THE CHURCH & THE PEOPLE.

Dominion, Volume 7, Issue 1925, 6 December 1913, Page 9

THE CHURCH & THE PEOPLE.

"Religion and tho Crisis," by Harold Begbie (Cussell and Company): In this book tho well-known author of "Broken Earthenware'"' gives his opinions on tlio relations of the Church to tho people. "Democracy," he. writes, "has made up its mind to move away from a condition of things which it- adjudges to be bad, but has not determined in which direction it shall 'move. This hesitation, this uncertainty, heading towards destruction, is the crisis." Ho believes that religion alone can avert tile disaster, and ho sketches out a democratic social policy for tho Churches. He says the Christian Church has long been, and still very largely continues to he, indifferent to social reformation. Individual Christian men and women have done noble work for the poor and needy, but tho Church itself, "the great powerful mother of these her most devoted children," has done nothing M alter that organisation of national life which is responsible for so much jioverty and misery, Mr. Begbie suggests that the Church could do a groat deal for the people if it declared with one voice for the abolition of slums, condemned the sweater, warned tho rich of their responsibilities, and placed individual and national righteousness before commercial gain or imperial glory. "The Englishman is a sceptic only when he has nothing to believe in. Give him something or somebody worthy of faith, and lie believes with liis whole heart. Give him a Church which is n visible expression of the social consckmec, a vis* sblo moving of tho hands of God, a visible demonstration of mail's diviuo kinship, and ho would not merely believo in such a church, ho would believe with his ■ whole heart-, joyfully, gratefully, passionately."