TRAINING OF CHILDREN

Press, Volume L, Issue 14886, 28 January 1914, Page 2

TRAINING OF CHILDREN

RESPONSIBILITIES OF PARENTS. . ADDRESS BY THE VERY REV. •FATHER PRICE. The Very Rer. Father Price, from the pulpit at the Uarbadoes street Cathedral on Sunday, delivered a timely address on a subject that has been attracting ruoro and more attention of late, and that has been commented upon by the magistracy and other guardians of the public welfare;. The service was notable in other respects. A feature of the musical portion was an exquisite interpretation of Luzsi's "Aye Maria." at the offertory, by Mr Paul IXifault, with Mr Biinz at the organ, and the same' singer took the tenor solo part with the choir in ihe "Agnus Dei" from the "St. Cecilia Mass," again with most artistic and devotional effect. In opening his address, Father Price said that there was no "anxiety that pressed more painfully on a pastor at tho present time than that caused by the behaviour of parents towards their children. '"Generally speaking, the parents are the causes of the sins of their children; nay, it is more certain now than it ever has been in any other I'hrwtinii ago that whatever there is of wicked nt-,.5. depravity, and religious indifference in children is owing to the neglect and bad example of parents. PARENT AND CHILD. '"The truth is that in theso modern days no one dares to step in between a parent and his child. An attempt is made to force the child to some kind of school; there is also, it must be admitted, so:iie provision made by legislation for removing a neglected child from the parents' keeping, but such polite regulations as can never suffice in _ themselves to make children good Christians; first, because they are never put into force until the evil is, in some degree, done, and, secondly, because they leave out almost entirety the only remedy which can cither cure a faulty child or keep a well-disposed one straight, i.e., religious instruction, religious observance, and religious influence and example. As to "these, and nearly (-verything else, tho parents are secure from interference; they may spoil or starve their children, they may have thorn instructed or leave ' them heathen; they rr.ny watch over them or. let thorn run wild, and neither priest nor magistrate has anything to cay until sonio crying scandal puts the law '•'. motion; and then what can the law f Jo, or what has it done? A PARENT'S FIRST DUTY. "The first duty of parents towards t!io:r children h to feed and clothe them. It is only too true that in every country and in every ago there •have been and are such things as destitution and famine. These things are, beyond doubt, as great a curse ns pestilenco and _warfare; they cause men to become thieves and women something werse ; they cause people to lose their immortal souls, and only a rcre and heroic character ran* make such scourges profitable to life everlasting. But is the sad and pitiable condition of many children in this Dominion a nij/erable necessity or is it not? Tho slightest knowledge of facts will show that it is not. Work and wages may be subject to uncertainty, and the hire of labour may not be over-munificent, but, making all allowances,' thei'e' is no working community in this Dominion where there might not be a fair level of decency and comfort. Why, then.: do we find so many dark spots on tho map where decency is a stranger and comfort is unknown? It is because the money that ought to keep a eomfortablo home is spunt in a. kind of self-in-dulgence that kills spiritual life, darkens and degrades physical life, makes a mockery of the altar and gospel,.anil renders* parents incapable for a large part of their waking hours of either affection, religious purpose, or even of rational ideas. THE INDIFFERENT PARENT, '"But it is not only tho drinking parents who allow their children to run wild. Do we not find this lamentable absence of care and supervision even among those who are more or less sober and decent? Children require a home or their better nature never has a fair chance. They need kindness and affection, and they require guidance overy-'hour in things innumerable, none of which, perhaps, singly, is of very, great importance, but which taken altogether, are the material out of which are formed their habits for life. Not only must they bo. guarded from the infection of bad examnlo and coarse language, not only must they be protected from cruelty and rough usage, but they must feel something of the purifying, elevating, and improving effect of a quiet and a virtuous life. They must live with good people, or they' will not be good: they must live with virtuous peopie or they will never understand what virtue means; they must' live with honest and upright people or they will never learn to value honour or honesty. This means that unless their parents look after them, and unless their parents are good, honest, virtuous and religious, the children will never be what God intended them to be. Therefore, all fathers and mothers are bound to have and to keep up some sort of a home where tneir children may have a chance of growing up to be good Christians and respectable men and women, where the grace of their bant ism may spread through their being, and r.oduce its beautiful fruit, and where the good faculties ami dispositions implanted in them by their Creator may strengthen and expand according to His holy will. THE WILL AND THE WAY. "If it be objected that a home of this kind is beyond tho means of poor working people, the answer is that it is. not the means but the will that is wanting The wages of all working Jeople oicht to be sufficient to keep up amodt«t"l.omo, and in this Dominion they are sufficient if properly used. The truth is that many people never put before themselves this view of the obligations of a parent. Many hare a sort of vague idea that if they feed and clothe their children, send them to school and .perhaps to church, and scold or strike them wheji they misbehave they have nothing further to answer for They make a lamentable mistake. Evorv parent is bound to form his or her child's , mind. soul, and character, by word, by action, and by good example, This responsibility no one Tan take off the parents' shoulders. The priest Ins his duties to the little ones of the flock, and so have the teachers and civil law. but none of these can relieve the parents of theirs. UNFIT FOR PARENTHOOD. "You may say this is hard, and there are many poor working peoplo who cannot be expected to do much in the way of training a child. This brings us to what is perhaps tlie root of the matter. What right have men and women to marry who are so utterly unfit to take charge of children? Do not misunderstand. The poor are not expected to have much learning oft. plenty of money, and time in abundance, but no man or woman has a right to marry without being, or being determined to be sober and industrious, prudent, without being sufficiently instructed in the duties to which our holy religion j binds us, and what is meant by loving, serving, and obeying Almighty ! God. To marry in any other disposiI tion or condition is to run the risk of j profaning the sacrament of matrimony, I and incurring the awful doom proj nounced by our Blessed Lord upon thoseI who give ecandal to little ones. For assuredly such, persons are utterly unfit i to take charge of children, and will [ most likely so neglect, spoil, or. even 'xirrupt those whom God may give

them that their children will lose their immortal souls. It will be hard enough at the Day of Judgment to answer for our own souls, but God help those who in that awful hour have to answer for the souls of their children. THE ALL. "So far 1 have spoken chicly of children of school age, but parents must not forget that they are responsible for the souls of their boys and girls who have left school. This class of young peoplo from 14 to 17 or 18 aro the trouble and despair of priests. They are truly as sheep without a shepherd. Why is it co difficult to keep them to their religion or even to keep themselves respectable? One chief reason is that their parents have not from the beginning made them love and respect them. Still, no doubt, even good parents will at times have great difficulty with children of this age. How, then,' should you behave towards them ? You must set them a good example, you must speak out to them when they misjjehave— correct and even punish them. YJhi must strive to make them regular in their religious duties, and this you can never hope to do unless you set them the example."