The Caucasian. (Clinton, N.C.) 188?-1913, 1893-08-10
THE MONEY PROBLEM
egy THOMAS clxoS, r., ON COM
MINIS. AND SOCIALISM

4 rrobi~Ei That Can Only hT
the Organization OF society Upon some
thing THAT Approximate. It. True Chris
tian Ba.is-
CAFE CHARLES. Va. Aug. e.-kev'
Thomas Dixon. Jr.. continued at s"oo
/ island the series of sermons on he RI
raucial Problem" the subject of today
discourse being Communism aud 10
rialisIn." The text chosen was Matthew
XIV, Is. And unto one he gave hve
talents. 10 another two, 10 another one;
TO each according 10 his several ability.
Standing before the great problem oil
money, we ask ourselves the question.
| What will be its ultimate solution
Ii Is not a question that can be settled
by a manipulation of gold standard or
silver standard or IA greenback standard
of the mechanism Of exchange. The
mechanism of exchange Is very small
part of the commercial problem The
commercial problem is a larger question
than the mechanism of exchange. The
commercial problem is the problem of
the organization of human society. 1t Is
a problem that can never be settled until
the question of the organization OF so
ciety is settled upon something that APP
proximates its true Christian basis.
Hence the tremendous agitation of the
last decade in the social theories of the
world
There have arisen various schools Of
social reform through the past century
which have felt and felt fully the seri-
GUS import of this problem. The French
and German socialists of the last cen
fury have laid the foundations for the
deepest thinking upon this problem, and
that thinking is bearing fruit today in
the active organization of society.
| There are two schools Of reformers who
claim the feld--the one destructive. the
other constructive. The word socialist
has grown to have dangerous meaning
to the conservative members of society
because of the wild lunatics who are in
reality anarchists and who have mas
queraded as socialists
A socialist is simply one who believes
in better social order than the present.
who believes in the reorganization of So
ciety upon basis of fraternal co-opera-
ton rather than the present basis of cold
blooded war.
Socialism has also been confused with
proclaimed within the past 80 years and
that today have loud mouthed advocates
in every country. This school of COM
munism is In reality school of anarch-
lists, who have caused a reaction from
true social reform that has been most
lamentable and has set back the prog
ress of the race practically generation.
| Christianity is system of socialism.
Jesus Christ was the first great socialist
| of the world. The work of Christianity
| Is the construction of a new kingdom on
the remains of the old. 1t is the build
| ing of a new heaven and new earth.
It is this constructive socialism that
must give to human society the true an
| swer for its present ills.
The communism which demands a d.
vision of property on a per capita basis
is In reality a scheme of madmen and
anarchists and has nothing to do with
true social reform. Christianity has
| nothing in common with the ideal of
dead equality in the distribution of prop
erty. Such a scheme enforced would be
the destruction of society, not its con-
struction. And it's destruction is not
the aim of Christianity save as the prep
aration for construction. Our text has
given us the true principle of Christian
socialism as contrasted with the spurious
ideal of an equal communistic division
of property. 1t is equal ability and re-
sponsibility, and reward in proportion to
ability.
The ideal of pure communism enforced
could only result In the destruction to
humanity
First-Because it is immoral.
1t is contrary to Gods law. The Bible
support of communism is apparent, not
real. The New Testament gives US &C
counts of cooperative communities Of
Christians Each man did not claim his
possessions as sacred to his own use. He
put his property In common, subject to
the use of his necessitous brother. The
right and title of his property he always
maintained. The Bible condemnation Of
dead level communism Is real, full.
overwhelming. We have the parable of
the talents. God distinctly declares to
us that one man has five talents, another
two, another one. To one man Is given
so many pounds, to another 50 many, to
another so many, and each man is re-
aulred to give an account of the talent
he has possessed; to account for them in
proportion to his possession. The tudg-
ment pronounced by the Bible Is this
Judgment in proportion to mans de-
serts. Those who are guilty of much are
punished with many stripes; those who
are guilty Of little are punished with few.
There are the greatest and the lowest
even in the kingdom Of heaven. In the
organization Of this ideal world. around
the very throne Of God, there Is recoe-
nized the inequality Of the individual.
an inequality that arises from unequal
distribution of powers Each man Is
equally responsible-that Is to say, each
man is responsible to the full limit of his
talent.
Second-Pure communism is unnat-
ural
1t is contrary to the decree of nature.
which Is but another expression Of the
voice of God. Nature abhors universal
equality. Men are not equal. They
were not born equal. There. Is nothing
In nature that leads us to believe that ma /
ture would permit equality In her crea-
tons: There are no two waves Just
equal i'll force, in character. The flow
ers have their character, their dissimilar-
lty. Every stream has its individuality
every leaf its own character. No two
leaves are alike. No two human faces
are alike. No two human bodies ara
alike. No two human minds are alike
ihere are no two mountains Just alike in
the world. No two mountains are inst |
equal in height. There are hills, there
are valleys, there are higher hills, there
are grand mountain ranges, there ara
smaller mountains.
In leaf and flower, In bud and bios
som, in bird and fish, In mountain and