in conflict, one Christian sect with
another. Not only does what I am about to say apply to the behavior of
Christians towards one another, but of all Christians towards their
non-Christian brethren, towards their fellow-citizens of another
creed. You can do most for the colleges from which you come, you can
do most for the creed which you profess, by doing your work in the
position to which you have been called in a way that brings the
respect of your fellow-men to you, and therefore to those for whom you
stand. Let it be a matter of pride with the Christian in the army
that in the time of danger no man is nearer that danger than he is.
Let it be a matter of pride to the officer whose duty it is to fight
that no man, when the country calls on him to fight, fights better
than he does. That is how you can do more for Christianity, for the
name of Christians, you who are in the army. Let the man in a civil
governmental position so bear himself that it shall be acceptable as
axiomatic that when you have a Christian, a graduate of a missionary
school, in a public office, the efficiency and honesty of that office
are guaranteed. That is the kind of Christianity that counts in a
public official, that counts in the military official--the
Christianity that makes him do his duty in war, or makes him do his
duty in peace. And you--who I hope will be the great majority--who are
not in Government service, can conduct yourselves so that your
neighbors shall have every respect for your courage, your honesty,
your good faith, shall have implicit trust that you will deal
religiously with your brother as man to man, whether it be in business
or whether it be in connection with your relations to the community as
a whole. The kind of graduate of a Christian school really worth
calling a Christian is the man who shows his creed practically by the
way he behaves towards his wife and towards his children, towards his
neighbor, towards those with whom he deals in the business world, and
towards the city and Government. In no way can he do as much for the
institution that trains him, in no way can he do as much to bring
respect and regard to the creed that he professes. And, remember, you
need more than one quality. I have spoken of courage; it is, of
course, the first virtue of the soldier, but every one of you who is
worth his salt must have it in him too. Do not forget that the good
man who is afraid is only a handicap to his fellows who are