Giants And Pygmies
Long ago Didacus Stella said, "Pygmies placed on the shoulders of giants see more than the giants themselves." Robert Burton agrees, as he writes this: "I say with Didacus Stella, a dwarf standing on the shoulders of a giant may see farther than the giant himself." Coleridge also used this expressive expression: "A dwarf sees farther than the giant when he has the giants shoulders to mount on,"
I suppose that it is true that Henry Ford, Sr., would be amazed and perplexed, if he could return, inspect and drive any of the 1957 automobiles. But suppose the engineers of 1957 had not had the broad shoulders of Henry Ford to mount on? And Henry was standing on the shoulders of all the giants of the past, like the man who invented the wheel, or Lenoir, the Frenchman, who in 1860 invented a gas engine that could be used commercially. But standing on Lenoir's shoulders, Dr. Nicholas A. Otto, German, devised the real beginning of the gas motor, 1878.
The same thing is true in Medicine, Agriculture, and every field and profession we have today. Pygmies (or sometimes giants) standing on the shoulders of the giants of the past see much farther, much more, than the giants themselves, I do not compliment myself and my brethren today, if I say that we, standing on the shoulders of Campbell, Sewell, Lipscomb, and others see father, more, and better than they themselves could see. They saw what they thought were the advantages of human organizations to supplement the church. The missionary societies to some of them looked innocent and very helpful — no more overlapping and waste of effort, they thought. Sewell and Lipscomb could not see that the college they started, and the journal they began would be used to foster a very similar movement to the one they were starting to oppose and destroy.
We pygmies (there are few of us as small as I) can see ever so clearly the awful mistakes of Luther, Calvin, Wesley, Roger Williams, and others; but how far could we see if we were not standing on the stalwart shoulders of those giants of other days ?
Years ago when B. C. Goodpasture was at West End, James H. McBroom was at old South Pryor Street (Atlanta, Ga.), and I was at East Point (adjacent to Atlanta), we used to have union meetings of the three congregations the first of each year. First, the other two churches would be the guest of East Point (usually); then so on for three Lord's Day evenings. We would have extemporaneous talks by various brethren from all the congregations. There was no organization other than the local bodies involved, Much delightful fellowship was enjoyed, and a spirited, brotherly rivalry engendered thereby, as we thought, like that Paul sought to encourage in 2 Cor. 8 and 9 by using the examples of the Macedonian churches, However, I very innocently sent in a write-up of one of these meetings to the Advocate, when Brother Allen was editor. Brother Allen proceeded to "take us apart." Brethren McBroom and Goodpasture came right over to my home, as soon as the issue was out in which my report and Brother Allen's criticism were published. We formulated a letter to Brother Allen. (Which, if I remember correctly, was not printed.) We were indignant that we were criticized in the Advocate, but were not allowed to reply, I wrote to Brother S. H. Hall, then in Nashville, to talk to Brother Allen. No results. We dropped the matter. Now standing on Allen's shoulders, I think I see even farther than he saw then. I think I can quote him from memory (Pardon, Bro. Allen, if I'm incorrect): "These union meetings are a step, though perhaps a very small and seemingly innocent step, toward Rome — not toward Jerusalem" Yes, now I see how that if that movement had spread to other churches it might have been completely beyond that which is written, It's very difficult for humans to abide in the teaching of Christ, it seems. (2 John 9.)