ANNUAL SERMON HE FORE THE Hmencan Seamen’s ffnenfc Society, AT ITS SEVENTY-FOURTH ANNIVERSARY, Sunday, April 27, 1902, BY THE Rev. RUFUS P. JOHNSTON, D.D., IN THE FIFTH AVENUE BAPTIST CHURCH. AMERICAN SEAMEN’S FRIEND SOCIETY, 76 WALL STREET, NEW YORK, 1902 . SERMON. Carest Thou not that we perish? — Mark iv: 38. The love of Jesus Christ held the world in its arms. Nothing less than a world vision thrilled His soul and inspired His ministrations. No portion of the race lay beyond the circle of His sympathy and faith. Ho was the cheeriest of optimists and man was His brother. In His gracious purposes there were no foreigners. And one of the most beneficent results of His vision and teaching has been the de- velopment of the sense of race solidarity, the begetting of the spirit and sympathy of human brotherhood, the realization of humanity as a fact in the world. More and more closely are the bonds of unity being knit, and more and more sensitive becomes the whole to the hurt of any of its parts. In a profoundly significant sense the thought- ful Christian repeats the motto of Terence, “ I am a man ; therefore nothing human is alien to me.” And the sullen, self-excusing ques- tion of Cain is finding a cheerful answer in the affirmative. Our social philosophy unhesitatingly declares that we are our brother’s keeper. But unfortunately practice never quite levels up with philosophy. Theories are always in advance of achievement. Ideals have trouble in getting themselves perfectly embodied. Sentiment is not always sceptered with practical authority. The struggle is and has ever been to do as well as we know, to translate our ideals into actualities. Be- cause, therefore, of this painful discrepancy between theory and prac- tice, there yet remain crying needs unattended, wrongs unrighted, hurts unhealed, and sobs unhushed. And to remove this discrepancy in the matter of our relation to the men of the sea, the Society under whose auspices we meet to-day came into existence. Nearly nineteen hundred years ago the cry recorded in the words of the text rang out over the wild waters of the Galileean Sea. It was a night of storm and stress. Death walked upon the angry waves and laughed in the howling winds. And this cry was the desperate human challenge to the sympathy and power of the Son of God. It was the 4 sailors’ way of testing the sincerity of Ilis profession. lie accepted the challenge, responded to the cry, met the need, and in that hour wrote Himself down not only as the Son of God, but as the Son of Man, our divinely human brother. This feeble cry from the crew of the little boat upon the mimic sea has swollen into the chorus of millions and comes to us to-day borne upon the winds that sweep over the wide reaches of every sea. It is the challenge of the seamen of the twentieth century to the myriad followers of the Nazarene. It is a call to the brotherhood of man, a hand stretched out from the sea to find a brother’s hand on shore. The need that voices itself in this cry is not less but rather more urgent and real than that which the Galileean seamen pressed upon the Son of God. They were confronted by the danger of shipwreck only. Those modern seamen face not only the toils and hardships of long voyages, not only the deadening monotony of calms and the turbulent stress of storms, but they face injustice and cruelty upon the sea, neg- lect, temptations, robbery and degradation worse than death upon the shore. Not only are their lives, their wages, their manhood exposed to danger, but their very souls are in direct jeopardy. “ And sadder sight than eye can know, Than proud bark lost or seaman’s woe, Than battle-fire or tempest-cloud, Than prey-birds’ shriek or ocean shroud, The shipwreck of the soul.” The sea in the larger sense played an inconspicuous part in the lifo of Christ. So far as we know Ho never embarked upon it, He never crossed its stormy reaches. Ho only heard the thunder of its waves as they beat upon the shore. His experience was confined to the sea of Galilee, a diminutive sheet of water which can be swept with one glanco of the eye. But man played a large part in His history and in- terest. And our purpose at this hour is not to emphasize the sea ; that would bo impossible even were it not useless. It sings its ceaseless songs to all generations. It lulls the continents in its caressing arms and rocks them with the thunders of its waves. Our interest, therefore, is not with the sea, but with the men of the sea. What a great host they constitute ! Conservative estimates place their number at about three millions; each one by the nature of his calling an able-bodied man. Thus the sea musters a standing army larger than that of any nation. These men who go down to the sea in 5 ships are not essentially different from other men. They are neither angels nor demons. They are but our brethren, grown reckless and daring often by continual exposure to hardships and dangers; grown rough and hard often by exposure to cruelty and injustice ; grown intel- lectually listless and apathetic often because of the grinding monotony of their toil and the utter absence of inspiration ; grown profane and immoral often under the influence of evil associates, unwholesome environment, and the myriad temptations which beset them ; but withal often developing a noble courage, a generous sympathy, and a beautiful spirit of self-sacrifice. The sailor is neither less nor more than man. He has human motives, human affections and an immor- tal soul. He is neither better nor worse than other men would be under the same conditions ; nay, than others are even under different conditions. These men are our brothers gone to sea ; that is all ; but our brothers still, and still within the bounds of brotherly privileges and obligations. They are our brothers still and we are still our broth- er’s keeper. Think for a moment of the commanding role played by seamen in the great drama of history, and of the essential functions performed by them in the economy and progress of civilization. Whether in times of conflict requiring marshal valor and unflinching courage, or in the “ weak piping times of peace ” when toil and patience have no stim- ulus but the sense of devotion to duty, they have seldom been found wanting. On the battle-ship belching forth flaming death, on the palatial passenger steamer with its burden of careless humanity, on the tramp drifting from port to port, on the slow uncertain sailboat buf- fered by storms and becalmed in windless seas, on decks scorched by the furnace heat of the tropics or swept by the hail and snow of the northern seas, in storm or sunshine they have responded to the call of duty, have played nobly their part and have enriched civilization with their blood-bought contributions. Think of the heroic chapters they have written in the annals of the race. They have added lustre to the courage of arms, to the nobility of toil, to the heroism of sacrifice, to the glory of conquest. What deeds of discovery and exploration have they not wrought ? What battles for freedom and humanity have they not fought ? What colonies have they not assisted in planting ? They have enriched science and art. They have fostered commerce and learning. They have woven the bonds of international friendship and have laid at our feet the wealth of all the world. The history of mod- 6 ern times would have been impossible without them and modern civil- ization and luxury could not exist but for their large and necessary contribution. Imagine for a moment that all the ships should disappear, that all the sailors should cease to go to sea. What revolutions would have to be wrought in our customs, what pleasures, luxuries and necessities would be denied us and what a mighty relapse would civilization suf- fer ! Notwithstanding the vast and admitted contribution of these men to human welfare and progress, who thinks of them or their needs ? AVho prays for them in their stress and danger ? AVho strives to alleviate their hardships and sufferings, to right their wrongs and cheer them with tokens of sympathy and friendship ? There is not within the limits of civilization a class so widely neglected as are the men of the sea. There are something like five hundred thousand of them landing in New York every year. But how many of us know or care for them ? AVhat provisions do we make for them, what protection do we throw about them? AVe are enriched by the fruits of their toil, but we largely leave them to drift here in this sea of iniquity exposed to human sharks, to harlots, to dive keepers and thieves ; to be robbed of their wages, to be degraded in manhood, and neglected in soul. Let the waves of iniquity and shame swallow them ! AVho cares ? Let the human spiders lure them into their webs and devour them ! AVhose business is it ? True, the government equips life-saving stations along the coast, but who cares for the sailor’s soul ? There are a thousand hands stretched out to rob, but who extends a hand to help ? There are tigerish hosts that lay in wait to prey upon him, but who prays for him ? There are countless dives, brothels, doorways to hell, that are open to lure him to destruction. AVliere is the door that opens to win him to God ? Jesus heard the cry that burst from the lips of the little crew upon the lake of Galilee and in gracious sympathy rescued them from the death that threatened. Christians of America ! of New York ! hear ye not this hoarse cry for help that comes up from the myriad seamen that are constantly exposed to dangers worse than death ? Can we “have His mind in us” and turn a deaf ear to this plea from our brothers upon the sea ? These men are eminently worth saving, not only for their own sake, not only for the glory of Him who died for the n, but for the service of the church and humanity. They have in the n the stulf of which martyrs, missionaries, knights of the 7 cross are made. They are not effeminate, luxurious weaklings. They do not sigh to he “carried to the skies on flowery beds of ease. They are accustomed to hardships, toils and self-denial. Take the courage, the hardihood, the enthusiasm, the spirit of self-sacrifice and resolu- tion exhibited by the sailor and consecrate them to God and a new era will dawn upon the world. Christianity is essentially an appeal to the heroic elements in man. Where can it enlist men so careless of self, so accustomed to obedience, so scornful of dangers and sacrifices as from among these toilers of the sea ? Every converted sailor becomes a missionary with the world as his field. This is not a mere theory. The work done by Christian sailors in the past amply justifies the largost effort on the part of the church. In our own denomination there has been a practical demonstration of this contention. In Sweden and among the Swedish population of the United States there are thou- sands of devout, stalwart Christians in Baptist churches. This great movement had its origin in the conversion of a Swedish sailor in the Mariners’ Temple Church in this city. God is yet choosing the weak things of the world to confound the mighty. Is not this kind of work infinitely worth doing ? Read the life of Father Taylor, the eloquent and inspired apostle of the sea, whose no- ble work in Boston forms one of the most glorious chapters in the his- tory of American Christianity. Read the books of Frank T. Bullen, those classics of the sea, and thank God for the meeting for sailors in Port Chalmers, New Zealand, which gave to the church and the world a soul so genuine, so human and so strong. Sow in the morn thy seed. No man can measure the influence of words fitly spoken to these world- citizens. Only the last day will reveal the splendid secrets when the sea with its mysteries shall be no more. But among the jewels that adorn the Master’s crown will be these “pearls of the sea,” and none will be more glorious than they. I would not give you the impression that nothing is being done for these brothers of the sea. That would be an error in fact and a mis- representation of the spirit of philanthrophy which pervades this age. It would be impossible for such a body of men to escape the prayerful, beneficent ministrations of the followers of the Nazarene. It xvould be impossible for such a ci*y to awaken no response. To my thinking, the dominant, redeeming characteristic of this age is its spirit of Christly humanitarianism. Not less remarkable than its perfect com- mercial organizations are its benevolent, philanthropic and evangelistic 8 enterprises. There is no human need, physical, mental or moral, that Christian philanthropy is not seeking to meet. It is the age of vigilant chivalry, of Christian knighthood, and it would be a wrong to the age to say that no response has been made to the cry of seamen. Various denominations in seaport towns have in a way sought to minister to them, and much good has been accomplished. Various societies have been formed in this country and in England to meet the needs of sea- men, and their work has been gracious and Christ-like. Nor would I have you for a moment forget or minimize the wonder- ful work done by the Society under whose auspices we meet to-day. It sprang into being in response to the seamen’s cry, and for seventy-four years it has been performing its gracious and wide-spread ministra- tions. Its beneficent influences have girdled the globe, its lights have shone on every sea. It would he easy to mention the definite lines of work in which it is engaged, hut no man can estimate the blessings which have flown from its efforts. It would not be difficult to call the roll of chaplains that have served under its direction in the various ports of the world, but it would be an impossible task to number the hearts that have been comforted, the lives that have been rescued from . despair and death, and the souls that have been saved to God and eternal life. It would be possible to compute the number of volumes sent out upon the wandering ships, but it would be impossible to gather up and exhibit the helpful impulses received, the tedium and monot- ony relieved, and the temptations arrested and the noble purposes fos- tered by the reading of these books. Statistics would tell of the num- bers who have found a haven in the Sailors’ Home during the stormy years, but heaven’s statistics only will reveal the souls that have been guided into the haven of a peace that passeth understanding. A glance at the Society’s books would reveal the number of Magazines printed and circulated, the number of dollars collected and disbursed, but no human auditing can tell of the ethical and spiritual results that have come from these agencies. The work has been great, wide-reaching, beneficent, Christ-like. All honor to the memory of the men who conceived and organized it. All honor to the men and women who for three-quarters of a century have supported it. All honor to the men and women who to-day make it the object of their toil and the burden of their prayers. It is an arm of the Lord reaching out over the sea to save and servo. ilut groat as are the offorts made for seamen, they have but touched 0 the fringes of the possibilities of the work. The few saved, the few relieved, the few strengthen! d and inspired are but the earnest of greater works yet to be. The more one studies the problem the more the need for larger and broader elforts appears. There are certain deep seated misconceptions concerning the sailor which must be removed. There are certain long established traditions which assume that the sea is necessarily a' training school for vice and immorality, which must bo overturned. The feeling that no man cares for his soul must be displaced in the sailor’s life by proofs of loving interest and sympathy. A purer atmosphere must be sought, fairer treatment must be secured, a nobler spirit of self-respect inculcated. The sailor must know that he is a man upon whom rest manhood’s responsibilities and obliga- tions and to whom belong manhood’s privileges. He must be made to feel that he is not an alien, notan Ishmael, whose hand is against every man, but a part of the great brotherhood, contributing and receiving in the great exchange of life. In order to bring about this better atmosphere, this nobler morale, the sympathy and cooperation of shipowners must be enlisted to a larger degree. The character of the captains must in many cases be improved. As one reads the stories of the sea by Bullen, and the piti- ful letters from seamen in the Sailors’ Magazine, this need becomes crying and imperative. In many cases the brutality of Simon Lagree becomes a beautiful humanitarianism compared with the discipline of these petty despots. A premium is put upon brutality when officers are allowed so to maltreat the sailor that he is compelled to desert and leave his hard-earned wages to the inhuman tyrant that drove him to desperation. There must be a rigid suppression of the human sharks on land and the providing of wholesome places of amusement, recrea- tion and inspiration. The localities along the wharves must be res- cued from the minions of Satan, and a better and purer environment created for these myriads who come to our shores. The gospel in its saneness and sweet human sympathy must be preached by men who know the sailor and the sailor’s Saviour. The work already accomplished has been great; that which yet re- mains to be done is greater. The increasing number of seamen, their immense power for good or evil, render the doing of this work abso- lutely necessary. In saving the sailor we shall save our city and the lands that lie beyond. To the accomplishment of this work let us strengthen the bonds, multiply the resources and encourage the hearts 10 of the American Seamen’s Frieitd Society. Our work will not be done until Jesus Christ is the commander of the multitudinous crafts that enter and leave the harbors of the world, until in His hand is placed the scepter of the sea as well as of the land, until upon the ocean and upon the shore men looking into each other’s eyes shall see reflected the image of the Son of Man and shall speak the common word, brother, until God’s kingdom has come and His will is realized in love and peace, in purity and righteousness, upon earth as it is in heaven. 1902 . nurican if amen s ocidti. Officers : CHARLES A. STODDARD. D D , President. WM. C. STFRGES, Vice President W. C. STITT, D D . Secretary W. HALL ROPES, Treasurer trustees : Chas. A. Stoddard, D. D., Wm. E. Stiger, Daniel Barnes, A. Gifford Agnew, W. Hall Ropes, Norman Fox, D.D., Rev. John Hopkins Denison, Enos N Taft, Elbert A. Brinckerhoff, A. G. Vermilve, D.D., Frederick T. Sherman, Henry W. Jessup, John B. Calvert, D.D., Col. A. P. Ketchum, Samuel Rowland. Frederick Sturgks, George Bell, William C. Sturges, David Gillespie, Edgar L. Marston, Frederick B Dalzell It places loan libraries for seamen’s use on American vessels leaving the port of New York. Up to April 1, 1002, 10,002 libraries have been sent to sea ; 13,071 reshipments, or about two libraries for every working day for forty-four years. It provides a Sailors’ Home at 100 Clrerry Street, New York, where seamen can board and be comparatively protected from vicious sur- roundings, and where shipwrecked and destitute sailors are cared for. It publishes the Sailors’ Magazine for the friends of seamen, the Life Boat for Sunday Schools that give §20 for a loan library, and the Seamen’s Friend for seamen. It distributes on vessels the publications of the American Bible Society and the American Tract Society. Through its agents and efforts sailors are befriended, helped and blessed. The record of its work in all the years of its existence has cheered both the philanthropist and Christian. Sample copies of the Sailors’ Magazine (one dollar per annum) and copies of the Annual Report sent free to any address. Churches are requested to take an annual collection for this work, and to send it to the Treasurer, at No. 76 AVall Street, New York. Publications containing facts for sermons will be sent to pastors on application. Annual contributions from individuals are solicited and legacies in wills. AMERICAN SEAMEN’S FRIEND SOCIETY. The payment of Five Dollars makes an Annual Member. The payment of Thirty Dollars at one time makes a Life Member. The payment of One Hundred Dollars at one time makes a Life Director. The Sailors' Magazine costs to subscribers one dollar per annum. Upon application the Sailors’ Magazine will be sent free for one year to Life Directors, Life Members, and pastors of churches taking a yearly collection for the Society. Also, upon application, it will be sent free for one year to any one giving Twenty Dollars for a loan library, or at least Twenty Dollars to the missionary work of the Society. The Life Boat will be sent free (fifty copies monthly for one year) to Sunday Schools contributing Twenty Dollars for a loan library. The Secretary is ready to preach in any church in behalf of this Society, to explain its work to the King’s Daughters, to the Society of Christian Endeavor, to Monthly Concerts of Prayer, to Sunday Schools, to parlor meetings. Write to him at No. 76 Wall Street, New York. FORM OF A BEQUEST. “I give and bequeath to the American Seamen’s Friend Society, incorporated by the Legislature of New York, in the year 1833, the sum of $ , to be applied to the charitable uses and pur- poses of the said Society.” Three witnesses should certify at the end of the will, over their signatures, to the following formalities, which, in the execution of the will, should be strictly observed : 1st. That the testator subscribed (or acknowledged the subscrip- tion of) the will in their presence. 2nd. That he at the same time declared to them that it was his last will and testament. 3rd. That they, the witnesses, then and there, in his presence, and at his request, and in presence of each other, signed their names thoroto as witnesses.