They dreamed of a haven for them selves and for their children. They dreamed of religious freedom. They dreamed of a world where God would rule the hearts of men. They lived and died with these hopes. For many today there is neither vision nor hope. Despair is the mood of our day. The Pilgrims' strength of spirit was forged by a personal faith in Christ, by tough discipline and by regular habits of devotion. If we so chose, we too could become Pilgrims. We could regain hope. We could offer a thrilling challenge to our young people at this hour. We could recover the spiritual and moral strength that we have lost. But we would have to be willing to take up the same cross they bore, and to carry it. We would have to put our faith in the same Christ they did. We would have to make the same lifetime commitments they made. I say to you, 350 years after the Pilgrim Fathers landed in the New World: Dream great dreams, em brace great principles, renew your hope; but above all, like them, be lieve in the Christ who alone can give total meaning and an ultimate goal to your life. "For in Him we live, and move, and have our being." From DECISION, © 1971 by The Billy Graham Evangelistic Association.
cal content, showing the deep concern these people had for the social, political and spiritual needs of their neighbors. The Pilgrims made their new world better, not by tearing down the old, but by constructive toil and fair dealings with their neigh bors. Though they had strong res ervations about the intolerance in "the old country," they did not shoot the judge, blow up the court house, burn their nation's flag, or shout obscenities and profanities. Fifth, the Pilgrim Fathers were evangelists who set us an example in sharing their spiritual and ma terial blessings with others. In the Mayflower Compact they committed themselves to the "ad vancement of the Christian faith." The Pilgrims at Plymouth were fol lowed by the Puritans at Massa chusetts Bay. Together they built churches and schools. In 1636 Har vard College was founded to train men for the ministry. Later Dart mouth College was started for the Indians. By 1663 the first Bible was printed in America, the Algonquin Bible, for the Indians in their own tongue. These settlers came to the New World not only to find freedom for themselves but also to share their faith with the aborigines. The de emphasis on evangelism, the apos tasy in theology, and the preoccu pation with social and political is sues in the churches of the last ten years are at least partially respon sible forthe decline in North Amer ica's church attendance. Sixth, the Pilgrim Fathers were men of vision and hope. For "where there is no vision, the people perish," says the Bible. The Pilgrims dreamed great dreams.
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