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Religion, Practice and Science of Non-Violence
murder, pay no heed to the arguments or to the commands of those who call on you to take part in it. By such a firm refusal to take part in violence, you will call down on yourselves the blessings promised to those who hear the word of God and keep it, and the time will come when even the world will honour you as having contributed to the reformation of mankind."
The Quakers like the Mennonites do not believe that the state should direct the affairs of the church. But in other ways they are very different from the Mennonites: they believe it possible for members of the church to play an active part in the affairs of the state and in this way induce the state to adopt the peaceful ways of the church.
Non-Resistance Society; In Boston U.S.A., a Christian pacifist, William Lord Garrison, created a Non-Resistance Society in 1838. It was based on the doctrine of non-violence as advocated by Jesus Christ. Through it, he with his colleagues, intended to overcome the prejudice of colour, race and nationalism that stood in the way of the practice of nonviolence. He had a broader aim than that of any of the different Christian groups and societies. Some of the principles that the Non-Resistance Society adopted are as follows:
“We cannot acknowledge allegiance to any human government. We recognize but one King and Law-giver, one Judge and Ruler of mankind ... Our country is the world, our countrymen are all mankind. We love mankind of our nativity only as we love all mankind. We love the land of our nativity as we love all other lands. The interests and rights of American citizens are no more dear to us than those of the whole human race. Hence we can allow no appeal to patriotism to revenge any national insult or injury .... We conceive that a nation has no right to defend itself against foreign enemies or punish its invaders, and no individual possesses that right in his own case, and the unit cannot be of greater importance than the aggregate. If soldiers thronging from abroad with intent to commit rapine and destroy life may not be resisted by the people or the magistracy, then ought no resistance to be offered to domestic troubles of the public peace or of private security.
"We regard as unchristian and wrong not only war itself, whether offensive or defensive, but all preparations of war: the
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