Excerpt from The Biblical World, Vol. 39
The obligation of social morality and the insufficiency of mere personal morality is universally felt in the church today. The pulpit is keenly alive to the necessity of preaching a larger righteousness than that which has contented many a man who has supposed himself to be a Christian. Even preachers whose message of salvation is most individualistic have felt that they must insist that a redeemed man shall live the life of helpfulness and honor in all his relations, domestic, industrial, political.
But effective social preaching is by no means easy. Many a good man who would fain apply his gospel to the crying evils of our complex modern life finds himself confronted with the difficulty of providing a remedy. He is not a sociological expert. He has a wholesome recognition of his own limitations and a sensible objection to talking nonsense. He therefore comes to the conclusion that it is quite useless for him to become the propagandist of any particular social doctrine. He concludes that specific social preaching is none of his business, and confines himself to the gospel of divine love which has the power to beget all human love. He makes up his mind that he will preach this supreme principle, and tell his people that love is the solvent of all human ills.
And this is a comfortable doctrine. The preacher speaks at once to employers and workmen, to rich and poor, and tells them that if every man would love his brother there would be no more strife. Competitive business would become as simple as family co-operation, for "love doeth no harm to his neighbor."
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