Mississippi leader. (Jackson, Miss.) 1892-1895, 1894-10-02
ARETHEWORDST TRUE
CHRISTIANITY AND CHURCHIANITY
DEFINED.

Fearful Charges Are Made Against the
Christian Church, and the Question Is,
Are the Charges True?-There Must BE an
Awakening.
[BY CARLOS MARTIN, D. D..
Temperance cries, Christian, aid us
to eradicate this cancer of drunkenness
which is eating out the vitals of civili-
zation." And churchianity responded,
"Did not Paul advise Timothy to take a
little wine for his stomach's sake?"
Woman cries: II am trembling between
starvation and the brothel. Open to me
broader avenues of occupation. " And
churchianity answers: 'Fie! For
shame! Do you want to unsex yourself?
Go home and darn stockings and rock a
cradle" Labor cries: "Givo me a
chance I want shorter hours, better
wages, more bread on the table and part
ownership in what make" And
churchianity whispers: "Sh! Capital
rents the pews, pays for the music and
patronizes the parson. Well open a
souphouse. Well build mission
chapel on side street and name it st.
Lazarus.
Thus, when churchianity comes out
of the ranks of the foe and attempts to
deal with existing evils, it does SO i'll
such amateur fashion that the very eff
forts aggravate the difficulty. When the
trouble comes from the social order, it
doles out temporary supplies to the in
dividuals. 1t contents itself with allie
Walton and does not study to cure. 1t
gives pity, not justice. 1t Itprovides char
ity, instead Of insisting upon a rear
rangement of the situation. Meantime
it is as ignorant of the impending cata-
clysm as Versailles was of the French
revolution year before it reddcned the
streets of Paris with blood, when, as
Carlyle said, 1.-The eighteenth century
committed suicide by blowing its own
brains out. Z"
What are the results? They are many
and sad.
One is the weakening grip of the
church upon practical life. 1t builds
cathedrals, not men. 1t meets on Sun
day for worship i'll splendid exclusion
and seclusion and shuts the building
through the week, while the congrega-
ton is occupied at the theater, in the
ballroom or on Wall street. The pulpit,
off tl,o af
issues drones through a parrotlike repe-
tition of the creed and puts the empha-
sis on belief when it should be put on
conduct
Another result is that the church is
pre-empted (and emptieU by wealth
and fashion. Lawyers who are of coun-
sci for trusts and monopolies, capitalists
whose names are identified with tricky
monetary transactions, leaders of the
ton whose real god is society, occupy
the highest seats in the synagogue and
love to come, because they can feel sure
that they will not be reminded of time
i'll tho contemplation of eternity.
Saddest of all, the industrial class are
conspicuous by their absence from the
church, like the images of Brutus and
Cassius in the imperial procession.
There is an almost complete alienation
from institutional religion on their part
Those who are foremost in planting
Christianity, its apostleship, among its
most devout adherents, its chiefest bene-
ficiaries, its saintliest opponents, its
most eager martyrs, are now embittered
and critical. They do not, cannot recog
nize Christianity or churchianity. They
need religion as much as ever, more
than ever. The gracious words and
beautiful example of Christ would be as
potent in the nineteenth century as they
were in the first were they as faithfully
and lovingly presented. But the church
of show, the church of the Holy Cash,
the congregation Of st. Sinner, la
mode, are all abomination to their souls.
Reinforcing these are many thought
full people who make much of morality,
and who contrast the profession of the
church with its practice, its creed with
its life They, too, are shocked with
alienation. When they see men and
women prominent at church, in its Off
cership, among its society, leaders, who
are at discount as to honesty and reli-
ability in the world, what wonder they
conclude that they can be as good as
these saints and remain sinners? And
so, though they have no theological
quarrel with religion, they train with
the ever increasing army of stay at
homes
At recent notable meeting of the
Evangelical alliance there was ON the
part Of all present a recognition Of the
drifting apart of the church and the peo-
pie. The Rev. DIR. Strong exclaimed:
1.-THE church has largely lost touch with
the world. 1t is more institutional than
personal. The cry too often is not:
Here am /. Send me, but: Here is my
check. Send somebody elsep There is
salt enough, but it is barreled up in the
church. F"
Bishop Huntingdon of the Episcopal
communion asked:
'How does it come to pass that the
people, being at the church's door, are
on the outside? Certainly there can be
no fault with the gospel. Is the obstacle,