RELIGIOUS DEMAGOGISM by M. C. Wilcox

International Tract and Missionary Society · Oakland, California · Dec 29, 1887

FromSigns of the Times, Vol. 13, No. 50.

RELIGIOUS DEMAGOGISM.

By M. C. Wilcox

POLITICIANS are among the first of the children of this world who "are wiser than the children of light." No indication is too small to be unnoticed, if it will but catch votes. If the votes of a religious denomination are desired, they are always willing to foster some pet scheme, to render support in some measure, however unjust that measure may be, providing that the majority are either ignorant of its true merits, or are not opposed to it.

This has been manifested again and again in the privileges granted in past years to the Roman Catholic Church by the Legislature of New York. The Romanist vote counts something, and politicians are always ready to bid for it, whatever principles of religion, justice, liberty, or truth may be violated by their action, if they can but retain the support of the majority. In such ways many unjust laws, oppressive, tyrannical laws, anti-liberty laws, persecuting laws, have been passed. In the same way the oppressive Sunday law of Arkansas was placed on the statute-book of that commonwealth. Such may be the way in which the National Reformers may accomplish their tyrannical purpose of placing some of the so-called Christian institutions in the statute law of our own free country. Often

the watch-word of a small and hitherto insignificant party becomes the war-cry of a majority, if union with that party is necessary to make the majority.

An instance of how this may be done in reference to Sunday, was manifested in the recent election campaign of New York. The Republicans as a party repudiated temperance. At least they did not wish to recognize it in a way which would offend the liquor-dealers. But how to call in and retain the support of the religious class—that was the question, and the Personal Liberty party furnished the answer. They demanded a free Sunday, open saloon, etc. The clergy of New York united against the movement, and the Republicans took up the cry of the clergy. "The American Sunday." Monday, October 31, a large meeting of prominent citizens assembled at Steinway Hall, New York, "to save America's Sunday." Among the prominent men on the platform were: "Revs. John Hall, D. D., R. S. MacArthur, D. D., Walter Elliott, of the Paulist Fathers, W. W. Attebury, D. D., Thane Miller, D. D., Howard Crosby, D. D., of Sabbath authorship notoriety, M. D. Hodge, D. D., J. P. Whedon, and many other reverends, judges, etc. There were many remarkable utterances showing the trend of religious politics, some of which we quote. Ex-Judge Noah Davis presided. He said that he "counted it no simple honor" to open such a meeting as that.

"I am glad to be retained upon the Lord's side [applause] by such a noble army of his servants as those before me."

After extolling Sunday very highly, he thus closed:— "There is no liberty without law, there is no personal liberty except in obedience to the law. Our duty is to preserve our Sabbath [the American Sunday], and we should see that no man goes into our Legislature who does not think as we do, and who is not prepared to vote against any desecration of our Sunday."

Dr. William M. Taylor, in a letter, expressed full sympathy with the movement, and longed that Sunday laws could be enforced here as thoroughly as in Scotland. The meeting met with the "hearty concurrence" of Senator William M. Evarts. Father C. A. Walsworth, of Albany, wrote: "All my heart is with this meeting." "The Personal Liberty party (God be thanked for their folly) have now forced us into a position where we must either renounce all hopes of law and order, and prove traitors to our faith in God, or else crush these slaves of the liquor traffic beneath our ballots. We must now either yield up the great day of Christian worship to the demands of lawless greed, or vote down the men who would by their votes destroy it. The motto of all true men at this critical time should be: 'The Lord's Day—it must and shall be preserved.'"

The great facts concerning the Sabbath of the Lord were perverted and made to do Sunday service. Dr. W. R. Huntington, of Grace Church, appealed to "the clay cylinders of Babylonia," and the parchments of Hebrew Scripture "for the antiquity of Sunday." He thought it was menaced, but not endangered. In equity, he said, common property should not be encroached upon by private interest. The rest-day (Sunday) was common property. His ethical point was this:—

"The observance of Sunday as a day of cessation from toil is part of that general scheme of social life which we know under the name of Christian morals, and which must be accepted or rejected as a whole. The whole thing hangs together. You cannot take out a stone here and there and expect the fabric to stand. You cannot tamper with that part of Christian morals that deals with personal rest, and leave untouched those

other parts that deal with marriage, for example, and property."

But Dr. Huntington did not inform us by what authority Sunday observance became a part of Christian morals. Certainly not by the authority of Christ or his apostles. We see, also, just the same confounding of those laws which relate to duty to men with those laws which relate to our duty to God as is shown in all National Reform arguments.

Another point made by Dr. Huntington was that of statemanship. Among other strong utterances he said:—

"Better than any amendment that shall read the name of God into the national Constitution, better than the name of God upon the face of your coinage, is the maintenance of one quiet day among the seven, tacitly recognized as his. Therefore, Mr. President, in the name of fairness, in the name of good morals, in the name of patriotism, I say, 'Rally, fellow-citizens, to the defense of the rest-day!'"

There is no misunderstanding this language. It means, when reduced to practice, oppressive laws against those who may not consider this a duty, whose conscience would condemn them for the religious observance of a day which God has not called his, whose circumstances prevent abstinence from labor on that day upon which the Lord has given, by precept and example, the right to work.

Rome was also represented. The Rev. Walter Elliott, of the the Paulist Fathers, uttered the following:—

"Some may say that the Roman Catholic Church is unsound upon this question. Nothing could be further from the truth." (Applause.) And then the reverend father quoted from Scripture and Councils to enforce his remarks.

The speech of Dr. James M. King awakened the enthusiasm of the meeting throughout. He said:—

"I am glad there are some distinct American principles on which we can all stand, irrespective of creed or religious belief. [Applause.] While not all American Catholics, we are all Catholic Americans. [Applause.] I sometimes tremble for our liberties when I see vice assume such a bold front; and we have reached the point where we must ask, What are you going to do about it? Yet I am glad that the contest has assumed its present shape. We cannot easily fight an enemy who skulks in the bushes, but we can bring our forces together when we know where our enemies are, who they are, and how many it takes to overcome them. [Applause.] The audacious demands of the saloon-keepers for Sunday opening, each asking longer hours, would make us think that give them a little more time and they'll back clear into Saturday. It does not become us to allow any trifling with the Sabbath as a civil institution. As Christians we love the Christian Sabbath, but as citizens we love the American Sunday."

Says the Tribune: "Dr. King referred to the Sabbath [Sunday] as almost abolished in Germany, and that contracts for work provided for labor on that day as well as the others. He maintained that if the laboring man was led astray on the Sunday question by false advisers it was the duty of thoughtful citizens to apply the law so as to bring him under the school-master truth."

A prominent point urged by most of the speakers was that men sent to the Legislature should be sound on the Sunday question. If all of these utterances mean anything, they mean that the speakers are bound that Sunday shall be surrounded by the bulwark of civil law, and to him who would not heed it, would zealous "citizens" "apply law so as to bring him under [not] the school-master truth," but under the tyrannical power of oppressive error, instigated by "that old serpent, called the devil and Satan." And how will those conscientious, God-fearing people who are advocating and keeping the seventh-day Sabbath as commanded by God, be classed? Among lawless liquor-dealers, beer-drinkers, infidels, etc. How will they fare? They will have applied to them the iron hand of the law. Clearer and clearer appear the omens of the coming struggle. Closer and closer let the friends of truth gather together. Firmer and firmer let us plant our feet on "the commandments of God and the faith of Jesus." God will care for his own, and give victory to the faithful and true.

M. C. WILCOX.