Covenanter Witness Vol. 55 - Rparchives.org

straight."peasants!"way."inmeans."problems of poverty and injustice." Now, it is truethat the Soviet Union has four separate classes in itssociety, and the differences between them are enormous.They have an elite ruling class and an unbelievably large slave class. Then too, there is the skilled worker and technical middle class that is quiteseparate from still a fourth class : the vast mass ofworkers and peasants.However there is little point to trying to exposeall the lies in the propaganda of the Soviet Colossus.Actually, the peoples of the world care little forAmerican efforts to "set the recordTothem, the Soviet Union is a harbinger of hope because of the fact that its common peoples not toolong ago seized control and have changed the country to suit their own ends. To them, the SovietUnion spells equality of opportunity. Do not laughat their naivete. We must not forget that in WorldWar II, "most of the Communist generals who outmaneuveredand defeated the German 'General Staffwere sons of serfs, workers, and smallWithout controversy, there has been an enormouswidening of the base from which the elite have beenreceived.People are hungry for change. They are fed upwith the status-quo. They are attracted by the optimistic propaganda of the Soviets. They are easyprey to its half-truths and deliberate lies. To themKarl Marx makes sense, as he does to anyone whoonly studies him superficially. When he said thatman's knowledge and mastery of physical naturegrows faster than his wisdom in creating newsocial institutions, he was stating observable facts.When he went on to say that man's social institutions cannot easily cope with change because of theinertia of "vested-interests" in older pattern of society, even critical sociologists nod in assent. Butwhen he went on to show that since the old patterndies hard and resists change, it must be smashed tobring about genuine social revolution, even this dangerous call for violence can be uncritically accepted.From here on only a few additional steps are necessary to convince the ardent minority of the desirability of enlisting for violence to "liberate" themasses. Provoking tensions in society is an attractiveservice to some. Did not Lenin point this out as theonly way? "Revolution becomes possible only whenthe lower classes do not want the old way, and theupper classes cannot continue in the old Thenviolence breaks out. The workers gain control. Theysmash the old social structure and establish the new ;the proletariat takes over. It is Revolution ! It solvesall ills.Sometimes, when the dogma is put simply likethis it has the lure of a new revelation. All otherappeals suddenly appear tawdry. The ideal of a classless society draws the impoverished disinherited andawakens hope. It quickens their hungerings. If allare of one class, then all will have a measure ofpower, all will thereby gain prestige, and all will enjoy material prosperity, 'the good things of life.'How enchanting are these appeals to self-interest!To the hungry Communism suddenly appears to havethe only really satisfactory solution for all age-longproblems. Hence its very presence in the earthstrengthens the revolutionary ferment of our day.But Communism is not just a very attractive solution to the problems of power and social justice.October 5, 1955It is also regarded by many as a veritable philosophyoflife, a form of secular religion. In all the chaos andupheaval of our day, men want spiritual security;they desire that life be meaningful. Full"things," employment,and food cannot satisfy the inner heart.The very nature of the Communist appeal, its championing of social justice in the interest of making anew world, lends to it the overtones of a holy crusade. Here is a Cause the Emancipation of Manin which the idealistic yearnings of man have fullexpressions. He can lose himself in service and sacrifice, assisting in the destruction of the out-wornsocial structure of Capitalism that a new worldmight be brought to birth. It was with this call toservice on behalf of one's fellow-man that the Chinese Communists extensively and intensively soughtto capture the hearts of the Youth of China afterthey had captured their bodies through force ofarms. How constantly they preached the comingMillennium! Even chairman Mao joined in thisprophetic ministry !on the occasionOn July 1, 1949,of the founding of the Communist Party in Chinahe said :"When a man reaches old age, he dies : it is thesame with the party. When classes are eliminated,all the instruments of class struggle, political parties,and the State apparatus will as a result, lose theirfunction, become unnecessary, andgradually witheraway, lose their historic mission, and travel towardMankind."the higher plane of the Society ofCommunism's Atheistic HeartIt is at this point that Communism comes intoconflict with Christianity. .Forcalling men to joinits colors it demands a total commitment of heartand life not unlike the call that Christ Himself demands if men are to follow Him (Mark 8:34). Neither Christ nor Communism tolerate partial discipleship. Hence there is an irreconcilable conflict,an unsurmountable impasse. "Ye cannot serve Godand Mammon."At its heart Communism is implacably anti-Christian. It regards Christianity as reactionary, asunscientific,as the most subtle tool capitalists useto oppress peoples and forcibly maintain their socialstatus-quo. To them religion is a mischievous invention of man with which he dupes and drugs his fellow-man, and gets him to submit meekly to exploitation. Communists do not merely say, "There is noGod !" They go on to say, "Men everywhere must bemade to cease believing in God" (Hyde).The whole revolutionary method is admittedlyimmoral. Lenin boasted of the necessity for usinglies, evasions of the truth, subterfuges, etc., to forgean effective technique that would have but one ethic :"The end justifies the It would be impossible to enroll youth in this world-wide conspiracy unless there was first a purging of all theistic concepts.Atheism is the prerequisite to immorality.As one studies the Communist system, he is impressed again and again with the need for this atheistic base. Without it, the whole ideology would collapse. Its very philosophy must be rooted in materialistic presuppositions. And this is the case, forits dialectical materialism is a harsh, mechanicalphilosophy of life that completely excludes all butthe observable elements of a physical universe.Atheism is what makes Communism the oppres-213