Synodical Conference Convention Proceedings St. Louis, Missouri — 1958, Page 27

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Lutheran Synodical Conference, 1958 27

monial law —from wearing phylacteries to the washing of feet,
from public prayers and fasting to a rigid observance of the dietary
laws. You have this sort of activism whenever the church goes
through a moribund age, when Christians become hollow men
who repeat the formulas and go through the motions, perhaps
relying on the pure Word and doctrine that they have been taught
but doing little to make it a power in their lives. Activists of the
kind I described overemphasize the divine side of the church, as
it were, and are willing to let God do it all, while they lose them-
selves in outward works that usually have no social value whatever
except perhaps to keep people occupied and out of mischief.

Now let me give you an illustration of the very opposite kind
of activism. One of the phenomena of the last decade has been
the building of suburban areas far away from old congregations
in the cities. During the New Deal model towns were even built
on the sites of former slums or in Greenbelt areas near metrop-
olises. Now let us imagine one of these areas suddenly appearing
on the outskirts of a city. There are hundreds of homes and a
business section but no church. We will suppose that most of the
larger Protestant denominations are represented among the people
who move in but that there are not enough people of any one
denomination to support a church.

A meeting is called to discuss the subject. It is finally decided
by a majority vote to build a church, just one—a community
church, It is also decided by majority vote that there shall be a
well-balanced religious program but no creed. Everyone is agreed
that children are to be a prime concern of the congregation. They
should be taught good morals, citizenship, and their duty to God,
home, and country. The church must offer entertainments,
good educational and athletic programs to keep young people off
the streets and away from taverns. The Bible will naturally be
the chief textbook but not necessarily the only one. There are
many other good books, and these are to be discussed too, especially
if they deal with topics of current significance and interest.
In short, the stress will be on whatever is good and wholesome for
the community. Religion will set the atmosphere and the mood
but never become intrusive. I will not go on to describe how this
church, created by majority vote, calls a minister after its taste,
erects a building, and begins its work. The idea behind it is the
very opposite of the preceding one. This church is a one-sidedly
human, natural, nonreligious, moral organization. It has virtually
abandoned any faith in salvation or eternal life. Christ will be the
good example but not the Savior.

An article in the Reader’s Digest some years ago, offering
reasons why one should go to church, would tie in very well with
the program just described. Attending service on a Sunday
morning, the author wrote, is a much more profitable occupation
than staying in bed or reading the Sunday comics. It is good
discipline and shows that you are responsible and well adjusted.
The best people go to church, and they will honor you the more
if you go. Some religious advantages were listed, but the emphasis
was mainly on human values. I need hardly tell you that this kind
of advice, valuable as it is to a certain extent, does not harmonize