A SIGNIFICANT MOVEMENT

Seventh-day Adventist Publishing Association · Battle Creek, Mich. · Sep 18, 1879

A SIGNIFICANT MOVEMENT.

The infidel elements in our country are making a move to consolidate their forces and seek in the arena of politics the accomplishment of their designs. These designs are especially to oppose and arrest the religious amendment movement, abolish the judicial oath, and cause to cease all recognition of religion by the government in any manner whatsoever.

A convention was held in Cincinnati, Sept. 13 and 14, in the interest of this movement. The call for this meeting was published in the journal called Man, of Sept. 6. At the head of the committee of invitation stands the name of Robt. G. Ingersoll. The object of the convention was set forth in the call as follows:—

“The object of this Convention, in addition to the transaction of the ordinary business of the League, is to give the Liberals of the United States an opportunity of consulting as to the propriety of taking political action. . . .

“Pursuant, then, to the above call, we invite all those who are interested in promoting the objects of this Address to become members of a general Convention to meet with the next Congress of the National Liberal League, at Pike’s Opera House in the city of Cincinnati, Ohio, on the 13th and 14th of September next, to consult together, and (if found advisable) to proceed at once to the organization of a “Liberal Party” in the United States, to take part in the fall State elections of this year, and to prepare for general action in the presidential election of 1880.”

A similar meeting was held at the Astor House, New York, Aug. 8, at which Mr. T. B. Wakeman suggested that “the liberals of the United States should organize, and become, as far as possible, a political power.” The following sentiments were uttered showing that one of the great points in the controversy is the Sunday question:—

A letter was read from James Parton, in which he said:—

“Mr. Adler, Mr. Frothingham, Mr. Wakeman, Col. Ingersoll must unite; a sect must be created; Sunday must cease to be a wasted, a pernicious day. Noble dramas on Sunday morning. Great music Sunday evening. Magnificent parks in the afternoon. The money now consumed in pagan worship of a heathenish deity, spent in exalting man. God no longer a demon. Man redeemed. Cathedral and tenement equally abolished. All to be begun now.”

Remarks were made by Col. Ingersoll in which he said that

“He had longed to see the time when State and church shall be really and totally divorced, when science and not superstition shall fill the routine of school hours, when no set of men can set up a lecture hall, and, labeling it a church, evade taxes, when majorities shall not dictate to minorities what they shall do with one-seventh of their lives, and when laws should bear alike on Jew and Gentile, Christian and Freethinker.”

“Dr. Foote inquired what name the Col. would give the new party. He replied that ‘Liberal’ was the best name he could think of. Mr. Butts inquired if the Germans, especially of the West, had not already organizations for the purpose of preventing sabbatarian and sumptuary legislation? He said he had received letters from several eminent Germans of the West urging the political union of all liberals. Col. Ingersoll said he believed the German Turners numbered many thousands, and had all essential points in common with us. The danger was that some would ask for too much at once. We should not strike at all the abuses we could inventory, but reserve strength for the root of them all, ecclesiasticism in State and school.”

The unanimity with which they are taking hold of this movement is shown by an extract from a letter by a “leading physician in a large western city,” as published in the number of the paper from which the foregoing extracts are taken. We quote as follows:—

“The Congress of the National Liberal League, in Cincinnati, in September, is welcomed here by its friends with great joy. Thanks to Ingersoll, Wright, Wakeman and all the others for their common sense, and for the beginning of practical work to realize our ideas in stepping into the political arena. Talk has been going on long enough and the liberals want to see the realization of their ideas—this can only be done by politics. Political action must be the reflection and realization of the thoughts of men. Thousands and thousands of men are longing and wishing a new and radical start in politics. You can become the benefactors of our American people. Step to the front for the realization of modern and rational ideas and do not linger behind. The whole people is with you.”

These men understand the importance of working through the press; and to show how well they have prepared themselves to work in this direction, we quote again from an appeal published in the same paper:—

“We have now the post-office addresses of 700,000 farmers, 500,000 business men, 70,000 physicians, 20,000 lawyers, 10,000 pronounced liberals, 50,000 ministers, 50,000 teachers and over half a million others, in town and country. About one-half of these will vote within eleven weeks for State and municipal officers. Help us to place in the hands of each a copy of our Committee’s call, on the first page of this paper, with seven pages more of our richly laden Man.

“We can send out 1,000,000 copies for $5,000. Are there not 1,000 Liberals who will send us $5.00 each for this purpose? For every $5.00 so sent us, we will immediately send 1,000 copies to 1,000 of the addresses referred to above, post-paid.”

The Christian Statesman notices this movement in the following paragraph from its issue of Sept. 4:—

“The National Liberal League has summoned a Convention to meet in Cincinnati on the 13th inst., to consider the propriety of nominating candidates for participation in the next presidential election. Their platform, of course, will be the ‘Demands of Liberalism.’ The New York Tribune quotes their programme of reforms and remarks that nothing appears in it about the rights of those who have an old-fashioned liking for the Sabbath, horror of blasphemy, and respect for the faith of our fathers, and who are unfortunate enough to be in the majority.”

We have called this a significant movement; and we believe it to be emphatically so, for this reason: This action on the part of the liberals, will force upon the opposite party, that is the religious amendment party, counter organization and corresponding activity, and when the strength of this party is aroused, the crisis comes and the result is not doubtful. Perhaps even in the next presidential election, the coming year, the Sunday question may be one of the principal features of the issue. The liberals according to the foregoing extracts are determined to make it the issue of that campaign. Should they succeed the crisis is right upon us. But if they should not, we know, as events are now working, it cannot long be delayed, and the latter part of Revelation 13 is shortly to be fulfilled.