Article September 6, 1913 Issue

From Our Exchanges

with contributions from Charles F. Dole

[The Universalist Leader]

The vision of federation has taken hold upon the whole Protestant church, and the time of its fulfilment is not far away. It may not be in this present generation in its fulness, but in some measure we are to enter into its glory. And it is a curious thing that this spiritual vision should have been revealed to the church by the commercial world! And yet the thought of cooperation which is coming to be the law of business, is a Christian thought and had its origin in Christ, and business with its keen practical talent took the word out of the mouth of the church and said this is a good thing, the only sensible thing, and proceeded to put it in practise while the church was still talking about it! And now comes the reflex action, and the churches are seeing their vision realized in business and questioning, Why not in our work as well? Why should we exhaust ourselves in administration and get nothing done, when we have but to come together and multiply our efficiency? Why should there be a great many societies in competition over the thing one society can do so much better? Why should we not put our doctrine of brotherhood to the test of practical application? Can we expect the world to follow our direction when we ourselves are violating it? And so we look forward to the time when there may be one society which shall be an irresistible force for temperance, and another which shall be an irresistible force for purity, and another for civic honesty; but back of all these societies there will be, making them irresistible, the omnipotent power of a united Christian church. We may never come together as one on a statement of dogma, but the way is not far when, seeking to serve, our hands touch and clasp in fellowship.

[The Continent]

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