The Salt Lake tribune. [volume] (Salt Lake City, Utah) 1890-current, 1909-12-04
THE CHURCH IN POLITICS.

THE CHURCH IN POLITICS.
The Logan Republican, church pa
per. comedies that the Mormon church is
in politics, and it Claims that the church
ought to be in politics So the situa.
ton is Just right according to that pa
per. II is a situation well known TO eX-
ist for the church is not only in politics
now, IT always has been in politics.
Our Logan contemporary named quoted
the Deserct News in its vicious assault
upon the Rev. w, r. Brown of this city,
and commented thereon as follows;
We take pleasure In calling the atten-
ton Of our readers TO tho fact that the
church organ protests that the church IS
such should be the case. During the re-
cent election there were numerous
schemes on in various localities In the
state to launch citizens tickets and thus
lose sight OF the fact that we had
Democratic party or a Republican party
So Jealous were some persons 10 have
the Citizens ticket win In their towns
and defeat the national party ticket that
they even went so far 10 preach from
the pulpit the desires OF the leaders"
that the Citzens ticket carry the day
in order to carry some point. We need
not go further than Cache valley to cite
just such Instances, where a Citizens
'I'h'l cilIt IL tNtpuDlltdN tl'htl NtIe III
the field. and Some OF the influential
churchmen talked long and loud in or
der that they carry the day. the case
we have In mind was one where even
after such counsel was given the G.. O. p
ticket was elected from top to bottom
III was sore defeat for the champions
of the Citizens cause. So much so that
following the election in Sunday after
noon meeting the people were reprimand-
ed for not following counsel We say to
our readers, whether he he Democrat or
Republican when cOunSGlo1 by
your nelghhors that you should vote this
way or that because il Is the Will of the
church that you do so, just refer your
unwise brother TO the quotations we have
given above.
The chief difference between the Lo
gan paper and the church organ in this
city is that the Logan paper calls
things what they are, and while the
church is in politics 1t admits that IT
is At the same time, the Logan paper
wants the church politics directed in
party channels. tt is strenuously op-
posed to side issues, to citizens tickets,
and the like, but wants the church po-
litical energies directed especially, as
heretofore, TO the maintenance of the
bogus Republican party in Utah. II
is we'll known that the Republican
party, so called, in this State, is in the
hands of bolters of the party nominees,
and further, that these boiling usurpers
Of the Republican machinery were
given their control by the church. And
since this is so, since the church under
took to and did take charge Of the Re-
publican party and assigned its lead
ership to those persons in whom the
church leaders had confidence and who
were expected to conduct the party ac-
tiyities as church agency and as its
leaders have consistently done, it is
folly to deny that the church is in
politics, So the Logan paper views
with adherence all departure from
strict church party procedure.
At the same time, it must not be for
gotten that the chief church organ in
this city bolted the strict party idea
in our recent municipal campaign, and
favored as much as IL dared TO favor
anything, the Citizens movement in
this city, which was directed against
the so-calIed Republican party as much
as 1t was directed against the Ameri-
can party. That movement was headed
by a Democrat, Mr.. Wallace, who was
the joint candidate of the Citizens and
of the Democratic party, for Mayor.
Inasmuch, however, as the Republican
party has been the distinctive church
party in Utah for a number of years
past, the chief church organ did not
dare to come out very earnestly or
energetically against it, for the Citi-
zens' ticket. 1t would not do for the
church to oppose the church Republi-
can party very hard, and so the church
organ here was pretty well muzzled
during the campaign. 1t wanted to cut
loose the worst way, but didn It dare
to do it.
The admission of the Logan church
Republican paper that the church is in
politics is not very important, because
everybody of honesty and discernment
knew the fact before, and the proof of
it; also, that the church has been in
politics all the time. The point of dif-
ference between the Logan church pa
per and the chief church organ is main
ly one of detail, or procedure. The
chief church organ wants the interests
of the church conserved all the time,
and its desires furthered, without re-
gard to party organization or name.
The Logan church paper wants the
church interests furthered all the time,
but only through the so-called Repub
lican party. The difference perhaps is