RELIGION AND POLITICS

Pacific Press Publishing Company · Oakland, California · Nov 14, 1895

FromSigns of the Times, Vol. 21, No. 45.

RELIGION AND POLITICS.

Religion, or perhaps we would better say religious partisanship and prejudice, is rapidly coming to the front in the politics of the United States. This is a wide departure from the original design in the institution of our government, as shown in the constitutional provision that “no religious test shall ever be required as a qualification to any office or public trust under the United States.” The outlook is ominous, and shows that the principle of church and state separation, which our fathers intended should be perpetuated, is fast dying out. The forces which have contributed largely to this condition are mainly the Roman Catholic Church, the National Reform Association, the Woman’s Christian Temperance Union, the American Sabbath Union, the Prohibition party, the Christian Endeavor Society in its later developments, and the American Protective Association. The attitude of the Roman Church has always been that of a religious body with a political aim, and the A. P. A. is a political body whose main purpose is opposition to the political ambition of that church. This opposition of necessity brings religion into politics, by its direct controversy with a religious body.

The other organizations here enumerated are practically united in purpose, if not always in direct interest; and that purpose is, through what is known as the “Christian citizenship” movement, to make the civil government a means of advancing the interests of religion. And the assumption that it is the duty of the civil government to further the interests of religion is based mainly on the famous Supreme Court decision that “this is a Christian nation.” These combined bodies comprise the larger part of the so-called Protestant churches, and their first effort at controlling the civil government—state, national, and municipal—is centered on the one object of enforced Sunday observance. In this movement, at least, they will also have the concurrence of the Roman Church, and success here will establish a strong prestige for further governmental support of religious measures.

That considerable confidence is already felt in the ability of these religio-political bodies to carry out their purposes is manifested by comments of the press. For instance, we have this item from the American Sentinel, of New York:—

“It will be remembered that it was charged some months ago that President Cleveland went fishing on Sunday. This was denied by his private secretary, who explained that Mr. Cleveland only started Sunday night, but did not actually fish on Sunday. But some people are not satisfied with this, and the Mail and Express, of this city, thinks that Mr. Cleveland ought to clear his skirts of the fishing charge before he thinks seriously of a third term.”

Then an A. P. A. paper of this state asserts that that association threw its vote in the last state election for a certain candidate for lieutenant governor because his opponent’s wife was a Catholic; also that they voted for the present governor because his opponent would not discharge his Catholic typewriter. In one case they voted for a Republican, and in the other for a Democrat, in order to oppose the political aspirations of the Catholics,—in other words, on religious grounds. And now that the Republican lieutenant governor is dead, and the governor has appointed to the vacancy the man whom the A. P. A. claim to have defeated, the paper above cited intimates that retaliation on the part of the association may be expected in case the governor runs for office again.

To this we add a comment of the Sacramento Bee, showing that the appearance of religious zeal and religious prejudice are coming to be recognized as political influences of no small moment:—

“It is much to be regretted that the religious beliefs of candidates for high office should become controlling considerations in the minds of any considerable number of voters, but at the present this seems to be the case. It is going to be interesting to note what effect this is going to have in the national election next year.”