oned truth. As the rural
mind is directed to the consideration of topics of vital importance
these things that have crept in and disturbed social order and
dissipated precious energies in fruitless discussion will disappear
through lack of attention. On the other hand, persecution will attract
attention to and arouse the fanatical support of them and distract the
attention of the group from matters of more vital importance.

In addition to preaching those sermons which keep alive in community
consciousness the sense of man's obligations to his Maker, the
significance and solemnity of death and those other epochal events in
the course of human existence, and the hope given to man of a fuller
life through the coming of Christ, the minister has certain great
moral ideals that he should instill into the minds of his people.

The matter of honesty in dealing with both the farmer and his
neighbors both near and distant has already been mentioned.

The right attitude toward wealth accumulation must also be preached
not only for the safety of the rural community but also for the
entire nation. By the very nature of the business the vast majority of
people living in small communities and on the farms must remain
indefinitely people of modest means. The possibilities of large wealth
accumulation are limited because the farm must continue to be a small
scale industry. It can be improved so as to afford adequate leisure.
But farm life does not promise large enjoyment to those of an
epicurean turn of mind. The ideal of the farm must be that of
producing wealth so that the modest comforts of life may be insured.
But the minister must exalt the appreciation of those things that may
be obtained without lavish expenditure of money, such as local
entertainment produced by the community itself, literature, music, and
art; and the simple pleasures that come from democratic association
with intimate acquaintances.

It is believed that with all the material progress of this country, it
has had to sacrifice many things that are worth far more than the
types of enjoyment obtained by slavish imitation of the extremely
wealthy leisure class in the cities. The exhortation to preach the
values of the simple pleasures possible in smaller communities is not
for the purpose of keeping people contented with a lot that cannot be
improved, but because it is believed that the smaller communities
to-day contain within themselves and their ideals the s