Sequachee Valley news. (Sequachee [Sequatchie], Tenn.) 1896-1952, 1912-07-18
SOCIALISM
AND RELIGION

! Editor News
Continuing our quotations from So
cialist sources to show that the practi-
ca! attitude of socialism is antagOnis-
tic to the Christian religion we came
to the American socialists and submit
the following:
! Comrade John Spargo, prominent
socialist author and delegate to the
National convention at indianapolis,
writes: Socialism christianized would
be socialism emasculated and destroy
ed -
Comrsde DR.. Wm. J Robinson
writes: "DOgmatic religion and social
ism, which is nothing if not rational
istic, are as"opposed to each other as
are the two poles, as are darkness and
light, as are reaction and progress, as
are Ignorance and science"
Comrade Timothy Walsh writes
''There is just one thing in our move
ment that could never understand
and that is, how any man or woman,
who comes into the movement accept
ing the materialistic conception of his
tory can stay in the Roman Catholic
or any other church, and in closing |
am tired of having any body try to tell
me that any of the established ch urch-
es are not the most thorough faced en-
emies the socialist movement ever
had.
Comrade Joseph Leatham, socialist
author, writes: "At the present mo-
ment | cannot remember single in
stance of a person who is at one and
the same time really earnest and in
telligent socialist and an orthodox
christian. Those who do not openly
attact the church and the fabric of
christianity show but scant respect to
either the one ur the other in private.
While all of us are Indifferent to
the church many of US are frankly hos
tile to her"
The New York Call, socialist daily
of Mar, 2nd, 1911, had the following: {:
There is nothing to be gained by
holding out any false hopes that
study of socialism does not tend TO un-
dermine religious beliefs The theory
Of economic ueterminism alone, if
thoroughly grasped leaves no room for
belief in the supernatural.
The New York Volkszeitung, an
other socialist paper, Oct. 1st, 1901,
said: Socialism and belief in God,
as it is taught by christianity and its
adherents are incompatible; socialism
has no meaning unless it Is atheistic "
Comrade William D. Haywood,
member of the national executive COM
mittee of the Socialist Party in the
February, 1912, says: "Well, here is
another fellow-the christian socialist.
He has an idea of conversion and !
want to say to you that christ ian So
Cialist is one who is drunk with relig-
ious fanaticism aud is trying to sober
u? on economic truth, and when he
gets about half sober he thinks that he
can convert the capitalist to chi istian
ity and that the capitalist will be
willing to turn over all these things to
the brotherhood of man. He overlooks
the fact that the capitalist is the child
of the devil and that's a poor place for
christian socialist to proselyte. We
will pass up the christian socialist
with the conversion"
Comrade George D. Heron Of motor
ious fame but still a socialist in good
standing says: christianity today
stands for what is lowest and basest in
life
Comrade Joshua Wanhope, delegate
to the national convention this year
says: 1--WE have no use for the distort-
ed and mystical figure that they pre-
sert as Christ"
Comrdde William Thurston Brown
writes: 'lf ever in the history of the
world any human institution was com
pletely and finally disCredited it is the
the religious institution whose putrid
and decaying carcass here at the be-
ginning of the twentieth century NEIL
aces the life of men"
Here is another quotation from
Comrade Spargo, whom we have al
ready quoted above, to which | would
call the attention of Mr..
Brannan. Comrade Spargo says;
How often do we see quoted in our
own press from the Encyclopaedia |
that familiar fallacy that
the ethics of christianity and social
ism are Identical 1t is not true; we
do not ourselves in most cases believe
it. We repeat it because it appeals to
the slave mind of the world. 1t is
easier so to act than to affirm what in
our very sonls we feel to be true, that
socialism as an ethical Interpretation
Of life is far removed from christiani-
ty anu OF lnhnltely greater beauty and
worth.
Comrade Morris Eillquit, perhaps
the most prominent ofAmerican social
sts and a member of the Eexecutve
of the Party, speaking at
the convention in Chicago in 1908,
said: "The fact that Comrade Lewis
mas in the domain of religion come to
,he position of an agnostic and that
ninety mine per cent of US have landed
n the same spot does not make social
SUI agnostic. Here we have an ad-
mission by Mr.. Hillquit that ninety
line per cent of socialists are agnos-
;ics, which means practically atheists
which would seem to be good indi-
,ation of the attitude of socialism to-
wards christianity. This admission
vas made during the discussion of the
low famous resolution on religion ad
,pted at the convention and constantly
luoted by socialists to show that So
.ialism is not Christian. AS no
'eview of socialsms attitude toward
'eligion would be complete without
eference to this resolution we shall
make il the subject of our next paper