[From the New York Times, New York]

The rock hewn from the hill in Athens where St. Paul preached to an inquiring multitude has carried across the sea to one of the hills of our acropolis a message especially pertinent at this moment: And He made of one blood all the nations of men for to dwell on all the face of the earth, having determined their appointed seasons and the bounds of their habitation.

Certain of the Epicurean and Stoic philosophers were among the inquirers and disputants. Epictetus, the Roman Stoic, was later to give utterance to the same doctrine of world unity: "He, then, who has observed with intelligence the administration of the world and has learned that the greatest and supreme and the most comprehensive community is that which is composed of men and God ... why should not such a man call himself a citizen of the world?"

A later philosopher of our own land, Emerson, caught the statement made on Mars Hill into one of his essays: "But one blood rolls uninterruptedly an endless circulation through all men, as the water of the globe is all one sea and, truly seen, its tide is one." The rock brought from Greece is thus more than a symbol of fellowship between the churches represented in the gift and its receipt. It is in its association with the Pauline utterance of world brotherhood of even greater significance. In this symbolism it is as the stone rejected of the builders of States which has become the chief stone of the corner in the rebuilding of the economic earth.

[From School Life, Washington, District of Columbia]

"Boys and girls of all nations, we, the children of Wales, once again warmly greet you on Goodwill Day.

"In this springtime of 1933 there are, all over the earth, millions of children who are unhappy because their fathers and brothers have no work to do. We do not know why there should be so much sorrow in a world which is so beautiful, and so much want in a world which is so rich.

"We believe that this would not happen if all the nations to which we belong would live and work together as members of one family, trusting each other and enjoying together the riches of the earth. We believe, too, that by our thoughts we can help to bring this new spirit into the world.

"Let us then on this Goodwill Day, millions and millions of us, unite in one great thought of peace, peace between the peoples and peace between the nations. With the faith that can remove mountains our thoughts will change the world."

On Goodwill Day—the Welsh folk call it "Ddydd Ewyllys Da"—May 18, out from the children of Wales the credo given on this page will wing its way by wireless to the other children of the world. The Welsh children, working together in their schools and homes, have made up this short message, strong in its simplicity and directness, to ask children of every race and creed, of every tongue and country, to join with them in a common hope for and faith in peace for all mankind.

Twelve years ago this friendly, neighborly deed, made possible by science, which, like childhood, knows no national boundaries, was first done. Each year the message has spread wider and each year the answers to it have come from more children in more lands and have been more generous in thought until the Goodwill Day celebration has become almost an international rite. Greetings flit from country to country in Welsh, English, French, Italian, German, Spanish, and other languages.

"Gyda'r ffydd honno a all symud mynyddoedd fe newidir y byd gan ein meddyliau," says the Welsh child, and his little English cousin hears it to be: "With the faith that can remove mountains our thoughts will change the world."

To the German boy or girl, whether in Germany, Austria, or the many other places on earth where Germans have their homes, it becomes: "Durch den Glauben, der Berge zu versetzen vermag, werden unsere Gedanken die Welt umwandeln."

To move the mountain is a familiar thought in Italy, and here, too, the children will use it: "Con la fede che muove le montagne, i nostri pensieri muteranno il mondo."

Perhaps that age-old way of describing great faith in the homely picture of moving mountains is not so common in Spain and the countries that owe their language and culture to Spain, for there the children will speak in terms of having faith the one in the other: "Tengamos confianza los unos en los otros y transformaremos el mundo."

In the minds and on the lips of the French children, too, that will be the thought, but more in the form of a rallying cry: "Ayons foi les uns dans les autres, et nous transformerons merons le monde!"

Doubtless the children who voice in any language the ideals of the message will not know or care that May 18 is the anniversary of the opening in 1899 of the First Hague Conference, the first official peace conference to be held in time of peace. But they can be led to feel the thrill of companionship and fellowship with other little folk the world over and that will surely have some influence on their actions when they have grown to be men and women.

[From a Correspondent, in the Times, London, England]

The trouble with so many Christians is that they do not grow. "I asked the Lord that I might grow," wrote John Newton in one of his hymns; it is one of the indispensable prayers. For growth there must be.... Man cannot live on negations, even on the most essential ethical ones. The Ten Commandments belong to true religion.... It is through a positive reading of them, through love to God and to man, that the Holy Spirit, the Lifegiver, builds up the moral life.

[From the New Outlook, Toronto, Ontario, Canada]

Since time began there have been very few people who have ruined their lives by being too kind and generous and considerate toward other people. That is not, at least, the fault that very many of us are subject to and that we need be at great pains to guard ourselves against. And while it is true that very few people have ruined their lives by being too kind and generous and considerate toward other people, it is just as true that very many have ruined theirs by not having enough of such a spirit. And for one who stands in great danger of the one excess there must be very many who are in jeopardy from the opposite quarter.

The fact is that we can trust our generous feelings with far greater safety than we can trust some other feelings that we have. If an impulse toward kindness, or warm-heartedness, or chivalry, or great considerateness, should come upon us, the one great risk that we run is that we should be foolish enough to turn it aside and refuse to respond. That sudden softening of the heart, that impulse to forget one's self, and to forgive wrongs, and to be generous toward others' faults and tender toward their needs and limitations—all that is as the voice of God in a man's soul, his own best nature trying to assert itself and make a way for itself in the deeds of the ordinary day. We lay great stress upon goodness at times, but the goodness that is not kind and generous and free is ... a counterfeit. And the fight for you and me all through life will not be a fight against too much generosity and kindness and sympathy and understanding and chivalry, but a fight to win through to these in an ever higher and truer way as life goes on. Whatever stands in the way of a winning in that struggle is an evil thing indeed.

[Dr. R. O. Lawton, in the State, Columbia, South Carolina]

If you and I are perfectly frank with ourselves, we shall be constrained to admit that at least a few people of our acquaintance rub us the wrong way....

We are heartily ashamed of ourselves, for we well know that such an attitude is both unreasonable and un-Christian, and we pray for fresh accesses of grace and augmented charity. But the villain of dislikes still pursues us.

What are we going to do about it? Out of my own experience I hesitantingly make a few suggestions: 1. We shall try not to let this sort of thing grow on us. 2. We shall try to know people better, and as a rule, when we know them better we like them better. 3. We shall try diligently to cultivate the habit of looking for the beautiful and the good in others. As a general thing, we see about what we are looking for. It is surprising how much beauty and goodness we can find in people, if we really look for it and rejoice when we find it. 4. We shall strive to become more critical of ourselves and less critical of others. 5. We shall realize that we are sinning against our fellow men, against ourselves, and against God, the Father of us all, when we go through life hating or despising or disliking people. And we shall ask a good God for more grace and guidance, more tolerance and love, that we may be "kindly affectioned one of another with brotherly love."

[From the Church Visitor, Dallas, Wisconsin]

Activity is man's natural estate. Idleness is an afterthought, a habit. God is an active Being. Jesus said, "My Father worketh hitherto, and I work." Man bears the image of his Maker in a sphere of holy activity. Work enables a man to perfect himself. It composes his soul into a kind of harmony; it stills doubt, satisfies restless desire, and drives away despair. Carlyle says the blessed glow of labor is as a purifying fire in man, burning up all poison and making a sour smoke a bright, blessed flame. A French philosopher laid down three rules for the attainment of happiness. The first was occupation; the second, occupation; and the third and last was occupation. Work develops the mental and physical powers. Work prepares mind and body for joy and rest in sleep. Work through the week makes the Sabbath a boon. Work leads the mind to appreciate and enjoy the privileges of life. Work, whether of brain or hand, makes a man respect himself, value his own existence, and put his powers to the best employ. Never be unemployed. Never be unworthily employed. Keep heart, head, and hands in the diligent pursuit of some noble calling.

[Dean Harry Beal, as quoted in the Los Angeles Times, California]

The best test for genuine religion is found in the way we live with people every day and deal with practical matters.