BIBLE IN SCHOOLS

Dominion, Volume 7, Issue 2187, 27 June 1914, Page 18

BIBLE IN SCHOOLS

[Published f>v Atrawffrtttcut.] J

TEACHEKS , ATTITUDE. By Mr. 1). j[. Yeats, late Head Tmclrcf. Hutt District Bisb Sefoool. For a long time 1 had hew antagonistic to the uilrojliiotioij of th? Bibie into our btiite .schools, bub after conslderius tUt> j>ra. po»alsmade by the Bible in . State Schools league, and forming my inn iiulepcudent judgmcut of the orerwheUiiing tef*lm»ny to its success in tUase S!afa» of tk- Commonwealth into whinli it had I)se« introduced, I more tlwa.. ft. yeas , ago e-mit- to tho conclusion that U-m, pw'PKs-l «e.Wfv<''<l my support. . I netice it has been sain that tho testimony' Srom is' wcitliless,. because it is sriven by teacJiors wlio say only that which ths.v think will please their superiors. With this position I do not agree, and it cannot apj)l.V to testimonies gis-e-n by cithers, sutli as Sir Harry liawsaii, tfe\#hm of Kesv South 'Wales, who .said, '"tho l>eblw Etlii- 1 cation Act showed that 'tjso slatetHien who framed it brul -ctuisMei'ed st my carefully, fairly; jimi (J-iM-riiiiinately, fe." although they hail .sti'Migly' liiiit down the rule tlfal religious instruction in Stale schools fl'fts to fco 'noji-sGctiiricni, they had, at tiie same tims, ejiwiflij the way for clergymen- of every iqwMiHia* tion to teach the thiWi'CW oi' t-liew owii Church." There are many sUi-ur testimonics from pcojile f|-(ute irdef«!tck:*i.V of Uio Education .Dffpiirtftieiiis in AiKtr.ilia, such as the Hon. J. I'. St*Gowen. whwi l'reinier of New fsft-ttt'h Wales, aßd'"tllesß opinions cannot ho ifcrest Oα mm side. The objection to , ew syllaims as ittm , * crowded does not t-oem to iwe a vftiid O''w>. There was :i t.hne ste) eu* sylJttbiis was rigid and teachers iiad no ciiotas oi their own, -but had to fetter ft ftsed I'sMii'Bißt Now, as pointed o.i-H by ill , . Magben at the meeting of the N.-X.EJ. in Auckland last January: tho syllabus is -merely a ewg. gestion of what w<wk shonlif i>c donxi, wt a hard and fast set xif rosulivt-ions in epfclt subject. My. HoaWn's. VI6W is boj'liß out by tho action of aii-r insjjfrfitprs hi Ilw last fejv years, who have t>eftn in tfm liitijir. of sayiiifr, "It is , the'tjuaSity of'ttift wflrk wo are going to louk &t y not thu iiuaiitily done." Every Biases eut lU3 j own general fchffm.e w«-tc, aiid if i'.iepectors'nrc satisfied mih it,-tjicy pj;,trisii!c within its limits-. I have no hteitaiiuli, from an experiem-e of 3-5 vrft-v.s as « Iraaiiwaster in our scilioo/j.-, fn sayinj 'thit rkv introduction of Uifete resdies .ws jiart «i the literary'training oi ma ilnhlniu and the visits of acci'fiilited. tfiacfcetsj will net interfere injuriously ■with th* schawl syllabus of work. Something has also ten said about the conscience clause for te*achcrs l but as they arb not being ashed Is teach Mligiou, why ask for such a, cljius* al: n-U ? 't'liey aro onlyasUcd to"')iaV« t)i6 iilble lcsstes in tho same way "thai they have any other reading les&on, ami de/.l'tiC ; 6 fwiii them the moral ati-d Jiteraify beartiM therein , to be found. Tho teligieus teadw ing will be giv.en. nttder t.h« Leagiiß's proposal, not by SWe school teechws, but by the accrwHted teachers Wtt tire Churches, so that a tene-he? will be oWe to say, "I have, no tesiwnstJ*iiH : y; that lies with the Chii-rtlies." Jly own opinion is ihai, if a SiTipfuffi reading lesson had tfl: lie takeii, it would. l>o taken with all duo reve-ronco and ?o» spect by almost all tii-ose engaged in tiie educational servieo. Thi? fact w »«!.)* convincing to us that in. tji.e Sfattes in which the eysteii'.i has tell tarried on ift tho Commoiuvcaffti of Aflstailia »ut;_ ohp teacher has been hewd of who rofusei for conscience sike, ta take the ieijitirsl ehai'e iu Hie work, imc fwis tuny 'fematid for such a clause ever ten made by file teachers, and this uetwiftstamlinj* that the teachers have tfeuir vuiwtfis whtt-h put their grievances betee tlie pti-Uic and Parliament. What strengw rofutatimi of tho need of such a cfau§« ciui be brought forward 1 than this? The fact that np.pokiiiiWit-s by eenii»ittnrw would be-offeeted by a t<-iu:h«'s religion seems to too very far fetehed, Jly own opinion is that exactly the opposite effect will be pf«luf*ti, teaiise As every church, will havevthe .ri.sW' to take Us own share in reiigioi-is tpftehiug, thet-e will be not the same necoMty ias 'sown? dJlegu has existed in the s»*t) appointing teachers belonging' ta Jit'iy piivticviJu-r ehnrch. I do not for a Micineftt think iii-at a teacher's religioji weuid co»« ii.ttotonsideration with a etlrool GOni-mi-ttee any more than it ties* now. As a result of my 35 years' experience, I (lelifeersjtrfj express the opinion that if tli-ftre had 'kee.il Boine such system swh as Uw Iwigtte' pro-po-es, includ'ed in oiif cduwiwnol' System, the benefiti thtfHymde? mwW liave; beta much greater and the rising generation mere moral muter ft Mil-secular syit-wii. The suggestion, that a irfe-itiidrun is not (Suitable to a religions question beeanpo tho religious aspep-t is rc.?»rded im bemg: held 'by the majority is fiwt of all a nk-in, admission that' tile pi-ftsent ednthtional system is not Sipproml by 4he majority of the people; kit sfceoMttly, the ai-gumenf-h<is-no force IsceaiiM- there is its attempt under tho propositi to t«co the minftrity ' to do anything to vv'Weh they object. I'h.e parents of those children Mjlut (lo not vvaiit them to wad Bible lotsoiis or U 1» visited by ministers will not lie iuk-fi'ewd *Wi in the ifaHt. The ii'itiiority will litsv-e its rights respected* jitst as tit Hie ptWeiit time, but with. liitr4ii!pwojic* the majority \rill have just the saino riffltts. 'i'hei'o is no compulsion in tltc-'mutltaf at aft. TJso HURgoslion that tin- twvhks-sro to. lju cawpolled to »ive . r(>ls*i(mit iwSotis is met with by tin , fact that tlipy arc not. tiskod tii'do sniyth-iiij! of (!«• sort. 'Pk'y &W ask* I'd to give reading les.-on*' tafcwi from tlio 1),",4 literature in tiie Kitgfiri.i la'jstiiiac. ] have K ol| e csi-refnily over Uicip i'eadiiiß li's-ons in I lie QuWKs-laml Ixwfcs, study. in<; tlioiii Willi a viow to si-eing how J would lake l!im« tvilli a class. I find no diliiciilly-in treating tlisni ae ordimiry U'.-sofia, givtug &">' H-Mi>ssary lihuir-.tioii'. ;is to tnriUiii-i"?, ivitinnnf any relijjiuus cunimevif: at all; «ml I believe there are very foiv teaehtrs in Uao whole of Neiy Zcalaml wile weukl lisid; any mmv tliflicully than 1 myself. Even for its literary value uloiw hsa-efopi's, should welcome (he intvotl»e(wn »f U>* BIWc Utta tun , isilioiial H'lfOols. I Wlievp that thirty iipr cmiV. of our leuchvra are ijewtib" ift eotord with tltn o£ tits Bfble Is State Setoels