THE CREED OF THE UNIVERSITY OF NEW ZEALAND.

Dominion, Volume 7, Issue 2143, 8 May 1914, Page 7

THE CREED OF THE UNIVERSITY OF NEW ZEALAND.

, >- (To the Edite?.) Sir,—ln an egregiously ffla.udible attempt by two Hadtield Hostel guests to expose tiis bisad of their mstitutiou as a '.argot for the wits o) tlteir .professors tiiey demanded ati ai.iSw.er .. to ' three pointless questions. Naturally the attempt proved futile. tint tiio gliosis, ■ suffering; from pique, furiously ektd-r----nti-nod Ui move Acheron and at once proceeded to attack ili.o Church, the Bible, and Christianity, in the interests of the so-called ' Defence L&tgac. In ■doing so they removed the mask of religion assumed bjV'tl.ie Iseng-jio when 'it proposes that wo should adopt denom;-; nationalism or tlib Nelson system. Oi course it does not intend to assist in either, In tho course of li.is grandiloquent tirade Mr. Laory declaimed "Tho Church of the future is the university. Her; Creed is 'truth." It is liardly. r.eetiaSAry to point out that tho words mean that; it i 3 tho Church that is goiiig to 1« tho university for tlie creed of tho Church is true. Tho context would seem to sliott that Jib meant tho reverse:, it.at the- belief of tho Ghu-rcli is. •false, and tliat tho university holding the true creed will goon usurp the functions of tho Church so that, salvation will como. by mathematics, languages.; science and gooarapliv. I vonld ask the professors whether they endorse the.sentiments of their pu|)}is. If tiro professors ar.o tlto authors of- tho students' theories-, ihese theories must ho a very modem development, ■origi.nitt.fiig after tho timo one-of thorn endeavoured to found, a- Scotch Church niid interested himself, after its failure, in the ■ foundation of a Unitarian. ,If he then entertained tho theory, Ins would rather iifi-v.6 sought to pondnot the tinivrsity to its- supposed destiny. His latest, letlet' ho'.rever shows that now lie, is impressed hy . tlie secular theory -and its nhstird claim to regenerate tho world. A loading idea of aspiration inculcated try a University ina-y -tioMlj-jtie-ss he Spjp-it in its motto, The New Zealand University telis ea.eli of its students "Audo Sap.ere" (daro to be wise:). lint tlie. warning is so little regarded thacS oil important ceremonial occasions it is converted into "Aude Desi-pfero"; a.m.l this forsooth is the University that is destined to he the Church! Though Hie words of tiro motto a-ro taken from Horace fro m'.ist not infer, as perhaps ] the two lladfield gi-issts dd, tltat the T/niversit.v is compelled to prefer IToraoo to the Ttiblo. They should note the motto of their own Victoria College, tiro words of Which _ are adapted. from Dm _ Vulgate ".Tudieia Domini desiderabilia super atirurt" in stieli a way as to -indj.cat.o_that- ''Judiein Domini" (not ".Indicia Universitatis") are true -iy?s----d-oftt. Tho University of Oxford took its "Dominns Ilhinmiaiia Mea" from the Vulfrafo and these words are that University's lesson to tlie. professors and students of oren the ftow Zkitftuid University vi-hero hoolts -lreimn-g ft-iit motto flro in we. The sUideni-gHoslß of the Hostel will al«o find that tho Hostel's motto "Novate Nova.lcs" is fvoin tho ?«icato BiWn. TII6 capital city of Professor Maelfen/.rp's native emmtry has its motto from the same source and hero in We'linfftoiT ho may licar every honr the Post Office clock chime in protest, to his secularism, tho old quatrain- - " i.ora. mrou-glt this hour, Be Thou .my Guide ; So thrmijili Thy rower No foot shall slide." —I am, etc., Nisi DOMINUS. May 2, 1914.