BIBLE IN SCHOOLS

Dominion, Volume 7, Issue 2159, 27 May 1914, Page 3

BIBLE IN SCHOOLS

POSITION REVIEWED

A meeting of tiro Central Committee of Wellington Province of the JMbkw'i> Schools League w&s hold hi St. John's Presbyterian Schoolroom on Monday night. It was attended also by ofliws of the Women's League for this province. M.s\ J. (i. \V, Aitkcn presided.

Mr. $. B. Fiulay, general secretary for the province, reported. that since tho previous meeting, sixteen now committees had been formed in the metropolitan area and suburbsl

j Canou Garland, in tho course of a j review, of the position, eta-ted that though tJio ' Bible-in-State-SdKwlsj League, as at- present coiistitutecj,. had i been actively at work only for about | 20 mouths, y<j% It was. the successor i of eifijilar-jftoveinonts for the restea-! iioa of religious instruction to tlta State school system which have beeii . continuous since 18?7. The League, formally constituted by the Church of England, tlio Presbyterian Ctafdi, the Methodist Oimrclj, and tha Salvation Ann?, iiad been joined !«y many otlier hi dividual Christians, including prouaineot Baptists, and members of tlje Church of. Christ. Tho Churches, which speak for 74 per omit, of the population, had. hud their action endorsed by iJicir lower courts, synods, presbyteries, Kirk sessions-, . and circuits, This was shown in Aitgust, 1913, when several hundred wsamtioiis were kftded to the Prime MisiJSter, since wbea huiidretls of similar resohrtions had lieen passed. In atMittrai -MdividuaJ electors to the iramher nt 140,000 had beconje members of the heaguo by stgntog a j-equesb for a referendum to be takca on the League's proposals. The suggestion by opponents of the League teat some thousands, sf the poaple who signed this request 4rd not kmw what they were rising, was saeh ft reflection on tho intelligence of electors, thftt on the face of it, it was inwoaible. This cliargo against, the •■ teUige-Bcs of Jfeiv Zoaiandcrs made- l»v opponents of tfee Lensr.se was boistoro'd np by statements that the Leajme's eonvasscrs had been guihv of mtsro-pfesejua-twii. As most of tfae' <anvassers \cor« women, wlio, out eft-bo ftttte tune t»ey had to spare, from limisckoW and other duties, Ifal been using their time and, money for what they believed Vβ bo the good of tlieir coafltry. tliis cnawe was equally incredible, it was not Ijkoly that such women would make great sacrifices merely for thtf gnk« of misleading other people. The teae was mute prepared to cancel tnia we'mfiofstop of any person who, Itaviiig prawottsb- signed the card, slguifiM in writing a tfesi.ro to withdraw frora mein*Jfship, and without making any re-fleot-ran would consider any eueh S" "entitled to.clmnJo their ewnien. ilw suggestion, how-over, only empljqisteed the advfeabijity of the «eterwid«in, because., hwwer iatieh the aetual number of iufliradwls ftiighs be disputed ft was not a matter of doubt tlint- the deii-w-iid for tlw refwMidum was oeepljT seated nnrl ■ vefy wkkspread, and that tk eommmiitv was divided ou ti» snfeioct. TlieM was anJy ono way out- of the dtflibultv—to ascertont tlw mind of the wonle'tn' a maiiaer wliieh would leave" no i--oo« for WS_ altegatwn .;o.f wisrepresentation', iiiat coufd not bo done, by .suay Wn.annation w by indivtdttafe elttaimng sb-nat-ures; bui in tk> poltog bootlt, nnuer legal safeguards, where canvassers mi eittsr side do not interfere with the vster- liideftd, the-fact ilint ontKincats ef tlto leaaiu*. had appealed so veHcmaitjy to the "people through the wo-ss, the jJlajtform, and the' -pulpit, was a recognition of tire principle U-iat tire people wt-rc entitled to settle the ■question. This was tho league's positron, except that differing from its on(JoMoßts on this point, it claimed tla'o auestioii could not bo' settled by screeds in TOWspaeors, ov scrmoas in lmjpjfe, flut by the veto gf the people who own ami support tho schools, given dtoottiy at tho ballot bos.

'live aotio-ii of the league's opponents \s-as. nofcwittetaad-mg aiiy disclaimer of thews t0,9i0 contrary, in offftetieguivakni t-o a-skiHg for o rc'teeßtfetft. They to" tlie public to indge bo-twe-BB tlsoin and the kagu&- fh-ey begged far diafcetio duels, on platfotras j thov iuvit&d cptrospondcnfto in the Press. Tlig diiferoHce betivesn them and the league was—the leaguo wants a df.cisi«i\ by the -jmbJ-te, but iwtby a auei-on tho platform, xvhidi might be an intorcstiiig cxhibitieui of dialectic skill; iwr by corraspo-iidci-icc- m tho Press, which ivaßdercd off into many sick-issues; hjt'thfi loagtie really clid vi'isli tho O-iMnioM of tlio wlido jwople, iuciuding opponents as .well as supjMrt-ea-s, dcfittitoly ascertamod at tho ballotbox. And tjhis uoi by couutiiig "»&scs" or caimtttK "heads." as the league's <spp6ncfrts terra it— tae leitsuc hadnc-rcir asied for that—but by tlie counting <$ votes., yot-es nrbicU w«ld he the prtiduet of the elector's t.siottghtful fflini,- i», spirod by lais . coiiseieuc& teiag eithw fir or against ' tho proposal.' i'he .leasu-o's ■o.ppwieiits were willing to allow tho iw%)ii3 to ho the judges, provid* ed thwr decision was obtained i.u a hassarcl wanner) and moi 'under tho aittliority of .Parliament. ' .

A refusal to grant tho rofereiidu-m was an a-cccptanco of that theological' view which holds that reiigimts aatU)ts are ta be settled «»J.y by ■ ccclesiast-ics, and thnt tho peoiilo are notcoijipartent tadecido th.*m for- themselves. Tlkv league submits tlj-at with t*it> exceptkin of -oiift Chureli, tli.e c.ih-.t Christian Churches, in the /Dojfiiniosj ela-j-ffl that right of liberty of «wiscien«a whidi allows each individual to decide ioi< tamsolf on matters ajfeotjag religion. The league was not asking Fariiaineut to fleeitje tie question, but only to pro.vide machinery'to allow tho peop-fe to do-cid.6 fo-r thcoisoh , ©. If tho league'sopponpiite aieceeftett in prerentiiw tie referondam being taken, they would hare porsiiaded J. J arlmhiCHt to become ros-poijsifeje for kiiigJiig this questfea into sttcii prorainetico t-iiat in the jadsmeiit of the league it wo'uM oatweigli .political party .Questions jmd-eveu-ovor-«hadffiv other questions. Caiwn. Garland said ho had many years' cxperieisee of uns and otter inereiawtt-s, tnit siwcr oeforc bad-bo cam in eoutect ■ with any m-ftvoinejit where such -persistency and Hiteasity of purpose' war shown: liiat thi> league could, in such a shorttime, rally tiro majority of Chrbtian' cengregations round-it, a-eqnins-iiii iiidiyidnal memliersWp to .the cstoirt of 140,000, obtain resolutions frosia all «erts of ofga-iiisations- firem north to south, have in activo w<wk '16.") ceninutt«:u?s., whero souse of ike'' reasons upon whiclj 1h) based his opinion. Ho , furUier Sound that tho iiute!*er of jieoplo wha weft* ready''to place this matter Wore any political party issue was anereasing daily, aj evfefenecd by irrittesi- nlcikei to that effect. . - ■ fe

A gteat deal lwd loen Jteanl of injnstico to the mii-iority, Tliero was no desire mi the part of the league to inflict any ißjnstwo in any qvuifte, bat tiler© was a strong tfctci-mlnatten to Sflfil'c for ttio sanMt jiistiee for tlio mawhich ttw niinerit.v .had c-njej-eJ for 37 yeai-B. The Ipajaw's proiMisals would lifit fofoe ft siojffc Roman Catholw ehiW, or seeiflarisrt- eliilcl, or'ahy otlinr eMKI t-o roeeive liililo Itwms m mkmtet's visits. It was perfectly akwrel to_ say tliafc il«s.ti'»»Mo was asking far tliis restsratioß of I'Rligiotis nberty at the cixpeiisc of; tlie 'minority. 'The Churches, fcml Hot the Stal<>, would pay for tiio ilofiiiit-n ivlfgimis teacijjnff. The cKiienso of the Bible lessnlte wonlri he merely .tlift jVvinttnii, and this was a bnga-tello. WouM it be. much wrc tlian tltrs expense of pi-Hitina aiu! distributing fros of charge as was being; floiie at gfeseait ks&QHS oa Mahoniifieda^iser

Confucianism, Japanese religion, ji«<3 heathen gofJs? 'flio Hon. A. H, Barlow, Minister of -Education, QiwcnsJaiKi, had stilted (mblidy in New Zealand that ■thoro was Uβ tuWition t<s tho edueatrowal vote in Qucoiiskud. in eon sequence of religions instruction.* On tho motion of Mr. William Allan,, seconded fey Mr. Kovsiitrce, the foltevirig vcsciUiticffl \yjt« piirncd:— "This Contra! Coimmiteis for tte. Wellington I'fovjnoo of .the BJblc-in-Stato Schools League expresses 'surprise that, as .yet the Government has net aeeedt?<l' to tho request niaite by -ha, Isigltesi, courts of.tlio OJinwii of' Knglaiul," the Presbyterian Ciiureh, tho. '.Methodist ClftiTch, and the Salvation At my, wdersetl m generally by t'hclv eoiistitueis* cics and supported by the individual request of 140,0013 electors, aslutva for nothing moftt tlsflti tte referendum."This coißHnttflo draws attention to statements made by the le-apie's opponents claiming the Primo Minister and his Cabinet;as in sympathy with them ami empbitsisos that the league is not asking tlie fiovc-rnmoiit or Parliament to deeido ii'po-n the merits of tfas league's proposals or to say whether they arc right or wrong, tat is asking the Gqv,ef nJneirt te jwevicfo machinery which : will allow the people to directly decide ' tliat guest-ion for femselves &t the i haJtot-ta."