W ere you ever forced to stand in silence without being intro duced while two friends talked? Miserable feeling, wasn’t it? Then again, have you ever been intro duced in such a way that you were embarrassed to the extent that you felt useless and uncalled for? “ Hello, Hangover. This is my old friend Harold. We used to play hookey together and raid old man Watchwold’s hen house and roast his chickens for dinner. Those were the good old days. Isn’t that right, Harold? Harold! Now where did he go? I thought he was standing right here.” Harold probably turned so red that he caught fire and disinte grated. Learn to introduce your friends in a courtly and refined manner. Make a habit o f intro ducing the person who is with you. It is better to reintroduce than to leave unintroduced. Guard your words and don't say things that will cause backwardness or embarrassment. Speak only those things that will elevate and bring honor to the person whom you are introducing. Learn to introduce people ideal ly. Speak in a clear tone and pro nounce both names distinctly. Try to create a warm fee lin g o f friendship between the people whom you are introducing. One of the greatest privileges that we have is meeting new people. It should be looked upon as an hon or and should be carried out in a well-organized manner. Hardly a day passed when He was upon this earth without Christ’s meeting new people: rul ers, rich men, beggars in rags, servants, sinners and saints. His ministry brought Him into con tact with persons from every class of society. Likewise, our life for Christ, if taken seriously, will bring us in touch with individuals on every step of society’s social ladder. What a joy it is when we can follow procedures that will make us feel at ease and place us in a position to promote Christ and His work. Ideal introductions will increase your spiritual serv ice, power and social standing.
IDEAL INTRODUCTIONS by Floyd D. Carey , Jr.
to their positions. The one with the higher position is mentioned first. Among friends the least- known is mentioned first. 4. When introducing strangers it is always proper to place a Mr., Miss, or Mrs. before the name; but when introducing someone near your own age, the title may be omitted. 5. A few words of explanation could easily make the introduc tion more impressive. “ Jerry Snow, Johnny Whitley. He is a student at Lee College.” Or “Mr. Lee, I should like you to meet Mr. Lane. He has recently moved his membership to our church from Lake Port, Florida.” 6. Never introduce anyone by his first name only; use his com plete name or title. 7. A teenager should never call an adult by his first name unless encouraged to do so. Do not call a person whom you have just met by his given name. Your pastor, under no conditions, is to be called by his first name. Always intro duce visitors to your pastor, never your pastor to the visitor. 8. When introducing a person to a group, say, “ This is Sally Brown who has recently moved to our neighborhood from Look out Junction.” There is no need to call the name of each person present; she couldn’t remember them anyway. The best method would be to introduce your guest to a couple and then let them present her to the others individ ually. This custom is usually fol lowed when more than twelve per sons are present. 9. There are times when you will need to introduce yourself— when visiting another church (make yourself known to the pas- Cont. on Pago 36 35
C orrect F orms of I ntroduction
The typical and most practical form of introduction, for both formal and informal occasions, is simply the pronouncing of two names: “Miss Johnson, Mr. Parker.” “Kitty Brown, Joe Jones.” For a more ceremonious intro duction, you may use one of the following: “Miss Noteworthy, may I pre sent Mr. Greenleaf?” “Mrs. Taylor, may I introduce Mr. Wilson?” But for conversational and yet correct introductions you will likely use one of the following procedures: “Miss Williams, this is Mr. Thompson.” “Mrs. Jones, do you know Mrs. Taylor?” “ Fred Gray, Bob White.” “Mrs. Lumpkin, I want you to meet Miss Green.” “Miss Berry, you know Mr. Dove, don’t you?” “Mother and Dad, this is Roy Stamps.” “ Sally Laughinghouse, I want you to meet Sam Smiley.” It is said that the simplest forms of introduction are the correct forms. T hings to R emember 1. When introducing a girl and a boy, you always state the girl’s name first for you are presenting the boy to the girl. The girl is given the position of honor. 2. When you are introducing two women, you mention the old er woman’s name first. If their ages are about the same, you may mention either one first. 3. You introduce men according
SEPTEMBER, 1968
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