| The first excerpt represents the past or something you must release, and is drawn from A treatise on Good Works by Dr. Martin Luther: although it really is greater than the bodily need. Such plan and
counsel is of the devil.
Not so, my good man! If you wish to be cured of sin, you must not
withdraw from God, but run to Him, and pray with much more
confidence than if a bodily need had overtaken you. God is not
hostile to sinners, but only to unbelievers, that is, to such as
do not recognize and lament their sin, nor seek help against it
from God, but in their own presumption wish first to purify
themselves, are unwilling to be in need of His grace, and will
not suffer Him to be a God Who gives to everyone and takes
nothing in return.
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The second excerpt represents the present or the deciding factor of the moment, and is drawn from Moby Dick by Herman Melville: the captain begged his pardon. From that hour I clove to Queequeg
like a barnacle; yea, till poor Queequeg took his last long dive.
Was there ever such unconsciousness? He did not seem to think that
he at all deserved a medal from the Humane and Magnanimous Societies.
He only asked for water--fresh water--something to wipe the brine
off; that done, he put on dry clothes, lighted his pipe, and leaning
against the bulwarks, and mildly eyeing those around him, seemed to
be saying to himself--"It's a mutual, joint-stock world, in all
meridians. We cannibals must help these Christians."
CHAPTER 14
Nantucket.
Moby Dick |
The third excerpt represents the future or something you must embrace, and is drawn from Babbitt by Sinclair Lewis: demand of all teachers and lecturers and journalists: if we're going to pay
them our good money, they've got to help us by selling efficiency and whooping
it up for rational prosperity! And when it comes to these blab-mouth,
fault-finding, pessimistic, cynical University teachers, let me tell you that
during this golden coming year it's just as much our duty to bring influence
to have those cusses fired as it is to sell all the real estate and gather in
all the good shekels we can.
"'Not till that is done will our sons and daughters see that the ideal of
American manhood and culture isn't a lot of cranks sitting around chewing the
rag about their Rights and their Wrongs, but a God-fearing, hustling,
successful, two-fisted Regular Guy, who belongs to some church with pep and
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