Richmond times-dispatch. [volume] (Richmond, Va.) 1914-current, 1922-03-13
NATIONAL CENSORSHIP
OF FILMS PROPER PLAN
DIR. Broughton Thinks State
Supervision Will Be Moth
ing But Farce.
SOMETHING IS NEEDED. HE SAYS
Weak mud tndcNcInpcd Rcuuirc Help
frf"rc being Caught In WhIriUooI
Of Evil Suggestion. Tells Grove
Avenue CnnIrrEntInu.


National censorship. not state con
troll. Is what is needed. according to
! Fey. Len C. BrouEh,ou. j.. H.. pastor
"f Grove Avenue Baptist church. He
told his congregation this in his
sermon yesterday morning while
preaching oE TIA" subject: "ChriSt's
Prayer at the Grave OF Lazarus"
'r. BrouGhton criticized the hit-
ference IN Standards which result
rem State censorship. He said con-
>"rship on his basis would resolve
itself into a farce. lie declared :hat
national supervision apart from poll
4. was needed and that I, would
protect all alike. 1t .h"uld I've only
for motion pictures considered i'm
'nt ral. he Pointed out. Gavin tho
~ oduccrs free In matters OF history
religion AMI science.
Or. Br"uShton said. In part:
Cod pltn has ever been to work
With man. He would not rcsiIrrc,r
Lazarus until ihos" Interested rolled
The stone away from the door az
the grave. 1t is never u question OF
what lie can do. but of what lie will
do. When man reaches his OK
trenity ana looks up to God. lie does
the rest.
the Bible than that God leaves some
thing for men TO work uut in his
effort 10 MAKE the world good uu-
man natur" is suCn as To need the
exercise OF incntal struggle in Order
To make II strong. that is the reason
Why our Lord goes into so few de-
tails in the code Of human conduct,
tie states principles of life and OK
| poets each soul 10 work them out
for itself
Man would become a molly
c"ddIc indeed. Il everything was
worked out for him. ono reason
why | knox II" more Greek than
d" is because had the work all
done for me. And the surcst way
TO make race Of moral weaklings
is To make too many laws--so many
that man Will not have L. work on;
his salvation. but simply live within
| the law. We have done good with
reform legislation. but We may carry
- good thing too far for the pro-
duction OF red -hlooded resistance.
TO me the picture censorship prob
| lem needs carefully To be thought
out in this light. There may be
danger Of soul s.nsitivcness being
! lost by the trausfcrcnc- OF rcspons,-
| t,li,y from tho individual 10 the
state.
Il am quite sure something needs
to hc done. Tn" weak and undo
vc!oped need some help before they
are caught II the picture whirlpool
of evil suggestion, hut stil some
responsibility needs to he retained
! 10y the individual.
What is needed is national con-
sorship. not state. The more think
OF II. and tho more | see. the less
favor state censorship of this great
Industry. Think OF North Carolina
having one standard South Carolina
another. Tennessee another. Virginia
ana Washington another, and 50 on.
Gould we have greater farce. stan
cards would become a pyword Tn,
| moral riber OF the people would he
constructed in one way here and
another way elsewhere. We ALWAYS
los" when good people differ about
standards OF what should L.. allowed
ana what not. This is true OF every
social problem.
The censorship needed is national
and that apart from politics Every
picture, before it is put on. should
receive the o.. X of the National
| Board. and that would protect all
alike. Ana This censorship should he
only for immoral pictures. Matters
IF history. religion and science should
be lett TO the producer, just as a
book
In no respect should censorship
tic $" conducted as To hcrct the idea
that a life within the law rs all
mat may he required Cod is far
more concerned about the individual
conception in the production Of a
hiGh.r race. than he is about all
the legal fences we may construct
We are made Christlikc by His Spirit
operating OH our own souls and not
by restricted lcGalism
Let us not forget this is our day
OF great and good reforms. or we
may lose more than We gain in the
Gays To come"