Arizona republican., 1922-01-29
Unnecessary Alarm


we have received the following communication
from representative Of the Religious Liberty Asso
citation OF America:
The greatest crisis of human history is just be-
fore us crisis in which the religious faith of mil
lions viii be tested Professional reformers are cer-
tain to bring upon the whole Inhabited world a uns
OF trouble, such never was since there was ma
tion" unless by educating the public concerning the
true involved and the exercise of sound COM
mon sense. they be checked in their ruinous
course.
Certain religious organizations with un-Ameri-
can propensities are clamoring for legal recognition
OF their own peculiar ideas of Christian conduct.
gigantic ecclesiastical machine has been organized
and is rapidly gaining strength For the accomplish
nent OF its purpose 1t is bringing pressure upon po-
HticaI leaders everywhere Therein lies the danger.
ignoring the rights of others to worship God accord
ing to the dictates of their own conscience, this re-
gous trust is insistent in Its demands that 1t does
not hesitate to serve notice upon legislators both
state and national that If its religious ideas not
enacted into law its constituency win be directed to
boycott the offending politicians at the polls.
The foregoing relates to the District of Columbia
Sunday bill which it is feared is designed model
Sunday law, ultimately to be imposed upon the whole
country But we think that the Religious Liberty
Association is unduly alarmed. There is no such
crisis before us has described and religious
or other reformers can create such crisis. We
believe too that expression gigantic ecclesastt
cal machine" is much too exaggerated description
Of the forces behind the District OF Columbia BILL
It is not church movement in the that
there is one great church or several great churches
sponsoring It, but rather comparatively small but
active body acting on its own motion. This body
suppose is made up perhaps wholly Of church mem
bers well meaning If not well advised men and wc-
men,
The churches themselves that is the governing
bodies Of the churches the real ecclesae long
accepted the dlcturn of Rev. Charles H. Spurgeon,
the foremost Protestant churchman Of his time:
Your Sunday bills and all other forms Of act-of-
parliament religion to to be all wrong. Let
true religion triumph by the power of God in mems
hearts, and not by power Of punishment and fines
Since the days of the Puritans whose rule in New
England amounted to an ecclesiarchy, though rigid
Sunday laws and ordinances here and there
enacted and have generally left the statutes
and the books Of ordinances, they have never been
enforced except for brief periods After short seasons
Of annoyances public opinion has swept them aside
with almost repeating effectiveness.
we have in almost every well conducted
naunity laws which call Sunday observance laws.
though the proper title would be Sunday anti-dese-
Grafton laws. No attempt is made to compel people
to observe the Sabbath or keep it holy" Such
an attempt would necessarily fail because it would be
inconsistent with the spirit Of government which
recognizes no forms of religion. It has been sub
santively declared that they may not be recognized
our Sunday laws are enacted in Difference to the
feelings Of large number OF citizens very large
majority Of whom many not church members, who
have a reverence for the Sabbath and whose senti
ments the laws provide shall not be unnecessarily
outraged.
For the same reason have laws and ordin-
ances on many subjects restricting conduct that is
not essentially bad It is offensive to
ventions Nearly all persons religious non-religious
ana irreligious agree that respect for the Sab
bath or respect for neighbors reverence for the
Sabbath is sign Of order. An atheist coming in
search of a home for his family would choose a
Sabbath respecting community rather than Sab
bath breaking community
This is as far as Sunday legislation can ever
progress in the United States. Now and then there
may be blue law legislation, attempts may be made
to enforce 1t and for short periods it may be
forced but that will always be done with harm to
religion and the enforcement will be followed by a
reaction against even a proper respect for the
Sabbath,
FL