The Washington herald., 1911-11-12
THE TREND OF THINGS.
\ RELIGIOUS FORCES URGED
TO UNITE IN WORKING FOR
ARBITRATION AND PEACE

To 125,0O0 ministers of the United
States appeal has just been made that
the churches, with one voice, proclaim
that America must take and keep her
place at the forefront of forces, working
for arbitration and peace. The appeal
is put forth by the commission on peace
and arbitration of the Federal Council
Of Churches, on which commission are
Bishop Greer. the Rev. DR.. John Henry
Jowett, the Rev. DR.. Charles E. Jefter-
son, and the Rev. DR.. J. E. Remensny-
der, of New York; Bishop Hughes, Bish-
op Quale. and Bishop Kambuth, of the
Methodist Church; President kirkland,
of Vanderbilt University; Henry Wade
Rogers, of Yale; President Capen, OF the
American Board: Albert X. - Smiley,
founder of the Lake Mohonk conferen-
ces; Judge I.anning, of New York;
Frank Morrison, of the American FEEDER
alton of Labor, and others. The appeal
is sent out by the citizens national COM
mittee- whicn has on it Joseph H.
Choate, Alton B. Parker, and Levi P.
Morton, three prominent Episcopal lay
men: William J. Bryan and Adlai E.
Stevenson, Presbyterian elders, and
Charles W. Fairbanks, a foremost Meth
odist
asked at once to deliver sermons, to
bring the matter of the arbitration trea-
ties before official boards of their
churches. and to induce through news
papers, public addresses, and work by
men and women of all walks, a public
sentiment that shall not only insist upon
ratification by the United States Senate
of the pending arbitration treaties, but
will put America at the head of the line
,F 1,.+ nd of pvar
and abolition of standing armies and
navies 1t is understood that the letter
to these ministers was prepared by the
president of the Federal councils COM
mittee, Rev. DR.. J. B: Remensnyder,
president of the Lutheran General Synod.
Accompanying it is letter from Cardinal
Gibbons, indorsing it and appealing to
Catholics to labor for the same end.
The movement to bring the churches into
line is understood to have the acknowI-
edgement of President Taft. The COM
missions appeal follows:
The present armed peace of Christen-
dom is a sCOurge and a scandal. There
are to-day more guns and bayOnets more
bombs and shells, more soldiers on land,
and more ships of war upon the seas
than in any preceding century in the his
tory of the world. More money is now
expended in getting ready for war than
was spent in former times in waging
war. The burden of this military and
naval equipment is stunting and demoral-
iZing the life of the nation, and handi-
Gaping the progress of all humanitarian
movements. Militarism is one of the gi-
gantiC evils of our day. Against 1t the
Church of Christ must set itself in open
and determined opposition. The burden
OF the people must be lightened, the ma
tions must be delivered from their fears. !
The instruments of slaughter must be
beaten into the implements of industry. |
The world must know that Christians
are indeed followers of the Prince of
Peace
I'm the great enterprise of achieving
interna tional peace, the immediate step
is to bind nations together by arbitra-
tiOn treaties. 1t is only by means Of
agreeing, by solemn compact, to submit
their differences to the arbitration Of
reason that reduction of armaments can |
be hoped for. Arbitration treaties have |
heretofore excluded so many classes of |
controversies from the scope of their !
operation that they have had no effect |
in checking the constant and ruinous |
increase in expenditures for the equip |
ment of war The task now before the |
leaders of humanity is to devise treaties
of a more sweeping character, which !
will extend the list Of international
questions made subject to the jurisdiction |
of an arbitral court.
Such treaties have been formulated !
recently between the United States and !
Great Britain, and between the United |
States and France. They are the crea-
tion OF some Of the ablest, most far
seeing statesmen of these countries. |
Great Britain and France are ready to
ratify these treaties. The world now |
awaits the action of the United States ,
Senate Should the Senate reject them, |
then the United States blocks the prog |
ress of the world. If we are bound by !
and prerogatives as to he |
unable as a nation to arbitrate our ma
tional differences, then we are of all ma
tions the most pitiable and are no longer !
a free people
America, because OF her situation |
and traditions is best fitted to become !
the leading peac of the world. .
Now is the time for the Christian
church to speak Let the pulpit pro-
claim our glorious opportunity and |
solemn responsibility, and let every
Christian man and woman do what lies
In his or her power to create a public
sentiment which will place and keep
America in the forefront of those
forces which are working for arbitra-
ton and for peace in all the world"
Ministers of Germany and Great
Britain have national councils, and be-
gan two or three years ago to secure
better political relations between their
empires. Especially have
they labored together to put an end to
jlngoism. When President Taft pro-
posed his peace plan, ministers of
these empires hailed it with acclaim.
They sent delegates to America in
structed to say to ministers of the
United States and to the Christian
churches here that ii is the duty OF
America to lead, but that Germany and
Great Britain will follow. These min
lsters urge not alone that pending
treaties be ratified, but that churches
of America lead, English and German
churches helping, in a world crusade
that shall forever end wars, and abol-
sh armies and navies and their enorL
nous expenses. Labor interests of Eu-
rope have held mass meetings of tre-
mendous size indorsing the plan, and
practically every religious body meet
ng within the year in the United
states, Great Britain. and Germany has
ndorsed the proposition. Some have
named commissions. The Federal Coun-
ell represents 1S.000,000 Protestants,
Cardinal Gibbons speaks for 1900, 900
and 1t is stated that 1000, 900
Jews will act.