BAY OF PLENTY BEACON Published Mondays, Wednesdays and Fridays. FRIDAY, FEBRUARY 25, 1949 A VITAL SERMON

Bay of Plenty Beacon, Volume 13, Issue 57, 25 February 1949, Page 4

BAY OF PLENTY BEACON Published Mondays, Wednesdays and Fridays. FRIDAY, FEBRUARY 25, 1949 A VITAL SERMON

Striking treatment of a contentious subject is the sermon the Rev F. J. Climo delivered at the Methodist Church last Sunday evening. It is published as fully as space will allow today, and our only regret is that we were unable to give the full text. Let it be admitted at the outset that all that can be said on the question of whether or not the abolition of capital punishment in this country was right or wrong has not been said by Mr Climo. But his argument that to re-introduce it would not tally at all points with Scriptural injunctions is undeniably sound. From the purely secular point of view, its value as a crime deterrent is widely accepted. That view has been clearly expressed by Grand Juries and in other responsible quarters on a number of occasions lately. But, by far the most important part of Mr Climo’s address seems to be that which places a share of the blame for the increase in crime, and particularly in crime by young people, on society itself, and on the evils it condones while crying loudly for vengeance against the crimes those evils breed. It probably can be argued that there have been periods in the world’s history when people were more religious and crimes no fewer. But it cannot be denied that our standards of social conduct are slipping. Adultery, once punishable by death, is now not a crime at all. In fact, it is sometimes regarded as not even a serious social misdemeanour. “Slick” business deals, which once would have earned their perpetrators the ostracism they deserved, are now considered by some to be praiseworthy. Today a mail whose word is not always his bond may be regarded as a gentleman—provided he is rich enough. Once a man who could not carry his liquor was looked upon with a certain disdain; today his tipsy antics are considered smart. Once a drunken "woman was a sight rare and shocking. Today that sight is no longer ’are, and is not usually regarded as anything other than amusing. A lot of us may not like it when a man like Mr Climo has the courage to tell us that our moral fibre is not what it ought to be. Truthful criticism nearly always hurts. But the Master Mr Climo works for never pulled His punches for fear someone winced. And whether or not we agree with Mr Climo’s sermon in its entirety we must congratulate him on having said a lot that needed saying. We trust it will provoke constructive thought and discussion.

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