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Vol. 47,
No.44 SOUTHSIDE ORACLE
January 14, 2005
The Bulletin Board
Elder Installation - Bruce Williams will be appointed as an elder at the
end of the first worship on Sunday, September 23rd. After
nominations from the congregation were received in October, the elders
presented Bruce’s name to the congregation for additional input, and the
response was positive. Those who usually attend the second worship and
Bible classes may wish to come a bit early for the installation. Bruce will
be introduced as an elder to those present for the second worship.
Baptized – Exequiel Hernandez was baptized into Christ by Bobby
Valentine at the first service last Sunday morning. We rejoice with him and
his family in his decision to follow Jesus.
The Sick – Elfriede Wandsnider was dismissed from Froedtert Hospital
last week….Gertrude Bahn is quite sick, but is at home….Remember the sick in
your prayers.
The
Christian Workers’ Meeting will be this Tuesday, January 18th at 9:00
a.m. It will deal with our faith struggles as Christians. Chris Kunkle of
Monroe will speak on “Doubts” and Dale Walker of Fond du Lac will discuss
“Discouragement.” These monthly meetings at Southside are attended by
people from a number of congregations and are open to anyone interested.
A
dozen of our youth and adults attended the Sunday Night Live program
at the Elkhorn Church last Sunday evening.
ATTENDANCE RECORD
Two
years ago Last year Last week Goal
Bible
classes 171 no count
150 170
Morning
worship 262
238 *260 250
Evening worship
66 50 50 80
Contribution $3798.17
$3876.66 $4366.03 $4900.00
(*) first service,
140; second service, 120
Angry Young Men
A
news commentator, discussing two sports figures – a jockey and a hockey
player - described them as “angry young men.” He said, in substance, that
both were “mad at the world.”
The
expression “angry young men” has been applied to those rebels in society who
feel that they must oppose something – morals, customs, people. They are
iconoclasts breaking everything they fancy to be an idol. If they’re in
sports they invariably fight “dirty”, believing that “nice guys finish
last.” In politics they are mavericks, seemingly picking the opposite side
for the sake of being different. In religion they are “defenders of the
truth,” or at least what they perceive to be the truth, magnifying some
issues out of proportion and distorting others. Everything becomes an issue
to be contended as if it were the sole basis of loyalty to Christ.
“Angry young men,” who are not always young, would be so regardless of their
field of activity. The literary satirist adept at scathing denunciations
would be a fist fighter and bad sport in athletics. His problem is that he
has a chip on his shoulder and is looking for someone who will knock it off
so he can have an excuse for a fight.
All
of us must have satisfaction of accomplishment if we are to be happy. We
crave it and seek it. A constructive productive life is the accepted way of
gaining this satisfaction. Not so with “angry young men” who gain
satisfaction by physical or verbal assaults on others.
“Angry young men” believe they have a cause. It may be a team, a principle,
or just themselves. Remove the cause and they will find another –
invariably the cause is negative. Their efforts are primarily destructive.
They are razers rather than raisers.
The
activities of “angry young men” are often disturbing, especially in the body
of Christ. Too often bitterness and broken friendships lie in their wake.
They put the worst construction upon every word and by innuendo seek to
destroy under the guise of upholding the banner of the cross.
There is little we can do to help “angry young men,” except to hope that
they will be mellowed by experience that will convince them that they are
not always right and that sometimes there is another side to be heard. But
until that happens, we must not allow ourselves to follow them down every
rabbit trail on which they would take us or contend with them over every
chip they dare us to knock off. Above all, we must “forbear with one
another in love, giving diligence to keep the unity of the Spirit in the
bond of peace” (Ephesians 4:2,3). We dare not allow the wrath of “angry
young men” to cause us to act or speak in a way in which we lose the spirit
of Christ.
__Monroe
E. Hawley
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