Sequachee Valley news. (Sequachee [Sequatchie], Tenn.) 1896-1952, 1912-09-05
! CHRISTIANITY
and SOCIALISM
{ A Reply to "SocioIogist."

Editor News:
1t is greatly to the credit of the
News that its columns are Open to the
discussion of such vital themes as
Christianity and Socialism. Neither
of these subjects is yet understood in
the light of historical and scientific
methods and achievements. 'SOciOlo-
gist'' has undertaken to show that So
cialism is antagonistic to Christianity
in its philosophy, in the attitude of its
leaders and in its relation to the faml
ly. His premise, therefore. is that So
cialism excludes the idea of the Faith
erhOOd of God and the brotherhood OF
man.
This is manifestly wrong, as we
shall see, and his argument is built
upon a sandy foundation.
In society, today, socialism and IN
dividualism represent two distinctly
opposite views of life and conduct
Socialism is the antithesis of individ-
ualsm. Individualism expresses itself
in the self interest and selfishness of
the private resources of the life OF the
people. 1t regards humanity as made
up of disconnected and warning atoms.
Its method is competition and fierce
rivalry and struggle where the weak
are crushed and the strong survive.
The result is the present system of wa
ges and cspitalism-a civilization
where there is vast wealth-wasteful,
wanton and wicked-in the power of
the individual on the one hand; and
where there is poverty, sickening,
deepening and deadening as the lot OF
the masses, on the other.
Now, is individualism Christianity
applied? Does tue Grass materiaism
of the civilization of today correspond
to Jesus idea of the Kingdom of God
Individualism contradicts and antag.
onizes the Kingdom at every step IL
the march of its progress.
Socialism means the specialization Of
natural resources, the means of pro
duction and distribution. 1t regards
humanity as an organic whole. Its
method is cooperation and fellowship.
1t seeks such an organization of life as
shall secure for everyone the most
complete development of his lowers.
Socialism, therefore, tends more and
more to harmonize and coincide with
Jesus idea of a holy, social civiIiza-
tion which he called the Kingdom OF
God.
The method of reasoning of "Sociol-
Ogist' is as far wrong as his premise.
He states what he calls the orthodox
creed and calls that christianity. But
christianity is no more in his creed
than the life Of the plant is in an out
of date work on botany Everybody
might accept the creed as he states it,
and yet the world be wretChedly pa
gan. A family might be christian ac-
cording to this creed and yet be bar
barous and unhappy. Merchants who
control commerce, life-crushing in its
progress, subscribe to every article,
while they float their wares on deep
seas of human suffering, A cornora-
ton, greedy, goddess and vicious in
many of its operations, consists of men
loyal to orthodoxy and famous for be-
nevolence. A nation governed by men,
eminent as defenders of the faith, goes
mad with the spoils of uurighteous-
ness "Why call ye me- Lore, Lorl,
and do not the things which | say
In discussing the philosophy Of So
cialism, psychologist t. gives his read
ers traditional theologian's view Of
the Darwinian hypothesis of evolu-
tion, and says This is the foundation
stone uron which Karl Marx built his
materialistic conception of history.
With this prejudiced, perverted, and
now hopelessly obsolete view of evolu-