CHURCH AND SOCIAL PROBLEMS.

Dominion, Volume 1, Issue 21, 19 October 1907, Page 7

CHURCH AND SOCIAL PROBLEMS.

." ; > ":,— *—. —:' ■'■■ ' /f>OREAT MEETINQ AT AUCKLAND., -.'.' v SOCIALISM DISCUSSED. -,];■ SJiiiNSATIONAL ADDRESS BY;BISHOP . .■; ; A N .-..■.'-neligan.- •...■.■■'- ; ; ■-■■ ■~.■;:.•' Auckland, October 18. ■'. "', The Anglican-Diocesan Synod's mass meet- ' mg for men at'the Choral Hall last ovening ■ took'a'''somewhat'-sensational "form.. - 'The 'building,was crowded 1 by an audience, which ' inoluded, probably a,majority of tho churchgoers',' and the addresses wero some of the finest yet heard in Auckland. Tho meeting ;was; presided over by tho Mayor, (Mr. 'A. Myers), and'ono of the speakers was Mr; /Ben'Tillctt, the .well-known Sociahst.Then there-was tho Rev. G; Wi'Sniailes, a keen student:of Socialism, for nine years a mombor of tho New South Wales Legislatura, and a' remarkably fino speaker, and as a conclusion 'tho'Bishop of' Auckland (DK Neligan) made' 1 ' a-' sensational ■ attack • on gambling, .drinking,-and(impurity., The speeches were all valuable contributions'to..'the controversy, and of interest to every part of tho Domin-'.-ion.'V/>; ■~;];\:',i . :'. .Vi ■.; ■■;'■■■;'/,';'. ' ■: -- v : i-.;■••: - ; SPEECH BYMR. BEN;TILLETT/ ' Mr:.' Ben Tillott spoke on "The' Problems of .Labour,", and-at tho. outset pointed directly to the cleavage botween' the Church and Socialism!' He declared that. during its-2000 year'of existence tho'Church had signally, . failed; in 5 its duties, and had never compre-. hended, its responsibilities. If the, Church was". Socialistic' if would, bo Christian, but ■-ft' was':hbt "Christiliko? It Was impossible for the Church with its present tenets to expect to do-any good for the world in,any possible lifonriVx Limiting itself to 'its theological tunc-' : tions the' Church had no grasp of scientific economics, ho policy ,or. plan by which;the -. rich man might be punished. -The young man who entered, the Church' should be given somo ' socialogical training;'arid made'to pass an , examination -in industrial and social condir tions.iirfThe Socialist's did/not -.create glass . distinction nor did they preach it, but wanted ] to abolish it:;' There was, no religious insti-: 'tutiori'iri'oxstehcb which'dared to lay down a :, code'of niles; for 'membership such- as;."You ■:., shall'not rob;V ''You shall ; not lio," "You shall not spoil your fellow man."-(Cries of "Rot I" andgeherardissent.) If-the Church laid.it; down as a fundamental law that social right-. ■ eonsness;.' should be maintained, and holy brotherhood'upheld,, it would gather to its: ranks every thinking:man and woman who; •had any'religious-instinct in them. He protested' against ,ihe statement that- Socialism ..did not want:character. Environment deter-, mined/ everything/arid ho instanced how certain/conditions of liviiig at Homo affected :'. the moral, mental,.and, physical well-being of '/the. children reared under them.! He.had '"worked with religious men and'on religious : ;bbdies:'and ! ,.had como to the conviction that . .the Church,and Socialism were antagonistic: The address:was punctuated,by.frequent applause',- and'nt'the conclusion there was a prolonged.outburst.;/; >r.V.V,, , ;>J\; v -\tHE;BISHOP'S; ADDRESS. " '."' The Bishop,ispeaking on the.question, "Is Christianity, a'l'allure .'''.'said he would take the strohgest'indictm'ents 'against Christianity —the'.'thr.eb' three;• social 'sores of drink, 'gambling, and impurity,,-and there, if ,they v : liked, ...they had ( . the - failure, of : Christianity;', :'lh 'city and suburbs' there :■ were more than 1 80 licensed houses, ; while tho estimated expenditure, on,drink per.head of population'was £3; lis. Judging by tho ■•',.' Church.of England alone this was more than , three'times'.'.what 1 was contributed' ; t»'; the Church/ and a man .might. .therefore-/say Christianity ; was. a. .failure. ■... Then. take the pblico'returhs,' and they had 1235 males and 172i.fpmales arrested in tho: city and ~;.■;-for drunkenness,',.and,al^but^fpur„ .males were ■" convicted., ;Hb'was"not, 1 a"'teetotaller himself,' :. but. he /was 'going \ to'" mako ;tho'.'indictment against' Christianity as' strong' as he could: Then he turned to gambling; and.he defined it by: the Tenth Commandment.. Ho knew of' no other. definition; arid defied' any man in the.world;!to find any other.definition." It was the'.sin of covetousness; "thb most; devilish, sin that.could.enter .into the soul of man:,' ; He would take'the.race meetings at Auckland'(Ellerslie, '-Avptidalej and Thames). There: were' ll'*meotings in the year, only 28 days',' of! racing,. and. the gross . total .put through the totalisator at the clubs' courses was '£343,198."," Talk' about Socialism and ■ equality'l" he said./''Givo me somo of that, money, :and 1,,wi1l benefit New Zealand with every 7 penny "of .'it.,7 : , ; ,1< go a little furthor- .".: into': :U ''the■/-/facts and", ; find' in : thb Turf /Register, 1 :- Part 8, -rules to guard - men,who are ashamed,to race!in thejr own names and, assume/others. I find that in 'the Diocese.bf Auckland, the historic. See of, New;',Zealand,''there are 14 racing clubs : legally 'entitled to use "the' totalisator, and I defy you toigo round to the police-and ask ,them,do: : they know of..any/gambling hells ';',. in Auckland, ; without getting the answer, ' ('Yes.'and we are trying to get at'therii;/ : b'ut tho devils arovery'iclevor.'' The gambling'...hells are! going on, and your own boys are learning 'two-up,Vahd'':twb-up',schools are goinc on overy day, and,in four days 'racing , at Ellerslie alone at ■ the beginning of the year there/was £216,283 (?) passed through tho totalisator, and you; canadd: £100,000 for trotting 'meetings, and there is tho 'Failure of Christianity,' for racing in New Zealand, lives absolutely and.totally on the. totalisator, and.you'go to the Courts and'you see the faijure of,. Christianity.,.,, You/see, the wifo.'or daughter of a respectable man or the husband ■'■'-■ or:- son oFa" respectable woman 'in ','the' dock AVhat 'f0r.?..,.:' For 1 forgery or' embezzlement, ; .*nd,,sp:fprth..,;/ ?; , : -,..-. ; .;' : -:/. ; ■//,;,,---:., IANOTHER POINT IN.THE INDICTMENT. _' Then, I take brie..other point in my count iri'tho'indictment against Christianity.. It is impurity; we'i talk of 'in sanitary j dwellings; anil I would like hero to say that I boliovo the community owor a idobt of gratitude to the' Mayor for trying to'get tho dwellings of the people mado more healthy. (Applause.) The Bishop, thon referred to professing Christians reading unclean books and buying offensiye postcards. ," Hero, in tho city, of Auckland — tho Failure of Christianity, if you will •-■-thefe are something liko 70 women of illrepute known on tho streets, and there aro a ; number-of others unknown:" .. .Someone at this stago laughed, an dtho Bishop went'on: "Laiigh and call yourself a . m'ah'j'gb dbwntb'the wharf and see what the girls are doing there? Christianity ?' I am making the'indictment-pretty heavy; thero are something, like.twclvq houses of evil refute known iii Auckland to-day, arid to-night as we sit there are in'tho rosciie Homes, in'the Churcli of England Homo, the Salvation Army Homo, and tho Door of Hopo 38 fallen women, and 35 out of the 38 aro " first falls." That is to-night .in Auckland, the Failure of Christianity,'if you will? Then there are other things. I have only touched on the things that aro unknown; thore wore • things that ho know, but could not uso in pubhc ; . Ho need only refer for one thing to the birth-rate question. " If thoro are 35 women—'whito women—in the Honies tonight who are 'first falls'," ho wont on, " whoro.are the blackguards , who brought •' thorn there?" • (Applause.) Fallen women! lAyo! and where are tho " fallen mon?" ""; • CHRISTIANITY NOT A FAILURE.' '■'■■ The Bishop then opened tho ■ second part bf his address. He said that for tho facts .'. of_his indictment tho. Church could not bo :wh"olly exbrierat-ed. Ho admitted freely that Christians too often remained sitting in tho pews, and that tho of England had -entered,into a woeful heritago From tho Eighteenth and the early part of tho Ninetoorith centuries; but not that Christianity had proved a failure, for, if he admitted that, it would'mean that ho admitted-that his God pad , failed. ' (Applause.) Christians had ,ailed, ,'but Christ never.: A Labour leader, •fl. Phillips, had said, in the courso of a ■ ipocch at Liverpool: "I claim that the uplifting of manhood, the care for life and limb, 'md the fairer conditions that have been ttrpught about _ to-day have been brought About by tho principles laid down by our Lord .Jesus' Christ."' Georgo Harwood, M.P.,'had made a similar declaration, but, as John Burhs replied, on being questioned ■ as to y whether drink produced poverty, "I am not hero to arguo, I'm here to fight both." He / (tho Bishop) was not-there to arguo whether gambling, drinking, and impurity were the *Jiin»s that produced social evils, or vice-

vorsa, but he was thero to fight the whole ' thing. "Ho was there to domand tho help of fwlow-mon to fight tho strong, and rescue the weak. (Applause.) A Labour Church was not wanted so much as a Cliurch that was labouring. Failure was duo to want of co-oporatiou. When dying Vansittart Nealo said tho co-operative movomont had failed through selfishnness,. adding: "Wo have not had Christ's spirit in tho co-operativo mont, and that's why it has failed. ' Tho Church was tho greatest co-oporativo organisation with a right understanding in the world, and it was meant to bo. To see trie evils of drinking, thoy had only to' go down to tho wharf, whero there wore cadgers loafing around waiting to " spongo" on tho man-o'-war's-man whon ho camo ashore. lliey ' had to fight tho gambling. Was it the clergy ' who kept the "toto." going? Tho boys and girls would surely: follow in tho stops of their fathers, unless they, wcr crostrainod. I hen i to join in fighting impurity. q Thero were employers and employees already m the ranks. Ho knew of one tradesman who got alargo package of offensive postcards from Homo, button sooing tho character of them, caused their prompt destruction at heavy loss. Christianity would nevor bo a failure so long as there were men like that supporting it. More such men were wanted. Besides the lack of co-operation, it appeared they did not know each other enough, and this they should romedy bv.making,little better friends of the • clerev. Thoy wbro.all wanted to join the Union with the motto': "Fear God, Honour the King, Love ,tho Brotherhood." Good work could only bo accomplished by the holp from outside. The Bishop concluded by further urging the need for.union.for the betterment of all social/conditions, and he resumed his seat amid loud applause. | ,