National Citizenship Sunday
By Editor
THE United States Department of Labor has announced Sunday, July 2, as "National Citizenship Sunday." The department is putting forth a strong organized effort to educate the foreign element in the United States in the principles of American citizenship. Among other things, they desire to teach them to read and write the English language. This is certainly a very commendable work, and the pastors of all churches of all denominations are requested to give citizenship sermons on that day. The Department of Labor, Washington, D. C., will furnish literature to pastors or others who may desire information that will help them in preparing sermons and programs for the day. America, without any question, stands at the head of the list as one of the best nations that has ever existed within the whole range of the history of mankind. This nation's foundation principles of liberty, justice, and equal rights for all, have never been excelled in the constitution and practice of any nation or state anywhere. It is always a pleasure for any lover of liberty or right to do anything within his power to help out the good work of this great government. But while making these statements, we could not be true to conviction unless we pointed out the dangerous tendency at this time to confuse the separate realms of the church and the state. The church has its specific work to do; it is the great work of preaching the gospel and of saving the souls of men for eternity. And this work, when it is properly done, will always result in the betterment of all citizens who receive the great principles of the divine Christ. But, on the other hand, when the church, as an organized body, begins the work of assisting and guiding the state, there is always a tendency for it to become more and more a political body, until finally the minds of men become confused, and they are unable to recognize the great difference in the spheres of these two separate bodies. The state has its public schools and its other organizations for the training of its citizens. Then why call upon the church to assist it? If the work went no farther than the preaching of a citizenship sermon on Sunday, July 2, there might be no occasion for alarm. But history is one continued succession of experiments in church-and-state movements. There is a large part of mankind that believe that church and state must in some way be interlocked in order to uphold and strengthen society. But every experiment has shown itself a miserable failure. Yet notwithstanding these manifest failures, the evidences all point clearly toward the fact that the twentieth century is preparing throughout the world to try again in the same line. This twentieth century experiment will, without doubt, in many respects, be different from any of former times; but it will end in as great a failure as any of the others. Enlightenment and civilization cannot save us when we violate the fundamental principles of righteousness.