The Structure of the Commune

With two important exceptions, we have now displayed in turn the principal forms of the functional organisation of Society, in so far as they enter into its economic or civic expression. The first exception, which we have made advisedly throughout this book, is the organisation of religion. It is significant that the recent development of theory concerning the relations of Church and State and the position of Churches in the modern community is running very largely on lines parallel to those of Guild development in the spheres of industry and civic service. ¹ The essence, however, of the spiritual freedom of Churches, and indeed of all associations based on belief or opinion, lies in independence of the material and economic, and even of the civic, structure of Society, and in the working out of their own problems in terms of spiritual, and not of economic or civic, power, and certainly without invoking the material coercions of Society. I have dealt more fully with this question elsewhere: ² but it falls outside the scope of this book.