Atlanta semi-weekly journal. (Atlanta, Ga.) 1898-1920, 1917-05-08
BIZ BISHOP w. A. GAMBLER.

lion. Robert Lansing. the secretary
IF state of the United states. is re
ported recently to have said:
Society TODAY tends toward mate
-saIisrgl. and even the church is drift
issA away from spirituality. The ten
dentv = TO msteTiJlize the church. TO
make IL place for social meeting. OF
lutelI ,ctusI profit and even of enter
tainmeut Now the questions arise:
: not the church doing the very thing
il ought to avoid7 Is not morality
suppIanting religion as tho chief pur-
pose Of the church The social meet
Ing il taking the place OF the prayer
ueAtfiE the popular lecture the place
Of the gospel sermon. the whole ten
dency OF the church seems TO be away
frcnr the spiritual and toward the ma
te-iaL. which we are apt TO term the
practical"
A few years ago President Wilson
delivered himself in a somewhat SINH
lar manner. lamenting that the churches
were undertaking to compete with
worldly bodies in Offering worldly graf
isicatiCns in order to secure recognition
from worldly people
The fault 10 which both the presi-
dent and the secretary Of state refer
is a real danger 70 modern christianity.
Il points to spiritual weakness in the
churches and prophesies even greater
spiritual prOstratioU than that which
is now all too prevalent II may dis
zuiSe Itself under various plausible,
forms but at bottom il means depart
u1e from God.
The conduct or men Of the world,
VINO make the demand 10 which so
many churches are yielding. Is quite
similar 10 the course of the prodigal
i'm Ina AaeHR
hut sad parable pronounced by our
Lord The prodiEsl was quite willing
TO depart from his father forever: but
he was unwilling TO be separated from
the goods of his father In like man
uer men Of the world desire TO get rid
-of a kind providence. They reverse
the Scriptural princi pie that Man
shall nos live by bread alone but by
every word that proceedeth out OF the
mouth Of God" and declare That man
shall not live BY the word of God, but
hy bread alone They esteem car
nal satIsfactions and comforts as the
highest good of mankind. and they
Insist that the sum OF service which
the church is to render is some sort
Of earthly good Thus their way is
their folly: for they fail to perceive
that when man departs from God he
.my.e-fls all the lower blessings OF lie.
Nr. Lansing is in position TO judge
the things OF this sort. and he clearly
perceives that the bases of all earthly
good are found in the spiritualities Of
life. Hence he points out the fatal
bIunder made by the churches when
they undertake TO promote worldly ends
a mart from the high interests OF the
soul. He is not a fanatic, but A wise
man whose powers OF observation and
Judgment fmpel him to see clearly the
significance of the terrible drift from
spirituality which he points out
II is humfliating TO see the Church OF
God abidicating its highest functions IN
order TO become the mere serVitor OF
earrh-born and ezrth-bound desirses and
ambitions. UGH a position the Lord
Of the church. when he tabernacled In
of the flesh. utterly regulated.
on one OCCASION he feed the multitude
nv the MULTIPLICATION of the loaves and
fishes This he did in order to attract
the people TO higher things. On the fol-
lowing dav the same hungry crowd
gathered about Him again. but He re-
fused to feed them the second time, &C
..ustuz them of desiring the lOaves and
rShes more than they hungered for spir-
ftua1 food Jesus would not he the chief
baker of hungry. sOdden multitude
ana the church consuIJs both its honor
and its interests when 10 follows his
example
In an this il is not meant that the
church should not concern itself Tor any
of the wants OF men except their spirit
risI needs: but il i indeed 10 protesI
agafnsr the reversing OF the true order