Gwirwunism - -foe cMd ph «octolìisun 1 A&M0734 » COMMUNISM THE CHILD OF SOCIALISM OUR SUNDAY VISITOR PRESS Huntington, Indiana Communism the Child of Socialism i SOCIALISM ONCE VERY ACTIVE IN OUR MIDST From the years 1903 to 1912 there was a very active Socialist Party in the United States, and its members supported among others a paper of wide circulation pub- lished at Girard, Kansas, and entitled "THE APPEAL TO REASON." It was of the Marxian Type During these years the Catholic Church through her publications opposed the progress of Socialism as inimical to the State, and more particularly as inimical to religion and morals. It was generally admitted by our country's most observant statesmen that the Catholic Church was fighting single-handed for God and country in combating Marxian Socialism. Clergymen of other religions, taking account of the economic program of Socialism only, often defended it against the Catholic Church. But Catholic writers were basing their condemnation of Socialism on the teachings of Marx, Engels, Bebel, Liebknecht, Hil- quitt, and other recognized authorities on the subject, and were pointing out what the logical outcome of these teach- ings must eventually be. The APPEAL TO REASON had soft-pedaled the moral program of Socialism in its reading matter, but in its advertising columns offered for sale the works which advocated just such a program as the Soviet Government in Russia has launched. Socialism also published a magazine entitled "THE MELTING POT", which was bitterly anti-Chrsitian by profession, but in which articles frequently appeared from the pens of men who, on the lecture platform, ad- vocated only economic Socialism. At the National Socialist Convention held at Chicago in May, 1908, the hidden aims of Socialist leaders became 4 COMMUNISM THE CHILD OF SOCIALISM manifest. It was thought by some delegates that Social- ism should express itself concerning religion in its poli- tical platform. This proposal elicited considerable oppo- sition, but it brought into the open the atheistic attitude of those who sought to guide the destinies of the Socialist Party in the United States. THE CHICAGO DAILY SOCIALIST, under date of May 16, 1908, quoted a Mr. Lewis as follows: "I am among those who sincerely hoped the question of religion would not be raised at this convention. I am willing to concede that we should let sleeping dogs lie. I know that the Socialist position in philosophy on the question of religion does not make a good campaign sub- ject. It is not useful propaganda in a political campaign I do not propose to state in this platform the truth about religion from the point of view of the socialist philo- sophy. A little farther on in his impassioned address, the same speaker added these significant words: "Kautsky says: 'So long as Christianity ruled the minds of men, the idea of revolution was rejected as a smiul revolt against divinely constituted authority.' But we, continued the speaker, "must not go before the peo- ple of this country telling them that so long as Christian- ity rules their minds, they will reject the idea of the Socialist revolution." The same paper quotes a Mr. Hilquitt, a delegate to the Convention, thus: "We should not go out in our propaganda among the people who are still groping in obscurity (religion) and tell them that they must first become materialists before they can become members of the Socialist party. After we have disposed of the things which touch their material welfare it will be time to approach the™ with the full consequence of the Socialist philosophy." 3 COMMUNISM THE CHILD OF SOCIALISM SLOW TO BELIEVE THEY WERE DECEIVED Belonging to the Socialist party were many members of the laboring class, who did cherish their religion, whether Catholic, Protestant, or Jewish, who knew noth- ing about the teachings of Marx, Engels, and Bebel, and who were utterly unprepared to believe that Socialism concerned itself at all with religion. They were interest- ed only in a "fuller dinner pail", and believed that The APPEAL TO REASON had only one purpose, which was to make them more economically independent, by giving them shorter working hours with better pay. Many Catholics among them resented the opposition shown by their Church to Socialism, and held her to be untruthful and unjust in her characterization of Socialism. But time has proved the correctness of the Catholic attitude. Even at this day it may be difficult to convince most former Socialists in this country that Socialism and Communism have anything in common. But Communism is nothing more than extreme Socialist teaching logically developed. Leaders in Socialism everywhere, whether in Germany, England, France, Spain, Russia or the United States,' acknowledge Marx, Engels, Bax, Bebel, Liebknecht, La- fargue, Herve, Blatchford, Leatham, Spargo, as authori- ties. But there is not one of these men who did not ex- pressly teach that Socialism aimed at overturning the Church as well as the State, and at building up a civiliza- tion rooted in Atheism. We shall quote from only a few of these authorities. MARR, in his "Secret Societies In Switzerland", writes: "We shall do well if we stir hatred and contempt against all existing institutions; we make war against all prevailing ideas of religion, of the state, of country and of patriotism. The idea of God is the keystone of per- verted civilization. The true root of civilization, the true root of liberty, of equality and of culture, is ATHEISM." 4 COMMUNISM THE CHILD OF SOCIALISM BEBEL, in an essay, republished in the Vorwaerts in 1901, says: "Christianity is the enemy of liberty and of civiliza- tion. It has kept mankind in slavery and oppression. The Church and the State have always fraternally united to exploit the people. Christianity and Socialism are like fire and water." LIEBKNECHT, in his "Materialist Basis of His-tory", states: "I am an Atheist, I do not believe in God. It is our duty as Socialists to root out the faith in God with all our might, nor is any one worthy the name, who does not con- secrate himself to the spread of Atheism." There were those who held that Socialism in America was different from that in Europe, but in answer to these even The APPEAL TO REASON declared in its issue of May 16, 1903: "Socialism means the same in every land." The German Socialist VORWAERTS, quoted above as of thirty years ago, is still in existence, and in Febru- ary, 1930, declared: "Only Socialism can give peace and liberty to the world." It openly supports the Soviet pro- gram and promotes an atheistic propaganda. Hence ex- treme Socialism means not only the same in every land, but it has not altered its teaching during the past thirty years. II SOCIALIST LEADERS DECIDED TO FIGHT BACK The drive of the Catholic Church against Socialism called for a counter drive on the part of its leaders in the United States, and led to the establishment of a number of bitter anti-Catholic papers, the most widely circulated of which was The MENACE. After that there was no question about the anti-reli- gious character of the men who had been Socialism's 5 COMMUNISM THE CHILD OF SOCIALISM apostles in this country. Socialists of the Marxian type deserted The APPEAL TO REASON altogether as was admitted at a representative Socialist gathering in Toledo, Ohio, in 1913. Those who had lent their efforts to the building up of a large circulation for the "APPEAL" now became propagandists of the Aurora, Missouri, sheet, which was started by Wayland, an editor of The APPEAL TO REASON, who committed suicide, it is charged, in order to escape a sensational court trial. The successor of Wayland, W. F. Phelps, as editor of the MENACE, was discharged from the APPEAL staff be- cause of proved immorality. See the APPEAL TO REA- SON, February 4, 1905. With the radicals deserting The APPEAL TO REASON in order to help along a fight on religion, and the "bread and butter" Socialists falling out with the rest because these had no regard for things sacred, the Social- ist Party in the United States disintegrated. The anti- Catholic cause was also more attractive than the Socialist cause from the point of view of "easy money" for its pro- fessional advocates. Sister papers of the MENACE sprang up everywhere. Those who had been soap-box orators for Socialism now became traveling lecturers un- der the auspices of the GUARDIANS OF LIBERTY and a dozen other organizations, culminating in the Ku Klux Klan, which were born pretendedly to "save America" from the aggressions of the Catholic Church, but (on the part of their promoters) actually to promote selfish ends first, and the cause of anti-religion second. How familiar in the drive against the Church were the names of the for- mer firebrand Socialists, W. F. Phelps, Earl McClure, Marvin Brown, Gilbert 0. Nations, Theodore Walker,' Billie Parker, Roy Crane, Wm. Lloyd Clark, et al! It has been shown time and again that most men who have led the so-called patriotic societies had court records before they became "patriots"; that they had no m^re use for Protestantism than they had for Catholic- 6 COMMUNISM THE CHILD OF SOCIALISM ism, but capitalized the encouragement they received from prejudiced Protestants by representing themselves as anti-Catholics only. The Soviet policy has been iden- tical. For some time it gave encouragement to several Protestant sects in Russia in order to break up the unity of the former State Orthodox church. It would not have been prudent for American Apostles of Socialism to at- tack religion generally after denying that Socialism was against any. They selected the Catholic Church for at- tack, because they could represent that Socialism had been attacked by her. But the promoters of Socialism in the United States were known by their past writings to have been aggressively anti-Christian. THE CATHOLIC CHURCH IS THE TOILERS' FRIEND We would not have it thought for one minute that the Catholic Church is out of sympathy with the toilers. She has a greater percentage of the proletariat in every country except Russia than other religious organizations, and she is not only full of sympathy for the poor, but the rights of the laboring man have been emphasized by the Popes more than by any others. But Communism is not the laboring man's friend; it is not able to insure better employment for him; it has nothing with which to feed his soul or to give peace to his heart. At this writing there are several millions out of work in Russia. According to official Soviet figures, the unemploy- ment situation in Soviet Russia has been running as fol- lows: Oct. 1, 1927, 1,041,000; April 1, 1928, 1,596,000; Oct. 1, 1929, 1,400,000. These figures, however, embrace only the registered unemployed, and in this connection it must be remember- ed that, in accordance with Soviet laws, there is no regis- tration of unemployed from the ranks of the middle 7 COMMUNISM THE CHILD OF SOCIALISM classes or of those who come to the cities from the villages in search of work. In reality, the number of unemployed in the cities is much greater. All economists and political workers Concerned with this question, among them such competent men as Trot- sky, place the number of unemployed in the cities at 2,000,000, out of a total of 8,000,000 to 9,000,000 workers and office employes.—Raphael Abramovitch, Member Foreign Delegation of the Russian Social-Democratic Labor Party. New York, March 10, 1930. Throughout the Middle Ages, when the Catholic Church alone held sway, every form of labor was organ- ized and blessed by the Church; every labor guild had its patron saint, its own special church or chapel in the dif- ferent cities; its own chaplain and spiritual adviser. Art was developed to the highest degree by being applied to religious things. Those were the days when everything was producd by hand, and the Church allowed everyone to exert his greatest ingenuity to produce things beauti- ful, whether in oil work, or marble work, or wood work, for the ornamentation of great churches and other eccles- iastical institutions. The Chuch was the only almoner of the poor, their only friend when they were out of work. Thousands of her children voluntarily adopted poverty as their life's portion, and devoted all their time and energy to relief work in behalf of the unemployed and the poor. They were not paid agents; they begged only to give, and they gave every cent which was entrusted to them. We can realize how desperate those must become who have been unemployed a long time, who have a little fam- ily to clothe and feed, and who must pay rent even when out of work if they would have living quarters. But that is the time to turn to God and not away from Him. It is He Who tells us that if we seek first His Kingdom all other things will be given to us. He rebuked people for not assuming that He cares more for the members of His human family than He cares for the birds of the air or 8 COMMUNISM THE CHILD OF SOCIALISM the lilies of the field, for which it is known He does provide. Life even here is not going to be made happier by cursing the God Who has given it. Who is the meaner, the creature waging war on the Creator, or the Creator try- ing the patience and the fidelity of the creature whom He longs to enrich and make happy forevermore? I l l AFTER WAR RUSSIA OFFERED AN OPPORTUNITY The war came and ended. Russia offered a very fer- tile field for an effort to establish a government upon Socialist philosophy. With the Czar fell the authority of the Russian Orthodox church. In the new state God could not be recognized if the philosophy of Socialism was to be applied. Hence God must go with the Czar, religion with the old form of state. Up to the time of this writ- ing (1930) all the world has witnessed twelve years of Communist governing and plotting, and knows that the Soviet Government not only disowns God, but is waging an actual warfare agaist Him and in behalf of the intro- duction of Atheism. The frequently quoted dictum of Marx "Religion is opium for the people" has become a slogan and is flaunted before the eyes of the people everywhere in Russia. We should not have said Russia, because there is no such state as Russia any longer. The Soviet Republic, founded by Nicholas Lenin, is composed of six states, re- presenting an area equal to one-sixth of the globe. They are (1) Old Russia; (2) the Ukraine; (3) White Russia; (4) the Trans-Caucasian Republic; (5) two Mid-Asiatic Republics; (6) the Moldovian Republic near Roumania. In the opening paragraph of the new Soviet Consti- tution we read: "Since the formation of the Soviet Re- publics, the world has become divided into two camps, that of Capitalism and that of Socialism." Then it goes 9 COMMUNISM THE CHILD OF SOCIALISM on to say that its rule is international, and aims to unite the toiling masses everywhere under one Socialist family. Hardly had the new government been founded when big sums of money were authorized for Soviet propaganda in all parts of the world. China was set in turmoil by its emissaries, and later united better than ever before in order to rid itself of it. Mexico's recent war on the Church was aided by it, and its rulers encouraged it until two months ago, when, discovering that it was a danger to the Republic, Mexico severed relations with the Soviet. Austria recently decided it wanted something more mild and less wicked than the Marx brand of Socialism. Ger- many, France, England, have strong Socialist representa- tion in Parliament, but they want nothing to do with Communism, or with the sort of anti-Christian Socialism advocated by leaders in the late Socialist Movement in The United States. The American Federation of Labor denounced Com- munism through William Green, its President, on March 4, 1930. "The American Federation of Labor is deeply concerned over the reports regarding religious persecution in Russia. This is quite natural and logical, because the American Federation of La-bor is committed to the principle of religious tolerance and freedom of worship. . . . "But the opposition of the American Federation of Labor to Communism and to the recognition of the Soviet Government by the United States antedates these develop-ments. We are of the opinion that the position of labor has been vindicated by these most recent occurrences .. . . In Russia we see a Government—and Atheism—joined in an attack on religion. . . . "For that reason labor will be strengthened in its purpose and determination to oppose Communism wherever it may show itself in America, and to continue its opposi-tion to the recognition of the Soviet Government by the Government of the United States." For the first time in history a nation has undertaken a general crusade against religion, and recent events in the Soviet Union have evoked a storm of protest. The Communist faith is opposed to the worship of any deity, and in the twelve years following the Bolshevist revolution the Soviets have striven to undermine and destroy the power of the churches. What have been the main steps 10 COMMUNISM THE CHILD OF SOCIALISM in bringing about the present situation, which now attracts more attention than any other event in the world? Have Not Denials of Persecution Come From Russia? But has not the Soviet Government denied that it is waging a religious persecution except in those instances when the clergy refuse to conform with the Soviet Law ? Yes, this denial is made to-day only to be contra- dicted to-morrow. Technically such denial may be partly true. It is claimed that only violators of the law are per- secuted, but how can a clergyman escape violating a law which forbids him to impart his religion, for instance, to children under eighteen years of age? The clergy do not violate the law by forming classes for children under eighteen years of age, but they are regarded as violating it if someone under eighteen years of age should be present or step into church while they are preaching. It is impos- sible for one who represents religion by profession not to be found violating, unintentionally, laws which are intend- ed to cripple and to crush religion generally. Read the fol- lowing from the special correspondent of the NEW YORK TIMES, which has spent considerable money to secure the real truth about matters in dispute as they relate to the activities of the Soviet Government. You will note that the news item bears date oi March 10th, 1930, which is later, by two weeks, than the denials of persecution that have come from spokesmen of the Soviet Government. RED ATHEISTS PLAN SWEEPING CAMPAIGN- USE OF MOVIES, SCHOOLS, THEATRES, FACTORIES AND FARMS TO BE MADE IN 5-YEAR DRIVE. MORE CHURCHES CLOSED MOSCOW, March 10 (AP).—Despite wide denunciation of their anti-religious activities, the atheist leaders of Soviet Russia are pressing their campaign with sweeping strides. The All-Union Society of Militant Atheists has drawn up an ambitious five-year anti-religious program, envisaging a total mem- 11 COMMUNISM THE CHILD OF SOCIALISM bership of 35,000,000 by 1933. It now has nearly 3,000,000 mem-bers, and it estimates that part of the new membership will be 18,000,000 children between the ages of 8 and 14. The society plans a chain of anti-religious educational institu-tions and the appointment of anti-religious faculties in the State Universities at Moscow, Leningrad and elsewhere. Organized bodies of atheistic agitators and propagandists will be trained there. Special anti-religious films, radio programs, theatrical per-formances, exhibitions in museums and a large number of itinerant anti-religious units will be prepared. Planetariums showing mater-ialistic construction of the world as opposed to spiritual will be constructed at Leningrad, Kharkov, Sverdlovsky, Novosibrisk, Frunze and Tiflis, similar to the one now in Moscow. Atheist Operas Are Planned. Three full operas, four operettas, eleven reviews, thirteen musi-cal comedies, twenty vaudeville sketches and twelve children's plays lampooning religion and deriding the church will be produced in the next two years. Special anti-religious theatrical companies will travel throughout the union holding religion up to ridicule. Thirty anti-religious paintings and sculptures by widely-known artists will be made. Atheistic newspapers and magazines will be published in seventeen languages. Coincident with these plans officials are preparing an elaborate country-wide anti-Easter cam-paign. Intensifying Campaign. "All workers," says the official program of the Atheistic So-ciety, "must work throughout the Easter Period. The anti-Easter campaign must be used for intensification of atheist propaganda, for closing churches, synagogues and mosques, forbidding the ring-ing of church chimes and for giving the bells over for industrializa-tion purposes, abolishing icons, images and wedding rings and for prohibiting priests from entering the homes of workers." On April 19, Easter Eve, anti-religious demonstrations will be held in the streets of all the large cities. At night there will be atheistic torchlight processions and special anti-God theatrical per-formances. The next day street demonstrations will be supplement-ed by anti-religious radio programs, concerts and lectures. Atheistic authorities call attention to the fact that the Chris-tian Easter this year coincides with the Jewish Passover and urge workers to co-ordinate their activities so as to cover both religions. They urge the peasants and workers in massed collectivization dis-tricts to pay more attention to the conversion of churches into schools, hospitals, storehouses and so on. "For the period 1918-19 the Government itself ad- mits the execution of twenty Bishops and 1,414 priests. For this period we have fully trustworthy information that the number were not less than 2,691 parish priests, 1,962 monks, 3,447 nuns, and other Church servants." 12 COMMUNISM THE CHILD OF SOCIALISM ORTHODOX HEADS IMPRISONED What could the Metropolitan Sergius have been thinking of when he declared the Soviet Government is not persecuting? His first predecessor, Patriarch Tikhon, who is mentioned in this statement, was himself impri- soned and was to have been put on trial in Easter week of 1923 when the protests following the martyrdom of Budkiewicz caused a change of policy. The Patriarch handed over his authority first to Cyril, then to Agafangel, then to Peter Krutitsky. Cyril and Agafangel were imprisoned or interned, and Agafan- gel died in exile. Agafangel handed it to Peter Krutitsky, who was anyhow till recently in a Communist prison. That is the only way in which the authority arrived in the hands of the Metropolitan Sergius, who 'is made responsible for this statement. RUSSIA'S STERN ANTI-GOD PLANS In a later edition of the New York Times we read: "The Godless Union, which in 1926 had an estimated membership of 114,000, is now said to have 3,000,000 mem-bers. It can draw from the 1,000,000 or more members of the Communist party, from the 2,500,000 in the League for Communist Youth, and, when they are older, from the 2,000,000 or so Young Pioneers. COMMUNIST PRINCIPLES "The Communist himself is a militant materialist and atheist. He demands the renunciation of religion from the members of his party, and also preaches his philosophy to non-party members and shapes the program for the educa-tion of the young in such a way as to prepare the new generation for a materialistic conception of life. But as the government permits, according to its Constitution, freedom of worship, it has left propaganda to the party. However, the leaders of the party are also officials of the government or have high positions in Soviet life." THE REJECTION OF GOD WAS GRADUAL The breaking away from religion and from God was not so abrupt. It began in a mild way, for a Socialist 13 COMMUNISM THE CHILD OF SOCIALISM Government, in the year 1917, but the break has become wider and wider with the years. The NEW YORK TIMES, under date of March 2nd., details the steady re- cession of the Communistic state from God as follows: I—THE BOLSHEVIST VIEW Long before the revolution of 1917 those who were later to control the destinies of Russia were frankly atheistic, having passed largely under the influence of the Western socialism of Marx and Engels. Michael A. Bakunin (1814-1876) is regarded as the father of Rus- sian anarchism. To him atheism was a liberalizing force, freeing man from all external authority, and the church was likened by him to a "heavenly dramshop" where men were drugged to forget their temporal mis- eries. Similar to this is the well-known dictum of Karl Marx, that "religion is the opium of the people" which the Soviets later inscribed in public places in many cities and towns. Lenin often quoted Marx on religion, and considered the Church and its precepts deleterious to public morale and the aims of Communism. "Religion," he said, "is a kind of spiritual brandy, in which the slaves of capital drown their human physiognomy and their demand for some sort of life that is worthy of man. Religion is one of the forms of spiritual oppression which lies every- where on the masses of the people, who are crushed by their eternal labor for others, by need and loneliness." II—THE DECREES Following the March revolution of 1917, when the provisional government under Kerensky came into power, former liberal parties within the Church, sup- pressed during the reaction subsequent to the rebellion of 1905, were again revived and demanded religious re- forms. Full religious liberty was granted in July, 1917. 14 COMMUNISM THE CHILD OF SOCIALISM A month after they came into power the Soviet issued a series of decrees which could be regarded as the beginning of the new relationship of the Church and State. On December 4, 1917, all land was declared a national landed fund, to be controlled by land com- mittees. It was explicitly stated that the lands owned by ecclesiastical or monastic institutions were included within the scope of the law. Thus the Church lost a great part of its income overnight, and was soon to face a greater loss. On December 11 a decree issued by the Commis- sariat of National Education ordered all schools to be turned over to that bureau. This included seminaries and theological academies, and deprived the Church of all means of educating the young, even for the priest- hood. A week later a decree stated that the republic acknowledged only civil marriages, and divorce and the registration of births were taken over by the govern- ment. On January 28, 1918, was issued the most important piece of legislation on the relations of Church, State and School, and which caused a thorough-going reorganiza- tion of the entire inner as well as the outer life of the Church of Russia. It reads as follows: 1. The Church is separated from the State. 2. Within the confines of the republic it is prohibited to issue any local laws or regulations restricting or limiting freedom of conscience, or establishing privileges or preferential rights of any kind based upon the religious confession of the citizens. 3. Every citizen may profess any religion or none. All restrictions of rights connected with the profession of any belief whatsoever, or with the non-profession of any belief, are an-nulled. Note—All reference to citizens' mem-bership in religious groups, or their non-mem- 15 COMMUNISM THE CHILD OF SOCIALISM bership, shall be removed from all official docu-ments. Four years later a decree was issued which insured that the growing generation should not receive a syste- matic education. It specified: Instruction in matters of faith of persons who have not reached their eighteenth year of age is not permitted. Persons above 18 years of age may be 'instructed in special theological courses with the aim of preparing them for the priesthood, but on the condition that the cur-riculum of such courses be limited to specifically theological subjects. It is likewise permitted to hold separate lectures, discussions or reading -courses dealing with confessional matters for persons above 18 years of age, provided that such meetings do not acquire the character of a systematic scholastic method of instruction. It may be pointed here that the Communist party, as well as other definitely atheistic organizations, were left free to instruct the youth of Soviet Russia in an organized manner in the tenets and dogmas of atheism. The famine of 1921 resulted in another drastic de- cree. The government, faced with the necessity of finding funds, turned its eyes to Church treasures, to the orna- ments of gold, silver and precious stones. On February 23, 1922, President Kalinin issued a decree directing the proper authorities to "remove" the Church treasures not used for the purpose of worship from their repositories. It specified: In view of the necessity for quick mobiliza-tion of all the resources of the country to serve as means of struggle with the famine in the Volga region and for the sowing of the fields there, the All-Russian Central Executive Com-mittee, supplementing the decree regarding the removal of property for museums, has decreed: To instruct local Soviets to remove from the ecclesiastical property, which was delivered for 16 COMMUNISM THE CHILD OF SOCIALISM the use of groups of believers of all religions upon inventory and contract, within a month from the day of publication of this decree, all valuable objects of gold, silver and precious stones, the removal of which cannot actually interfere with the interests of the cult itself,, and to transfer them to the offices of the People's Commissariat of Finance, with the special de-signation for the Fund of the Central Commis-sion for Aid of the Starving. In April, 1929, the Central Executive Committee passed a decree which appeared to be the opening gun in a renewed war on religion. Reports regarding its con- tent were at first meager, and the full text of its 6,000 words was only recently received abroad. This decree brought protests from many denominations. The decree prescribes rules governing every form of the existence of religious organizations, even to the hir- ing of janitors, the acquisition of wood for fuel and the repairs of buildings. Clergy and teachers are limited to conducting their offices in the territory in which they reside "and which belongs to the particular religious or- ganization." The decree denies juridical rights to the clergy, they are forbidden to "assist their fellow-mem- bers by giving them material support," to hold "special meetings for children, youths and women for prayer pur- poses and generally biblical, literary, needlework and other meetings for the teaching of religion, etc.," and to arrange "excursions and children's platforms, to found libraries and reading rooms, to organize sanitariums and medical assistance." Religious groups cannot establish a treasury, own property or enter into a contract. Elaborate rules are contained in the decree regarding "liquidation" of churches and church property. Valuables are to be turned over to the Soviet authorities, historic articles to mus- eums. 17 COMMUNISM THE CHILD OF SOCIALISM Procedure under which a technical commission may order a church to be demolished is given in some detail. The decree provides that the funds for the demolition of the church property are to be obtained "from the sale of the building materials recovered in the course of demo- lition of the buildings" and "any surplus money, after paying expenses, is to be turned over the government and classed as government income." Ill—THE CAMPAIGN A terrific campaign against religion in Russia has been under way. The Bolsheviki have waged a constant warfare of propaganda against the Church, varying its intensity as a matter of policy. Priests have been im- prisoned and executed for "counter-revolutionary" ac- tivities, and according to the Communist program the clergy, as a class, is to be entirely "liquidated." Events of recent weeks, such as the closing down of many churches and the arrest of Jewish rabbis, seem to indi- cate that anti-religious activity has been increased. A schism in the Holy Russian Church, foreshadowed by the election of Tikhon in 1917, broke out in March, 1923, with the famous "Letter of the Twelve Priests," which denounced the opposition to the government's cam- paign. This group, following the issuing of this letter, organized the Provisional Supreme Ecclesiastical Council, later becoming-the "Living Church" group. Shortly after Tikhon was accused of counter-revolutionary activities and was forced into retirement, dying in 1925. The Living Church proposed to restore peaceful relations with the State, accepted the principle of separation of the Church from the State, and declared its sympathy with the social reforms of the Soviets. It adopted practically the entire Communistic program, with the exception of the anti-religious propaganda. 18 COMMUNISM THE CHILD OF SOCIALISM RENEWAL OF PRESSURE In 1923 frequent reports came from Russia indica- ting that the war on religion had not ceased. Dr. Edmund J. Walsh, head of the Papal Relief Mission, left Russia, compelled, it is said, to do so because of petty persecution by the authorities. The following year Pope Pius issued an appeal in behalf of Catholics in Russia, addressed to the governments which had entered into relations with the Soviet. For a time the anti-religious war diminished in in- tensity and the Church took a new lease of life. Last Spring, however, various reasons were given for a re- newal of the pressure. The Soviet had permitted con- siderable leeway to some of the "Sectant Bodies"—the Baptists, Lutherans, &c.—whose influence, it was hoped, would help to combat that of the Orthodox Church. How- ever, these groups grew at such a rapid pace as to alarm the authorities, and in addition the Orthodox believers began to adopt their methods—such as of welfare and social work—which brought in many new followers. In addition, a few months ago the Kremlin began renewed warfare on the kulak or rich peasant, and is planning to "liquidate" this class by socializing the farms. In the collective farms it was the rule that religion should have no part—there was to be no blessing of crops, no prayers for rain, no ikons to avert calamity. Thus again the State and Church were brought into conflict. Meanwhile, while the campaign against the churches and the priests has been under way, the Soviet leaders have been encouraging the growth of atheism. The Com- munist party is frankly atheistic. A 100 per cent atheism is a binding belief for the million or more mem- bers of the organization. Although some anti-religious propaganda was spread in the years immediately following the revolu- 19 COMMUNISM THE CHILD OF SOCIALISM tion, it was not until the spring of 1927 that an organ- ized drive of some proportions for the promotion of that creed seemed to be under way. At that time the Soviet approved plans for an anti-religious museum in Mos- cow. Two years later, in the summer of 1929, Leningrad opened the first anti-religious university in the world, and the Society of Militant Atheists in Moscow inaugur- ated a similar institution. THE "GODLESS" UNION In February, 1930, the Congress of the Moscow Union of the Godless, meeting in the Red Hall of the Moscow Communist Party Committee to elaborate the Union's "five-year anti-Christian plan," adopted the slogan, "For a Godless Moscow." It plans to hold wide demonstra- tions, including an "anti-God mass," shows, carnivals, and parades on the date of the Russian Easter, which is the fifth anniversary of the inception of "militant god- lessness." That the Communists are carrying on a wide drive for atheism is indicated by reports from many villages. Here flaming posters are distributed to be posted in public places. They are anti-clerical in nature, attempt- ing to show the union of the church with capitalism and feudalism, and thus to arouse the peasants against the priests. Caricatures of saints and religious events and symbols are placed on the walls of buildings which were formerly churches, but which have been transformed into clubs, or educational and recreational centres. The atheists attack all religions—Christian, Jewish, Budd- hist and Mohammedan. Anti-religious moving picture films are distributed. The abolishing of Sundays to make way for the five-day week of the Soviet regime received the whole-hearted support of the atheists, hin- dering as it did the regular Sunday worship. On many newsstands in Moscow and other cities are sold copies of the publication Bezbozhnik (The God- 20 COMMUNISM THE CHILD OF SOCIALISM less), the organ of the Soyuz Bezbozhnikov (Union of the Godless). The Union is a voluntary association, with about forty provincial branches. Communists and non-Communists are eligible for membership, provided they renounce all religion. Members of the Communist party, the League of Communist Youth, and the Young Pioneers, being rated as atheists, are possible candidates for the Union. Russia has about 30,000,000 more people than the United States, and 100,000,000 of them were members of the Russian Orthodox Church. They were not in union with Rome, and therefore did not belong to the class which non-Catholics are disposed to call "Roman" Catho- lics. There were about 10,000,000 members belonging to the Church of Rome out of the 150,000,000 people be- fore the War, but more than half the number lived in the territory delivered to Poland in the readjustment at the end of the War. In presenting a resolution to Congress in March, 1930, to elicit an official Government protest against the Russian atrocities, Congressman Hamilton Fish, of New York, said: "I do not dispute the right of the Soviet to to establish any form of government and to gov-ern the Russian people without interference of other nations, but when it comes to a question of the destruction of all churches and religious institutions and the execution, imprisonment and exile of priests, the whole world stands aghast and rightly protests against such bar-barities, and that sentiment should be proclaim-ed throughout every civilized country." PEOPLE DIE WITHOUT RELIGIOUS CONSOLATION We learn from Walter Duranty, Moscow correspon- dent for the NEW YORK TIMES, that those who are seriously ill and the dying are the ones who feel most the 21 COMMUNISM THE CHILD OF SOCIALISM privation of religious comforts; that the few clergy avail- able are out almost continuously on sick calls. People must die without the last rites of the Church and be de- prived of Mass and prayers after their death. Mr. Dur- anty describes the Communist funeral as follows: "The deceased, if at all prominent, lies in state in an open red coffin in a club or factory room, often with four guards of honor at each corner, while friends come in to pay their last tributes. Wreaths draped with black and red ribbon are not lacking. The funeral procession, generally accompanied by.a band playing the Soviet hymn for the dead, winds slowly through the streets to the crematorium. "In the little chapel—the crematorium being a State institution, it is entirely non-relig-•ious, but it looks like a chapel nevertheless— the dead Communist lies in an open coffin sur-rounded by flowers while one of his comrades makes a s W t address or funeral speech. Then the band plays the hymn for the dead as the coffin sinks from sight toward the furnace. It is an impressive ceremony." On Sunday, March 9th, the clergy and members of all religious bodies at our national capital participated in a mass meeting "to express deep and understanding sym- pathy for those of our brethren in Russia, who are suf- fering persecution for their religious convictions." The principal speaker was Reverend Dr. Edmund L. Walsh, Vice-President of Georgetown University, and Regent of the School of Foreign Service, who spent a long time in Russia studying the situation when it was most acute, when a death sentence was being pronounced against Orthodox and Catholic Bishops and Archbishops. Two weeks later a similar gathering was held in New York. At this same time the American Committee on Re- ligious Rights and Minorities, composed of representa- tives of all denominations promulgated a set of resolu- tions condemning the Soviet persecution and warned its 22 COMMUNISM THE CHILD OF SOCIALISM promoters that they are destroying whatever prospects may have developed for recognition of the ?????? gov- ernment by the United States. "Religious persecution on a scale unprecedented in modern times" is attributed to the Soviet Government in the report. "The committee has access to a large number of thor- oughly authenticated 'instances that prove beyond doubt that acts have been perpetrated that shock the moral sense of the civilized world and that overwhelmingly jus- tify the protests that are being made," says the state- ment. FIND CONSTITUTION NULLIFIED. The report notes that the Soviet Constitution in- cludes a section on religious liberty. It adds that although Russian officials contend that religious freedom exists and that the persons persecuted had violated the law, never- theless, laws promulgated by the Soviet Government, copies of which are in the committee's possession, prove that the government itself is directly responsible for re- straint upon religion which makes the Constitution a dead letter. The committee appeals to the Soviet officials "to adopt a more liberal policy in dealing with the conscien- tious beliefs of their people." In making this appeal the committee says that it is not influenced by any feeling of opposition to the political, social or ecenomic policies of the Soviet Government and recognizes the absolute right of the people of Russia to determine their own course in these matters. HOW CAN LIFE UNDER SUCH A GOVERNMENT ATTRACT? How can the now unhappy sympathizers with Com- munism be attracted by the unhappy life which must ob- 23 COMMUNISM THE CHILD OF SOCIALISM tain under its flag? A noted writer on the present Soviet rule, David Shub, says: "Four years ago less than a name to the outside world, unknown even among the great Russian masses; today the Dictator over the destinies of 150,000,000 peo- ple—that has been the phenomenal rise of Joseph Stalin, leader of the Union of Socialist Soviet Republics. No em- peror ever commanded such authority as this son of a Georgian- shoemaker. "The word of Stalin is law in Russia, not alone to the ordinary citizen but also to every official in the govern- ment, from the lowest to the highest. His power is abso- lute; not only can he dismiss any Commissar from his post, but he may order the arrest of any member of the government—including the Prime Minister and even the President of the Soviet Union—exile him, without trial, to Siberia, and appoint whom he will in his place." AGENCIES PROMOTING COMMUNISM IN THE UNITED STATES We are not one of those who fear a wide introduction of Communism into the United States, though there are many agencies working hard in its behalf, whether designedly or unwittingly. Besides the several radical publications of considerable prominence, there is the Hal- deman-Julius printing plant at Girard, Kansas, (the old home of The APPEAL TO REASON), which is carry- ing on a country-wide insidious, but very effective propa- ganda against God and morality. It was the daughter of Mr. Haldeman who staged the first "Companionate Mar- riage" with almost world-wide publicity. This publisher claims to have sold more than a 100,000,000 pamphlets, or one for every man, woman and child in the United States, which propagate the things which promote much that is worst in Communism. A neatly prepared pocket ¿4 COMMUNISM i H E CHILD OF SOCIALISM size booklet is sold for five cents, and twenty subjects are expected to be purchased at one time. The publisher claims that ten years ago he started with two titles, that now he has 1,500 separate volumes. Most of them deal with Rationalism, Agnosticism, Sex, Eugenics, Birth Con- trol, Trial Marriage, Easy Divorce—and always favor- ably. Then it has been shown, time and again, that men, covertly spreading Communism, are invited to speak be- fore respectable organizations of men and women because they give the contents of their address a different name, such as "Pacifism". Destroy the faith of'the young, confuse them by false philosophy, encourage them to ignore every moral law, every supposedly divine commandment, and what sort of society can we hope to have even here in another genera- tion or two? When the State teaches that parents have no duties to the child; that the child does not belong to the parents; when in the school instruction it is not only not taught responsibility to a Creator, but is taught Athe- ism instead; when no restraint is placed on licentious conduct; when the practice of "free love" (which spells "free lust") is tolerated; when those who do marry may dissolve their union at will, think of the state of civiliza- tion and of society which must necessarily result. Such a state of society obtains in Russia today; such it must be- come in any country if religion is suppressed and a pro- paganda of anti-religion is enforced over a period of ten or twenty years. The situation in Russia is aggravated by the quantity of lascivious literature supplying the de- mand of irreligious and immoral hearts.