The Saint Paul globe. (St. Paul, Minn.) 1896-1905, 1901-01-06
SUNDAY. JAN. 6, 1901.
RELIGION AND DEMOCRACY.


Those who have watched the career
emo. conduct of the Rev. Washington
GLADDEN. for the past fifteen or twenty
sears have observed in him one of the
most profound thinkers and one of the
most earnest and disinterested advocates
OF those views OF. public problems which
tend to the elevation of popularstandards
that the entire country possesses. His
activity is not confined to consideration
Of the problems of religion alone Those
of society and of government have oc-
cnnied. him throughout his life, and his
contemporaries hays been greatly the
gsinsHs n.y. his.i7eontributfons to -. the
thought of his tinle!,>,s So ss.... 90
: ,it3a3k;enf. 80 Institution made. by DR..
GLADDEN. 30; thelF independent is entitled to
the, most t1aepelatfh consideration 7ef.
every man and Woman who has observed
the tendencies. of American society in all
public relations to disregard the influence
OF religion and to conduct the work of
life on a purely theistic basis. That con-
tribution viii. II. it produces no other eff
feet. quicken Individual thought on the
great cues foR. whether democracy
with religion eliminated from it's public
concerns can be. truly promotive of the
true welfare of the people who maintain
it? .a,..
Questions of this general purport are
every day forcing themselves on thought
ful minds, We know from our histories
even those.of us who have read but little
that the influence of religion was invoked
for the oppression of mankind, and most
Of the popular revolts that we know of
against zkingly'i tyranny were in some
sense against the influence of the church
in temporal affairs wrongly or unwisely
exercised. We know, too, that in their
public expressions at least, the fore
most men among the founders of the re-
public showed dislike and suspicion of
religious agencies in the work of govern
mont. Jefferson was among the most
advanced is this direction; and while he
was essentially of a religious and hu-
name nature, his cultivation of Thomas
Paine, ana MS sustainment of even the
excuses of"the French Revolution show
ed plainly bis. conviction that the in
huence of the churches on the progress
- of civil government was inimicaI to hu-
man freedom. But if we will read more
deeply we. might regard ourselves as
knowing, too, that-the church influence
OF religion has been the most availa BILE
nor the only, o,-o;I.t,1.
past to hold irresponsible civil authority
within any limits at all in its treatment
Of the masses.
When We disestablished state religions
we did not and did not intend to discard
the influence of the, Christian faith who'll
ly from our conceptions and practices in
public relations. Unfortunately that has
been the tendency. And our practical
disregard of religion. as people has al
ready brought home to us the conscious
ness of certain dangers which are
amongst the most Serious that threaten
American society. Many of these are pal
pable. The divorce evil is one of the lead
ing of such evils The utter absence of
any sense Of the saeredness of an oath
on the part of the great mass of men is
another. The remorselessness which has
crept into mems treatment of each other
in business transactions; the utter base
ness and brutality of politics in most of
its expressions; the general prevalence of
corruption in public life; the utter alb
sence of the sense of ssacredness from the
popular conceptions, and the sodden ma
terialism which underlies our estimates
of what is best and most to be coveted
are all expressions of results aecruing
from the disearding Of religion ana its
influence in the affairs of life.
n For deyout monarchy there is some
hope; for an atheistic democracy there
is none" says DIR. GLADDEN.. II he is
right there is mighty little hope for the
american democracy unless It nsehdss its
ways; Tor it is become almost wholly
athelstic in the ..,opalar understand NJ