The Detroit times., 1911-10-28
CURSE OF THIS COUNTRY
IS WORSHIP OF MONEY GOD,
SAYS RELIGIOUS WORKER
Mere Lives Sacrificed to Greed
For Gold Than In War, De-
clares Rev. /. j. Lansing.
NATION OF IDoLAToRS
Men and Religion Worker Re
fused Permission to Speak In
st. Mary's Hospital.

Modern idolatry is as bad as that
OF ancient times. and the worship OF
mammon is threatening and imperil-
ing America In the present day" said
the Rev. |. j. Lansing, social service
leader in the Men and Religion For
ward Movement, In the course OF a
talk on The church and social SER
vice" before a gathering OF pastors
and laymen in the auditorium OF the
Y. NJ C. A., Friday morning. Nam
mon is just as destructive now as II
was In the olden days, when Babylon
and other cities OF the ancient world
were wiped of the map.
The curse of this country Is the
worship OF the money god. Men are
selling out their virtue for wealth;
they are giving up everything that Is
near and dear to them-prayer, posi-
ton. self-respect and whatever re-
ligion they ever had-yet they still
profess to be servants OF God. They
fiatter themselves that they are Chris
tian men. As a matter OF fact. the
light they once had has been turned
TO darkness; they are blind; they
have submerged riches for God. In
their avaricious quest they have sac
rificed their obligations to God for
their worship OF the god OF gold.
Their love of money has separated
them from the God OF love and mercy.
They have become engulfed In the
sea OF idolatry. their feet entangled
In the meshes OF the market OF gold.
II tell you, friends, that nature and
money worship has taken the place
OF God, worship, just as was the case
when such conditions ruled the chill.
dren of Israel. In the schools, chill
dren are taught naturalism instead
of theism, and this schooling has
helped TO bring about the cult that
is damning the nation. The money
god seems to be the one for general
worship. The drifting away from the
one and true God has become a most
serious problem for US, and, tell you,
that there must be regular regener-
alton IL we are to be brought back
into the Christian life. We have
thought II terrible thing for the
Hindus TO worship idols, but America
Is fast becoming nation OF idolators.
Every faculty OF man which should
be given to God Is now sacrificed to
the worship OF money. And | say
right here that the present worship
OF mammon is the cruelest, most
vicious and destructive form of Idol
try that has held sway IN the history
of the world. II Is destroying the
very virtue of our people.
Money Greed slaushters Many.
THE greed for money slaughtered
more people in the past year, as evil
denced by the victims of railway ae-
cidents, than were killed In any OF
the worst wars recorded in history.
Slaughter Is marking the course OF
modern industry. The penuriousness
OF those who should protect their en-
ployes is responsible for many OF the
tragedies. Did you ever hear OF a
railroad equipping it's property with
any kind of device TO protect its en-
ployes and the public unless 1t was
forced to do so? | don't think you
ever did. The same is also true OF
MANY factories. | know of factory
proprietor in the east who Is sacrific-
ing the lives of his employees, yet he
Is known as a Christian man, one
who goes about speaking in behalf or
Christianity. The sanitary conditions
in his factory are bad, he pays his
employees low wages, with the result
that the charity organizations OF the
CITY get many calls for aid from the
families OF those who work for him.
So, say, that more lives are now
mammon than were ever given up
through the worship Of idols In the
past"
Mr.. Lansing next took up the
white slave" problem, and pointed
out the manner in which 1t Is oper-
ated.
I'VE are shocked by the news to
the effect that the women OF Benares.
India, lead lives of shame for the pur-
pose OF supporting the temples said
Mr.. Lansing. There we see the SELL
ing of the virtue OF women In the
name OF religion for money. We
think that Is terrible, of course, but
we have had conditions here, too.
The Chicago vice-commission tells us
that 5000 girls are imported into that
city in one year by those engaged in
the white slave trafflc. There we
again see the sale Of womanly virtue