BUSINESS AND CHRISTIANITY.

Auckland Star, Volume LII, Issue 205, 29 August 1921, Page 5

BUSINESS AND CHRISTIANITY.

i a i. - i ■ CAN THEY BE COMBINED! ' 1 '-'■Christianity and Business- - ' was the subject of some specially interesting observations made by the R.ev. W. G. Monckfcon in the course of a sermon at St. Peter's Church, Takapuna, on Sunday evening. Mt. Monckton said that lately there was a meeting in London of j six hundred of the most prominent iner- • chants, -bankeTs, controllers of industry, r commerce, and professional life on the j principles of Christianity. They were men standing at the head of British industry, and they had met to devise som* way to pledge themselves to conduct all business on "Christian principles. They agreed to certain fundamental ideas, and the first thing they agreed to was this— that all commerce and industry must cease to be regarded as competition for profit, and must henceforth be regarded as for the benefit of the whole community. The second was that all business must be conducted -with a view to the promotion of human fellowship, and anything that did not promote human; fellowship must be regarded as immoral. The tiiird was perhaps more far-reaching —thai which owes it privilege to the labour of all or the interests of all must be used for the benefit of all, that labour must not be regarded as a commodity. And, considering that many of the 6ix hundred were members of the House of Commons or House of Lords, it was specially ■important that they pledged themselves to regard every measure coming before either House entirely in its relation to Christianity. The movement itself was not new. A large number of business men now tried to carry out these principles, and there was new hope. He felt sure there were many in this country who would be glad to join a similar movement. We must ■have a fundamental change of outlook that will make us realise that all industry and commercial business should bo conducted more for the benefit of the community than for individual profit.