The Birmingham age-herald., 1923-06-03
OP |UM FUR PEOPLE |S SOVIET ATTITUDE TOWARD RELIGION
Minister Of Education Tells Why They Oppose Spirit
 uaI Things

4 opium for the people"
 This motto, in black letters on a red field, visible from every part of the room, hangs on the wall of governmental hall in Moscow. It Is but one of many things showing that churches and clergymen are regarded | l by the Soviet government as worse | than useless as anti-cultural factors, | indeed. They are suffered. but that | ! is all, and the government is ever on | the alert to discover some activity of 1 the. church which can be construed as '1nimical to the state.' What such a | discovery or alleged discovery means has but recently been illustrated by the execution of one priest and heavy prison sentences for others. Near the Tverskaya in Moscow there is bookstore which sells only anti-religious literature and pictures ridiculing the church and all religion. 1 One finds there books having the ap- pearance of old Bibles, but upon open | ing them they prove to be ironic parodies of Scriptural teachings. H. lustrated with pictures that make the average -Bolshevik shudder. no
 matter how little devout he may be in his everyday life.
 All religious instruction In the schools Is forbidden for pupils under
 IS discouraged for the older ones The church Is regarded as "a busi- lCSS AiloNl hd All B. 6uQ HuoI Poy
 taxes.
 Comm1ssar Of Enlightenment.
 The Soviet leader In the battle
 against Christianity-and all other
 religions, for that matter--is Citizen"
 Lunacharsky, minister of education.
 or, with his more impressive Russian title, commissar for the enlightenment
 of the people. medium sized man. with a small chin beard. dressed in blouse and top boots, he works rapid ly all day at a desk full of dangling telephones, in a room where there is a constant coming and going of vis-
 itors. mainly blouse clad laborers. who keep their hats on and smoke in cessantly.
 The representative of the North American Newspaper Alliance and The Age Herald asked him to explain the attitude of the Russian Soviet re- public toward religion, saying: Religion satisfies the metaphysi- cal needs that are innate in most human beings. Is 1t not. from the viewpoint of practical political | science, more advantageous to let
 the people retain this opium, since.
 if it be taken away, the whole flood
 of fantastic alkaloids. spiritism, oc-
 cultism. and the like, would sweep
 over manhind?"
 Lunacharsky wrote the following I OAAASinA oO'ASN NiO" cA 70 AoA'
 By A. LUNACHARSKY
 The so-called metaphysical needs
 of humanity are by no means endur-
 ing needs. With quite as much jus | tification we could, from the giving up of the practice of cannibalism, | draw the conclusion that man has | longing to eat human flesh. This | longing was actually common to all
 human beings, but has fortunately
 been extinguished among the vast
 majority of the race. The situation
 is the same. l repeat. as to so-called l metaphysical needs.
 One must make distinction here.
 If you are thinking of the longing to ! understand the mystery of the uni | verse, then exact science is the only
 real way Of acquiring this knowl-
 edge. And we must accustom the | people not to take fantasies for real it!os-a confusion which, in the last
 analysis. is exactly what forms the
 basis of metaphysics. Meanwhile
 scientific labors are slowly clearing
 up the truths that would otherwise
 not be known to mankind.
 If by metaphysical needs you un-
 derstand the longing for an other
 worldly happiness, immortality. etc.,
 then I point out that this longing
 arises in men only when they are desperately dissatisfied with their
 earthly existence. The more man, | keeping pace WlIn 6ClSiIliLiO CtAoA eS'
 deyotes himself to the work of bet
 tering the world. his own race. etc.
 the more he will come to regard 1 these childish dreams as useless ana
 a handicap. It Is not true that re-
 ligion forms 2 hindrance ,,.te to {ne | spread of spfritism and superstition
 in general
 Commissar Exalts Science.
 It goes without saying that Chris ttanity in certain respects stands on | a higher plane than those forms of heathean religions which it displaced 1 But if we, for example, have electric lights, we would not consider using | gas because it Is better than petro- leum lamps.
 A scientific method. of regarding the world, and especially active so- cialism, gives humanity the highest satisfaction which existence in It's present stage of development can possibly give. Religious pre1udices hinder mans activity. They compel him to regard life as something tran l sitory and of little value. Further omre, all religions. and the Chris tian religion most of all. demand and educate the oppressed classes In the spirit of humanity and patience, without at the same time causing sion to their Christian charity otherwise than through base alms- giving, which restores to the robbed people of crumbs of what was stolen | from them. O o O aUnconditional Opposition" | That is the reason why we take an attitude of unconditional opposi- l tion to religion. We regard 1t as demoralizing power which prevents man from taking a really scientlrlc, active, creative attitude toward the individual and public life. | We are carrying on and we shall keep on carrying on in the future a decisive battle against every religion. | However, we reject methods Of Vio- lence. because we know violence not 1 only does not conquer prejudtces but actually strengthens them. This explains out unconditional toler- | ance and at the same time our | energetic and extremely successful | anti-religious propaganda.
 USE173,317,O0O CIGARS l vuy-