and his troubles are real — he is the one who has friends. Cause a person to realize that he makes a difference in your life, and you have won a friend. Another way of saying the same thing is, “A man that hath friends must show him¬ self friendly.” Proverbs 18:24. True friendship, like God, is no respecter of persons or circumstances. It has the same warmth in the poverty of the slums as in the luxury of the king’s palace. It is often the warmest between those of great difference in age, or position in life. There is none too poor or too feeble to pay the p rice. As the warmth of the sun will draw a pure white lily forth from the black slime at the bottom of a pond so the warmth of Christian friendship will draw forth a sanctified soul from the filth of human depravity. True friendship is characterized by a willingness to sacrifice. It is a sacrifice that thinks not so much of the cost as it is concerned with the giving of self to someone in need. A friend chooses to give of self without expecting any return. He has the courage to stay true even in time of adversity. He is willing to give of him¬ self even when it is not convenient. Christ, the supreme example of true friendship, never turned away a soul in need or troub¬ le, regardless of how inopportune the time. He also taught us that the culmination of true friendship is laying down one’s life for a friend. John 15:13. A true friend is also willing to play the part of a surgeon, to take the razor edge blade of God’s Word and permit it to cut away any bad growth that could cripple a friend for eternity. This is not easy, it requires utmost skill, but it is the acid test of true Christian friendship. “Friendship has the daring courage of the man defending his home; the clinging tenacity of the mountain goat on the dizzy heights of the far cliff; the soft tender¬ ness of a mother with her new bom babe; the rare judgement of a wise woman in her gentle-voiced counselling; the unfailing faithfulness of the heavenly Father in his dealing with sinful men; the unselfish steadiness of the skilled surgeon swiftly plunging his blade into the living flesh; and the fine grained strength of the Son of God as He climbed the Calvary steep.” Edward Reimer

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MISS DOREEN REIMER HEALTH GR. X AND XL ALGEBRA GR. XI, LITERATURE GR. X AND XII. DRAMA AND POETRY GR. XII. COMPOSITION GR. XI, TYPING The Road Taken A universal experience is expressed in a poem by Robert Frost. While travelling alone one day, he came to a fork in the road. Hesitatingly he stopped for a long moment to consider which road had “the better claim.” After choosing the less-fre¬ quented one, the poet, quizzically imagining the choice to be a very important one, wan¬ dered what difference the decision would make in his future. Many times in my life I have come to a fork in the road and wondered which way to go. Remembering that “way leads on to way,” that often there can be no retracing of steps, I realize that each choice, whe¬ ther important, or seemingly unimportant, will have an indelible effect on my future. Some of the choices I have made, have left no lingering regret in my mind. At the first crucial crossroad it was my solemn prerogative to choose Christ and salvation or my own way and rejection. The heart¬ breaking price Christ had paid for my re¬ demption was more than my mind could fathom. Entrusting my life to Him, He be¬ came my constant Companion, guiding me over rough places, renewing my strength at the end of the day, and providing inex¬ haustibly for every need. Before long I came to a second major di¬ vergence in my path. Now the choice lay between following my Guide all the way, or taking the well-worn side road of my own will. Many, I observed, chose the side road and were faring well; but I observed too, that those who surrendered their wills to Christ had a joy that nothing could de¬ stroy. Again my choice was fixed on Him. Looking back over the road I have taken, I can see places where I stumbled, but the Lord lifted me and “established my go¬ ings.” “Two roads diverged in a wood, and I— I took the one less travelled by, And that has made all the difference.” Doreen Reimer Higher Education “Many shall run to and fro and know¬ ledge shall be increased.” (Daniel 12:4b). A quick retrospection on the events of the past twenty or thirty years forcefully im¬ presses upon us the truth that we are liv¬ ing in the days foretold by Daniel. Know¬ ledge and the thirst for knowledge of our day is unprecedented in the history of mankind. Institutions of learning are crowd¬ ed to capacity; new schools are constructed and yet the demand for more and better learning facilities is increasing. Today we are confronted with a gene¬ ration of young people who exert them¬ selves to obtain knowledge. To present to them the claims of Christ effectively, we must meet them on their own level. Al¬ most invariably, this will necessitate the Christian to obtain a secular education equal or higher to that of the people he would serve. A knowledge of science and history enables him to discuss intelligently things that may hinder the natural man in deciding for Christ. Guidance from solid Continued on page 40 MR. ED. PLETT HISTORY GR. XI AND XII, GEOMETRY GR. XI, GEOGRAPHY GR. X, SCIENCE GR. X, MATH. GR. X 12