An article written by my father, the Rev. C. Thomas Paige, as it appeared in the Tri-State Defender on the date shown.
“And some fell on good soil”
These are the words which fell from the lips of our Saviour. These words have taken on a new meaning as the years have gone on and daily, they take on new significance as I have more and more dealings with people. I have finally come to the conclusion that whatever is said will find growth in the minds of some people.
A few days ago, I heard a man say that those people who live in hopes of going to heaven with someone sitting on a throne, golden streets, angels flying around in the atmosphere, and all those things are in for a great disappointment. I have no reason to believe that heaven will be any different from the picture I have been given for the days I have been listening to preachers and people all my years.
I acknowledge the presence of liberal thinkers among us. I also acknowledge the right of people to think as they please. The tragic thing about the whole matter is that many times, our liberal thinking falls upon the ears of people who are not spiritually mature enough to differentiate the meaningful from the less meaningful.
From the results of the address to which I held reference, one young man has found great consolation. To him, all ends here. There is no basic reason why man should strive to be good. What merit is there in being good when all of us are going to the same place anyhow? How tragic it must be that a young man, daily exposed to the higher intellectual, would come up with such unreasonable thinking. But it happens every day.
This is not something new in the realm of human behavior. It is — Jesus held reference to this in His parable of the sower.
Today we are living in the midst of conditions raised forth in the time of the sower. People are spending all their sowing seeds. Some of these seeds are intellectual seeds, some are moral seeds, some are cultural seeds, and some are spiritual seeds, but what good are they doing for the masses of people?
A few days ago I heard a woman say that she would never vote for a teacher to become president of anything in which she held membership. Maybe it was at this point that Jesus looked at those about Him and said, “And some fell on good soil.” The tragic thing about the whole thing is that that which falls in good soil represents entirely too small a group among humanity.
Day after day, hour after hour, many of us are thrown in contact with the better things of life but what do they mean to us? Nothing. This means nothing as long as we are in a position to handle things as we want them but when the day of accountability comes to each of us, this takes on a new meaning. Each of us likes to think in terms of being able to make our contributions to our day and time.
Seeds fall in good soil only to the extent that the soil will be conducive to growing — growing to the extent that a better product will be realized. To those of us today who are exposed to all types of soil and living conditions, we must find anchorage in the fundamental that we will be able to not only make our lives fruitful but all those about is. Each day we must gather in sunshine and project our sunshine into the lives of those with whom we come in contact. Life will realize its fullest fruition only to the extent that we get the most out of our lives and project most into the lives of others. This is our greatest responsibility to our day and time.
VIVIAN J. PAIGE | All Politics is Local 