The Christian Commonwealth by William Dudley Pelley (1950)

* Source: Transcribed on 17/4/2022 from the recording 

* First published: After Pelley's release from federal prison, 1950

The christian commonwealth, what is it?

 we know the meaning of the term commonwealth it is a perfectly respectable word defined in the dictionary as the body polity of the whole body of the public and has been in use in england since the 17th century when it was coined to describe the republic form of government that maintained between the execution of charles first and the abdication of richard cromwell from 1653 to 1659 in such esteem was it regarded that when many of the american colonies desired to form states they were designated as the commonwealth of massachusetts the commonwealth of virginia and the like commonwealth avenue in boston even today is the city's most aristocratic thoroughfare and not by accident but when we refer to the christian commonwealth what is the connotation i can put it in 20 words for you we are talking about both a cultural and economic state where the high ethical principles and precepts of the christ are established politically where the whole intent and regard of the state is the precise opposite of the predatory practices and economic barbarisms that have made society up to now a commercial not to mention spiritual jungle where the law of life is every man for himself and the devil take the hindmost we are talking about a system of commercial affairs where a thousand scattered but highly successful cooperative movements are installed universally throughout the whole public domain and become the national method and technique for transacting business understand me right here at the outset of all these plentiful ethical renovations i have to disclose to you cooperativism is not socialism it is not communism it is not collectivism it does not go in for sharing the wealth or confiscating from the rich to dole out to the poor or whittling every individual down to a common level of mediocrity and giving all the same revenue more than all else instead of working to destroy or pervert rugged individualism it cultivates and adulates it.