PAN-HUMANITY BISHOP J[ICHOLAI of OCHRIDA, SERBIA From H. E. EDMONDS 2929 Broadway An Address delivered at the Candle Ceremony of the Intercollegiate Cosmopolitan Club of the City of New York, Sunday, April twenty-fourth, 1921. -h ii n^ -~ )i. .i r~ 11 INTRODUCTION By PAUL MONROE Director, School of Education, Teachers College, Columbia University D URING recent years numerous representatives of European govern¬ ments and peoples have visited the United States for the purpose of acquainting the American people with their problems, aspirations, and cultural attainments. No one has come with so idealistic a message, asking so little and giving so much, as the author of this address. Bishop Nicholai’s mission was primarily to give an interpretation of the spiritual needs of Europe, to enlist America’s interest and support in the non-material problems confronting the European peoples. Bishop Nicholai came with high credentials. As a representative of Serbia he spoke for a people who suffered most of all from the war. As a representative of the Greek Orthodox Church he spoke for the original Christian organization—one that has so little contact with the American people as scarcely to be known, much less understood. As a representa¬ tive of the Slavic race he spoke with the idealism of a great race whose purposes, aims, and aspirations are presented to us but dimly to our great confusion. Bishop Nicholai traveled throughout our country, speaking before Universities and Colleges, Commercial Associations, Rotary Clubs, Churches and Ecclesiastical Bodies. The address here printed gives a summary of his impressions and his message in epitome. It was highly appropriate that it should have been delivered before the Intercollegiate Cosmopolitan Club in New York, constituting a student representation of 65 nations. More than 600 students banded together in an organization for friendship, mutual acquaintance, and improvement, and for the better understanding of American culture, constitute in themselves a genuine League of Nations. It was also appropriate that this address should have been given at the Club’s “Candle Ceremony”—the symbolic occasion when the repre¬ sentative of each nation passes on its light to its neighbor; appropriate, let us hope, in that the United States may become the candle lighting the way to a larger brotherhood of mankind as it seeks through its Universities to afford to these students from so many lands the light of a common knowledge, a common understanding, and a common good-will. Portrait by Clara E. Sipprell Bishop Nicholai PAN-HUMANITY By Bishop Nicholai 1 FIND myself to-night speaking here to the whole world. Who can speak to the world except him who loves the world? God alone can do it, for He alone really loves the world. Let us be gods and we shall be able to say, without speaking a lie: we love humanity. Christ tried His hardest to teach men that they are gods, being the sons of God. Europe throughout the nineteenth century tried her hardest to teach men that they are animals and the sons of animals. The first teaching leads to love of humanity and peace; the second teaching leads to disdain of humanity and war. Friends, we must train ourselves systematically for love of humanity: first we must get to have compassion with suffer¬ ing humanity, then we must get to respect its efforts and struggles, and finally out of compassion and respect love will be born in our hearts. Compassion, respect, love. For either love is a sweet fruit of a long struggle or it is a painted fruit; that is, a lie on too many lips. Love is light. We have lit this evening many candles, though still it is daylight. It is a two-fold symbol. There is physical light enough, but we need more than physical light. And each nation lights its candle, even the most unciv¬ ilized; that is, each nation has something to contribute to the light of our soul. For if it did not, the world would be so much darker. This is the second time I look, looking at you, into the face of humanity. The first time was on the Galata Bridge in Constantinople, where the East and the West meet in the 4 inexhaustible variety of types and colors. And now here in America—America seems to me a Galata Bridge between all the continents. What is this puzzle called America? Is it a nation? No, it is more than that. It is pan-humanity. It is the second home of all of us. Therefore we all must help America in order that America may help the world. What do you think of America? Please don’t pass your judgment before a long study of this complicated human organism. I assure you that the soul of America is even more complex than the external civilization of it. There is no city in the world in which you can find your orientation so easily as in New York. I warn you; it is not so easy to penetrate into the soul of the Americans. Very often I have found out that they themselves do not understand their own soul. Very often they work spontaneously without under¬ standing. “How do you like America?’’ With this question you are overwhelmed in this country. Whether you answer, “I like it very much,” or “I don’t like it at all,” it makes no difference to them. They take it for granted that you like America; moreover, that you are charmed with America. I never saw in my life a nation believing in itself as does America. We all believe in America, but I pray God that America’s belief in herself should never become a self-conceit. An Englishman in his humbleness often would say, “I am so stupid.” But you never heard an American say, “I am stupid.” I know Europe fairly well. Though born in Serbia, I got my education in England, Germany, Russia and Switzerland. Europe is a house divided against itself. The most civilized nation in Europe is doubtless the English. How can you prove whether a person or a nation is civilized? Not only by the external achievements and constructions. Here is a simple proof: Tread upon the feet of an Englishman and he will excuse himself first. That represents the victory over oneself and a marvelous self-control. And yet the English race represents predominantly will power, while the Latin- German race represents intellectualism and the Slav race emotionalism. No one of the three represents perfection, but if united in the alchemical laboratory of the soul the three would be perfection. When you have these three united in 5 yourself, then you will be not action alone, and not intellect alone, and not sentiment alone. If you want to be perfect, you must have the three amalgamated and yet distinct. If you read the Gospel of Christ with the intention to find an intellectual, logical system in it, you will be disappointed. You find there just as much action as logic, and just as much emotion as action. Mighty deeds, mighty words, mighty emotions! All three in one. Whenever a divine teacher comes to mankind he comes not to move only the intellect of man, as the university professors do, but to shake mightily the whole of man, like a mighty wind which does not shake the bloom of the tree alone, and not the twigs and branches alone, but the whole tree. On the larger scale, however, Africa represents predomi¬ nantly emotion, Asia mind power, and Europe will power. What shall America represent—America, this Galata Bridge of the world—if not all the three, developed very highly and united very strongly? One-sidedness is the curse of the world. All things in the world are subtler than they seem to be. We thought the atom was the simplest thing in the world. But recently we learn that every atom consists of two kinds of electrons. How careful then we ought to be in judging such a compli¬ cated machinery as a human being, or a nation, or a place! In my village school in Serbia our schoolmaster startled us one day with a puzzling question. “Children,” he said, “can you keep water and fire together in the same vessel?” Of course, we answered, “No.” Then he went on, saying: “Then you never will be able to understand life. For life is water and fire put together.” So it is, my friends. I know it now. The more you go to the East, the more you find God; the more you go to the West, the more you find man. But neither God nor man is our ideal, but God-man. Not Jesus alone, nor Christ alone, but Jesus Christ. Your own life is a vessel of both water and fire, or body and spirit. Look after both and take care in right proportion. A divine humanity should be your ideal and the goal of your education. A divine humanity we expect from America, this second home of all of us. When Christ was born, wise men from the East came and offered to Him the best they possessed. With these best 6 gifts of the East, Christ’s teaching went to the West; not to the East, because the heart of the East was in it, but to the West. Alas, in the West these Eastern gifts of the wise men have been largely lost. We must turn to them once more. They are not lost in the East, but carefully preserved among the Eastern wizards. You are wrong if you think that Lao-tze and Confucius, Buddha and Zoroaster have lost their meaning for Christendom. Unfortunately for the present Christendom they have lost it. But I hope not for always. There is nowadays everywhere a busy study of the Eastern wisdom going on. And I hope that Christendom soon will rediscover what gifts the wise men of the East brought to Christ. One of the finest things that Lao-tze said was, “Never good is achieved by evil.” This message of Asia has been forgotten in Europe altogether. Those who believe in wars and revo¬ lutions as the channels of good are obscure and ignorant minds, having never been enlightened by the gifts of the wise men of Asia. Now we hope America will be this long-expected Divine Humanity, before all the world becomes it. Nations from East and West, from North and South, have poured their gifts to this country at its birth. The question now is whether America is going to use all these gifts, whether she is going to be both Jesus and Christ or not. I have been traveling through this country during the last three months. What have I seen? I have seen wonderful cities, the names of which even I had not known before. Many of them are younger than myself, and still they are more striking than some capitals in Europe or Asia. They are new like dreams, and like dreams they are fair. It shows the spirit back of it. America is cosmopolitan. Go down town in New York City and you will see your home art, whatever your home may be. America is cosmopolitan in architecture, in music, in literature, yea, in everything. The universities of America have not forgotten God. There is a chapel in every educational institute. I hear much of “Young China” being atheistic. Goodness, is it possible? How could one of the wisest peoples on earth lose the vision of God? We are not alone in this world. It is the most 7 The Candle Ceremony of the Intercollegiate 1 The Candle Ceremony consisted of one member from each of the 65 countries represented in the Club, taking an unlighted candle and a placard on which was printed the name of his country and arranging himself in the line extending around the room. The member at the left of the line turned over his card, so that the name of his country appeared, saying as he did so: “1 represent Alaska.” Then, with the candle, he lighted the candle of his neighbor, the latter turning over his card, saying: “ 1 represent Belgium.” There was laughter and applause when Ireland announced itself. There was a sort of poignancy in some of the chance collocations. Japan lighted the candle of Korea, and Korea mopolitan Club, New York, April 24, 1921 was clapped. Russia got its light from Roumania, and Turkey its from Syria. Each candle was lit from its neighbor, so that the light that began with Alaska spread up one side of the room, across the front and down the other side, clear to Venezuela, until all the candles were lighted. Then Mr. Edmonds, the Chairman, said : “ As light begets light, so love, service, and good-will are passed on to others. We promise one another that the light of international friendship and good-will kindled in these meetings shall never die out. We pledge ourselves to the extension of ‘The League of Hearts’ behind ‘The League of Nations,’ that justice, brotherhood and good-will may prevail throughout the world.” urgent need of the world that the intellectual leaders should not forget this. I should like you to have the vision of the spiritual world as Mohammed, Zoroaster, Buddha, Confucius and Moses had, of a world beyond this material world, of a light beyond this physical light. The universities in America have not forgotten God, I repeat. And this is essential. I am glad also that students in America are not divided into political parties. I don’t believe much in the State universities. I am afraid they will degen¬ erate in America as they have in Europe on account of their political connections. I believe in colleges, in the collegiate life of students, under spiritual and moral guidance. America is a money-making but not a money-saving people. We in Europe are money-saving, a greater curse. One thing I have learned, that the business people of this country are more spiritual than in any other country I know. I spoke in the Chamber of Commerce in St. Louis, and St. Louis is not known as a spiritual center. But I spoke on mere spiritual values of things. The president of the Chamber of Commerce followed me to my room on the fifteenth floor— there are no fifteen floors in Europe. He wanted to talk. I said, “I am willing to talk, but only on what I have been dis¬ cussing.” He said, “I think you have in Europe the fight between Caesar and Christ.” We talked for one and a half hours—he stayed away from business in order to talk spiritual things. Don’t speak of America as a materialistic people; you must go much deeper into the thoughts of the people here. There is general respect for the Church here. The churches are divided, but they co-operate. That was a new experience to me. Then the preachers are not rich men— that is very good. In India the priests are respected; among Eastern peoples the monks are honored because they are poor. The clergy of America come mostly from poor people. Charity is America’s religion. And the clergy are preaching charity. From many observations—I mention only a few—I have found that the chief tendency of the American character is constructiveness and charitableness. This is the most hopeful side of the American civilization. And that is the greatest gift we all can take back home with us. The American best brains today are plunged into deep 10 considerations. They are making a new program for this new world. They are on a cross-way. They have to decide: is America going to be America for herself and the world for America, or is she going to be for the world? The youngest son of Jacob, Joseph, saved all his family. Is America, this youngest child of human history, going to save the world? “Hurry up! Hurry up!” has been not only a human saying in this country, but God’s message to America to spur her and to prepare her to be ready to help all the world in a case of grave emergency. This emergency has arisen, and America stands on the pinnacle of her power, girdled with two belts: constructiveness and charity. Is she going to draw the world up to that pinnacle, or to darken her vision by pride and to fall down to the swamp of the Old World? May God help America! May we all, brothers, help America with whatever gifts we have, in order that she should fulfil her divine duty. When a Turk asks a blessing on a Serbian bishop (a Mohammedan Turk had offered grace at the beginning of the meal) the world is going to be better. I should like the Ameri¬ can to bless the Japanese, the Frenchman the German, the Indian the Semite, the Japanese the Chinese. The world would then be much better. On the gate of a high school in Des Moines I saw the motto engraved, “For the service of humanity.” That is the right motto for all the educated people in the world, I thought. Train yourselves not only to be the brain of your nations, but also the heart and the will of them. Try your hardest to train yourselves first in compassion towards humanity, then in respect towards it, and finally in love towards it. Love is the highest gift, and you never will reach it unless you have gone through the first two stages—compassion and respect. Be ready for pan-humanity. The intellectuals of the world are not yet ready—peoples are. The peasants of Serbia, Russia and India are ready. The intellectuals are not yet ready because they are mere intellectuals. Intellect is a curse of the world—a destructive Shiva—unless it has the light of a noble heart and of good-will. Today the biggest fight is going on between the capitalists and the proletarians. Don’t wish the victory to either of them. Whoever of them wins, the world will be a den of lions. Be the richest in mind, the II noblest in heart and the most willing, and then—then I shall pray for your victory. Have compassion with the wealthy of this world, have respect for the poor, and love both of them. They are equally sick, equally disbalanced. Whatever you study here, do not forget to study to be spiritual and moral doctors of your nations. Go back to them with a smile of a peacemaker. As such you are very much needed there, not otherwise. Don’t aspire to become wealthy; don’t be shy of poverty. Be the wealthiest inwardly, and don’t care for your external attire and position. If you only would heed this word: be the richest and the poorest at the same time. Such was the Man who had no shelter in this world and yet possessed the command of Heaven. Such was also the royal prince, Gautama. Such was Socrates. Such have tried to be all the best patterns of human kind. And there is a sen¬ tence of such a one, which please do engrave deep into your hearts, “Never good is achieved by evil.” I 1 PAN-HUMANITY AT WORK IN NEW YORK By HARRY E. EDMONDS Director, Intercollegiate Cosmopolitan Club of the City of New York D URING the college year 1920-1921 there were studying in 43 higher institutions of learning in New York City 516 students from Europe and the Near East, 240 from China, 203 from Latin-America, 147 from Japan, 87 from the Philip¬ pines, and 226 from miscellaneous countries—a total of 1,419 students from 75 countries. The object of the Intercollegiate Cosmopolitan Club is to unite these students for mutual benefit socially, intellectually, and morally; to promote friendly relations between them and American students; and to bring them, as guests from abroad, in contact with the best in American life. This year there has been an active paid membership of 620 students from 65 countries and 41 colleges. They have held 21 Sunday suppers, with an average attendance of 300, and addressed by prominent persons on some timely subject of interest to such a cosmopolitan gathering; 50 socials and receptions, with from 50 to 500 present; 7 national nights, affording the opportunity of exhibiting the music, manners and costumes of the different nationalities—attended by 3,350; 10 excursions to different places of interest—up the Hudson, around Manhattan Island and to industrial and municipal institutions in or near the city—for 1,200; 122 American home dinners, at which 1,008 were entertained; 29 discussion groups, to afford an interchange of viewpoint on questions of national and international scope, attended by 996; 500 students attended simultaneous social meetings in 15 churches—a total of 254 meetings of a social, educational, recreational and religious character held under the auspices of the Club, with an attend¬ ance of 17,000. The Club also found lodgings for 158, employ¬ ment for 101, aided 48 in sickness, counciled 274 on personal problems, and the officers and members of committees met large numbers on arrival and aided them in numerous other ways. There were 203 members serving on committees, 66 13 students engaged in social service in behalf of their fellow nationals of non-collegiate type, and 68 deputations conducted to churches and schools attended by 30,000 persons. The most remarkable characteristic of the Club is some¬ thing that cannot be appraised in value or tabulated in figures. It is the fine spirit of neighborliness and comradeship pervad¬ ing this large group of students who are so heterogenous in respect to national heritage, religious tradition, economic status, and social rank. One can observe that spirit on every occasion which brings them together. Such international companionship is worth more than tons of peace propaganda. As the Club’s members return home and translate this spirit into the leadership of their respective countries, they will be a mighty force, as is suggested in the Candle Ceremony, in kindling the light that will enable justice, brotherhood, and good-will to prevail throughout the world. 14 THE INTERCOLLEGIATE COSMOPOLITAN CLUB Committee of Management Frederick Osborn, Chairman Harry E. Edmonds, Secretary Hamilton Holt, Treasurer Wm, Seaman Bainbridge Frederick Lynch Lowell H. Brown Paul Monroe Jeremiah W. Jenks Herbert Parsons Samuel Thorne, Jr. Directors Mr. and Mrs. Harry E. Edmonds Bureaus Pan-America Manuel G. Machado Europe and the Near East Kevork P. Damlamian Alexander D. Dodd Japan Shunto Sagara William P. Woodard Philippines Jose S. Reyes China Herman C. E. Liu Donald G. Tewksbury British Empire Cabinet China Mr. H. C. E. Liu Mr. Tingfu F. Tsiang Miss Susan L. Yipsang Japan Mr. M. Kurihara Mr. S. Sagara Miss T. Wada Philippines Miss P. P. Herrera Mr. A. L. Llorente Mr. B. Panis United States Mr. Walter D. Agnew Mr. L. W. Leavitt Miss M. F. Nelson British Empire Miss L. M. Levy Mr. T. F. Mackenzie Miss Elizabeth Olson Mr. T. B. Rush Miss Edna M. Turner Rev. E. W. Wallace India Mr. D. V. Kirtiker Mr. T. Rahman Mr. T. H. K. Rezmie Peru Miss Z. E. Antay Mr. A. J. Concha Mrs. Marie de Palomino Other Latin-American Countries Miss P. Flores Mr. M. M. Grau Mr. Renato Lacayo Miss J. U. Molina Miss Laura Ottoni Mr. R. L. Servin South Africa Miss A. J. Aucamp Near East Mr. Vahan A. Alexander Russia Mr. A. A. Zazdrawny Other Slavic Countries Miss A. Horniic Greece Mr. L. C. Papas France, Switzerland, Belgium Mr. E. D. Vernier Scandinavian Countries Mr. D. E. Kallberg Office of the Club 2929 Broadway- New York City