Daily Arizona silver belt., 1908-12-12
THE CHURCHES AND LABOR


 Among the matters as to which they arr happily agreed is the relation of tn ,hurch to the labor problem.
 Nothing that concerns human lif' :an be alien to the church. was tn made by one of the speak ,rs at the Philadelphia gathering, ant n pursuance of that idea statement O principles was adopted constituting a, practical creed of social ant industrial reform. It reads:
 ITO us it seems that the church
 es must stand
 "For equal rights and complete jus
 tice for all men in all stations of
 life.
 "ror the right of all men to the op-
 portunity of selfrmaintenance,
 right ever to be wisely and strongly
 safeguarded against encroachments
 of every kind.
 ''For the right of workers to some
 protection against the hardships of
 ten resulting from the swift crisis
 of industrial change.
 "'For the principle of conciliation
 and arbitration in industrial dissen
 sions.
 ''For the protection of the work
 CT from dangerous machinery, oc- cupational disease, injuries, and mortality.
 "For the abolition of child la-
 bor.
 "For such regulation of the con
 ditions of toll for women as shall
 safeguard the physical and moral
 health of the community.
 ''For the suppression of the
 sweating system
 ''For the gradual and reasonable
 reduction of the hours of labor to the lowest practicable point, and for
 that degree of leisure for all which is a condition of the highest human
 life.
 ''Tor a release from the em-
 ployment one day in seven
 "For living wage as minimum
 in every industry, and for the high
 est wage that each industry can
 afford.
 ''For the most equitable division
 of the products of industry that can
 ultimately be devised.
 ''For suitable provision for the
 old age of the workers and for those incapacitated by injury.
 ''For the abatement of poverty
 The Lambeth conference, it will b, expressing the mind of tn, Anglican church and her offspring il 'ther parts of the world, took advanced round last year in favor of the activ' of the church in the solu don of social and industrial problems llong the lines of Christian morality To the declaration of the Lambeth con erence, the Philadelphia gathering add he weight of American Professionalism throwing practically the whole induenc, If the churches impressively on tn, ide of social and industrial reform, a, opposed to the revolutionary recon truction of the social order advocated y the socialists. On this side, also nay be reckoned the Catholic church, al by the encylical of Pop' Leo XIII on the condition of labor, ant y the activities of the Catholic hier lrchy in behali of oppressed working nen in this country and elsewhere. The ,atholic church, however, has suffered ess from the, imputation that tn, hurches are supported by the wealthy nd have no interest in the welfare oi he working classes. Yet it has felt ike the Protestant churches, the es of manual workers from or sanized Christianity. This entrange nent has constituted one of the chiei of Christian propaganda in all industrial centers-a problem which is low being met by extending an open and to workingmen and assuring them hat the church will no longer hold loof from the movements in which hey are so strongly interested.
 This attitude results from the grow. ng conviction that many phases of the and social order are wholly nconsistent with Christian ethics, and lso to the fact that many altruistic rganizations are spring up, which, al hough Christian in motive, do not rec gnize the spiritual leadership of the hurch. The friendly attitude of the hurches toward labor is therefore ap- arently altrouistic on the one hand nd self-interested on the oter. An in 'inct of self preservation is combined ith sense of moral duty. However lie nav ha tho iuNuaunn nf %ba