AMERICA'S WESTMINSTER ABBEY

By ANGELA MORGAN

The hills of all the world their witness bear
To One Supreme, Invisible, Divine,
The Essence of our being, and its Cause.
In far cathedral, synagogue and shrine
The tablets of the ages bid us pause,
Beholding how the burdened race may wear
The future's glory in its hour of prayer. .

So let us build this temple of our land.
As though the nation's valor, swift and warm,
The nation's soul, like Heaven-leaping fire,
Had towered into great, enduring form,
Each noble window and new-risen spire
Through burning centuries of faith to stand,
A symboled promise and a pure command.

Thus shall America defeat the sword,
With taller Truth than any Gothic door;
An abbey where the people's soul shall speak
Its mighty Legend for the future's lore;
A temple where the warring shall be meek
And sundered nations find their true accord.
This is our country's Dream. Perfect it, Lord.

P

BROADCASTING RELIGION and Women's Clubs in St. Louis,

Kansas City, Denver, San Francisco REACHING in the Bethlehem

and Los Angeles the newspapers Chapel of Washington Cathe

broadcast his remarks to their enddral on “Creeds and Chris

less millions of readers. Without tianity,” Bishop Rhinelander as

the news interest of the New York serted that there is a growing in

newspapers and the cooperation of terest in religion and a growing the press Bishop Manning would

a dislike in creeds.

have been immeasurably handiCanon Stokes points out that the capped. radio listeners are members of dif

"A House of Prayer for all ferent churches. The Reverend People” in that vast metropolis needs Ernest M. Stires, D.D., rector of the press as much as the press itself

, St. Thomas' Church, New York, needs the influence of a Cathedral. greets his radio listeners as members But the fact remains that the of his "radio parish.”

quickening recognition of the values Responsibility for this increased of religion among the people is not interest in religion is shared by the due to the radio, or to the press, but radio and the press, but the reason to the church, and, as a result of for it lies in the alertness of the this renaissance of religion, there church which is availing itself of will be a revival of interest in the these media to reach Christ's multi- creed because, as Bishop Rhinelander tudes.

so aptly declared, the creed is the Sunday afternoons Bishop Free- pathway to a full Christian life. man speaks to a nation-wide congre- There are radio parishes throughgation, for his sermons are broadcast out the world today and the seeds of by WCAP. In his recent addresses Christianity are being planted by all before Chambers of Commerce churches.

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CRIME

Cathedrals mothered education S crime a necessary by-product centuries ago, just as they gave birth of modern life?

to philanthropy and cooperative Speaking on the necessity of effort, but our educational aim toreligious education at the Central day, Mr. Somers continued, “is to Congregational Church in Brooklyn, give them (the students) the tools N. Y., Arthur S. Somers, member of with which they may get on in the the New York City Board of Educa- world while here; the power of contion and President of the Brooklyn trol over things that can be conChamber of Commerce, declared:

trolled, the power to lead, “It would be fallacious to assume

to accumulate without limit from
that present day educational methods the world's vast storehouses of
and devices are responsible for the wealth, not only the wherewithal to
increase of crime that is so alarming, clothe and sustain the body, but to
that it is responsible for the fact give them social eminence, industrial
that homicide has increased to ten bigness, political mastery, and all the
thousand murders a year. Accord- other material attributes that make
ing to the New York Times in a them conspicuous figures wherever
recent editorial, these atrocities have they may appear.”
more than doubled in twenty years.

Modern emphasis is upon the last
What is responsible for the condi- six Commandments:
tion referred to by former Governor
Whitman speaking before the Bar

Honor thy father and thy mother,

Thou shalt do no murder, Association last June, when he said, "The number of criminals in this

Thou shalt not commit adultery,

Thou shalt not steal, country is increasing steadily'? Another speaker at the same meeting

Thou shalt not bear false witness said, 'Life and property are less se

against thy neighbor, cure here than in any other country

Thou shalt not covet. on the globe that is not in a state

The first four commandments are of barbarism.' Upon what does Judge Talley of New York base the

given only secondary consideration. statement made last August, that They are regarded too much like

, ' this is the most lawless country in

“Sunday clothes.” So long as these

commandments: the world'? The New York Evening World commenting on this statement

Thou shalt have no other gods but editorially, said, "This assertion will not be ascribed to a tendency of sen

me, sationalism. The tragedy of it is,

Thou shalt not make unto thyself that no one will challenge the asser

any graven image,

Thou shalt not take the name of tion. . "It is not for me to suggest that

the Lord thy God in vain,

Remember that thou keep holy the education without a background of

Sabbath day, religion is responsible, but education lacking that background does not, are not given primary emphasis by will not, cannot combat this lowering all Christians, crime will be a neces

sary by-product of our age!

F

THE FIRST COMMANDMENT on the threshold of another cathedral

age. TIVE years ago the Library of Today this quarterly magazine, Congress

and the British published in the Capital of the Museum were asked whether United States, dedicates its pages to they had a complete list of all the this new world-wide cathedral movecathedrals in the world. When ment. negative replies were received a pri- God speed this age! May the vate firm was asked to make a sur- material prosperity of men be pervey. After several months of research petuated in that great service toward in England, France, Belgium and Christian unity which cathedrals, as Italy the list filled 17 pages of fools- Houses of Prayer for all people, can cap paper. Because of the cost of perform. May the faith of the clergy the inquiry it was not extended to

and the devotion of women find their other countries.

fullest expression in a more universal

recognition of the first commandThis list of 300 cathedrals built

ment of our Lord. from the eleventh to the nineteenth

THE CATHEDRAL AGE will be a centuries indicates that the thir

cathedral newspaper. It will report teenth and fourteenth centuries were

cathedral news from all parts of the the great cathedral building ages. world. It will discuss and interpret

Today great cathedrals are being the history, service, architecture and erected in the United States, Eng- ideals of all cathedrals in the hope land and South America. The cathe- that as this cathedral building age drals in Liverpool, New York, Wash- progresses these great temples may ington and San Francisco are evi- be built by worshipers and not "condences that the twentieth century is

tributors."

THE NATION’S FAITH

By the Rt. Rev. JAMES E. FREEMAN, D.D.

Bishop of Washington

“W

HAT can a man do when choice between the principles these he has been sitting be- two figures incarnate, is quite evi

tween Jesus Christ and dent. It was Mr. Elihu Root who Napoleon Bonaparte?” This was in a remarkable speech during the the cynical observation of Clemen- War, declared that the choice must ceau, the "Tiger of France," as he be made between Odin and Christ, emerged from a session of the Peace and distinguished Englishman Council. There is something more

made like observation when he cited than cynicism in this statement. the principles of the “man on horseThat the world today, perhaps as back” and those of the "Man on the never before, is compelled to make Cross,” maintaining that our boasted

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civilization had come to the point leaders hurl their anathemas at those where it must recognize the trans- institutions that we have come to cendence of the one or the other. believe are indispensable to an or

derly and happy social and industrial Christianity has played its conspicious part in the developed civil- life. Their validity is challenged ization of the modern world. How- and an assault made upon the conever faith in the supremacy of

ditions they have created. We hold

no brief for those who believe that Christ's teachings may express itself,

these conditions approximate the however strong or weak the Christian Church itself may be, the prevailing at best, they fall far short of per

ideal, we are only too conscious that force of the Man of Nazareth is the

fection. That the agencies of conlargest single factor to be reckoned

sistent reform need to be eternally with in any true estimate of life's determining influences. To our out- vigilant is conspicuously true, but standing leaders it is becoming in- thoughtful man and woman is, are

the large question today for every creasingly evident that the one su

we ready to substitute for our impreme thing needed to stabilize and

perfectly realized Christian ideals, strengthen our life today, is a more immediate and practical application travesty of religion and seeks to de

system of life that makes a of the teachings of Christ. Indus

stroy those institutions that it has trial as well as political leaders ex

produced? press in definite terms this conviction. Said President Coolidge to me

Only now and again in the dull some time ago, “the strength of a

routine of life do we feel as a people country is the strength of its religious a great and common impulse. It convictions.” Only the past spring, took a world war to fuse together sixty members of the United States

the diverse elements and interests of Congress cooperated with me in hold the great Republic. Heterogeneous ing a great open-air service on Wash- and polyglot as we are, under the ing Cathedral grounds at which whip and spur of a mighty challenge, twenty thousand people were present.

we suddenly found that there were

ties of unity and fellowship that Even passing discussions of creed

bound us indissolubly together. Let and church formularies do not hinder

a threat be registered against that or embarrass the growing interest

which we hold to be vital to our comin religion, indeed, they but seem to

mon life and we answer it with a accelerate it. The repression of re

solid and united front. However ligion in Russia has but intensified lightly we may sometimes hold our the zeal of the people. Notwith

faith in God and country, however standing these patent facts, we

insular and selfish we may seem to are confronted with certain subtle be, let that faith be challenged and and insidious influences that conspire we become militant and aggressive in today, not only to defeat the high repelling the forces that would seek purposes of Christian faith, but if to attack our institutions. The bold possible to destroy the foundation challenge today is largely directed principles of our present civilization.

at that which has to do with our From Russia, bold and defiant time-honored religious beliefs and