Workmen's advocate., 1890-11-22
NATIONALIST CLUB NO. 3.
Charles Sotheran on 'rhe Church and
 the Labor Movement"


 In opening his lecture on the above subject at Nationalist Club No. ] of New York last Sunday afternoon, Charles S0theran warned his audience that he would steer clear of all matters of faith and theological questions (so diificnlt for even theologians to decide consistently after nineteen centuries of triaD, lie did not antagonze the sacrificing Chinaman for bringing some choice diet to the burial ground that the spirit of lis de- parted friend may not suffer the bangs of hunger; the self mOrtifying Baptist for taking his purifying dip in water 50 degrees too cold for his constitution; the pious Roman Catholic for humping his craw till his bones are ilattened; the modest Methodist for abstalning from the fearful crime of moving about to the sound of music in company with a charming woman; the punctllOus Quaker for addressing a single person in the proper grammatical terms thee and thou; the orthodox Jew for keep ing his digestive organs clear from tha. "unclcan' animal, commonly known as the pig, etc., etc.
 With any or all of these questions the lecturer had no concern and was per. feetly satisfied that each person prac- tise or dispise them as his fOolshness or wisdom would dictate, But, in accord, Ance with the title of his lecture, he re viewed the historical action of the insti- | tuition known as the Church, irrespective l of dogmas or denominations. with rete- 1 renee to the movement so dear to the | leart of every true Socialist and Ma | tonaIst. He first referred to the attitude | of Rome towards the English people in 1 their struggle to obtain the Magma Charta towards the efforts of the Irish 1 of the lnquisition in their advocacy of freedom of thought; towards our com. rddes the German Socialists; towards | the Italian people iu their efforts to | possess their native laud; and finally l towards our own movement here. Prom all these historical facts he drew the | only possible inference, that this part of 1 the Church has proved itself inimical to the efforts of the masses in their struggle for justice.
 Then turning to the Protestant Church. 1 he showed its attitude in the North of Ireland towards the suffering people of that country; towards the Purltans; towards the supposed witches In colonial days; towards our gallant forefutherr, while they were shaking off the yoke Of his Royal Majesty George III. and 1t became necessary to burn Trinity to the ground; towards our fathers in their struggle to emancipate the slave, All these facts, again, prove that t'H} wing of the good institution known as the Church, cal offer as reasonable amount of obstruction to progress as any other
 Finally, the efforts of the Pharlsecs in early Christian days to crush out the new aspirations; those of the rabhs a few weeks agoin Brooklyn to suppress free speech; of the Mehummedans in Turkey, of the Greek Church in Russia of the Chinese priests in China. in word of every church, wherever situated and of whatever dogma, proves Conclu5velx that the church as whole lrrespectiE& of creed, is the opponent of progress and the ally of tyrants,
 Having drawn this conclusion, com rade Sotheran exho"ted all present to use their best endeavors in insisting that the church keep its hands of our | movement. II.