42 QUAKER ASPECTS OF TRUTH 



alone. And thus began those awful persecutions of 

 the Early Church. 



And once again, we have heard echoes of those far-off 

 times. Patriotism has again been degraded to the level 

 of a State Religion, and all men have been commanded 

 to offer to the State that absolute obedience which 

 belongs to God alone. Conventional Piety still does 

 not scruple to offer its grain of incense. Why should 

 it not do so ? But the Way of Love can no more do it 

 now than it could do it then. Three representative 

 members of our Society were thrown into prison, because 

 we refused to submit our publications to the Censor, 

 and hundreds of young men have suffered in jail with 

 thieves and felons, because they were loyal to Christ's 

 law of Universal Love. 



But, in spite of persecution by the State, in spite of 

 the opposition of trade, in spite of the sneers of 

 respectable piety, the Way of Love still prospered, until 

 at last paganism only saved itself from defeat by calling 

 itself ** Christianity.'' When Constantine took the 

 Cross of Christ as a banner to lead his troops to bloody 

 victory over his enemies, he inflicted a defeat upon the 

 Church of Christ, from which it has never recovered. 

 For paganism is not the less pagan, because it calls itself 

 *' Christian." To-day we live in a pagan state. We 

 see around us a pagan commercialism ; a pagan militar- 

 ism ; a pagan Churchianity ; and those who would find 

 the Way of Love are more likely to find it in their own 

 hearts, than by following the directions of those who 

 call themselves Ministers of Christ ! Truly in our 

 hearts is the way to Zion. 



But although Christianity suffered a severe defeat 

 and has not recovered from it, yet the Way of Love must 

 eventually triumph, for Love is the strongest thing 

 in the Universe. Whenever it has been given a fair 

 chance, it has always succeeded — think of how Patrick 



