APPEAL TO THE CHURCH

Ohinemuri Gazette, Volume XXVIII, Issue 3852, 30 November 1917, Page 2

APPEAL TO THE CHURCH

AN M.P. SPEAKS OUT.

A strong appeal to the Church to assist in the uplift of the masses was mad© by Mr L. M. Isitt, M.P., in a recent speech in the south. "Whenever you people hear the word politician you sneer," he said. "Nlaw, just for a little while you are going to he^ra politician discuss parsions." Continuing, Mr Isitt said that the Church was nearly as politic as politicians. Every Sunday in cities of the Old Country clergymen took short cuts to their churches through the slums. Let one of them start to tell Ms congregation the truth of what he saw there and he would be discreetly silenced. Labour, knowing this, turned resentfully away (from the door of the Church. Things were not as bad in the Dominion, but even here there were numbers of people struggling with the direst poverty. Was the Church doing its duty by them? I.W.W. and mad extremists sholud not blind 1 Christians to the recognition that the masses hadl a claim on the Church. "It is as much the duty of the Church to oppose things that mean the mioral degradation of the people as it is its, business to preach the gospel," declared Mr Isitt. "Sometimes in the House of Parliament we N fight Christ's battles. It is a lone fight, for it is seldom we have the support of what should be our chief supporter —Christ's Church. In all economic questions the Church should stfetnd by Labouir when it believes Labour to be in the right, and to refute its claims when Labour is known to be in the wrong."