The labor world. [volume] (Duluth, Minn.) 1896-current, 1908-07-18
fye|ry! DOdy!' 5 Column.
For discussaon au~stioas
All eosmuneatons respectful inserted
- ". will @#
Labor
@>-.| .,G@% #- respondents
the subject Of the Social Influence ct
the Church" from which I quote the

the subject OF the social lnnuence OF
the Church" from which I quote the
following terse remark: II am some
what surprised = that he (meaning
former preacher correspondent
would take, the view that the church
has as it's problem a. the, feeding Of
the poor and (2) to furnish amuse
ment for the people, or 60 to furnish
a substitute for the saloon. These are
the problems Of the state. The prob
lem of the church is to build up the
right kind Of a state" The figures
within the brackets are mine.
l. With all due respect to the Saliva
ton Army and its methods we think
another preacher" has hit the nail
squarely on the head. The govern
nnents Of the world in which the feed
ing of the poor is inculated as a re-
ligious duty by the church, are those
fast passing to decay. Let the the
aires with proper safeguards enacted
by the state furnish the amusements.
It is simply unadulterated nonsense to
speak of the substitutes for the sa-
loon. The work the saloon is doing
is first, last and all the time, inimical
to the best interests and welfare of
the people who comprise the state, and
there can be no substituting Of its
evils.
But again, another preacher" says:
Il do not believe that the church has
failed to make standard of righte-
BUSINESS for this country" We are
very much afraid that this is the ex-
act point upon which the church
comes dangerously near being a la
mentable failure. In the absence Of
the people who comprise it, the sub
stantive Church" is a mere abstrac-
ton, Of which nothing can be predict
ed but nonentity. There can be no
denying the fact that the church has
| been very weak along the line indi-
Gated, not so much perhaps in theory
as In practice. We have a lurking
| suspicion that this weakness can be
attributed to three causes; first, the
worlds disbelief in the doctrines pro-
mulgated by the church: second, that
the church members in giving assent
| to the doctrines do so with great men
! tai deservation; third, that the doc
trines in themselves are not true and
are discreditable alike to God and
~AAeA1A AAAdI I1ASAS is d. little heaven OF
| truth in the doctrines there can be no
doubt; but who can imagine what
would be accomplished by them if the
errors and authorizations of semi
oarborous age were eliminated? That
this shall in time be accomplished we
have not shadow of doubt. It took
time for the errors to creep In, and it
wall take time to eradicate them.
weeds are more tenacious of life than
useful grain. When errors so trans
parent that the wayfaring man though
a TOOL can see them take centuries FOR
their removal, what must be thought
OF errors SO subtle as to elude "the
very elect?' Preachers are not so
much to blame. Bread and butter de-
mands are upon them, and under such
restraint they have to square them
selves with untruthful dogmas. Most
Of the men have found out the trouble
already, and they don't go to church.
The women will find it out by and bve
and the preachers will then be re-
leased from their present spiritual
bondage.
I.AvNfAN