The Catholic bulletin. [volume] (St. Paul, Minn.) 1911-1995, 1911-01-28
SOCIALISM AND THE CHURCH.
Socialistic Principles op.
posed to Christianity.

good Catholic? In these days, when
so much Socialism is in the air, we
hear this question often asked, and
we sometimes hear it answered in
the affirmative. Socialism, we are re-
minded, has for it's object to do away
with private property in land, mines,
factories, railways, shipping, etc.-in
word, to substitute public ownership
for private ownership in the sources
of production and the means of dis
tribution and exchange. Since, then,
Socialism is purely economic move
ment, it has domain of it's own and
in no way trenches on the domain
of religion. This view of the matter
is taken by some prominent Socialists.
Blatchford, in work which had an
immense circulation in England, main
tains that Socialism does not touch
religion at any point. Similarly, Keir
Hardie is quite positive in asserting
that there is no necessary incompati-
bility between Socialism and Chris
tianity, and Ramsey Mcdonald puts
the case in a nutshell when he says
that Socialism has no more to do with
a mans religion than the color of his
hair
Now this seems to be a matter
where one may well repeat Macduff' S
shrewd question, ''Dost thou say all?''
Is there not behind these bland assur-
ances a spirit which is the sworn foe
of Christianity? What say most of
the spokesmen of Socialism-it is to
them we must go and not to the un-
wary folk of the rank and file who are
lured with fair spoken words around
the Red Flag. To the shining lights
0f 1icY1o +ha
What think ye of Christi"
Germany is the classic land of So
cialism. There the answer to our
question is returned in no uncertain
accents. Liebknecht lays down the
law for his followers: "It is our duty
as Socialists to root out faith in God
with all our zeal, nor is any one
worthy the name who does not conse-
crate himself to the spread of Athe-
ISM" In like manner Kautsky-we
are dealing only with our own times
declared that belief in God is ire
concilab4er with Socialism, and that a
belief in Redeemer of the world is
peculiarly incompatible with it's ten
cts. "Dethrone religion; mobilize the
school against the Church, the teacher
against the priest''-such the watch
word that stirred the enthusiasm of
the Congress at Halle.
In Belgium no leader has been more
influential than Emile Vandervelde. In
1903 this man wrote as follows: "Can
a sincere believer follow the Church s
teachings and yet be a Christian
We are bound to admit that
both in philosophy and in politics
there must be war between Socialism
and the Church" In his F*Socia1istic
Essays" he also admits that 'the
great mass, and above all the directing
nucleus of the workers parties, is
composed almost exclusively of Free
thinkers"
In Italy Professor Ferri has found
much satisfaction in the thought that
the absence or lessening of the be-
lief in God is one of the most powerful
factors in the extension of Socialism.
The hatred shown by the Socialists to-
ward the Papacy tells as plainly as
facts can tell how they regard Chris
tianity
In England DR.. E. B. Aveling does
not mince matters. He bewails two
curses that beset that country and
then he 1uminously adds: "These two
curses are capitalism and Christian
ity." The views of other English lead
ers such as Bradlaugh in days gone
by and of Blatchford and of Bax in
more recent years are too well known
to need more than mention.
In France the progress of events
from day to day is curious com
mentary on the statement that So
cialism does not touch religion at any
point. We shall not speak of the
wholesale plunder of the Church in
France, carried out under a Socialistic
premier, but shall rather say a word
about an incident of no consequence
but which, like the straw that shows
how the wind blows, reveals the ami
mus of Socialists towards the Church.
A few years ago the daughter of that
doughty Socialist and enemy of Chris
tians, Jean Jaures, made her first
Communion. This, one would i'm
agine, was an event of no special
bearing on the fate and fortunes of
Socialism. But straightway there was
a commotion in all the councils of the
Socialists on the Continent. The mat
ter became a question of international
Importance for the Socialists. Would
not the example of the Jaures house
hold be disastrous precedent, to be
quoted by other mothers who wished
to bring up their children in the fear
and love of God? For a full month
the controversy ragged, but at last the
man who shocked the sensibilities OF
the comrades was not read out of the
councils because the comrades, after
due deliberation, wisely laid the blame
on Madame Jaures.
In the face of such facts it is hard
to believe that Socialism has no more
to do with religion than the color oi
q MANS hair Socialism was cradlpd
in Atheism and it has never forgotten
its early training. Between Socialism
and Catholicism there is a great gull
fixed, and they who maintain that one
may be Socialist and also "a good
Catholic know not of what spirit they
are. They should bear in mind thai
what Socialism has done where it had
free hand to work harm tells what
it would do were its power for evil in
creased.