BAY OF PLENTY BEACON Published Tuesdays and Fridays. TUESDAY, MARCH 9, 1948 CHURCH MILITANT

Bay of Plenty Beacon, Volume 12, Issue 28, 9 March 1948, Page 4

BAY OF PLENTY BEACON Published Tuesdays and Fridays. TUESDAY, MARCH 9, 1948 CHURCH MILITANT

This community is indebted to the Rev. F. J. Climo for his sermon, .published on Friday. His congregation is singuarly fortunate in having as a leader a.man who can express himself with such force and clarity on a subject so vital to us all. For Mr Climo has put his finger on the cancer that is eating away the humanity of man. Greed, graft, covetousness, that impressive triumvirate of evils, were denounced with a power worthy of much larger audience than that to which the sermon was delivered.

This is the true spirit of the Church Militant—to recognise evil, drag it forth into the light, let the world see it for the vile soul-killing thing it is, then turn upon it the power of a vital faith. Christianity is the most dynamic thing that ever hit earth, if men would but use its-power. Too often, however, has its shining glory been dimmed by those who have prostituted their faith to bask in the patronage of the temporally mighty. Too often have real and vital, issues been clouded by sectarian squabbles.

What Christianity needs today is more of the spirit of Christ, less of the spirit of commerce; more faith, more courage—less bigotry, less dogma. Here is a force more potent than the force of arms, a form of government more wise and just than any party system. Here, as Mr Climo says, is the answer to the problems of an ailing world. But it seems a fact borne out by recent history that “Christian” nations would rather pray for victory in wars for Christianity than apply their Christianity to the far better purpose of so conducting their foreign policies that wars will become impossible. It seems some would rather exhort Christian youth to die for Christianity on a battlefield than live for it in a world crusade for fair dealing, absolute honesty at home and abroad, absolute unselfishness. True, there are empty- Churches the world over today. All too often that is because the messages from the pulpits are as empty as the pews. But men who are prepared t,o preach the practical application of Christ’s teachings to all our dealings with our fellow men, including internal and external politics, will never lack a following.