A Message to Members and Friends of the Ethical Society of St. Louis, U.S.A. {September, 1940)
The words which may be said to supply the text for this message are taken from the Editorial published in " The Mouthly Record " for October, 1939.
I have been reading the Monthly Record of the South Place Ethical Society, in London, England. The members there are poignantly aware that their Society is in the " front line " of the European war. "There is a Public Air-Raid Shelter in Red Lion Square," is the notice one reads on the programme of their Sunday morning meetings! An aerial bomb exploded near their fine new meeting-place a few days ago. Their lives are seriously disrupted in many ways and are in jeopardy every hour. They are most grimly engaged in the defence of their country. But they continue to meet for fellowship. The fellowship which their Society affords means much to them. The following sentence from one of the Records suggests the spirit of courage and good sense which sustains them: "While the grave anxieties of the hour can never be far removed from our minds, and must find expression in our thoughts and writings, there is no need entirely to forget those interests which have hitherto made life worth living." The members know, perhaps as never before, that the high-minded interests sustained by their Society "have hitherto made life worth living," and so they quietly and resolutely maintain their Society "under fire."
These brave words from our friends across the sea recall a sentence from Irwin Edman: "Friends do not cease to be friends because the age is torn with enmities, and because there is gathering darkness we should not put out all the lights."
Here in Saint Louis we are not "under fire." But it can be said that we feel very definitely the disturbing effects of the wars in Europe and Asia. There are profound emotional agitations as we read or hear the daily news. There are deep mental and spiritual disquietudes as we become well aware that our ideals and principles are on trial. There are the disturbing insinuations that many of our professional and cultural interests are merely a matter of "fiddling while Rome burns." Economic upheavals are feared as the financial structures of the nation take the shock of international chaos. Drastic changes in personal and social routine are sure to come with the conscription of the nation's manhood, and the mobilisation of its resources. Even so, we may recall the sober and sensible words of our beleaguered friends: "There is no need entirely to forget those interests which have hitherto made life worth living."
Many are the things which make life worth living; we need not enumerate thern. But let it be said here that the fellowship which our Ethical Society affords gives worth and significance to your life and mine. Indeed, it is a fellowship which may transcend our family relationships since it is born "not of the flesh but of the spirit." "There is first that which is natural, and afterward that which is spiritual." It is a spiritual fellowship of the highest order, since it is a sharing of ideals and aspirations, of hopes and fears, of joys and sorrows, of triumphs and failures. It is a fellowship of free men and women who respect each other in the exchanges of thought and experience. And as we participate in a communion such as this, our minds are enlightened and stimulated, our spirits are encouraged and renewed, and the supreme values of life are made more vividly real and compelling. Truly, these values give worth to life; accordingly, we would sustain our Society in spite of disturbance and distraction, and keep the light burning.
To "join" such a fellowship is not enough; the relationship must be more deeply personal and more enduring. We greatly appreciate the interest and support of those who cannot participate more personally in the life of our Society but the general rule of membership should be the more intimate sense of "belonging" to the group.
I recall a meaningful paragraph from the Survey Graphic. It makes reference to that experience by which a person may come to realise more really and intimately that he "belongs" to a fellowship or group such as ours. The paragraph reads:
" No man yet has been happy without working, without contributing, without feeling that he is a part of civilisation. Now membership in a family, or a club, or a group, or a nation, or even tbe human race, comes not from drawing things out, but from putting things in. It comes from contributing, rather than from drawing unearned benefits. You can ascertain the truth of this from any man who has ever been on a 'dole'—who had drawn out, without being allowed to contribute. Perhaps some psychologist can tell us the reason for it. But I doubt if anyone will dispute the fact."
Our own personal contribution to, and participation in, the creation of the values which our Society seeks to encourage brings us into vital union with the sources of spiritual life—the source from which our own spirits may be replenished.
I am reminded of a story. A lay preacher had been invited to preach in a country church. His young son accompanied him to the appointment. As they entered the vestibule of the church the preacher generously dropped a contribution of fifty cents into a box marked "Home Missions." After the service, one of the deacons met the preacher, thanked him for the sermon, and then opened the box and gave the preacher the fifty cents (the total contribution!), saying that it was the custom to give the lay preacher the "home mission money" for expenses. As the preacher and his son left the church, the boy said: "Dad, if you had put more in you would have got more out ! "
The financial contributions are important enough, we need hardly say; but the best contribution we can give to our fellowship is ourselves—our presence, our sympathy, our opinion, our judgment, our enthusiasm, our encouragement. And the point of the story holds good—for the more of ourselves we give, the more shall we feel that we "belong" to the group, and the more shall we share in the spiritual life of the Whole.
Such is the promise which the services and activities of the coming season hold for each one of us. Let us make the most of our great opportunities.
"While the grave anxieties of the hour can never be far removed from our minds, and must find expression in our thoughts and writings, there is no need to forget those interests which have hitherto made life worth living."
J. HUTTON HYND.