Santa Fe new Mexican. [volume] (Santa Fe, N.M.) 1898-1951, 1911-01-25
COOPERATION
BY CHURCHES
There Is Waste of Means and
Effort in Maintaining
Too Many
GREETINGS TO PRESIDENT TAFT
Memorable Gathering Held in
the National Capital
Today.

Washington, Jan. 25 Humanitarian
and philanthropic efforts OF the feder-
al council Of the churches of Christ
in America were outlined by Bishop
L. R. Hendrix. of Kansas City, No,
president of the Council in a speech
before President Taft at the White
House today.
Bishop Hendrix presented the greet
ings Of the Council on the occasion OF
the annual meeting OF its executive
committee He said.
"Our fathers in the very first amend
ment to the constitution forbade Con
gress to make any law respecting the
establishment OF religion, wisely
deeming it the duty OF the church to
establish the state and not the duty
of the state TO establish the church.
Thus from the beginning, in the free
exercise of their religious views, the
various churches have expressed their
devotion TO the best interests OF our
common country, notably to Washing
ton and Lincoln, when our national
government began and when il was in
greatest peril The mer orable re-
spOnses to these greetings showed
how grateful they were to the high
est executives in our land in the two
preceding centuries. Representing
more than 100000 ministers Of the
gospel and some 100000 communi-
cants. or nine-tenths of PrOtestants
of our country, federated in perma-
nent organization known as THE Fed
eral Council Of the Churches OF Christ
in America" we bring Christian greet
ings to the chief ruler Of the great
est nation in history standing for self
government.
AS former greetings were made by
individual churches and were welcom-
ed by our rulers when the fate Of the
nation was yet undecided. much more
we believe will be welcomed this
Christian greeting TO our chief mag
istrate by the federated churches as
the sign of the compact and growing
strength Of our national union. The
! late Mr.. Justice Brewer declared that
such federation of churches was al
so an unmistakable proof that ours is
a Christian nation despite the fact
that we have no established church.
I'VE are happy to state that the
growing spirit of catholicity and the
belief that the work of the churches
could better be done in cooperation
than in separation ripened into this
notable and permanent federation, not
of individual Christians but of
! churches. and that by the authority
and the unanimous action of the high
est ecclesiastical assemblies Of the
land.
"Believing with Webster that what
makes good Christians makes good
citizens, we are glad to state that
| in addition to the distinctively reli-
gious work which is sought to be done
! by all churches as never before, such
as home and foreign missions and the
vital work of evangelism, the federal
council of churches is doing in uni.
son humanitarian and philanthropic
work calculated at once to bless and
/ to strengthen the nation. Thus
| through our large standing commit
tees of some two Hundred leading min
/ listers and laymen, careful study is
| being given to the advancement of
such great interests as Sunday OBJ
| servance, temperance, the sapctity of
the home, the church and social serv-
| ice and literature and education.
Happy results have attended these
efforts in checking race track gam.
bling, in annulling loose divorce laws,
in stopping twelve hours a day labor
and that for seven days in the week
in certain industries, in bringing
about kindlier relations between the
| church and laboring men, in safe
guarding the physical and moral we'll
being of women and children who are
bread winners and in promoting whole
some literature and the better intel
lectual development of our youth.
In all this we are unitedly seek.
ing the highest welfare of our great
nation whose Chief Magistrate has
our daily prayers and our loyal aid
We rejoice to recognize as Presid.
ent one who is exceptionally ac-
quainted with our great and varied
national interests, and who fully
commands our confidence so that we
are content to see through his eyes
a completed Panama Canal and the
conservation of the best possible
good of the PHILIPPINES those little
brown men he delights to call broth
ers.
Waste in Too Many Churches.
Washington, Jan. 25.-Too many
churches in one city with the con-
sequent heavy financial drain on COM
munities was the theme of the ad.
dress last night of Rev. DR.. Charles
L. Thompson. Secretary of the Pres.
byterian Board of Foreign Missions,
at the opening session of the annual
meeting of the executive committee
of the Federal Council of the Chur-
ches of Christ in America.
DR.. Thompson cited New York as a
conspicuous example of the waste of
funds on churches. He declared that
the platform of the Council was sus-
tanned by its economy value, its apo
|