Tulsa daily world. [volume] (Tulsa, Indian Territory [Okla.]) 1905-1919, 1917-08-27

understands inhumanity, is one of the
Fundamental conditions OF war, as
this school of philosophy holds 1t. 1t
stopped at nothing. 1t knew no mercy,
! hesitated at no atrocity, deliberately
massacred, murdered, deported, tor
tured, starved to death those who
stood in its way. Such is the theory
and such the practice.
Quite as visibly as this philosophy
repudiates humanity it despises NOR
ais particularly those morals which
relate to truth, Astonished we have
heard the statement of the German
chancellor that treaties We're only
scraps of paper. But it is a definite
part of their theory that there are
no moralities which should stand be-
tween the nation and the development
of its Ideals.
! Having repudiated morality and
humanity, the question arose: How
should this attitude of leading minds
be made that of the entire German
nation, of whom great mulutudes
were both moral and humane? Mod
ern morality and humanity, as we
understand them, are distinctly Chris
Itian in their spirit and purpose. To
fulfill, therefore, the purpose of Ger
many to dominate the world by an
army engaged in ruthless war, unre-
strained by morality and humanity, 1t
became necessary to dispossess the
Christian ideals of morals and hui
maneness which possessed the Ger
man people. Therefore, this political
philosophy deliberately gave itself to
the most violent attack upon Chris
tianity. Until they could rid the Ger
man people of the ideals of Chris
tianity, their philosophy could not
penetrate or control the nation.
The attack upon Christianity was
deliberately made. towards hundred
years ago. When, q little more than
half century ago, Strauss assailed
the Gospel and the life of Christ as
mythical, he was following out tho
line OF this policy, and at that time
not a few were led away by his the
ories. But later the development be-
came much moro widespread, intense
and more sweepingly antagonistic.
Called 1t a "Mistake"
Many of the German political phil
osophers affirm that the greatest mis-
take which Germany had ever made
was in accepting Christianity from
the Roman empire in the fifth CEN
tury. They declare that the Roman
empire was then effete and in de-
cline that Galilee, from which the
Roman empire took the Christian
faith. was also an effete nation, and
that II has always been a dreary spell
cast upon the mind Of Germany. that
they accepted this religion. For thirty
generations, some OF them declare,
Germany has struggled to rid itself
of an allen religion, Of a vision which
It did not respect; OF a God that 1t
could not adore: of q system of reli-
gion which was foreign to the Ger
man genius. Germany's native in
stinct for playing q creative role In
religion had been stunted and thwart-
ed. Germany. they declare, should ex-
ercise creative powers In the matter
of religion, repudiating all but It's own
creation. That religion they called
The Religion of Valor." One of its
notices is "To live dangerously"
Won Treitschke's thot of the state
was the state controlled by nothing
but its own ideals. Those who fol-
tional energy. Napoleon was their
ideal rather than Christ; Corsica
rather than Galilee. became to them
the seat of the ideas which they would
espouse. They travestied and do now
the beatitudes. Instead Of saying,
blessed are the peace makers" they
say, blessed are the war-makers, for
they shall conquer the earth and shall
receive the applause, II not of Jeho-
yah, Of Od!n, who is greater than
jehovah" They repudiated the be-
attitude on the meek. and blessed the
valiant rather than the teachable;
and instead Of commencing tho poor
IN spirit, they commended the exalted
and heroic In spirit who have no sense
OF humility. They prepared to found
world empire and also world
religion.
This "Religion Of q valor" had in Il
no place for Christian virtues and was
TO be substituted for the Christian
faith. Sympathy, kindness humanity
were labelled weaknesses.
But now, as the Christian religion,
Especially in the mind of the German
people, was dependent upon the Bible.