The Washington herald. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1906-1939, 1914-02-09

MUST PLEASE The RICH
Rev. charles S. Daudson Tells Secular
League Why He Burned vestments
and Renoanced Ministry.

Declaring the organised church Of to-
day IL the ally and servant Of capitalism.
Ii alienated from the masses Of the peo-
pie and does not exempiify = single one
Of the apostolic virtues" Rev. Charles
Steele Davidson, Of Charlottesville. Va.
the former Episco. al clergyman who
buried his yestments and prayer-book at
the entrance to Monticello last summer.
yesterday afternoon addressed the secu-
lar league on why denounced the
Ministry OF the Episcopal Church"
Money Is today the church's God" he
declared.
strued by his hearers a. referring more
particularly to the Episcopal denomina-
ton than to any other.
Mr.. Davidson answered many Of the
criticisms and reflections made because
OF his action. and recounted the expe-
riences in the church which finally lcl
him to renounce the ministry. He de-
clared this experience had shown him
that the organized church has reversed
directly the injunction of the Master who
said. Seek We first the kingdom Of
heaven and its righteousness and all these
other things will be added unto you," and
was seeking frst all other things In
the hope that sometime. somehow, some
where the kingdom of heaven and its
Righteousness would be added" He in
dictated he personally had come to view
things from Sociaiistic standpoint.
Among other things Mr. Davidson said:
Calls vestrynen worldly.
Since / must be personal. let me sum
up my experience by saying that my
h. d., h. ma -
cast and In not pleasing the rich. In my
ministerial career in the Episcopal church
was associated with ten boards of ves-
trymen. and have known but one Of all
those vestrymen to be spiritually mind
ed. The vestry Is q financial body and
therefore a destructive force Of the very
thing that the church pretends to build
up. There are five orders In the church:
Money lords, vestrymen. bishops, women
and the clergy. The clergy are the last
and most dependent, although they should
be the flrst and most independent. Even
women exert an influence in many cases
In church affairs more potent than that
Of the clergyman, and In many instances
the clergyman must yield TO 1t or have
his work In a particular parish made
failure.
by the way. the organized church
and its clergy were unknown to the New
Testament Christians The clergyman
has become the official exponent of the
visible system Of Organized Churchianity.
which is far removed from New Testa-
ment Christianity. The Episcopal church
in this country today Is not Christian. Is
not Catholic, and Is not American. al
though 1t claims the apostolic succession
and wants to change its name to the
American Catholic church The church
Is anything but Catholic in the true sense.
as is shown by its narrowness and ex-
clusiveness in many respects. It Is not
American because II Is not democratic
and does not represent the ideals OF
In many places you VIII
see richly furnished and appointed
churches and bishops palaces land they
are palaces in many cases). and In the
immediate vicinity you will see the long
oread-lin of Americans shivering In the
>old for a bite Of food. Is the church
In that situation either American or
Christian?
The question is vibrating throughout
the world as to how men can preach the
ruth and their convictions when they are
dependent economically and socially upon
men whom they must please. This Is the
situation In which the clergymen are
placed today. They must take their
choice between preaching genuine Chris
.ianity and pleasing the men who support
The church and exploit the people Moth
ng In more rare than q free pulpit Have
you any In Washington?
my leaving the church was not mat
ter Of caprice. Such matters have al
cause. The one aues-
ion with me was whether i was on the
tide of God and humanity. and by long.
md sometimes trying and bitter expert
.nce, I found that in order to be on that
,ide must leave the church. But when
left the church and burned by vest
nents and prayer-book / did not burn
10 my religion. That il fundamental to
nv very being. The Lord has led me
tut into a wider field"
The speaker frequently was applauded, |
md evidently had the sympathy Of the
arge audience. An unprecedented feature |
n a Secular League meeting was furn-
shed by Mr. Davidson in making short |
at the beginning OF his ad-
lress.
A lively discussion of the questions sug-
rested by the address of Mr.. Davidson |
vas participated in by William ID. Mac |
.enzie, A. B. johnson, David Eccles, Mrs. |
Nary Decker, Prof. Hyland c. Kirk.
Julian Pierce. and others. In response
o an invitation for statement on be-
aIf of the church from any one present
Y. c. Lee took the position that the
hurch. like the State. can be no better
han the elements composing 1t. and that 1
| can no more be perfect and faultless
han any other social institution.
au1cKNEss PREVENTS SUICIDE.