of these new disciples—men like the Wesleys, Robert Strawbridge,
George Whitefield, Francis Asbury, Nathaniel Perigau, Thomas Coke,
Philip Gatch and all the others. And also, there was something Christ-
like in the courage, zeal and determination in these men who sought to
breathe new life and new spirit into the Church of Christ. They, as
we, were born in a sinful and troubled world, and they sought its re-
demption in a return to the simple teachings of the beginning—to the
unadorned doctrines of the Sermon on the Mount.

Perhaps it would be well if we, too, turned to the past for guidance—
we who are being swept forward with such swiftness that we hardly
have time to look back over our shoulders. The evil of our era, one
reads and hears almost every day, is its uncertainty and its instability.
It has been called, among other things, "The Age of Anxiety. " Its
materialism, its false values, its lack of purpose are deplored by men
who have the wisdom to understand it and the conscience to be con-
cerned about it. We see about us crime, delinquency, poverty, conflict
and turmoil. And all this in surroundings of so much material
abundance that mankind no longer should have to struggle against
nature for his livelihood. One would think that a race of men so
blessed would be occupied only with refining body, mind and spirit
and learning to live with one another in peace and happiness. But
this we do not find. We find, instead, not enough happiness and not
enough peace. And men are tormented by fear, hatred and anxiety.

If the root of our illness lies in materialism, false values and want of
aim, then the remedy should be easy to prescribe. We can cast out
materialism and replace it with things of the spirit. We can substitute
true values for spurious ones. We can set our minds on worthwhile
goals and direct our efforts toward their achievement. But simple
prescription, unfortunately, is not enough. Men, somehow, must be
brought to understand, in their own souls, that spiritual values are
higher than material values and that if they move through life aimlessly
they are headed for chaos.

Maybe we need more of the kind of preaching and exhorting that
were practiced by our Methodist forebears to inject these plain truths
into the minds of people. Maybe a little fire and brimstone would
shock us into a realization of the error of our ways. Certainly I think
that we must amend our lives, in both thought and deed, if we expect
to retain the fruits of our heritage and proceed on the road to civiliza-
tion that has been so carefully laid out by those who went on before us.
As I told Methodists in Salisbury three weeks ago, this we can best do,
I think, by turning back to the simple philosophy and faith of our

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