Church Attitude To Totalitarianism

Northern Advocate, 16 July 1949, Page 5

Church Attitude To Totalitarianism

WELLINGTON, Sat,. (P.A.)—While both the Lambeth and Amsterdam conferences had been careful not to call on the churches to join any politica l campaign against Communism as a theory, they had dwelt on the relationship between Communism and totalitarianism. said the Primate of New Zealand (Archbishop West Watson) commenting on the cabled report of the decision of the central committee of the World Council of Churches, now meeting in Britain, calling on Christians to stand fast-against totalitarian doctrines.

Although the cabled report was necessarily brief and he would await a full report from New Zealand’s representative on the central committee (the Rev. S. E. Woods), he would say that the decision was in line with the Lambeth and Amsterdam resolutions on the subject of totalitarianism, said Archbishop West Watson. He pointed out that the statement issued by the central committee made no direct reference to Communism. AGAINST RIGHTS OF MEN The trend of the conference discussions had been that there might be some good in the Communist theory but that totalitarianism, whether of Marxist Communism or any other kind, was against the rights of men. The Archbishop quoted a Lambeth Conference resolution on the subject. It was as follows: “The conference, while recognising that in many lands there are Communists who are practising Christians, nevetheless declares that Marxist Communism is contrary to Christian faith and practice, for it denies the existence of God, the revelation and future life. It treats the individual man as a means and not os an end. RELATIONSHIP TO GOD “It encourages class warfare, and regards moral law not as absolute, bul as relative to the needs of the state. Unless there was an absolute standard of justice, Ihe church believed that justice could be varied to suit the needs of the state, the Archbishop continued.

There could not be arbitrary standards of justice, or standard that could be varied by successive regimes. “This is not justice, in our' sense, for it denies the freedom of the individual.

“We hold that the dignity of man relates not to his being just members of the community but ultimately to his relationship to God.”