The Scranton tribune. [volume] (Scranton, Pa.) 1891-1910, 1902-05-20

Hall Caine to the Effect That the
Churches Never Improved Political
Standing Of People, Withheld Ap-
plication Of Christian Teachings to
the Industrial and Social Questions
and Betrayed Their Divine Message
by UNFOLDING Social Inequality.
In the Penn Avenue Baptist church
yesterday, before the Baptist Minis
terial conference, the Rev. owen James,
d. D., Of Johnstown, Pa, formerly Of
this city. read a paper on Hall Caine,
the Labor Movement and the Church"
1t was a scholarly and able paper, and
was as follows:
| Mr.. Hall Caine, the famous novelist, delivered
| few weeks ago. an address "The Gospel and
| the Social Question" In this address he claimed
that the two great antagonists Of the Iaber
Movement are the Press and the Churches.
| Against the churches he brings four charges:
First-They have never helped to improve the
political standing Of the people. Second-They
have kept from the people most important part
OF the message commissioned to them to preach
and practice, viz: the application Of the Chris
tian teachings to the industrial and social ques.
tons. Third-They have betrayed their Divine
message by using it to uphold social inequality
| and economical injustice. This they have done by
telling the people that the awful extravaganza Of
the rich and the frightful privations Of the poor
| are part of the Divine ordinance and therefore
| only to be rcmedied by another and better exist
ence. Fourth--They have fattered the rich, have
pandcred to their whims, have pushed them to
the front, have poured upon them adulation, have
fp fhnu md hnya with frp,,,
them part Of the truth as to their duty. This
they are doing in order to obtain the money Of
| the rich for their treasures.
| What shall we say Of these charges? First
They are indefinite and vague. What are the
| political interests Of the people Are we sure
| that thy are the political sche~es that Mr.. Hall
| Cane has in mind? One may regard himself as
in duty bound to resist certain things that an
other advances. or to advance certain things that
another resists. It is not fair to charge man
with indifference to the interests Of the people
until there is clear understanding to what
these interests are. Then again, what does Mr..
Hall Cane mean by the churches? Does he mean
| the members Of the churches, or does he mean
the preachers? If he means the first, he places
one part Of the people over against the other.
| Til churches made up Of peoplc-all classes Of
| people. In my lifetime l have been member
OF twelve churches These consisted Of farmers
| and farm hands, miners and grocers. clerks and
| nurses doctors and tailors, railroad men ard
| brokers, professors, school teachers and washer
| women, lawyers. servant girls and capitalist.
| All the people are not in the churches. But it
| would be absurd to think that those who be-
| come thereby antagonistic 10 the political and
| social progress of themselves and their asso-
ciatcs.
| II he means tho preachers his charge is equally
wide Of the mark. As matter of fact some
mr. TnprS hay nj lopp in f,o frpn null
| with workers for the bringing of the people into
possession Of their political and social rights.
| All preachers have not. Some have different
| views of their function. Some not qualified
| for leadership. 1t is the few who are doing any
thing. It is given hut to the few to conceive of
ideals differing from present realities 1t is given
to but fewer still to have the courage and power
to convert ideals into actualities. But very
large proportion OF these few have always been
church members and preachers.
The charge is utterly false that peachers teach
that the existing order Of society is ordained Of
God and that any attempt to alter it is wicked
effort to disturb the scheme OF the Crea or.
Preachers do not attribute the misery Of the
world, the shocking inequalities Of wealth and
poverty, the fearful want and frghtful luxury
| existing side by side to an ordinance of God.
They do not teach that the Gospel is a pure'y
religious message which has nothing to do with
| in this world; they do not teach that the mis-.
sion OF Jesus was in no way erected to the ma
terial improvement OF the position OF the people
and that he had nothing whatever to do with the
social condition of his or any other time. 1t
is not true that when the poor have groaned un-
der their hard lot the churches have told them to
look up from the miseries Of this world TO the
joys OF the world to come. On the other hand,
thousands Of us preachers find daily heart
break in tho sodden apathy and Grass indifference
of the people as whole to their political inter.
ests and social uplifting. What desire to do
what We are continually striving to do-s to
awaken and arouse the masses to rise to their OPP
porttnitics, to show some independence of
thought and to make some display of self.re-
spect. God forbid that we should sow the seed
OF social discord and turn the masses against the
classes That would entail the loss of every
thing. But we do want the people to realize that
there is close by them a land of promise that
they can enter, but only through aspiration
struggle and sclfsacrfcc. We are eager TO
create dissatisfaction, not with environment but
with self; not with the position, but with the
disposition The change that must first come is
an inward change. Everything else will follow
as the verdurc follows the spring life. Nothing
is nearer hearts than the changing OF the
world in which VIC are now living into new
world of righteousness, love, peace and pros.
pcrity
We are not willing to turn churches into
political clubs or our pulpits into platforms for
the exposition and discussion Of economic science
Our Master gave uS message to proclaim. |
am willing that this should be expressed in two
phrases: The fatherhood OF God, the brotherhood
of man. These two truths properly felt would
awaken an awful sense of the sacredncss OF h,l.
man life. the loftincss OF human possibility. the
stringcncy of human duty and the comprclcn.
siveness OF human responsibility. Tho message
of Jesus brings to the individual self-knowledgc,
selfrcvcrcnce, sefculture, sefcontrol. 1t brings
also the keenest sense Of justice and the strongest
sense Of kindness. But Jesus gave us more than
a message. He was living, forcciul character
and those who come under his influence partake
of His spirit and thereafter under His CONTROL
The Kingdom Of God-the rule of Gods within
them. But it cannot be within and not sooner
later he without. No one can think the truth
and breathe the spirit of Jesus and be careless OF
himself and unjust and unkind to his fellows. |
A slovenly, selfish Christian, a Christian indf-
ferent to his own development and to the rights
and development OF his fellowncn, is an impos- |
sibility. An unjust, an unkind an unhnlpful |
Christian Is the most mocking Of all false pre- |
lenses. Get the message and the spirit of Jesus |
into the hearts OF men and You may trust them |
to manifest themselves. BY the grace of God this |
Is the work OF the church. This was what Jesus |
sought from beginning to end of his ministry en- |
earth- Once man came to him with some fam. |
lily trouble-about the division Of property |
"Speak to my brother" lie demanded, ''that he |
divide the inheritance with me-" But Jesus an |
swered: "Who made me a Judge and a divider |
over your Take heed and beware Of cove.ois. |
ness" That is Cast out the spirit of selfish |
ness, bring in the spirit Of brotherhood, and your
difference will speedily right itself
This is the principle OF Christianity. Get |