To be near unto God - pagina 120

of little elevation of character degrades us. Daily intercourse with people of nobler disposition, of more seriousness of thought, and of holier aims in life, spur us on to better things ourselves. good man is like a good genius to us. Pure environments hold us back from things that pull us down. notice this particularly in the case of men of

A

We

sterling qualities

and women

of

dominant

spirits.

They

exert a power of attraction upon each other which tends to make them alike. One is stronger than the other, and the stronger is bound to mould the weaker into likeness with himself. Imitation is a fundamental trait of human nature and gradually and involuntarily the weaker inclines to do and to be like the stronger, which extends sometimes even to the inflection of the voice and to the manner of conversation. And this personal influence leads of itself to religious influence, which is entirely apart from the moral. At heart all religion is personal. Moses put his stamp upon The Gospel has been carried into the all Israel. world by the Apostles. Augustin inspired the Middle Ages, Luther and Calvin are spiritual fathers of the Reformation. And to this day in every community, large or small, where a strongly inspired, religious life dominates, the persons can be pointed out from whom this healthy, bracing atmosphere has emanated. Fire in the heart of one strikes fire in the heart of the other. A devout Christian life wins the souls of its associates for

God.

Now we

reach the highest round of the ladder, which as a rule too little account is taken. We may breathe mountain or sea air. We may drink in the moral atmosphere of our environment. We of

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