The Washington herald., 1911-07-08

partment OF church ana laDor IN Ine
Presbyterian Church In the United States,
will supply the pulpit of the Church Of
the Covenant tomorrow. This IS Mr..
StelzIes first appearance in the Church
Of the Covenant pulpit. 1t is another
evidence of the wide recognition given to
the service he is rendering to the whole
cause of social and industrial betterment.
It is evidence Of the awakening social in
terest on the part of all classes and
especially the capitalist class, and their
desire to understand the trades union
movement, and all that is vital to the
hand-working wage-earner's effort to bet
ter his own condition.
Social Service on New Basis.
Through tentative body created by
the last general convention, the Episcopal
Church will undertake to formulate a
comprehensive programme for social
service by official and volunteer workers.
This church has just voted to cooperate
with the Federal Council of Churches and
also to work with the Christian Social
Union and other agencies within and
without the Episcopal Church that are
engaged in this work. The church will
furthermore encourage volunteer work
ers in parishes, especially laymen, to
undertake systematic effort, and 1t d.
vides the lines of work thus: The city
to include police, health, charities, and
schools; charity, both public and private;
labor organizations, together with the
relations of nonunion labor; and civics,
which includes politics to the extent or
securing honest men for Office, and the
watching of elected men in Office. The
step is the initial one on the part Of the
Episcopal Church 10 put social service,
as it has already put Christian educa-
ton. upon the same organized basis as
its missionary work. The commission
will open an office, employ a secretary
and enter upon a budget of $4,000 year
Unftarians for Social Service.
At the annual meeting of the American
Unitarian Association, there was adopted
a formal declaration of interest and sig
nificanee upon the subject of the Church
and the, social question The declaration
took the form OF a report of the Unitarian
commission on the church and the social
question The commission was appointed
at the meeting of the association In May
1910, in obedience to a resolution authoriz-
ing ''the president to appoint commits
sion of fifteen members, comprising both
ministers and laymen, and including
representatives of all sharply defined
points of view. which shall be charged
with the. task Of defining specifically the
contribution which the churches can and
should make to the work of social pro-
gress and reform" y. The president ap-
pointed, among others, such well-lInown
men as Francis G. Peabody John Gra-
ham Brooks, Frederick Alny, Alexander
Johnson, Edwin D. Mead, and Hayes
Robbins.
The report, which was presented last
month and adopted by the association,
begins, with the declaration that the
modern conception of the function OF the
church, so far as its relations to society
are concerned, is that Of service" and
that Sxhe primary social obligation Of the
church is to serve the common good
1t affirms that the church may not iden-
tlfy itself with the purposes and aims OF
any enc class, but should have sympathy
with all classes and states that where
ever there is need or suffering or wrong
or injustice, there is opportunity for the
church to render useful service, and
that this opportunity carries with 1t a
responsibility to act which cannot be
shirked or evaded."
Passing on to a more careful considera-
ton of the meaning of this social obli-
cation, the report declares that the serv-
ice which the churches can render is of
th-aa kinds:
THE relief of suffering; the preven-
tiOn of poverty, disease, crime, and in
dustrial or international warfare; and
the promotion of constructive social re-
''Relief work is the most common form
of social effort but while very necessary,
Is at the best only palliative 1t can do
distress at their sources. Preventive
work strives to DO just this-to prevent
misfortune and evil, or, If this is i'm
possible. at least to limit their extent
and influence in the community. Con-
structive social reform endeavors TO
eliminate whatever works injury and
wrong to the body polite and to estab-
lish equal rights and equal justice.
Having laid down these principles Of
social action, the commission makes de-
tailed recommendations to the churches.
1t suggests to the minister that:
He should acouaInt himself with the
facts of the social question. He
should strive to know the social and in
,dustrial conditions of the community in
which he lives; make the acquaintance
Il
litical and labor leaders, and the active
workers for social betterment; and give
as much time to public service as ne
can. ." Armed with a general
knowledge Of the ethics Of the social
question and a thorough personal ac-
Quaintance with the conditions and needs
of his own community, he should en-
deavor to direct intelligently the social
activities Of his congregation"
To the local churches it recommends
that:
They should establish connection
with the nonsectarian philanthropies Of
the town-aff1liste closely with the char
tty organization society-become mem-i
pers OF the general and national or
ganizations for social welfare and civic
reform-maintain public meetings for the
free and open discussion Of the ethics OF
the social order and the problems OF So
ciety-fnd place for the systematic study
OF social questions IN the Sunday school
and In study classes-mske q thorough
social jsurvey Of the communities IN
which they are NEUTRALITY-SUSPICIOUS.
possible employ the services of a parish
assistant TO have direction OF the social
activities Of the parish"
Il The commission recommends to theo-
logical schools that '.in the education OF
ministers larger attention should be given
to the study Of political economy and
sociology in their ethical aspects" and
that students should have e years resi-
dence In some social center, like South
End House, in Boston, or Hun House, In
Chicago" To laymen's leagues IL sug-
gests that they Should especially interest
themselves IN matters OF social welfare: -
and It urges dencminational papers 70
give larger attention to the works OF