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60 W7iy America Must Take the Leadership
tion as to what I should advise, nor as to what could be done. Nothing
could be simpler. We have only to proceed on our journey, so long
delayed in Alaska, into Siberia on the other side of Behring’s Strait, to
preach the same Gospel there and to teach tribes kindred to the tribes
of Northern Alaska, while on our way into Russia proper. We could
do this much easier, were we privileged to do it under the Stars and
Stripes, as we do in Alaska, but we could no doubt do it without this
assistance, as an advance post of Christian America, if not of American
politics and statesmanship.
America Must Lead
There are many reasons why the duty of leadership in evangelizing
Russia falls to America. And the reasons are exactly the same which
now call America to the front everywhere. America has the means.
America has the strength. America has the mind. America is the
only strong, free nation on earth not on her knee in a death-struggle
for her existence. America is yet free to act and free to think. But
besides these reasons why America should assume leadership, there are
considerations which make it desirable in the extreme that the leader-
ship at this time be American not only in name but in spirit. America
is just now entrusted with the cause of popular freedom and democratic
principles in the whole world. As long as America is in the lead and
remains true to her traditions and her ideals, there is hope everywhere.
With America defeated, physically and morally, the defeat will be
universal and for long dark ages to come. In this light the decision
on the part of America to enter into the fight was the greatest risk
ever taken in human history by responsible leaders of the cause of
freedom. And the only defense for taking that risk is the conviction,
to which at this time we all must have come, that not to take this risk
had been an even greater risk to the cause of freedom and humanity.
The risk then was as necessary as it was great. There was in fact
no choice.
While that is so and while America by reason of her strength and a
world call assumes her leadership today on the battlefields and tomor-
row in the councils of the nations, it is important that she be led now
to commit herself to a right attitude toward the Russian people and
the Russian problems, to solve them in the spirit not only of fairness
but of true Christianity. Nothing less will establish a lasting basis for
influences which shall be truly beneficial to Russia and honorable to
us. Perhaps this conference is given the great function, in the provi-
dence of God, to help commit America to such a policy by turning the
minds of many Americans toward the real need of Russia and by
starting a movement to furnish her with the one thing which can
meet that need.
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