BRITAIN AND THE LEAGUE

Press, Volume LXXI, Issue 21580, 17 September 1935, Page 9

BRITAIN AND THE LEAGUE

TO THE SDITOB 0» TBS PRBB3. Sir,—We are indebted to your correspondent, "Curious," for opening up a subject which must be puzzling all persons who are concerned for the peace of the world—the attitude of Christian pacifists towards the present Abyssinian dispute. Mav we first outline the basis on which such Christion pacifists stand. We stand by our belief that war is absolutely incompatible with Christ's teaching and practice of the spirit of love and brotherhood. We renounce war "for us consequences, for the lies it lives on and propagates, for the undying hatreds it arouses, for the dictatorshros it puts in the place of democracy, for the starvation that stalks alter it." War is the very denial of all that is truthful, beautiful, and good, and must be avoided at all costs. .It is the greatest calamity that can happen to the world to-day. We therefore heartily applaud the attempts which Britain and France are making to stand by the principle of co-cperation, and to setle disputes by peaceful means. Pacifists must not be confused with these so-called patriots who have not conceived the ideal of international justice and co-operation, and so will not support the League in settling a quarrel which has nothing to do with them.

We admit that the cause of the league is a just and Christian cause, ana that the lawless activities of ftaly should be restrained. But the proposed methods of military sanctions we cannot support. For while we agree that "whosoever will lose his life for My sake shall find it," and that it is a noble thing to die for a just cause, we believe that it is not a Christian thing to commit homicide, robbery, arson, perjury, and destruction on a colossal scale, nominally for the sake of a just sause. And if sacrifices are to be made (and it seems they must be made), it is far, far better to make sacrifices of territory and raw materials on one side, than for the world to split up into two camps and set about doing each other the maximum of damage in life and property. Therefore we welcome the proposal made recently by Sir Samuel Hoare that the league should enquire into the present distribution cf raw materials, with a view to satisfying Italy's just claim by a peaceful and just redistribution.

It is beyond our powers to give any more explicit solution to the problem than that, because we in New Zealand cannot hope to know the exact state of affairs in this direction; but we believe that a peaceful solution must not be considered impossible, and must be diligently sought after by the Powers concerned. A sacrifice of territory, even of national pride (or rather conceit), which achieved a peaceful settlement would surely be a more honourable and sine peace than a new Treaty of Versaille;: imposed on Italy, with its accompanying ill-feeling, new hatreds, starvation, and moral and economic catastrophe/. Pacifists do not turn a blind eye to the hard facts of reality—rather they face the undeniable fact that war is contrary to the law of love and brotherhood, and is the greatest evil which can be brought upon mankind. We hope that this will help "Curious" and others to understand the pacifist viewpoint, and that, others will be encouraged to put the case more efficiently.—Yours, etc., E. W. LOW. A. R. LOW. September 15, 1935.

TO THE BDITOE Of THE PfitSS. Sir, —The great question whether war is a legitimate Christian enterprise or not is one which must be answer..*! by the individual consciousness. Because man is an individual entity or conscious manifestation of God, each is in an individual environment of conscious spiritual evolution, all stages of conscious thought being represented therein. Neither individual man, as a nor yet the military as a mass mind, has a right to judge or condemn; each is actuated by his stage of conscious understanding. It is perhaps easy for "Curious," writing under an assumed name, to belittle a consciousness equal at least lo his own. He quotes Christ's words: "Whosoever shall lose his life for My sake shall find it." He takes the literal wording, without the inspired understanding, which may be interpreted thus: "Whosoever shall overcome his sense of material life and law, shall find his spiritual entity or real life." If only people would realise that it is only stages of conscious thought and not persons that are creating the gulf in our time that Dives and Lazarus could not pass over in their time, this old world would be a much happier place. When you look into the intricate organism of the war machine it is something pretty horrible, and I have no hesitation in saying that all munition factories should long ago have been removed from private enterprise and profit. It would even now be a move in the right direction. After this move we might seek "Curious" in his ambush and take him at his own valuation. —Yours, etc., SAMUEL CRAIGHEAD. September 16, 1935.