Unless No less a person than Attorney Gen eral Tom C. Clark is responsible for the statement: “ It is up to the American people to correct, teach and stop these youngsters from following in the foot steps of other criminals. Unless the three respects: the respect of God, of home, and o f law, are learned and carried out, our country as a great democracy will fail. Apparently we have lost touch with religion!” What our honorable Attorney General means is that we have lost touch with God and with His Book. One of the vital by-products o f a godly home is a whole some respect for authority, which is commanded in the Bible. Young people who come from such homes respect not only parental authority but civil author ity. The root of the trouble, both na tional and domestic, is the period of early child training. Blessed indeed is the child whose parents insist upon obedience, and unfortunate indeed is that child with parents who disregard God’s will and their own responsibility. More Popular <£ Time recently presented the results of an Elmo Roper poll in which repre sentative citizens were asked, “ What group do you feel is doing the most good for the country at this present time?” The consensus was that the religious leaders o f our land were most helpful; second place went to the business lead ers, while government leaders rated third place. In five years, the religious leaders’ standing has jumped from third to first place. At first, this may seem to be ’ some thing over which to rejoice, but such is not really the case. I f the man of God fulfills his God-given calling, and speaks the message of the Lord, it is certain that he will be unpopular. Such was the lot of the Old Testament worthies; such was our Lord’s own experience in His earthly ministry. The things which God has to sav to a rebellious world will never “ tickle” the ears of men. Some of the hearers, it is true, will repent and turn from their wicked ways, but the majority of those who are warned of their transgressions will be enraged, and will express their wrath in attacks upon the messengers. Their Choice According to a recent survey from station WCCO, Minneapolis, the radio industry estimates the farm audience as about 4.500,000 families. Recently there has been a real increase in rural listen ing. Credit for this goes in part to the Rural Electrification A dm in is t r a tio n , with its numerous power lines making electricity available on more and more farms. In addition, it is interesting to note that the farm audiences prefer news first of all, then hymns and religious programs, third, old-time music, and fourth, market reports. On the other hand, metropolitan listeners prefer quiz programs, comedians and popular music. O C T O B E R , I 9 4 7
to whom Christian literature will be mailed. Mr. Hoffman’s address is P. O. Box 1097, Minneapolis 1, Minnesota; he requests the prayers of God’s people for his work. Still Growing The phenomenal Youth for Christ movement which has been such a bless ing among the youth of our land reports continued progress and manifold bless ing upon their work. Dr. Torrey John son, who is the international president, reports that at the present time 1,400 Youth for Christ Rallies are being held in 46 countries of the world, with 1,000 rallies conducted on the North American continent alone. At present, the international aspect of this movement is being stressed strongly. Gospel teams of young men on fire for Christ have traveled to more than 25 nations of the world within the last twelve months. God’s people of all de nominations should feel a real responsi bility to remember this vital and far- reaching ministry before the Throne of Grace. Deplorable Lack The National Council of Juvenile Court Judges, in a recent meeting in the city of Chicago, declared it had found “ a deplorable lack of religious training all over our land.” This group is not ecclesiastically con trolled; it looks at facts in a realistic way. These judges are on the forefront of one of the greatest problems our land has- ever faced, and their studied opinion of the problem yields this conclusion: “ Whereas we are finding a deplorable lack of religious training all over the land and as such training is conducive to sound principles of morality which is a very important factor in lessening de linquency, therefore be it resolved, we advocate more and more religious train ing for the youth of our land.” However, the problem goes deeper than ' even these judges comprehend. It is the kind of religious training that is important: youth will be impressed only by religious instruction based upon the inspired Word of God. Page Five
It is noteworthy that religious pro grams are so popular, because radio pro ducers and officials make little effort to hide their contempt of religion on the air. However, here are the facts, and religious broadcasters should take care ful note. Truth With a Burr From the halls of the United States Senate these days, prayers are ascend ing the nature of which is a far cry from the perfunctory, formal prayers of for mer days. The one responsible for this change is the Senate’s new chaplain, Reverend P e te r M a r sh a ll, pastor of Washington’s historic New York Ave nue Presbyterian Church. Chaplain Mar shall was born in Scotland, and his .voice still carries a Scottish burr. What makes Marshall’s prayers re markable is the absence of pious, pomp ous platitudes, and down-to-earth re quests for definite things. For instance, during a recent foreign relations’ debate, Marshall prayed: “ We do not pray that other nations may love us, but that they may know that we stand for what is right, unafraid, with the courage of our convictions.” On another occasion this was his pe tition: “ So long have we been riding on the balloon tires of deceit for our own good we may have to be deflated, that on the rims of humility we may discover the spiritual laws that govern our growth in grace. If our pride is to be punctured, Lord, make it soon, before we gain too much speed.” For the Deaf <3* A new gospel ministry by mail to deaf people is now being carried on by a Christian brother, Mr. Julius K. Hoff man, of Minneapolis, Minnesota. He has on his mailing list about 10,000 names; there are about 125,000 deaf people in the United States and Canada. Mr. Hoffman, who is deaf himself, has a real burden for these people, and writes many letters enclosing free tracts and gospel literature to those who are not being reached through the churches. This is an excellent and much-needed ministry, and readers are invited to send in names and addresses of deaf people
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