An article written by my father, the Rev. C. Thomas Paige, as it appeared in the Tri-State Defender on the date shown.
“BEHOLD THE CABOOSE!!”
One of the greatest tragedies of our day and time is wrapped up in the indifference of our church.
Sometime ago, I was in Louisville, KY attending a meeting. A young man studying for the ministry approached me and told me that there was one thing that disturbed him. I at once became curious and want to know what was bothering the young man so deeply.
He told me that when he stood on the sidelines and watched burning issues being completely ignored by the church, it bothered him. He went on to say that the church was always like the caboose when it should be the engine. Now time has gone on, days have turned into weeks, weeks into months, and months into years but for some unknown reason, every now and then this very thought advanced by this enthusiastic young preacher marches before me and I am forced to stop and wonder.
THEN THE CABOOSE
Everything points to just that. Long after the smoke has died away and much of the noise that is characteristic of pulling many coaches up an incline has faded into the distance, along comes the caboose. Is this not the color of our day and time? Many people who have been blessed with the goodness of God have satisfied themselves with the idea that it is not my business. Many people who you would have thought to be out on the firing lines of the social, moral, economic, educational and spiritual evils of our day are satisfied to sit on the sidelines and watch the game go on. Many — far too many — of us are just like that caboose: we can always come on the scene when the smoke and heat of the battle have gone away.
LOST THEMSELVES
Sometimes I have to stop and wonder if our churches are being lulled into complacency with material wealth and moral indifference. Sometimes I wonder if, somewhere down the highway of life, those who have been entrusted with the development of moral and spiritual individuals have not themselves become lost. It appears that way to me!
While many people in our day and time have satisfied themselves to live on the platitudes of life, countless thousands are starving for the bread of life. In the midst of all that is needed today, there is not one in the crowd carrying the five loaves and two fishes. Whole people are searching for food to satisfy that which only the church has to offer, the world is getting worse and worse. Those who should be concerning themselves with the vital things of life are going about concerning themselves with the non-essentials.
“WEAKEST LINK”
Sometime ago I was talking with one of the prominent ministers of a community who said to me, “Reverend, the weakest link in our society is our ministry.”
Here was his way of saying that, like the proverbial caboose, when all of the difficulties of life have been blown away, here comes the ministry. And then I wondered – just why should the ministry be the weakest link? Why should those men who stand before so many people Sunday after Sunday exert so little influence and be in a position to offer so little to a confused world?
Ah, I could go on and list thing after thing that has brought us to this point. I have looked time and time again at things that have brought us here. Maybe someday we will awaken to our real duty and realize that it was not the will of God that the minister should be the tail end, but rather, he should be the watchman on the wall, giving direction to the lost, unwanted, and disinherited. But many times, like that familiar caboose tied on to the end of the train, making no contribution as far as the actual work of the train is concerned, we find our men — who should be on the front lines — somewhere in the rear, saying, “I knew it all the time.”
SLEEP ON NOW
Well, I know many of you wonder why I write as I do this week. It is just this: my paper last night informed me that a certain group of churchmen went on record as accepting this controversial issue of integration as being right.
DID IT JUST GET RIGHT? Where have these good brethren been so long that they have just awakened? The engine, huffing and puffing, has passed by this place a long time ago. A whole lot of cars, squeaking beneath the load, have gone on up the highway and now sitting back in the caboose, we find some men who have been resting and too reserved to take a stand coming out and saying, “Oh, yes, it is right now.”
Brethren, the world has waited a long time for you to speak out. While you were keeping quiet (for the sake of expediency), men in all walks of life have lost respect for you. The crisis passed a long time ago. The Christ of the Garden of Gethsemane has been out there praying until blood and sweat have mingled and co-mingled like water. The soldiers have now come to bear Him away to Pilate’s court. All that has been needed to carry on the battle has now been used and now a tired old body is carried into court after court to stand trial. You have satisfied yourselves to sleep during the critical moments of the strife. “Sleep on now, the hour is at hand!”
Yes, the hour is at hand, but the tragic thing is many of us are like that caboose — we have come on the scene late, far too late.
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VIVIAN J. PAIGE | All Politics is Local 