Atlanta semi-weekly journal. (Atlanta, Ga.) 1898-1920, 1919-09-23
BISHOP GAMBLERS MESSAGE

| good the whole tone of English
society. The religious revival
of that period had the office of
healthful salt in the national
1t wove bonds of quick and gem
erous life. 1t put a more robust
fiber into the national character
1T gave a new tenderness to
charity, nobler daring to phil
anthropy, loftier authority to
morals, as well as a new grace
to religion. So It helped to
cleanse the national life. Among
the elements of strength to Great
Britain at the beginning Of the
Struggle with revolutionary
France is surely to be reckoned
the IMMIGRATION bred of a reviv-
ed faith in religion"
Much the same DANGEROUS condi.
tons now prevail in our country
Science and invention have vastly in
| creased our wealth and with amaz-
ing .swiftness In 1860 the taxa BILE
wealth of the United States, INCLUDING
the valve 1n Of OF the slaves, was no more
down, without including the value of
the slaves, at $4,000, 100000. Such
wealth has made our people drunken
with prosperity and bitter class war
fare has sprung up about the distri-
button of the spoils of unprecedented
opulence.
At, the same time the rationalism
of the destructive critics, which is
simply the deiSm of the Eighteenth
century disguised in another form.
has weakened the hold of religion
and morality upon all classes
Hatred of constituted authority, an
Unsuitable appetite for change, a hab-
1t Of regarding revolution as the nor
NAL as well as the noblest form of
political self-sacrifice, a contempt for
all tradition, a desire to level all
ranks, and determination to seek
what is called progress by sud
den and violent methods, are evident
on all sides, just as they were in
england during the period of which
Lecky wrote. Religion, property, civil
authority, and domestic life are all
| aSsa1led, and BolSheVistic doctrines,
! incompatible with the very existence
OF government, are by muItitudes en-
braced and proclaimed with the fer
yor of a religion.
Under these conditions that which
saved England in the eighteenth CEN
tury must save our country in the
twentieth century, or it can not be
saved at all
A revival of religion, a great turn.
ing of the people to God, is required
to save the nation.
The palliatives of a puerile sociol-
ogy can do no good. They irritate
, more than they heal. At best they
are nothing more than cutaneous
treatments for deep-seated disorder
which calls for powerful moral al
terative.
The supreme need of the hour is a
return to God. Without God our
house will be soon left to us desc
late.
A great revival of religion saved
England in the latter half of the
eighteenth century and enabled Eng
land to save Europe, if we may trust
Fitchett and Lecky. Another great
visitation of grace must save the
United States and enable our coun-
try to save the world in this critical
hour of human history. Nothing less
divine will be sufficient for the needs
of the hour.
Man-made schemes of pretentious
reconstructions will not suffice. The
sooner we get away from such meth
DDS the better. The streams of spir-
itual life are running too low for
the WiseSt and best reconstruction to
be borne on them. The people are
too intent on wanting money and the
things which money will buy. Hence
nearly all the schemes of RECONSTRUCT
ton, thus far proposed have been
concerned far too much with the
amelioration of material conditions
What our people need is not so much
more earthly goods, as more heaven
ly goodness. The need to repent and
turn to God is our salvation.