National Affairs: Moses Had a Button

The C.I.O. sent members an eight-page booklet pointing up the “similarities between the social philosophies of the Bible and those of the progressive labor movement.” Sample parallels:

Strikes: “God chose Moses to lead the greatest strike and walkout in history when 600,000 Israelites left Egypt . . . for the promised land of freedom.”

Scabs: “Many had tried to break the strike and in the desert the fainthearted turned against Moses. . . . God’s truth upheld him.”

Right to Organize: “King Solomon said joining together is better than individualism. … He spoke of … the right of workers to enjoy what they produce.”