THE LEGER-MURDOCH CONTROVERSY.

Horowhenua Chronicle, 7 January 1913, Page 3

THE LEGER-MURDOCH CONTROVERSY.

\ (To the Editor). Sir, —In answer to Mr Legor, I must deal seriatim with his various challenges and assertions. Tho finst item is a challenge to mo <T to point to one of the sco'res of religions that is not « superstition." I accept this challenge and name Christianity. To make this assertion is a confession of faith by myself only wlich will not be accepted by Mr Leger as a proof. Let us proceed to give evidence of tho divinity of Jesus. In other leaders of men and so-called prophets we can find only legislators and military commanders, Lycurgus, Nnma and Mahomet wore legislators. Mahomet's religion was founded by force. Wo see nothing in those and others which reveals divinity. They themselves hare never raised their pretensions so high; their foibles and errors are those common to humanity. Everything in Him is astonishing; thoro is 110 comparison between Him and everyone else in the world. He is truly a being by Himself. His ideas and sentiments, the truth which he announces, his manner of convincing, are not explained cither by human organisation or by the nature of things. With respect to other references in Mr Loger's letter bearing 011 Christianity: "abnormal poverty is the direct result of the hundreds of millions of wealth parasitical Christianity takes from the useful people." How .Air Leger can justify this statement is boyoud comprehension. I will admit that a comparatively small section of the people use the great bulk of humanity to toil and add up riches for them, and that the comparative few act towards the masses in anything but a Christian spirit; hut how can Mr Leger charge this against Christianity, seeing that Christ Himself dealt severely with avarice and covetousnees; but these is another phase to this matter and it is this: that the masses of mankind allow themselves to he enslaved by tho few, I because they reject Christianity. I ) do not make this statement without being able to just fy. There were j two attempts made by the French j nation to throw off the incubus of ; the non-producers: the first was the 1 involution of 1788, when the Chris- ' tian religion was was trampled un- j der foot in the Republic of "Liberty, ! Fraternity and Equality." Soon liberty was slavery, fraternity and equality were perishing on the guillotine hv tho thousands. Each was glaring at the other; there was no faith to be found'—the reign of terror, of murder, of plunder, and corruption was in full swing; the whole fell of its own weight. What a different state of affairs, if. the tolerant religion of Jesus had been implanted in the hearts of the people. Justice, mercy and honesty was all that was wanting to have made the republic a success, but these virtues vanished when Revolution ended and : Christianity lose again in a purer and better church. Jn the second [French Revoluton in 1848, the j State took in hand to manufacture | goods and take charge of tho neces- j _ saries of life. Here again was faillire; the Christian virtues were wanting: dishonesty, laziness and corruption soon brought ths State j to ruin. These two examples are a striking proof that if the workers wish to he rid of the incubus l on their hacks, they will just have to , acquire and practico the virtues of Christianity.—Yours, etc., W. MURDOCH. tSb-zr^asmneiisug?g»-