Full Text for Biblical Ethics Concerning Young People (Text)

<1tnurnrbtu aJ4rnlngtral :tInut1Jly CODtiDaiDg LEHRE UNO WEHRE MAGAZIN FUER Ev.-LUTH. HOMILETIK THEOLOGICAL QUARTERLy-THEOLOGICAL MONTHLY Vol. IV September, 1933 No.9 CONTENTS Biblical Ethics Concerning Young People. P. E. Kretzmann Wie muss Gottes Wort gepredigt werden, damit Glaube entatehe in den Herzen der Zuhoerer? F. Pieper •.•••• Objective lustification. Th. Engelder ••..•.••.••..•..•••• Das Verhaeltnis der gratia universalis zur Gnadenwahl. P. E. Kretzmann •..••••••• Propositions Concerning the Election of Grace. Page 841 653 v 684 676 P. E. Kret2mann •• . • • • • • •• 682 Die Hauptschriften Luthers in chronologischer Reihenfolge 685 Dispositionen ueber die altkirchliche Epistelreihe ........ 686 lliscellanea. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .. . . . . . .. 692 Theological Observer. - Kirchlich ·Zeitgeschichtliches . . .. 696 Book Review. - Literatnr. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .. 713 Ein Prediger mUBB niOOt alleln tDeidM, alao u.. er die Bchate unterwellle, wie oie rechte 0brI&ten lOlleD aeiD, lOodem aum daoeben den Woelfen weArm, dua lie die Bchate Dicht usreIfen lIOd mit talscber Lehre nrtuehren IIOd Irrtum em· fuehren. - Luther. Es ilit kein D~. du die Leate mehr bel der Kirche behaelt deDD die pte Predigt. - Apolol1ie. Ar'. t~. If the t rumpet gift In UDCertain IOUDd, Ivho shall prepare himaelf to the battle, 1 Oor'~J8. Published for the Ev. Luth. Synod of Missouri, Ohio, and Other States CONCOlmIA. :PUBLISHING HOUSE, St. Louis, lito. Concordia Theological Monthly VOL. IV SEPTEMBER, 1933 No.9 Biblical Ethics Concerning Young People. Every age has its iconoclasts, and youth is ever the age of iconoclastic tendencies. But when factors of history and the economic conditions of a country combine to make such tendencies unusually prominent, the combination may prove extremely dangerous, if not disastrous to traditional ethical concepts. If the opinions of prom- inent educators, economists, and sociologists count for anything at all in this postwar period and in these days of economic depression, we are obliged to look upon our present age and generation as one which has been caught in a double flood-wave of iconoclastic tendencies and endeavors, on which account certain phenomena of individual and social behavior have been accentuated. If we add to these considera- tions the fact that the Lord Himself, in His eschatological sayings, refers to the increase of unrighteousness and the decrease of genuine love and piety in the age preceding the Last Day, we have some serious reasons for grave apprehensions at this time. There is no doubt that the barriers between the Ohurch and the world, also be- tween our Lutheran Zion and the mass of unbelievers and enemies of the Savior, have been weakened or, in many cases, entirely removed and that worldliness, in an increasing number of instances, is entering our congregations like a devastating flood. Whether the uncertainty in matters of doctrine, the indifferentism, the unionistic tendencies which are so evident in large parts of the Ohurch, are to be considered as cause or as effect with regard to the general situation may be a debatable question, but the facts are incontrovertible. In view of these facts it behooves every faithful pastor to make a most careful study of the situation as it confronts him in his own parish, not only with reference to strengthening the cords of doctrinal stability, but also with regard to giving the proper balance to the precepts of 'ethical guidance. His concern must be not only for an appreciation of general Biblical ethics, but for the understanding and the application of that portion of Biblical ethics which applies to 41 642 Biblical Ethics Concerning Young People. young people of the adolescent and postadolescent age in pa1'ticular. For it certainly is true that the Bible places particular emphasis upon many ethical points as they apply to young people, both in warning them against specific sins and in admonishing them to give them- selves to the Lord in genuine self-surrender and consecration. David pleads with the Lord: "Remember not the sins of my youth nor my transgressions," Ps. 25, 7. The prophet Jeremiah states: "It is good for a man that he bear the yoke in his youth," Lam. 3,27. In Ps. 71,17 David declares: "0 God, Thou hast taught me from my youth." In Ps.119, $) we are instructed: "\Vherewithal shall a young man cleanse his way ~ By taking heed thereto according to Thy ".tV ord." In Prov. 1, 4 Solomon speaks of the purpose of his book: "to give subtilty to the simple, to the young man knowledge and discretion." In 1 John 2, 13 f. both instruction and training in Biblical truth are presupposed: "I write unto you, young men, because ye have over- come the Wicked One. . .. I have written unto you, young men, be- cause ye are strong and the Word of God abideth in you and ye have overcome the Wicked One." With all these precepts in mind, we can well understand the enthusiastic invitation of the inspired writer in Eccl. 11, 9: "Rejoice, 0 young man, in thy youth, and let thy heart cheer thee in the days of thy youth and walk in the ways of thine heart and in the sight of thine eyes; but know thou that for all these things God will bring thee into Judgment." For that reason the text cont.inues: "Remember, now, thy Oreator in the days of thy youth, while the evil days come not nor the years draw nigh when thou shalt say, I have no pleasure in them." It would manifestly exceed the limit of space allowed for a single article if all the passages of Holy Scripture pertaining to the moral conduct of young people were treated. The object of this presentation therefore is to call attention only to such features of the situation found in our circles as seem to call for discussion at this time. For that reason it is presupposed that all the young people who hold membership in our congregations have been carefully and thoroughly indoctrinated, that they are familiar with the truths of their Oate- chism and therefore with the chief doctrines of the Bible, and that they have a fairly clear notion of Ohristian consecration and steward- ship. By way of summary it will, then, be necessary, in opening this discussion, merely to point to the chief duties which every Ohristian, and therefore also every young member of our congregations, owes to his God. These duties have been listed by various authors, and their outlines usually include: the duty to recognize and to know God; to exercise oneself in daily repentance before Him; to accept His for- giveness and His gracious offer of salvation in connection with such daily repentance; to love, trust, and obey Him; to walk before Him in this world of sin with a consistent endeavor of genuine consecra- Biblical Ethics Concerning Young People. 643 tion; to proclaim and defend the Gospel as taught in the Word; to bear the chastisement of the Lord without murmuring; to look for- ward to eternal fellowship with the Savior and the heavenly Father as the fruition of the mystical union enjoyed here on earth. (Cp. Keyser, A Manual of Ohristian Ethics, 110 fl.) In this connection the duty of worship and prayer should receive special consideration. The Lord says, Ps. 148, 12. 13: "Both young men and maidens, old men and children, let them praise the name of the Lord." But if young people are to take an intelligent part in public worship, in the congregations, Ps. 26, 12, it is necessary for pastors and other leaders of young people to provide such information. It is true that every congregation has the right to choose and to use its own order of services, but a decent respect for the liturgical prin- ciples enunciated by Luther in his great classics in the field, namely, in his Formula Missae of 1523 and in his Deutsche Messe und Ord- nung des Gottesdienstes of 1526, as well as a proper regard for the position taken by the German Lutherans in connection with the Leipzig Interim ought to move us to adopt some form of truly Lu- theran service and to observe a sensible uniformity in our orders of worship. Our young people complain, and with some show of justice, that they are becoming confused by the multiplicity of home-made services. Our synodical book of worship may have some :flaws, but this does not justify the existing confusion in the matter of public services in our midst. If our young folks will be shown the marvelous beauty of the services adopted by our Synod and drilled in their use with proper understanding, we may expect an intelligent attention at public worship. - Similarly the matter of private and public prayer may well be made the subject of special study for young people. No matter whether the foundation of such understanding and practise has been laid in the parish-school and the Sunday-school or not, further information and training should be given in the adolescent and the postadolescent age. We must remain aware of the fact that Scripture so frequently speaks of prayer, exhorting all Christians to be active in this important form of communication with God. Cpo Matt. 6, 5; 26, 41; Luke 18, 1; 22, 43; John 16, 23; 1 John 3, 19-22; Rom. 8,26. Christ Himself prayed in the forms of petition, thanksgiving, and praise, Matt. 11, 25; 14, 23; Luke 6, 12; Matt. 26,36 fl.; John 17, 1 fl.; 11,41. Prayer is the specific means of growth in the inner life; it represents one of our chief forms of approach to God If young people are taught to connect prayer with the con- templation of the Word of God, applying its truths to particular circumstances, they are given one of the finest forms of ethical training. They will then also be able to use spontaneous or ex-corde prayers whenever this is necessary. As Dorner says (System of Christian Ethics, 429): "It is not difficult if only we do not try, in 644 Biblical Ethics Concerning Young People. the words we use in prayer, to appear better than we really are, but bring before God in a childlike, natural, and in artificial way what we feel and what we long for. Only we must not aim at speechifying, Matt. 6,7; on the contrary, prayer had better be short than too long. It helps us to pray from the heart if we divide our prayer into thanks- giving, deprecation, petition, and intercession." If young people are to lead a prayer-life, let us provide instruction and training for them . .Another very important factor in Biblical ethics for young people is the matter of regulwr activity, W'ork or employment, a fixed voca- tion, especially after the middle adolescent and in the postadolescent age. The Bible makes this a very serious matter. We are told: "If any would not work, neither should he eat. For we hear that there are some which walk among you disorderly, working not at all, but are busybodies. Now, them that are such we command and exhort by our Lord Jesus Ohrist that with quietness they work and eat their own bread," 2 Thess. 3, 10-12. That this applies to men is evident even from the declaration of God after the fall of man; "In the sweat of thy face shalt thou eat breud till thou :tetunl unto the ground," Gen. 3, 19. The number of times that we find the words work and Zabor in the Bible is an indication of God's order with regard to man after the Fall. .And this is true also of women; for we :find abundant evidence that they also were included in God's order that human beings should be active in working for their living. That women were housekeepers, that they went to draw water, that they ground the grain for the daily measure of meal- all this is told over and over again in the Bible. In our days we speak almost entirely of vocati.ons for women,' but it is a question whether our drifting away from the ideals set forth in Holy Scripture has not resulted in a condition that is far from ideal. According to Holy Writ the highest and most honorable calling and vocation of a Ohristian woman is to be a wife and mother, the helpmeet of a faithful husband. Rudisill (The Intimate Problems I of Youth, p.95) is right when he states; "Let no girl conceive that {j there is anything higher or nobler than wifehood and motherhood. No girl ever tastes the highest joys that life affords who never has a child of her own and presides over her own home." Yet we find according to the United States Oensus Report that the proportion of women per thousand in the eight grand divisions of employment is the following: 2 are in "Public Service," 25 are in "Transportation," 78 are in "Trade" or "Business," 119 are in "Professional Service," 127 are in "Agriculture, Forestry, and .Animal Husbandry," 167 are numbered with "Olerical Help," including stenographers, clerks, book- keepers, etc., 226 are in "Manufacturing and Mechanical Industries," and 256 are in "Domestic and Personal Service." These figures ought to be compared with the fact that the Bible speaks of women as Biblical Ethics Concerning Young People. 645 home-makers or housekeepers, 1 Tim. 5,14; Titus 2, 4, as taking care of the poor and the needy, 1 Tim. 5, 10, as sewing for the poor, Acts 9,39, as performing the work of a deaconess or being similarly em- ployed, Rom. 16, 1 fl., and as teaching, said especially of that which older women ought to do in instructing the younger women. It will undoubtedly be best for us to return to the scope of feminine activities referred to in the Bible, particularly in emphasizing the ideal of the wife and mother in the home. Economists are certainly right when they ascribe much of the present unbalanced condition of the world not only to overproduction and high-pressure salesmanship, but also to labor-saving devices which give women leisure of a kind that is not always wholesome and to the fact that women in the industries, in business, and in the professions have upset the equilibrium of society and of public life. It is not a question of mental ability, but of a fundamental principle of God's order. - As for the occupation, or vocation, of young men, the chief point of Biblical ethics is contained in such passages as enjoin industry and stability. The Book of Pl'Ovel'bs is full of such injunctions, as in chap. 26, 14: "As the door turneth upon his hinges, so doth the slothful upon his bed"; and again, Provo 6, 6: "Go to the ant, thou sluggard." And as for stability, dependability, and faithfulness, the words of Ps. 37,3 apply: "Trust in the Lord and do good; so shalt thou dwell in the land, and verily thou shalt be fed." The question of vocations Hnd emnloyment naturally leads to that of association with others; for it is inevitable that contacts are made which may become very important factors in the lives of young people. If they work in the same shop, in the same office, in the same institution, with a number of others, there is a bond of common in- terests which is bound to draw them together at least in some measure. We :find associations of workmen and of fellow-craftsmen in the land of Israel as well as in Greece and Rome, in the first century of the Ohristian era as well as in the Medieval Age. In our days the power of gilds, or unions, is so great in many instances as to render it almost, if not entirely, impossible for a person to obtain work unless he is connected with such an organization. In most cases of this kind, where it is a matter of mere business, professional, or industrial as- sociation or relationship, the word of the apostle applies: "I wrote in an epistle not to company with fornicators; yet not altogether with the fornicators of this world or with the covetous, or extortioners, or with idolaters; for then must ye needs go out of the world," 1001'. 5,9. 10. It is clear, then, that contacts established in business, pro- fessional, and civic life, even if made with unbelievers or with such as do not share our religious views, are not prohibited in the Word of God. Membership in a civic organization, in a nature-study club, in a literary society, in a workmen's organization, or in any other 646 Biblical Ethics Concerning Young People. similar institution is not in itsclf wrong; it may even be advisable for a Ohristian to hold such memberships for the sake of the injunc- tion that we should seek the peace of the city, J er. 29,7. If a Ohris- tian has certain abilities and talents which he can well place in the service of his fellow-citizens, or if he has an opportunity to gain some useful information for his position in life or by way of enlarging his mental horizon, it would be a false attitude for him to take if he should keep aloof from such contacts. At the same time it should be noted that these relationships must be kept strictly on the plane of professional, industrial, and educa- tional contacts. Social contacts with unbelievers, with children of this world, involving personal intimacy with such as are in the camp of the enemy, is contrary to many clear words of Holy Scripture. The Apostle John writes: "Love not the world, neither the things that are in the world. If any man love the world, the love of the Father is not in him. For all that is in the world, the lust of the flesh and the lust of the eyes and the pride of life, is not of the Father, but is of the ~world. And the world passeth away and the lust thereof; but he that doeth the will of God abideth forever," 1 John 2, 15-17. This is so clear that comment is superfluous. Equally emphatic are two statements from the epistle of James, 1,27: "To keep himself un- spotted from the world," and 4, 4: "Know ye not that the friendship of the world is enmity with God? Whosoever therefore will be a friend of the world is the enemy of God." In a similar vein St. Paul writes, Rom. 12,2: "Be not conformed to this world; but be ye transformed by the renewing of your mind." And again: "Be not ye therefore partakers with them. . .. Have no fellowship with the unfruitful works of darkness, but rather reprove them," Eph. 5,7. 11. And St. Peter is just as clear in warning against social intimacy with un- believers. Hc speaks in a general way of "having escaped the COrTUP- tion that is in the world through lust," 2 Pet. 1,4, and he writes with regard to the more pronounced forms of enmity against the truth: "They think it strange that ye run not with them to the same excess of riot, speaking evil of you," 1 Pet. 4,4. And what was it that many of these people indulged in ~ The apostle's list is: lasciviousness, lusts, excess of wine, revelings, banquetings [drinking-bouts], and abominable idolatries. Although, even according to Holy Writ, there are degrees of worldliness, from the finer form, which is essentially a spirit of tolerance, to the worst form, which is open enmity and blasphemy against Ohrist and the Ohristian religion, yet the Lord's command is: "Go out from among them, and be ye separate." Ohris- tians are not to be partakers with them, they are not to join them or place themselves on a level with them. When Dinah, the daughter of Jacob, went out to see the daughters of the land, she lost her honor, Gen. 34, 1. 2. When Demas, who had been in the immediate circle of Biblical Ethics Concerning Young People. 647 the Apostle Paul's associates, 001. 4, 14, loved this present world, he left the Ohurch and associated himself with the enemies, 2 Tim. 4,10. It is therefore necessary to warn our young people against the dangers of becoming too intimate with the children of this world even in the matter of games and sports. Lotto parties, bridge parties, bunco parties, and similar gatherings with children of the world may seem innocuous enough, but Biblical ethics does not approve of such social intimacies with "outsiders," since the situation is fraught with too much danger. The same is true in the field of outside sports and games, which presently are to be considered from another angle. The course pursued in many of our congregations, according to which enough social intercourse among young people is offered within our own circles, in summer conferences (Walther League camps) and in winter conferences, in educational and social meetings, in oratorical and writing contests, in competitive sports between teams representing various young people's societies and organizations, is undoubtedly the correct one and should receive the heartiest endorsement of our pastors. To warn against false social contacts without providing wholesome relationships is to discourage the young people, CoL 3,21. Before following this line of thought any further, let us consider the question of the Fourth Oommandment, particularly as it applies to the late adolescent and postadolescent age. That obedience is en- joined upon children who have not reached the years of personal responsibility is so clearly shown in Holy Scripturo that a mere reference to a number of passages should suffioe. In the Book of Proverbs alone the negative side is set forth in 13, 1 b; 15, 5 a. 20 b; 17,25; 19,13. 26; 20,20; 28,24, all the stages from the despising of parents to the cursing of them being pictured. On the positive side we have passages in Provo 4, 1 ff.; 6,20; 13,la; 15, 5b. 20a; 17,6b; 2:3,22 ff.; 30,7. In the same way the New Testament sets forth the cardinal virtue of obedience, an obedience simple, direct, absolute; an obedience that leaps to do the will of father or mother; an obe- dience that is not accompanied by growling and complaining; an obedience in the parent's absence as well as in his presence; an obedience of which love is the basis and the inspiration. This obe- dience is enjoined in Eph. 6, 1 f.; 001. 3, 20; 1 Tim. 3,4; Titus 1, 6. As Dorner writes (l. c., 551): "Obedience must not only be rendered when the child is convinced that the will of the parents is substantially right. For if children were only to obey under these conditions, they would then merely obey themselves. On the contrary, parents must stand in God's stead to the child, and the formal obligation of obe- dience must extend to matters which as yet he does not understand and for which the parents alone can be responsible. Filial love is maintained by reverence and gratitude towards parents, in accordance with the example of Ohrist, Luke 2, 51 f." / 648 Biblical Ethics Concerning Young People. But what about the relation .of young people to their parents after the years of discretion have been reached, especially in the late adolescent and postadolescent age, when the young people are possibly earning a part or all of their own living? Here circumstances will, in a measure, decide the relationship. The statement of Marsh (Youth of America, 12) is worth considering: "As the years bring personal accountability and responsibility to the son or the daughter, honor changes color in a certain sense, and obedience gives place to respect." And later he says (p.19) that children should remember "that adoles- cence or postadolescence does not nullify or abrogate all of the relationships and conditions of earlier life." It is true that relative obedience alone may be exacted by parents during this age of the young people, and if the latter are dismissed from their childhood home, either by marrying and setting up their own household or by moving into a bachelors' or a bachelor girls' home in order to have more freedom than that which may be afforded in a crowded home, the changed relationships will easily be adjusted. But if young people dependent upon their parents, either totally· or in part, wish to enjoy the privileges and benefits, the shelter and guidance, of their child- hood home, a feeling of reciprocity alone would suggest the observance of the rules .of the home. If nothing else, a due consideration for the authority of the parents in the home would demand such respect as well as a consultation requested by the children in case such rules should bc suspended for any particular reason in any particular in- stance. Dorner's words on this point are well worth considering: "The greatest difficulty of all arises at the period of transition from minority to full maturity. It is difficult for parents to hit the due measure of independence to be accorded to their children. On the one hand, parents should keep clearly in mind that their children must be bound to them by ties of confidence and gratitude; at the same time it is no less incumbent upon the children to remember that, even should their emancipation be long in coming, they ought not to assert their rights and claims or the duties of their parents toward them; for mere duty and justice form an alien and a fatal point of view for the warm affection which ought to characterize the whole sphere of family and married life. It is far better that children should remain in subjection to their parents longer than is necessary than that they should assert their liberty in mistrust and thanklessness. It must not be left to children to decide for themselves when they should be- come independent; here, too, there must be an objective testimony coinciding with subjective opinion." (P. 551 f.) The Bible tells chil- dren that they are "to requite parents; for that is good and acceptable before God," 1 Tim. 5, 4. We read of Jacob that he was a plain man, dwelling in tents, and while he was at home, he placed himself under the direction of his parents, although he was approximately seventy- Biblical Ethics Concerning Young People. 649 eight years old when he was dismissed from home to seek a wife for himself. The case of Jesus is also very instructive. It is clear that the words of Luke 2, 51 apply to Him as long as He was living in the home of His parents, specifically of His mother. ~When He had entered upon His public ministry indeed, He properly rejected inter- ference on the part of His mother, John 2, 4, and whon He had made Oapernaum His headquarters, He did not permit His mother and His brethren to take Him away from His duties, Mark 3, ill ft. And yet one of the most pathetic and impressive incidents in the: gospels is that which tells of the Lord's care for His mother while He was suspended from the cross, John 19, 26. 27. Here is an example which may well serve as an incentive to young people of all times. In passing from the Fourth to the Sixth Oommandment, it may be well to consider briefly also the Fifth Comn.andment, not only with regard to the care of the body, but also with regard to recreation uncontaminated by false ideals and contacts. Every degree of neglect of the body, up to the sin of self-destruction, is strongly denounced in Holy Scripture. Op. Job 13, 13 f,; 2, 9; 1 Sam. 31, 4; 2 Sam. 17, 23 ; Matt. 27, 5. DmnC'r writes: ';N 0 express prohibitioJl is given agal11sc it, except in so fili' as it is forbidden in the Fifth Commandment; but its sinfulness follows from the universal proposition that as Ohris- tians we and all our powers belong no longer to ourselves and our own wills, but have been bought by Ohrist and are dependent upon the divine Spirit, Hom. 14,7 fT.; 2001'.5,11); 1 001'.6,10; PhiL 1, "1 f." (L. c., 452 f.) On the positive side young people mnst be Rhown that the care of the body is a moral duty. Since the bodies of the Ohris- tians are temples of the Holy Ghost and their members the members of Ohrist, the body and all its members and organs should receive the attention which their high estate merits. "Bodily exercise profiteth little," 1 Tim. 4, 8, especially if it is actuated chiefly or entirely by the sport spirit of our days; but it profits, as the words imply, if used in the proper way, with the ideal of a mens sana in corpore sana always kept in mind. The words of Marsh (Z. c., 61.67) present the Scrip- tural ideal: "God is not glorified by injuring and starving the body. Sickliness is not saintliness. Life for us is life in the body. Both mental and spiritual efficiency are raised or lowered by our physical condition. In the interest of our spiritual life our soul is clothed in the body. . .. Fitness for life's tasks demands muscular strength, endurance, energy, will-power, courage, and self-control. . .. The life worth while is not only one that accomplishes a certain piece of work, but also one that enjoys friends and that drinks the cup of life with zest; that has not only strength enough for the daily task, but also has an exultant and exuberant vitality." It is at this point that the question of social contacts connected with recreation again engages our attention. We quote from Eggle- 650 Biblical Ethics Concerning Young People. ston, Womanhood in the Mal,;ing: "It is the working-girl who con- stitutes our greatest problem in later adolescence. Her work during the days saps her physical powers; yet when night comes, she has very limited ways of recuperation. She is eager to do something, and that something is most likely to be to dance, perhaps in a crowded, poorly ventilated room with jazz music, to go to the movies, to go to the beach, or to spend the evening with other girls who like herseH are 'free' when the office or store closes. Many of these girls have left school at fifteen, and they al'e beginning to see that they are un- trained, unskilled. Yet they feel bodily tired at night and do not care to attend classes where they might get the training for more efficient work. Because there is so much sameness in the work and so little chance of advancement, they grow restless. They want some- thing, but they do not know what. So they hunt for it in the social life about them. . .. Temptations come thick and fast in the business world. It is hard to have a beautiful body, a bright eye, or an attrac- tive personality and still keep high ideals. All honor to our business girls who do so. The wonder is that so many are able to keep the body under, to keep the white light burning within. They need to be taught to seek for the highest development of the body, to get a vision of the great powers which are theirs if only they will train the body to do great things. They must learn to guard well theiT womanhood . . . . The standards for the moral conduct of a girl in the business world are low. One soon meets the statement, 'You must do as all the others do if you have any fun - if you have any gentlemen friends.' She needs tactful friends who will hold a high ideal before her and still not seem to be preaching or trying to force her to do that which is contrary to what she thinks worth while. She needs some one to show her what a good time really is, some one to make her feel the thrill of real comradeship." (Pp.37-39.) This consideration leads us to the last point of our discussion, namely, that of Biblical ethics for young people as demanded by the Sixth Oommandment. It is a significant feature of many recent books in the field of young people's work, especially those intended for the understanding of young women, that they point to the necessity of chastity in dress and personal appearance. The Bible has much to say on these questions. The positive admonitions are found in such passages as 1 Pet. 3, 3. 4: "Whose adorning let it not be that outward adorning of plaiting the hair and of wearing of gold or of putting on of apparel; but let it be the hidden man of the heart, in that which is not corruptible, even the ornament of a meek and quiet spirit." Also 1 Tim. 2,9.10: "In like manner also that women adorn them- selves in modest apparel, with shamefacedness and sobriety; not with broided [broidered] hair [a coiffure with waves and curls, woven with gold and jeweled bands], or gold, or pearls, or costly array; but Biblical Ethics Concerning Young People. 651 (which becometh women professing godliness) with good works." Not that the Lord would absolutely prohibit all personal adornment, but He would have it kept at the minimum and not with the idea of display intended to enhance personal charms with evil intent. It is for this reason that we are told in the a-b-c of the virtuous woman: "Favor is deceitful, and beauty is vain; but a woman that feareth the Lord, she shall be praised," Provo 31, 30. It is for this reason, to warn against immodest display of any kind, that the Bible contains such passages as Is. 3, 16-24, where the prophet gives a list of the toilet articles of the daughters of Jerusalem, castigating the luxury and the finery of their vain hearts. It is significant also that the use of paint and make-up is invariably associated in Holy Writ with the life and the objects of the woman of loose morals. It is said of J ezebel that she "painted her face and tired her head," 2 Kings 9, 30, in order to make an impression upon Jehu. In J er. 4, 30 the description is likewise of a woman who intends to make an impression upon her lovers: "Though thou deckest thee with ornaments of gold, though thou rentest thy face with painting [making the eyes appear wide open by the ap- plication of paint], in vain shalt thou make thyself faiL" Ezek 23,40b. In the New Testament the same attitude is taken; fm, while the apostle docs not make an absolute issue of the decking with gold, also of the bobbed-hair question, the women who affect mannish ways will do well to read carefully his query: "Doth not even nature itself teach you t.hllt, ... if a woman have long hair, it is a glory to her? For her hair is given her for a covering," 1001'.11,14. 15. ~What Mrs. Eggleston once told a foolish girl who was cheapening herself by following the style affected by so many girls who believe they must attract men by allurements of this type, fits many another case: "Girlie, you have a painted face, a tawdry dress, and hair that attracts attention. Any of these things would tell a man of his stamp that you were careless and might welcome the low. Think it over and see if it pays to let people think thus of you." (L. C., p. 77.) And Rudisill writes, with particular reference to the modern exposure of the body in scanty and diaphanous dresses: "It has been said that partial ex- posure of the female form is mOre enticing than complete exposure. There is more than a grain of truth in this statement. But we are also hearing it said to-day that attitudes toward exposure of the body are readily adjustable to changing fashion. This, too, is largely true. But such adjustment of attitudes to changing conventionalties is not equally easy for all. And it must not be forgotten that the male :finds something mOTe alluring and emotionally disturbing about female exposure than women :find in the masculine form. ::'1:en have been the great offenders. This mention is not made to palliate their sins, but to serve as a warning to women and girls. They can help their brothers and male friends to a sober and virtuous attitude and to 652 Biblical Ethics Concerning Young People. praiseworthy action by exercising care as to exposure of the body." (L. c., 128 f.) But if this is true of the temptation which comes to men through the eyes, so that they are constantly compelled to strengthen them- selves against such allurements by remembering the Scriptural in- junctions: "I made a covenant with mine eyes; why, then, should I think upon a maid 1" Job 31, 1, and the words of Jesus: "Whoso- ever looketh on a woman to lust after her hath committed adultery with her already in his heart," Matt. 5,28, how much more will it be true when members of either sex seek, and when young women yield themselves to, a physical contact, to a more or less intimate embrace, whether this be in the so-called petting, or in sitting on a man's lap in autos, canoes, or any other conveyance, or whether this close proximity be practised in the dance (public or private) or elsewhere! The Bible does not mince words in denouncing such intimacies. If they take the form of kissing, we are told that the Lord associates such behavior with shamelessness and impudence, Provo 7,13. If this physical intimacy takes the form of unseemly touching of :flesh, the Bible speaks of it with abhorrence, EzelL 23, 3. 8. 21. If it consists of other liberties, the Bible speaks of it as embracing the bosom of a stranger, Provo 5,20. Every attempt to defend this modern freedom between the sexes must fail in view of these and other Scripture- passages, especially those which enjoin chastity and decency in thought, word, and deed. Op. 1 Tim. 5,22; 001.3,5; Gal. 5, 16. 19; Titus 2,12; 1 Pet. 1,14; 2,11.23. Any physical contact, in fact, any form of co=unication by word, or glance, or picture, or gesture, or posture, which is apt to arouse or to strengthen carnal desires, whether that be in the home, in an auto, in a boat, on the dance-:floor, or any- where else, is sinful. Even if some individual person has little or no sex feeling or desire, this is no guarantee that his or her contact with a person of the opposite sex may not cause such desires to be aroused in the other person. The Lord asks: "Oan a man take fire in his bosom and his clothes be not burned? Oan one go upon hot coals and his feet not be burned. So he that goeth in to his neighbor's wife; whosoever toucheth her shall not be innocent," Provo 6, 27-29. Rudisell writes: "Petting parties and indiscriminate 'loving' en~ courage the sexual emphasis. It is claimed by some medical author- ities that there are dangerous physical consequences to such fre- quently recurring excitation of the sexual system. That phase has perhaps been exaggerated. But of the emotional and social results there can be no doubt. For a boy or a girl to practise erotic expres- sion on a loose or promiscuous basis is gravely detrimental to all the better elements of one's nature. A cOIlHtant and increasing craving for such excitement will ensue, and greater and greater tllrills will be demanded. To allow such an emotional and sensual appetite to flliie mUfl ®ottes mlort geprebigt tvetben, bamit ®laube etttfte~e? 653 develop, even with one person of the opposite sex implicated, espe- cially if young, will interfere and damage one's best aspirations, in- terests, steadiness, and eharaeter. But with more than one involved, the eonsequences will be even more grave. While eherishing friend- ships and extending every eourtesy, the future welfare of all con- cerned requires that a healthy reserve be practised by both sexes." (P. 127 f.) Dorner states, briefly and to the point: "Every extra- matrimonial gratification of the sex impulse is sin, a desecration of the temple of the Holy Spirit, a degradation. Vid. 1001'.6,13-20; Gal. 5, 19; 001. 3, 5; Rom. 1, 24 ff." (P. 467.) Op. OONG. THEOL. MONTHLY, IV, 297. In this connection it is self-evident that no Ohristian young man or young woman will presume to indulge in the special privileges granted by God in holy wedlock only. Op. Provo 2,16 ff.; 5,3 ff.; 7,5 ff.; 11,22; 13,18; 9,17.18; 23,20 ff.; 22,29 ff. With reference to this entire question the Ohristian pastor, edu- cator, and leader will do well to keep suggestions like that of Rudisill in mind: "Sex will not be ignored, though we attempt to ignore it. It is a mighty force and will assert itself. The reasonable thing to do is to give it intelligent direction. It has been said that young people need no further information, for they already know more than their elders. This statement is misleading. Much of the information which young people possess is misinformation, much of which leads to license and disregard for their own and others' welfare." (P. 114.) The claim which has often been advanced that a certain alllount of indulgence in at least the finer, if not the gross, intimacies between the sexes is necessary for proper development of the body and for successful marriage is not only contrary to Holy Scripture, but has also been shown to be false by the foremost medical authorities of the United States. (Op. Marsh, l. c., 83 f.) It is our privilege, it is our duty, to instruct our young people in the ethics of the Bible also in this respect, so that they may eventually enter holy wedlock with a full appreciation of its blessings, determined that marriage shall be honorable and the bed undefiled, Heb. 13,4. P. E. KRETZMANN. ?!Bit mUH @JJtte~ [Burt gClJubigt wetbeu, bamit @Iaulie cntftefje iu hen ~et5eU bet ,8ufjiirer? (i;ine ffieiI)e bon ~ortriigen bon D. j)'. ~ i e \J e t. '!Crittcr ~Drtrllg. ;;5dj ~abc in ber [etten 180rIefung bargelegt, bai3 ber @Iaube an ~~rif±um in fetnes 9)cenfdjen &;:lanb ftelje, weber in ber &;:lanb ber 2u", ljiirer nodj in ber bes !l$rebigers. ;Der @Iaube an ~ljriftum fteljt ein3ig unb allein in @lottes &;:lanb.' m5as bie