(FIjp fflrnaa E P T E m E R 1 0 6 7 (lib? Sngal OlroHB OFFICIAL ORGAN OF THE DAUGHTERS OF THE KING Miss Lillian Janet Soper, Edisor EDITORIAL OFFICE, 6407 32d Street, N. W., Washington. D. C. 20015 THE MESSAGE OF A CATHEDRAL WINDOW I am the Light; heaven's greatest gift to man. I am the sunrise; And the sunset; And the rainbow—■ The daily miracle of color. I am the springtime and the Autumn. I am the only art discovered by any religion— I am the dawn and little children's laughter— The brook in the woods. I am as fragile as a child, and as beautiful; As compelling as a lovely woman. As magnificent as the character of a great man— improved by every attack. I am the moon on the lake at midnight. I am memories—the woman who went away and daily returns to bless you. I am phantasy; and witchery—and mystery. I am yesterday; and tomorrow. I am the good Lord's leading missionary; For eight hundred years I have functioned twelve hours a day while the pulpit speaks for twenty minutes a week. I appeal to all races and all ages. 1 am beauty; and beauty is God made manifest. James Sheldon PUBLICATION OFFICE, Jackson, Tenn. NATIONAL OFFICE: THE DAUGHTERS OF THE KING, INC. Boom 600, The Episcopal Church Center, 81S Second Avenue. New Tork, N. T. 10017 b-lRS. Herbert Norris, Office Administrator Failure to receive THE ROYAL CROSS should be reported to the National Office, giving full name and Changes of Address should be received before the 1st of the month preceding month of issue. Both old and new addresses should be given. r. u u THE ROYAL CROSS, official organ of the Order, is published in March, June, September and Decem^r. at Jackson, Tennessee. Subscription, Sl.OO a year. Single copies, 2s cents. Entered as second-class matter at the Post Office at Jackson, Tennessee, under the act of March 3rd, 1879. Ac^ted for mailt^ at special rate of postage provided for in Section 1103, Act of October 3, 1917, authorized October 16, 1918. Qlljf Snyal Qlroaa Vol. LI September, 1967 Number 8 THE NATIONAL PRESIDENT'S MESSAGE My Dear Daughters: furtherance of the Kingdom. Sometimes It has been my happy experience re I feel we fail to realize the terrific value cently to present two wonderful chapters of one soul at prayer. Lest we be tempted for installation; an experience so full of to discouragement and go about our work joy, of pride and of thanksgiving that I with an absence of joy, perhaps we should wish there were ways of sharing it with remind ourselves of our worth as Daugh you. Thirty-eight new Daughters standing ters. If humility must characterize our at the threshold of life in the Order, ready lives so must joy if we are to win others to strengthen each other and all of us and to Him. to reach out more and more to women Let us pray that the Holy Spirit will and girls for our Lord; to be strong in guide and direct our work at convention, tercessors with feet firmly in practicality when in September we will have the but with heart and soul growing in praise blessed opportunity to meet together in and adoration. We too, are reminded daily Seattle. I am looking forward to seeing of our challenge "With lofty minds up many of you there. hold the Cross" which weaves itself into all we do. The performance of the noble Faithfully yours, admonition brings the knowledge tJiat Sara Cassidy deep humility must be the most requisite characteristic of a true Daughter. We must "Occasions of adversity best discover how have a legitimate pride in our work and great virtue or strength each one hath. in each other. Tested on the scale of For occasions do not make a man frail, humility this can never be out of balance. but they show what he is." Another thing about Daughters is that we never meet a stranger in the Order—the —Thomas a Kempis close sisterly feeling stems from our cor porate prayer life and our common pur pose. I suppose that each of us has worried DAUGHTERS TAKE NOTE from time to time of our unworthiness for Members who have not paid their our calling but this can never blind us dues since 1964 will have their names to the work which lies ahead of us and removed from the Printer's mailing tlte great need which our Lord has for list of The Royal Cross this September, Christian women today. 1967. We have heard much in the last few years of the need to change our image. It is inevitable that some have projected THE COVER: Trinity Church, Everett, the wrong image unconsciously or inad Washington, Diocese of Olympia, rector, vertently. We are not a pious little group the Rev. Ivan Merrick. Father Merrick, a of sweet, even difficult, potential saints firm believer in Christian Healing, con bent upon our own satisfaction. We are ducts a Healing Service at Trinity every a family within the larger family of the Tuesday at 8:00 P.M.—Even if Christmas Church, Christian soldiers, under special Eve or Christmas Day comes on Tuesday, orders and a life commitment to our this service is never omitted. He feels it King—workers, helpers, friends knit to is one of the most inspiring and significant gether in a beautiful bond. We may be aspects of his ministry. Barbara Merrick, called upon to sow a seed, to work and to Fr. Merrick's wife, has the responsibility pray perhaps even a lifetime with little of getting leaders for the daily opening or no visible results, yet the Holy Spirit and closing devotions of the Triennial can bless and use these efforts to the Convention sessions. ALL SAINTS' DAY MEDITATION faith, people are turning away. Perhaps it The Order's National Annual Corporate is time to examine our own idea of faith, Communion And Day of Prayer to re-discover the exciting dimensions of For the Kingdom of God is not meat and Christianity, and in doing so discover why drink; but righteousness, and peace, and we are so often inadequate Daughters of fay in the Holy Ghost. the King. (Romans 14:17) Before we consider the kingdom of God For All Saints meditation I would ask wc first need to look at our concept of you to read, re-read, even to memorize God. God is not just a person like you this passage from our great missionary, St. and me. St. John grasped this when he Paul. There are special days in the Chris tian year marking the lives of the great wrote, "God is a spirit; and they that Saints, those men and women who tower worship Him must worship Him in spirit over the ages so wrapped in mist of time and in truth" (John 4:24.) The ancient that our vision of them is distorted and Jews recognized this when they refused they appear remote from the flesh and even to name Him. They used four conso blood of this life. In her wisdom the nants to represent the incommunicable Church has set aside an Octave, not just Name, and I'm sure we lose the un one day but a whole week for us to medi believable sense of awe they were ex tate on the meaning to you and to me pressing when we read Jehovah into the of those departed this life who have had Old Testament. J. B. Phillips once especially close relationship to us. We may preached a sermon entitled, "Your God have difficulty remembering that the Saints Is Too Small." Most of us have Him were frail humans like you and me, but we neatly categorized out there on His knew these lesser saints, parents, grand golden throne where He doesn't get parents, friends, and neighbors; we knew in the way of our prejudices, selfishness their faults as well as their virtues, and how and thoughtlessness. How big is your God? ever confused our idea of heaven and of Is He big enough to encompass this whole their place in it, we have to come to terms creation: the hydrogen bomb, the space with the meaning of death, of God and of probes, the race problems, international His heaven. tensions, hatreds and rivalries? Is He big Many of us have never gone beyond the enough to rule, to over-rule, the mess we kindergarten concept of our faith, and make of life? A lifetime is none too long there is no time of the Christian year when a time for getting acquainted with this wc are brought more sharply face to face big a God. And we never dare be smug with our childishness than at All Saints. and glib about Him. With this in mind a It isn't just that we've isolated Halloween magnificent passage from Deut. 30:11-20 from the Church's feast into a party time may now be illuminated for us. It is from for children to which I am referring. It Moses' address to his people as they were is our own isolation from a vibrant and about to cross to the Promised Land; I living faith to pass on to these children quote some of its high points: "But the and to our contemporaries of which I am word is very nigh unto thee, in thy mouth speaking. Our country prides itself on and in thy heart that thou mayest do it .